Rain gear

[Which Way]

My wife and are thru hiking the AT in 2018. So many decisions to make on gear. I am most curious about rain gear now. I think a poncho would be great to keep the rain off of us and our backpack; it would seem to be more ventilated for the warm days. Rain jackets with a backpack cover would appear to be stuffy and hot, but when I look at pictures of people of the trail, this is what I see the most hikers wearing. Any thoughts, opinions and suggestions are appreciated.

[Scars]

It depends, so you can expect a full spectrum of responses and opinions One truism beyond all other opinions, you will get wet no matter what you are wearing. Beyond that, the primary considerations are rain, wind, warmth/sweat, and flexibility. The timeframe of your hike, Winter to Summer, Spring to Autumn or Summer to snow will dictate the balance of these considerations. In short, a milspec poncho can serve as rain gear, pack cover and ground sheet but you have no coverage over your legs and, without well-fitting gators, the water pours into your shoes. Even with the waist cinch strap it is more subject to the wind, but is less restricting and keeps you cool. Thus IMO it gets a high rating for flexibility (utility), and moderate for wind, sweat and rain, and low for warmth. A lightweight poncho gets a high rating for sweat, a moderate rating for rain, and a low rating for flexibility (adaptability and configuration), warmth, and wind. A two piece rain suit provides wet and cold weather coverage (not in sleeping bag!) and provide flexibility (configuration) but are hot and clammy even with arm pit gussets (a must) and are difficult to put on without long zippers on the legs (another must). Thus, they get a high rating for rain, warmth and wind, a moderate rating for flexibility (configuration), and a low rating for sweat. A third option is a rain jacket (or even just a wind jacket) and rain kilt, which you are seeing more and more of. I assess this combo to get a moderate rating across the board, being slightly less rain resistant, warm, and wind resistant without pants, but providing good flexibility on configurations. Personally, I would spend a king’s ransom on a good rainsuit with gussets and leg zips for the spouse because she will be drier, warmer, less subject to wind, and have an outfit to wear during clothes washing days. I am/would seriously consider a poncho for you, for maximum utility and temperature management if you are less prone to lower extremity cold while hiking.
Now, unleash the hounds

[Leo L.]

I'm not on the AT, but here's my experience anyway:

After having used several Gore Tex jackets and trousers, and each failed rather sooner than later, I ended up with an UL poncho with a "hump" for the pack, and chaps for the legs.
The chaps I can put on without taking the shoes off and hook them to the trousers belt, and they add some warmth (which is welcome in our typical Alpine settings).
The poncho is really waterproof, will protect the pack too so I don't need a pack cover, and in case the rain ceases for some time I can throw the cap + front part back to store it in the gap between pack and body and I'm free in movement and well ventilated. A bit like Packa-style.
Downside of a poncho is, you'll have a hard time in high winds and when bushwhacking or real scrambling/rock climbing.
On the positive side, even the best Poncho&Chaps is way cheaper than a full Goretex Outfit.

And true, you will get wet (or at least damp) over time, no matter what.

[double d]

A simple Campmor Poncho is a great thing to have, its lightweight, well made and covers you and backpack well. Some don't like to hike with a poncho, but I do, and although I've hiked a lot of AT miles, I'm not a thru-hiker either, so the daily grind of hiking 15 or more miles a day for several months is not in my experience either, but I'm always glad that I have a poncho on my long distance hikes. Good luck

[blw2]

I'm reminded of a day hike me and a friend took up some trail on the Western shore of Lake George a long time ago....

We were up that way on a business trip and took time out for a hike. The problem was that the remnants of a tropical storm or hurricane was sitting over us... steady very heavy rain..... but it was warm enough. We had no gear really, probably sneakers or maybe our steel toe work boots. Certainly no ponchos or parkas. We just took off our shirts and hiked. Yeah our shorts got soaked as did our shoes....but it was a fun hike. If we'd have been wearing rain gear we would have been 100% soaked just the same... just hot and clammy on top of it. At the top, we had a nice view of the inside of the clouds, couldn't see a bit of the lake, but we knew it was there someplace. A good hike.

[moldy]

It's more useful to get a light rain jacket, with ventable armpits and a bill of sorts for the hood along with light weight rain pants for a thru-hike. You will also need a pack cover that is the correct size. This system has other uses like to keep the wind off of you and bugs. Also you can stuff all other clothing in a washing machine and still have something to wear. I keep mine in a sack that becomes a pillow if it's dry. I once tied knots at the bottom of each pant leg then grasping the waistline tightly I blew air into the rainpants like a big balloon and used it as a life jacket when I waded across the Kennebeck in Maine.

[Wesgoat]

After 1455 miles on the AT this is my two cents about rain gear. Lightweight wind jacket (Houdini for me), with a poncho over it that acts as a pack cover also and on the really cool, wet days.....which there will be some.....a rain kilt. This gives me the greatest flexibility and I think the most airflow I can get. I started out with the rain jacket and pants switched to this setup.

[daddytwosticks]

3, 2, 1, 0....how bout a Packa?

[Christoph]

I only took a Frog Toggs jacket on my thru this year. Ended up using it more for warmth than trying to keep the rain off and keep dry. You'll get wet one way or the other, either from rain or sweat.

[nsherry61]

I'm a poncho guy all the way. I currently use a Sea-to-summit ultra-sil nano poncho tarp (occasionally with the addition of homemade chaps) and generally use it for for my shelter, when solo, from May-Oct.

I can put it on and take it off much faster and easier than rain gear. It keeps my pack completely dry. It allows me to sit down, dig through my pack, navigate, and eat food, all in the shelter of being under the poncho where-as my friends in traditional raingear have to fight the rain while digging through their pack, navigating with a rain-soaked map or cell phone, and eating food that's getting wet and soggy.

Ponchos rock!

[Bronk]

No matter what you use for rain gear you are going to sweat inside of it. Hiking the AT in the spring you're just going to have to accept the idea that you will be wet or damp almost all of the time no matter what you do. Everything you own will smell like mildew and just about the time you think everything is just about all dried out it will rain again...usually before.

Most people carry a rain jacket because its part of their layering system and thus has a use even when its not raining. I like a rain jacket that goes almost to my knees...that combined with nylon jogging pants that will dry quickly means I don't bother with rain pants (which you will just sweat inside of anyway).

[Cheyou]

Embrace the suck . Don’t spend a lot of money on it .

[tflaris]

From my limited experience on the AT:

We brought jackets and rain kilts and for the most part we were happy with our decision except for days with the rain was just enough to get you wet but not enough to put on a jacket.

So to repeat what others have said some days we got wet.

IMHO

1. Whatever you bring you will be convinced that there is something better.

2. For every pro, there’s a con for each choice.

3. With the high humidity typically nothing ever really dies.

This advice is limited to my 500 mike stretch on the AT starting at Springer. Time frame starting in April/May.

Your mileage may vary. The


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[Slo-go'en]

Personally, I find a poncho to be a PITA. I can never get it to go over the back of my pack without another person to set it right. It billows in the wind and gets snagged on brush sticking out into the trail. Your arms get wet and cold. I tried using my Gatewood Cape as rain gear last spring. Big mistake as it rained for the better part of 2 weeks going through PA. It just added to the misery.
A rain jacket is much more practical and as has been noted, is an important part of a layering system, especially early in the season. later in the summer you might want to add a poncho since then you basically just need something to hide under during an afternoon thunderstorm. Your not using it all day like you would during the spring monsoon season.

The Packa does look like a good option. I may decide to get on next time I need to replace rain gear.

[Leo L.]

The biggest problem I have with raingear is, that I never seem to find the perfect point in time to put it on.
When there is a sudden downpour usually I'm too late and will get drenched until I have the suff over my head correctly
When rain starts with a light drizzle which increases in small steps (something we have most often here) it takes a time until I start feeling the wetness on my body until I realize its really raining and when I put on the raingear I'm already wet under it.

Luckily my backpack (Lightwave) is kind of waterproof without a pack cover, so its only me who is wet, not my gear in the pack.

[Ethesis]

From my limited experience on the AT:

We brought jackets and rain kilts and for the most part we were happy with our decision except for days with the rain was just enough to get you wet but not enough to put on a jacket.

So to repeat what others have said some days we got wet.

IMHO

1. Whatever you bring you will be convinced that there is something better.

2. For every pro, there’s a con for each choice.

3. With the high humidity typically nothing ever really dies.

This advice is limited to my 500 mike stretch on the AT starting at Springer. Time frame starting in April/May.

Your mileage may vary. The


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That captures it.

It is a lot like shoes. What works for you is more personal than you would think.

Experiment. I went through two different ponchos (I really like them in theory) and I’m on my second rain jacket and second rain skirt. I think I now have what works for me.

But it may not work for you.

[blw2]

I have become a fan of umbrellas over the last few years...haven't used for backpacking so far, but I'm thinking I'll be bringing one along. easy to pull out for a quick rain shower, a quick shelter for the digging through the pack issue, use it for shade, or a wind brake. Not a total rain solution maybe, but a nice tool I think

[saltysack]

After several different rain shells, I’m liking the OR helium 11 paired with the cheap wind pants(ballet warm up pants)....cold weather I add a wind jackets it’s very versatile when it’s too warm for rain jacket the wind jacket is perfect as it breathes much better and layers under rain shell in cold weather...


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[Deadeye]

I use a Frogg Toggs jacket, $20 at Walmart, and an umbrella. Flexible, effective, and cheap. I stay reasonably dry and comfortable, even in an all-day soaker. In heavy rain, the umbrella helps keep the jacket from soaking through. In intermittent showers or hot weather, the umbrella is at hand, no need to put on a jacket.

[Emerson Bigills]

No real good solution as the posters above attest to. One thing I might add, I switched from a Marmot top and bottom in mid-March in southern VA to a light poncho, because I had not worn my rain pants for over three weeks. Within a couple days, I ran into a cold, windy afternoon in the 40's with driving rain on a 3000 ft ridgeline. I survived for about 3 hours, but was in early stages of hypothermia by the time I got picked up for a hostel. Pretty scary situation. Premature decision to swap out to warm weather gear. I bought some frog togs at Trent's Grocery within a couple days and kept them until Harper's Ferry.