[pct-l] Jacket questions?

[CHUCK CHELIN]

Good morning, Brandon,

My thoughts regarding jackets can be found at:

http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=263874

with further discussion at:

http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=265651



I’ll second Diane’s comments that the south can be cold in April.  On
several trips, the coldest I became was at the Kick-Off at Lake Morena while
watching the evening outdoor programs.  While hiking I don’t sit around in
the evening cold; I crawl in the sack and get some sleep.  I won’t hike with
extra gear weight just to satisfy one or two cool evenings.



For 80% of the PCT one of the fine, ultra-lite down jackets is great, but
they are mostly overkill, and they are ruinously expensive.  I have many
down jackets of various weights, but not one of the ultra-lites.  I’ve
intended to buy one many times, but fleece – while being less warm – is warm
enough, and several hundred dollars less expensive.  Plus, living as I do in
the Pacific NW, I have lots of direct experience with both down jackets and
fleece jackets under rain gear.  Perspiration will accumulate, but fleece
will insulate while damp/wet but down does so poorly.  Fleece will dry
quickly and completely while being worn, but down is reluctant to dry and
will clump and loose efficiency as it does.  In my opinion, fleece wins for
anything more than about 1 mile of hiking in the rain.



Steel-Eye

Hiking the Pct since before it was the PCT – 1965

http://www.trailjournals.com/steel-eye
http://www.trailjournals.com/SteelEye09

On Mon, Nov 8, 2010 at 5:53 PM, Diane Soini of Santa Barbara Hikes <
diane at santabarbarahikes.com> wrote:

> Somebody should post this every day until the start of the next thru-
> hiking season:
>
> The desert is cold! You need jackets, sleeping bags, rain gear,
> possibly some snow gear, the works! It is cold.
>
> So many people believe it's all desert, all tumbleweeds and cactus
> from Mexico to Kennedy Meadows. Hardly the case. Some people believe
> that if it is desert, it's hot. There's no humidity so as hot as it
> might get during the day it can get equally/inversely as cold at
> night. It can get cold during the day, too. I froze under the
> Cottonwood bridge on Aqueduct day.
>
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