Gatewood Cape

[Rif]

There are snaps to tie up the excess material and with most anything else condensation is a minor issue. Still beter than a rain shell imho.

Thanks. In the videos I have seen it looks like a lot of material. The Zpacks poncho is sewn with a taper inward towrds the legs giving it a more narrow shape. The stiffness of the Cuben fiber though makes it stand out from the body quite a bit.

I do think ponchos are more breathable than most shells simply because of the extra room and not being as enclosed. The Gatewood is more closed in than some ponchos but not as much as any shell.

Ideally I would want a breathable Gortex shell like the Marmont Minimalist for unladen walks or with just a small lumbar pack and have a poncho for those with a larger pack where I plan to spend a long day outdoors with rain very likely. The gatewood would also give me the option to rig a quick, simple shelter for a long lunch too. For the videos it seems to setup easily.

Thanks for the info.

[STICK]

The stiffness of the Cuben fiber though makes it stand out from the body quite a bit.

I haven't found this to necessarily be true, especially with the lighter weight cuben (maybe even 1 oz/sqyd, but for sure with 0.74 oz/sqyd and less). The thicker, more heavy duty weight cuben (such as 1.26 or 1.43 oz/sqyd) that the packs are made of can be a little stiffer. However, with some use, the cuben softens up and becomes much less stiff.

I feel like Joe would probably use whichever weight you wanted for whatever you wanted, but the poncho/ground sheet that he sells is offered right on the site in either 0.74 or 1 oz/sqyd cuben. I have the 0.74 ground sheet (not the poncho version) and after using it I can say that it is not stiff at all and I wouldn't have any trouble or concern about wearing this material over me as a poncho. I also have some 1 oz/sqyd cuben dry sacks and it is also much less stiff after using, but obviously it is a little stiffer than the 0.74. However, I don't think that I would have any concern with using the 1 oz/sqyd weight as a poncho either.

[Rif]

Stick,

Good to know the cuben softens more with use. I have a few of the small cuben stuff sacks and they are fairly soft but these are all .51oz cuben, half the yardage weight of the poncho.

The poncho is currently listed as being from 1.0oz black cuben although I know Joe will make whatever one needs. He suggest the 1oz as being a good compromise. I have one here now and it hangs pretty much like the photo on the website with stiff shoulder "wings" which in one way is pretty good.....the shoulders act as beaks keeping the rain well away from the opennings below.

Being quite tall I was unsure if I needed a modification to mine so Joe suggested I try one of the standards first to see how it fits before making a long version. As this one will likely go back I am hesitant to test how flexible the cuben will be as I want to return it in as new condition. If I do go with the Zpacks poncho I now know what length additions I will need front and back as well as hood placement.

It is a tough choice picking any gear as you well know. Each piece has its strengths and weaknesses and both the Gatewood Cape and the Zpacks Poncho are well designed rain gear. With the Zpacks though I can get the sizing just right. Being 6' 6" tall means most ponchos stop way higher on the thighs than for average height people.

Tony

[english]

spoke to Ron at 6 moons last week & there's plans for a CF version of the gatewood in the works, he thinks it'll be around 7 oz (which seemed slightly heavy to me) but I don't know the CF weight he plans on using. I bought mine off ebay but will likely buy the CF version direct when it comes out.

[Rif]

7oz does not sound out of line. The Zpacks poncho weighs in at 5oz. I think and the Gatewood Cape has a lot more material due to it's larger size and more complete coverage so a few more oz would be in order.

The ideal package may be the Zpacks as rain gear, and the Gatewood as a UL shelter. Leave out the Serenity Net and use the Zpacks poncho as your ground cloth.

[english]

Rif, your just up the road from me, you can check my gatewood out if you'd like before buying. i'm in columbia, md

[HiKen2011]

Hiked from Springer to Hawk MTN and back a couple weeks ago and used the gatewood cape. Loved it! At 11 oz's for shelter and rain gear for ME it can't be beat! A little bit of condensation but for the weight I can deal with that. Lots of room to, I'm 5'10" and had plenty of room!