[pct-l] Rain pants, rain kilt, wind pants, or nothing for the Sierra?

Wed May 29 21:29:06 CDT 2013

This is a good point at which to interject the central importance of 
thinking of your gear as a system.  For example, in 2005 I started in 
Canada on June 10, and spent the next seven days - from Manning to 
Stehekin - in the clouds, sleet, and snow.  I wasn't carrying any pants 
at all. If it rained, it was spitting, but mostly it sleeted and 
snowed.  I was totally comfortable in shorts.  I wore a medium weight 
polypro top, my hiking shirt, a primaloft vest, and a frogg toggs 
raincoat. And I found that I was far more comfortable in shorts when it 
snowed than when it rained. For me, and this is IMHO, pants of any sort 
are unnecessary unless you're concerned with mosquitos or sun.  
Otherwise, they just wear off leg hair.

I've learned I would preferto be in the rain and snow in shorts and a 
poncho than wear any kind of long pants.  What I did learn is that the 
Frogg Toggs top was too short.  When I went up the knife edge and across 
the Packwood Glacier and then down and down towards Sheep Lake in the 
Goat Rocks, it rained hard.  The frogg toggs jacket was too short and 
water leeched up to my polypro underwear and hiking shirt and my core 
got cold.  Mybody was wet from the crotch to just under my pecs, and at 
2PM, I went to bed.

Since then I've used a silnylon poncho and I'm protected from rain from 
midthigh up.  And because I sweat profusely, the poncho lets air 
circulate and my clothes get rid of the water vapor.

I'm an advocate of Ray Jardine's way of thinking, if not all his gear 
choices.  Hiking for more than a couple weeks has us evolve a comfort 
level with being in the wilderness that translates to a gear system. 
First comes comfort level/experience.  Then comes gear choices to 
support that comfort level. And it's a system.

For the last 10 years I've used one of those full-length blue foam pads 
to sleep on.  In 2003 I got a Nunatak arc alpinist quilt.  I didn't want 
the variability of having to make sure my lower legs and feetwere on 
clothes or my pack for warmth.  Hence the full length pad.  I started 
with a Golite Gust - basically a big 21 oz. sack - put the blue pad in 
it, and then everything else inside that.  I didn't need a suspension 
system. Everything was so tightly packed no stays were necessary. Mypack 
weight rested totally on my waist - not my hips - my waist. (Read 
Jardine about that).

I just purchased one of those 12 oz full length, 2.5 inch thick 
thermarest neolite pads - to the tune of $127!!! That's a lot more than 
the $11 I pay for the blue foam pad.  I'm using a Golite Pinnacle now - 
the Gust didn't have external pockets for water bottles, but that's the 
only advantage for me.  I'm going to be really curious how not having 
the blue foam pad to make everything rigid is going to work.  The new 
pad is 10 inches long and 4 inchs in diameter. It's half the size of 
myTarptent Contrail. I won't get a smaller pack because I've never stuff 
the quilt, and never will. It gets its own black plastic garbage bag, 
and fills out the pack, regardless of the amount of food in it.

The bottom line is that my base weight for pack, quilt, pad and tent is 
84 oz. I think that's 5 pounds.  My brother, who just disrobed and left 
a Buddhist Abbey after 21 years of cloistered existence, has an old 
Kelty.  His pack weighs as much as my basic kit. I'm giving him one of 
my old Gusts and blue foam pads and Sierra Designs lightyear tent.

When you begin your hiking life, you think about gear and which item 
among an array of items to buy.  As you hike more and more weeks - 
especially more than three or four weeks in one hike, the focus for gear 
becomes your system - how does it support your comfort levelwith being 
in the wilderness. It's SO much easier to hike with a light pack than a 
heavy one.

However, the best, and most interesting "gear" decision is in finding a 
mate - you want one that likes to hike.  When I was in my 20s, my 
initial criteria for considering a woman as a mate was did she enjoy a 
week hiking 50 miles in a loop in the high Sierra? (Women can do the 
same thing of course).

One of the interesting findings emerging from research on relationships 
is it's not "love" that matters in a couple staying together,it's common 
interests. When a guy chooses a woman because she's beautiful or cute or 
social, or a woman chooses a man because he's handsome or promises to be 
materially successful, the choice will likely lead to divorce and many 
wasted years of floundering.

If you love to hike, find someone who loves to hike.  This is the most 
important part of your backpacking system.  Nuff said...

Jeffrey Olson
Rapid City SD, heading out for a short, week long loop out of Pine Creek 
to explore the Bear Lakes area...

On 5/29/2013 7:51 PM, Scott Williams wrote:
> Great description of the weekly weather cycle Jeffrey.  It starts with
> clear skies for a couple of days maybe, then clouds in the PM, then in the
> AM and then all hell breaks loose in the afternoons for a few days and it
> starts again.  July, August and Sept. (although Sept is the driest) I've
> always carried a light rain coat and real cheepo rain pants that are no
> heavier than a pair of wind pants.  I also use them for layering and
> warmth, but the pants are optional in my opinion.  I think the rain jacket
> or poncho is a must for safety, however.
>
> It's a great place to be at a great time of the year, except that the
> mosquitos may carry you away on a wing and a prayer!  Rain coat or not,
> make sure you've got a head net.  In the evening, the rain pants double as
> mosquito protection.  Can't stand to hike in them if I don't have to, but
> in camp they are great protection.
>
> Shroomer
>
>
> On Wed, May 29, 2013 at 11:45 AM, Joe Bernier <joe_bernier at me.com> wrote:
>
>> I carry a rain jacket and rain pants in the Sierra.
>>
>> I think of them not only as protection from rain, but as part of a
>> layering system for warmth. If you think of it this way, you might go with
>> a lighter insulated jacket . . . maybe leave the long johns at home . . .
>> if the rain jacket is breathable enough, skip the wind jacket . . . use a
>> lighter bag/quilt and sleep with your breathable rain gear on cold nights .
>> . .
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On May 29, 2013, at 11:22 AM, gary_schenk at verizon.net wrote:
>>
>>> July is monsoon season in the Sierra. It can rain for several days in a
>> row. August is afternoon thunderstorm season. September is pure bliss
>> season.
>>> Take a rain jacket.
>>>
>>> Just MHO.
>>> Gary
>>>
>>> On 05/29/13, Alan Miller wrote:
>>>
>>> Thank you everyone who responded to my last post about July 4th. We got
>>> our permit reserved for the JMT/PCT loop section by Mammoth! Now the fun
>>> stuff - gear. I see a lot of gear lists where people do not add rain
>> pants
>>> or even a rain jacket until Oregon. I struggle with this because where we
>>> live, rain is inevitable on most trips. I always pack a rain jacket and
>>> rain pants. Are rain pants necessary in the Sierra at the beginning of
>>> July or would a pair of wind pants be enough? Or, should we not bother
>>> with either? Both of our rain jackets are very light, so I will pack them
>>> anyway, but the pants are kind of heavy. Thanks
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Pct-L mailing list
>>> Pct-L at backcountry.net
>>> To unsubscribe, or change options visit:
>>> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>>>
>>> List Archives:
>>> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>>> All content is copyrighted by the respective authors.
>>> Reproduction is prohibited without express permission.
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Pct-L mailing list
>>> Pct-L at backcountry.net
>>> To unsubscribe, or change options visit:
>>> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>>>
>>> List Archives:
>>> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>>> All content is copyrighted by the respective authors.
>>> Reproduction is prohibited without express permission.
>> _______________________________________________
>> Pct-L mailing list
>> Pct-L at backcountry.net
>> To unsubscribe, or change options visit:
>> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>>
>> List Archives:
>> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>> All content is copyrighted by the respective authors.
>> Reproduction is prohibited without express permission.
>>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubscribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
> All content is copyrighted by the respective authors.
> Reproduction is prohibited without express permission.
>
>
> -----
> No virus found in this message.
> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
> Version: 2013.0.3343 / Virus Database: 3184/6368 - Release Date: 05/29/13