Greeting fellow hikers,

This is my first post on this excellent forum. If you want to skip to my question you can just go to the 2nd paragraph. Anyway, I am a current college student at Virginia Tech. My love for hiking started maybe 7 or so years ago when I used to do day hikes with my Dad. Recently I have started doing backpacking trips. (My Dad used to backpack, but can't handle it anymore) I have never done a trip more than 30 miles, but I am doing my best to plan a 50 - 75 miler.

Anyway, each of my last two trips have been poorly timed with weather. The first one rained for the first 2 days before it finially cleared on the 3rd. As we were all first timers it went surprisingly well. We stayed in a shelter the first night which is good for keeping things dry and everything stayed dry until we set up camp on night two. It was then that I had discovered that my tent leaked badly. After we finished up cooking we returned to find all of our stuff sitting in a puddle of water. Eventually it became too much to sleep in and we just backhiked to a shelter.

On the 2nd trip I was the only one who had ever been before. It was foretasted to rain that night and clear up early afternoon the 2nd day. Remembering my previous trip I was pretty darn concerned. After we got to the shelter I really wanted to stay there and not get drenched. The other 4 however really wanted to do another 3 miles before dark so we did. That night it poured. I didn't sleep for fear that history would repeat itself, but thankfully the tent held up pretty well with only a little water seeping through. Thankfully on the 2nd trip we woke up to clear skies which allowed us to shake out our tents and get the mud off before we packed everything up.

At this point I'm pretty clear on that if it hadn't stopped raining we would have just had to go with wet stuff until the weather changed enough to allow us to dry stuff out, but I was wondering if there were any tricks I could use to make it more bearable for first times. I ask because I'm pretty sure there will be at least a couple on the 75 miler I'm planning.

Seam seal your tent!! Most hardware stores, and even Walmart sell a some sort of silicone based seam sealer. I prefer SilNet - because I've sealed three different tents with it with out issue. Anyway, read the directions and apply accordingly and your tent leakage should be history.

For future reference...any tent will need this. No matter what the manufacturer says. Where ever there is a sewn seam, sealant is necessary.

I just got used to my stuff being wet all the time...hiking in the spring by the time all of my gear gets dried out it pours again.

Wear wet clothing to bed...if its truly soaking wet wring it out first...it will dry out over night if you wear it...if you don't, it will be wet and cold in the morning...not pleasant to put back on...I found sleeping in warm wet clothing is better than putting cold wet stuff back on.

wow! Be more carefull my friend, its you livelyhood on the line here.

I agree with TimeSnake.

You should do all that is possible to keep your gear dry, both on the trail and in camp. Most folks will end up damp if out long enough with enough rain, but one night should not get everything wet!

Keep one set of camp clothes dry at all costs. As has been said, do not be tempted to hike in these dry clothes the second, third, or fourth day. They are your dry clothes, keep them that way.

Seam seal your tent, as mentioned. Pay attention to where you set it up. Avoid fully exposed locations, avoid low-lying areas where rain water will puddle. If you are using a ground cloth, make sure that none of the edges of the cloth stick out beyond the perimeter of the tent floor. Allowing the edges to stick out will catch rain water and cause it to be directed under your tent, exactly what you are hoping to prevent.

Though many people subscribe to the idea of sleeping with your wet/damp clothes, I'm not one of them. I avoid adding any unnecessary moisture to my sleeping bag - my final refuge against the elements. Sleeping with damp wet clothes WILL add that dampness to your bag. Putting on cold wet clothing is not pleasant, but not as miserable as it sounds, even in real cold weather. At least the misery doesn't last that long. As soon as you get started hiking for the day, things will warm up quickly. If the rain has stopped, your clothing will start to dry, if it hasn't, any dry clothing you wear will soon be damp anyway. No sense fighting that fact, just accept it and live with it. ALWAYS keep your dry, camp clothes dry!!!

I'm assuming your are using proper clothing like PolyPro, fleece, nylon, etc. Not stuff like cotton. If you aren't sure, ask and keep researching here on WB until you are sure.

During the day, keep your dry clothes and sleeping bag protected inside plastic bags, buried deep in your pack, covered with a pack cover. If you do this, they will not get wet during the day, even if it pours all day.

Finally, before you take any new gear out where you will be depending on it, practice with it at home or while car-camping. Make your mistakes when your bail-out options are simple.

Good Luck and HAVE FUN!! And yes, rain can be fun with the right knowledge and attitude.

Thanks,

Only cotton I bring is a t shirt. Everything else is nylon pants, under armor, and a raincoat. I really need to get wool socks though. Still using cotton as its convenient. The above two really do need to be fixed.

test your tent at home after sealing it. Put it under sprinkler for an hour, see what it looks like inside. You also may need a new tent, not sure how old yours is. Gear buying is fun, lol. If you are using a ground sheet, IMO, it should go inside your tent, but others have different opinions on that subject.

hokiehiker,

I would think a cotton t-shirt would chill you, once it got wet from rain.

It seems that cotton is one-way: evaporating perspiration, if all else is dry.

If wet, it stays wet and water conducts more body warmth away from you by evaporative cooling, or, wet everywhere water conducts heat distributing the heat evenly to all the water (less heat for you).

There are soft synthetic t-shirts, or my favorite for ventilation: long zip t shirts.

If it isn't a warm rain, I hope you aren't wearing a cotton t-shirt.

There is lot's of cold rain on the trail.

There are soft synthetic or merino wool (http://www.macpac.co.nz/shop/en_nz/gear-and-clothing/mens-clothing/mens-merino/mountain-tee.html) t-shirts.

My favorite is a soft synthetic mock collar long zip t-shirt for warmth and ventilation.

There are so many hiker socks: Thorlo Light Hiker, for example.