Are rain pants necessary?

[Moosky]

Hello WB!

I have a marmot mica rain jacket and a pair of marmot essence rain pants. I also plan to hike in a pair of Exofficio Ziwa convertible pants. I plan to go SOBO in early to mid-July. Here is my question: Do I need the rain pants? They are not heavy but still I'd like to shed 6 oz if possible.

From my understanding, I'll sweat inside the rain gear no matter what (and I'm a heavy sweater). So the point of rain gear is not to keep dry but to keep warm. If that's the case, maybe I don't need the rain pants in the first 2 months because the weather is still warm? My plan is to hike with the mica jacket and the pants with the legs taken off on a rainy day. I will change into a pair of dry running shorts once I get to the shelter.

Do you think this will work?

Thanks!
Moosky

[turtle fast]

You probably will not need them in July....BUT...consider you are doing your laundry...and you do not have many clothes to begin with, wearing your rain gear while doing laundry is a hiker tradition. ALSO...its important to have in inclement weather especially on the shoulder season because it DOES afford you a needed insulating layer and will help ward off hypothermia and as well it does keep some of you dry as its not always a sweatbox.

[jj2044]

I never wore mine this past year, but i rarely even used my rain jacket , i sweat like crazy, i would wear my jacket breaking down camp and setting up camp, but as for hiking not much.... only day i remember wearing it was one day in april just outside of hotsprings it got cold and really windy like (35-40mph) and i used it as a wind breaker. at 6oz i would take them just in case, 6oz isnt bad.

[Hosaphone]

You won't need them for rain protection or warmth, at least not until you get further south and the days start getting cold. They could be useful for other things, though.

Why not start out with them and mail home if you decide you don't need them?

[ChinMusic]

I have not thruhiked.

My plan is for no rain pants but I will have a cuben rainskirt. For the cold-weather season I will have some light down pants for camp.

I have hiked enough in cold rain to know that I really don't need to stay dry below my knees. Having the rainskirt will help keep my trunk protected from the rain and allow enough ventilation so that my own sweat doesn't soak me.

[Moosky]

I never wore mine this past year, but i rarely even used my rain jacket , i sweat like crazy, i would wear my jacket breaking down camp and setting up camp, but as for hiking not much.... only day i remember wearing it was one day in april just outside of hotsprings it got cold and really windy like (35-40mph) and i used it as a wind breaker. at 6oz i would take them just in case, 6oz isnt bad.

It is the 100 mile wildness that's driving me to shed every oz possible, because I'll be carrying a lot of food.

What do you think about this: I won't carry the rain pants, gaitors, sleeping bag liner, and any other extra clothing to Katahdin. I will mail a drop box with these items to Monson ME. Do you think that's prudent?

[garlic08]

I did not carry my rain pants through the summer months on the AT, and usually do not carry them on summer hikes.

You can always use your tent or tarp to cover up on laundry day.

I can't wait to see Chin Music in a skirt!

[ChinMusic]

I can't wait to see Chin Music in a skirt!

I'll make sure I get for just for you.......

[jj2044]

What do you think about this: I won't carry the rain pants, gaitors, sleeping bag liner, and any other extra clothing to Katahdin.

I think that would be fine..... dont send the package still the day you leave, check the weather for the area of katahdin, if its suppost to be raining alot maybe take the pants... in july you shouldnt need the sleeping bag liner.. and gaitors are a personal choice. i never liked them, but alot of hikers use them.

[Maddoxsjohnston]

yes, if it is cold windy and snowing (If I didnt have mine last February I dont know what I'd do)

[Smooth & Wasabi]

I don't use them during the summer only in the shoulder seasons. If I had zip offs and running shorts I would hike in the shorts and save the pants for camp in case I was cold. Have fun.

[Mountainsmike]

I would rather carry rain pants than long pants. Very rarely hike in long pants & rain pants make for a warm layer/bug protection at camp & it will still be bug season in ME.

[Tinker]

I carried long nylon pants (zip offs) through the Hundred Mile Wilderness in 2008 in Sept. Never needed rain pants as I only got rained on once (it was a short shower), and I, like some other posters on this thread, don't usually have as much of a problem staying warm as I do getting too warm. Nylon pants dry quickly if you can stand wearing them wet once you get under cover, and if they're clean, you can wear them instead of long johns (which I wouldn't carry starting off a sobo in June or July) if I were to do a thruhike. Personally, outside of colder months, I'd rather carry two pair of zip off pants than a pair of zip offs and a pair of rain pants or just rain pants by themselves (way too sweaty for hiking in the heat - you'll get "butt rot" for sure). Until I had it, I didn't realize why babies cry so loudly when they get diaper rash.

A good option is a rain skirt (or kilt).

[maybe clem]

I've never used rain pants. I have a Packa and it goes down to about mid-thigh, that's enough.

[The Phoenix]

Necessary...!?!? no... I thru-hiked in crocs, gym shorts, and a Carolina Panthers jersey... I always had warm dry clothes to sleep in... but during the day if it poured... so be it... I always had a warm/dry sleeping bag and clothes to get into...

Obviously different people have different comfort levels... but when you say "necessary" I got rained on for 2 weeks straight in Virginia, and yet never used any form of rain gear... different folks... different strokes.

If it rains hard enough you will get wet... I have always felt the important thing is keeping the inside of your pack dry, more specifically dry clothing and a dry sleeping bag... outside of those few things... let it rain baby!

To each their own...

[Miami Joe]

A lot of great advice here: ChinMusic, The Phoenix, et al. I've wrestled with your question since I started backpacking 16 years ago. If it's cold, if you think it will somehow get cold if you're wet, then yes, you bring the rain pants. HYOH. Of course, I can't envision a scenario where you'll actually be hiking with rain paints in July rain or shine—just too much sweat. I bring mine, every season, just because it's an extra pair of pants that serves several purposes. If it's cold at night, rain pants. If you're clothes become wet while you're hiking (always), and you want to change into something dry at the end of the day, rain pants. Laundry day, rain pants.

[mtnkngxt]

I hike in shorts, so rain pants are crucial for me if I intend to stay dry and warm. I ponied up the bucks for Cuben rain gear, so I've got a full rain suit for the weight of a typical UL rain jacket.

[rocketsocks]

I have not thruhiked.

My plan is for no rain pants but I will have a cuben rainskirt. For the cold-weather season I will have some light down pants for camp.

I have hiked enough in cold rain to know that I really don't need to stay dry below my knees. Having the rainskirt will help keep my trunk protected from the rain and allow enough ventilation so that my own sweat doesn't soak me.

I saw both of those in your gear list...both are quite sexy. The skirt got me thing of turning my rain paints into chaps, and adding a skirt to/over them, to allow for some better ventilation. just trying to figure out my own kit. G speed on your hike Chin. lookin forward to the journal.

[flemdawg1]

WIndy rainy and cold will kill you faster than most things we worry about (bears, snakes, giardia, psychos). And as necessary as it is to have something to recover from near hyperthermic states (dry clothing, sleeping bag), I would argue, that preventing those states completely should also take precedent. Oct-April I generally carry rainpants and only used them a handful of times, but when I needed them I was very glad to have them.

[Chaco Taco]

I never use rain pants. I hike in convertable pants and they always work fine and dry quickly. The main thing is keeping your core dry and warm so spend more on a rain jacket that vents.