[pct-l] Re: Raingear on JMT

[Tom Rogers <tfrogers@san.rr.com>]

> One more question: goretex raincoat or poncho on the jmt in August? I
> could save a pound off of my basepack...I keep going back and forth on
> this one. I know if it is wet enough  I get plenty wet even in goretex.
Hi Tom,
I was on the JMT late August last season and hit 3 days of rain/hail
from Muir Pass to the Minarets.  I was glad to have a gortex parka.  It
was also a welcome extra layer for evenings and mornings in camp when
there was a nip in the air.
Happy trails, Tom
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Cc:            pct-l@backcountry.net
From:          Jeffrey Olson <jjolson@u.washington.edu>
Date:          Thu, 22 Jul 1999 17:58:44 -0700
Subject:       Re: [pct-l] rain gear for JMT
Content-type:  text/plain; charset=us-ascii

> > One more question: goretex raincoat or poncho on the jmt in August? I
> > could save a pound off of my basepack...I keep going back and forth on
> > this one. I know if it is wet enough  I get plenty wet even in goretex.
>

I've hiked a number of times in the southern Sierra in August, and up here in
Washington's Cascades as well.  I sweat, and would venture to say that with a
coat I'm wetter and warmer than with a poncho.  I like the feeling of wrapping
myself in the poncho, of getting it just right so to allow for air movement as
well as keeping the rain out.  When it's windy and wet, the poncho kept me
shielded from the crotch up.  It is a bit cooler, but that's not as much of an
issue in the southern sierra as it is up here in the Cascades.  So, for me, it
is the variable of sweat that decides.  I leave my goretex for winter
snowshoeing.

Jeffrey Olson
Seattle, Washington...
Moving to Laramie, WY in three weeks to become a university professor,
beginning the third career...

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