Hiking in the rain - tips to staying in the game?

[KC8QVO]

I am curious what tips those here have for staying relatively comfortable while hiking in the rain? If I was on a long distance hike I would have a couple thoughts cross my mind in this realm - 1. hunker down and wait out the rain or 2. I can't sit and wait it out and hit the trails regardless.

Water wicks heat, even if the air temp is mild you can still end up very uncomfortably cold with rain pouring over you.

If you throw on rain gear you'll end up sweating.

The reason for my curiosity is I did a bit over 20 miles in the Smokies over the holiday weekend and the second half of the trek was all rain. We took Lakeshore Trail west and up Bear Creek Trail to Welch Ridge then hit High Rocks, and wet back down the opposite way. After a storm on top High Rocks we hit the trail and about 30-45 min later through the rest of the next day it rained (remnants of tropical storm Lee). We were on a tight schedule and had no choice to stop and hunker down. I had to be at work at 8am tuesday morning so another day or going slow to wait things out wasn't an option.

What tricks have some of you come up with to stay comfortable and keep the water off you while you're packing the miles? I know the AT can put you through days, maybe weeks, of rain so there have to be some tricks to dealing with it better.

[RWheeler]

What I imagine being the case for me (never actually been in this situation before), is that once you're on the AT, you'll probably end up seeing rain very very frequently. Imagining yourself making up those miles on other days and still finishing a thru-hike when you bunker down to avoid the rain would become very unrealistic very quickly.

And if you're sweating while in your rain gear, then you need to shed layers. Even if this means wearing /just/ your rain shell. If you're still sweating at that point, at least you're not soaking your clothes in sweat, which will likely end up with you being drier than on a bright, sunny day.

[Just a Hiker]

If the weather is nice I just try and embrace the rain and keep on going; however, there comes a time in every long distance hiker's journey that the rain just gets to be too much; and when that happens, I head to town to dry out and get my gear dry. Personally, I think that rain gear is a waste of money because all I do is get sweaty and I end up smelling even worse than I normally do. Having said this, when the weather is cooler, I try and be smart about things and not risk hypothermia.

[Stir Fry]

Have good rain gear. Try not to move to fast, to avoid sweeting.
I use a very light rain jacket, a wide brimed hat to shed water beyond my sholders. and a rain rap that I never sweet in. Then pace myself so as not to sweet. Works ok when its cooler out. Not as good when temp above 65* or so.

[Odd Man Out]

I found that hiking is better than hunkering down, as you and your gear are all wrapped up, in place, and out of the weather. I've tired crawling under something for shelter and there waiting for it to blow over, but just sitting in the rain basically sucked.

[hikerboy57]

for me its kind like bugs. once Ive accepted the situation and stop thinking about it, its not so bad. but there are days Id rather be somewhere dry.

[mountain squid]

Use an umbrella.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

how to hike

[So Way]

as stated above... UMBRELLA!!! i left all my other rain gear in a hiker box so someone else could enjoy sweating their arses off while i'm cool and dry under my umbrella...and since i'm cheap i got a wally world umbrella for $3 and it works just as good as the $100 "ultralite" umbrellas that weight about the same.

[hikerboy57]

would one of thee work?:http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_U84fPuQrKz...BRELLA_HAT.jpg

[mountain squid]

It might . . . be the first to provide a review.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

how to hike

[Slo-go'en]

Like everything else, it all depends on the time of year and hence the type of rain. Thankfully, tropical storms like Irene and Lee aren't real common so can be considered special cases. If at all possible ride these out someplace high and dry. Being out in those kind of storms is more like swimming than hiking! Nothing will keep you dry for long in tropical storm rain. At least it's usually a warm rain.

Prolong periods of rain usually occur in the spring and is usually a cold or chilly rain. A rain jacket may not keep you dry due to sweat, but it will keep you warm and from getting totally soaked to the bone. It's easier and quicker to dry a shirt with body heat if it is just damp from sweat then if its soaking, dripping wet from rain. If it's raining early in the morning, it will often lighten up or stop a little later once the sun has a chance to heat the clouds and lift them, so it often pays to linger and see what happens.

On a long distance hike, you have more flexability with your time. So on a LD hike, if it starts to rain a lot, like nearly every day and if I have extra food, sometimes I'll just say "I don't want to hike in the rain again today" and hunker down in a shelter for the day. Or, if I have been in a rainly spell and it turns into a nice day, maybe I'll stop early to dry things out.

On a short section hike, you have to just trudge through what ever you get, as you have little choice.

[Kerosene]

The way I view it, every situation requires a different approach.
On warmer (above 60F) days, you can stay warm just by maintaining a steady pace unless the rain is super-cold (typically from a thunderstorm).
On cooler days, you'll want a rain barrier of some sort, but even then you'll probably want to moderate your pace to keep from overheating. I like e-Vent products on these types of days, but even then I slow down, leave the zippers open and not wear much underneath.
You might also look at DWR-treated windwear, especially if you go the umbrella route. These garments are extremely light and highly breathable, but they will eventually soak through. An umbrella is a nice concept if the wind isn't too high and the trail is wide enough. Pairing that with wind pants or a "rain kilt" would be ideal I think. The only reason I haven't gone that route is I don't want to carry an umbrella nor do I have a way to lash it to my internal frame pack.
In the end though, you're going to get wet while you hiking, but I still think that it's better than sitting on your butt all day trying to ride it out unless you have a great weather forecast.
The real challenge is trying to keep your critical gear dry after multiple days of rain. It's pretty easy for a couple of days, but it gets harder after 3 days, especially if you you're setting up a wet tent in the rain. In that situation, you wait for a sunny day and take a long break to dry everything out.

[Spokes]

Someone once asked me "So when it rains, you don't hike right?"

Coffee shot out my nose!

[Maddog]

Someone once asked me "So when it rains, you don't hike right?"

Coffee shot out my nose!

Greatest comment of all time!

[fiddlehead]

Yeah, depending on the temps, I often enjoy hiking in the rain.
I have found that Frogg Toggs breathe as good as any raingear that I've tried.
So, what to wear underneath? Next to nothing if it's warm.
Lightweight polypro if it's cold.
And KEEP MOVING.

As far as your gear, I've found that you need to triple bag things that you really want to keep dry. (on the AT anyway)
Day after day of rain means things don't dry out. So, don't let them get wet in the 1st place (good luck with that one)

[lemon b]

Try to embrace the rain, umbrella's don't work for me because they bang off of branches. My experience is to keep moving, adjust for the temp, and do all I can to have a dry night. planning, Pack cover, plastic bags on everything. My rain gear is a goretex shell. Bottom line is constant days of hard rain and staying totally dry isn't going to happen. I also rub my feet and change the socks as much as I can.

[topshelf]

For the ultralight hikers, or anyone who wears trail running shoes to hike in...What measures to you take to keep your feet dry? Or at least to avoid blisters from wet shoes and feet. I have a major problem with getting blisters when hiking in the rain from my feet and shoes getting wet. I could wear boots but they give me blisters on dry days.

[Freedom Walker]

I don't have anything to add. I am just weighing it so I can find the thread later. It is a very important one to follow. I have finished a trip that rain soaked everything, but I only had to go two milles, so i need a longer experience with rain.

[mountain squid]

What measures to you take to keep your feet dry?

ummm, nothing . . . . sunshine?!? . . . . there really isn't much that you can do. Probably one of the worst parts (if not the worst) of a long distance hike is putting on cold, wet socks first thing in the morning. And then, they go right into cold, wet shoes. You just got to suck it up. If the rain is really bad, eventually you stop even trying to keep your shoes dry . . . it just isn't going to happen.

If blisters are a bad problem, I suppose you could limit your daily miles when it is raining, taking alot of breaks and allowing your feet to dry out. (But taking breaks in the rain doesn't happen much unless there is someplace dry to sit.) That might help, at least until your feet have hardened up. Unless you carry 10 pr of socks, changing socks isn't really an option, because then you won't have any dry ones for camp.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

how to hike

[ScottP]

I don't even attempt to stay dry unless it's cold/windy. It's really not uncomfortable to be wet while it's warm out.

In the cool but non-freezing seasons, I cover up my head/core. You're still going to get damp but the water isn't going to suck out all of your heat.

The winter is another story altogether.