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Manwich
09-30-2009, 12:24
Does anyone see absurdity in hiking with gaiters in non-winter conditions?

Jack Tarlin
09-30-2009, 12:35
I don't wear them in ANY conditions. If I get a stone or stick in my boot, I figure that's God's way of telling me to take a break, and I'm usually happy to do so.

I understand that they help (sort of) to keep one's socks and footwear drier, but they never seemed worth the trouble.

And the tall ones, especially the electric blue ones make one look positively goofy.

But like so many other Trail things, to each their own.

Tin Man
09-30-2009, 12:38
I tried them too. Too much trouble for too little advantage. But they did seem to help some in the rain.

Disney
09-30-2009, 12:41
I really don't care about the style or fashionable hiking apparel, but those tall gaiters look like something from a 1980's Japanese super hero cartoon.

I don't see the point anyway. The only times I ever want something covering my calves is on those rare occasions when you have to walk through a patch of stinging nettles (or other unpleasant plant).

garlic08
09-30-2009, 13:04
I think they make you look like a real hiker :rolleyes:. Wear them if you like.

Yukon
09-30-2009, 13:04
Biased poll or what!

The Weasel
09-30-2009, 13:05
Gaiters make huge sense in some non-winter circumstances. Here in the arid SW, snakes are a common problemr, and rattlesnakes feature prominently in that. Gaiters can extend leg protection above the ankle, and I am glad that I have my fairly heavy pack-fabric OR gaiters for when I am in rattler territory. They are also useful in the heavy chapparal-based brush that can scratch bare legs severely and even tear hiking pants.

In MIchigan or along the AT, they're not as useful, so I rarely used them outside of winter. But here? Yeah. Necessary clothing. At least for me.

TW

Mags
09-30-2009, 13:41
I wear them to look like a real hiker myself. Esp. the tall, electric blue ones.

mudhead
09-30-2009, 13:44
Good to know for the next time I go messing around in chapparal.

Be my luck to get tagged on the big toe by an angry snake.

OR shorties FS. Make offer.

BobTheBuilder
09-30-2009, 13:45
I usually wear them unless it is hot out, so I guess I'm a wuss.

They keep the rocks out of my boots and the mud off of my pant legs. Not sure why that makes me a wuss, but no problem.

saimyoji
09-30-2009, 13:47
Hate Gaiter? I would hike with Gaiter any time. That I should be so lucky....

Reid
09-30-2009, 13:51
I find them uncomfortable.

CowHead
09-30-2009, 14:33
I agree Florida football teams suck. Hate them Gaters

Buzz_Lightfoot
09-30-2009, 14:42
I agree Florida football teams suck. Hate them Gaters

Ever since a gator ate my fluffy I have hated them.

Oh, gater, nevermind.

Lone Wolf
09-30-2009, 14:44
Does anyone see absurdity in hiking with gaiters in non-winter conditions?
yes. they're goofy as hell. just more useless gear like leki poles

Yukon
09-30-2009, 15:04
I use them in extremely muddy conditions, they have worked great so far. I guess some people just have to be very critical of what other people are wearing and using rather than worrying about themselves...

makoboy
09-30-2009, 15:32
Say what you want about SEC football, but I use REI Desert gaiters. For some reason the way i walk kicks all sorts of dirt, leaves and pebbles up into my boot cuffs. Keeping that crap out is well worth looking like a fool and the 3 min it takes to get them on and off.

side note - I replaced the cords with steel cable leaders from Berkley fishing. they fit perfect and the ones I have on now have lasted over 250 very rocky miles.

DAJA
09-30-2009, 15:34
Essential gear for off trail hiking here in Canada... Very useful for on trail hiking here as well, as most trails are less than a foot path with lots of thissles and jiggers... You're legs would look like hamburger without them in very short order...

Unless of coarse you choose to wear heavy canvas pants... This place shreds nylon hiking pants like a soft cheese..

Mags
09-30-2009, 16:08
Essential gear for off trail hiking here in Canada...


Off trail in Canada. Above treeline. Glaciers. Willow bashing. No gaiters.


http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs123.snc1/5288_151096870020_563440020_3819180_7895498_n.jpg



Saying "Canada" is like saying the "United States". Both are big countries full of varied terrain. I've never traveled in the Everglades. Nor would I think to give absolute advice about traveling in the Everglades because I live in the United States. ;)



I use them in extremely muddy conditions, they have worked great so far. I guess some people just have to be very critical of what other people are wearing and using rather than worrying about themselves...

You are from New York. Aren't people from the northeast supposed to take a ribbing better? :D

Pedaling Fool
09-30-2009, 16:11
I'm a wuss and I don't qualify as a real hiker.

Old Hillwalker
09-30-2009, 16:20
On a trail like the AT I rarely use them. I own ankle and high gaiters both. In Scotland this past May and June I used high gaiters for 215 of the 300 miles due to the thigh high bracken and not much trail. Once I got on the West Highland Way I didn't wear them since the trail is a well maintained footpath. In the winter snows I use high gaiters and always, when I am off bushwhacking performing my boundary monitoring duties. I wished that I had them on the Northern Long Trail this June once I got into the Stinging Nettles on those overgrown sections.

I didn't vote since there was no choice for me:-?

Father Dragon
09-30-2009, 16:20
you're not a real hiker unless they match your hat ...

Rain Man
09-30-2009, 16:33
Say what you want about SEC football, but I use REI Desert gaiters. For some reason the way i walk kicks all sorts of dirt, leaves and pebbles up into my boot cuffs. Keeping that crap out is well worth looking like a fool and the 3 min it takes to get them on and off.

DITTO. I got a pair for $3.50 on REI's scratch and dent sale. Had to replace a snap. Yesterday I did a 5-mile practice hike for an upcoming AT section hike. I forgot my desert gaiters. Got stones in both shoes. I was sorry I had forgotten those cheap gaiters!

Rain:sunMan

.

mudhead
09-30-2009, 16:48
I agree Florida football teams suck. Hate them Gaters
How bout them Bulls!

thigh high bracken



Is this especially woody or was the wet the issue?

Jester2000
09-30-2009, 16:59
I'm conditionally a wuss. Didn't wear them on my AT thru-hike, did wear them on the Long Trail, wore them for parts of the PCT when they were useful for me.

Nice to see the wusses outpoling the he-men.

cowboy nichols
09-30-2009, 17:10
They keep stuff out of my boots,mud and snow out and heavily treated with repellent they are my first defence against ticks. I have never cared what anyone thinks about what I wear so I'll keep wearing Gaiters.

Tin Man
09-30-2009, 17:41
gear (and discussions of gear) is pretty funny. different strokes is cool. knocking them ain't so much. it gets really funny when people ask you for gift ideas for another hiker. i generally recommend take a hiker to dinner or just buy them their favorite libation, but avoid purchasing any gear. if someone insists that they want to buy gear as a gift, i say look at their friend's heaviest item and see what replacement is available that weighs 30-50% less than what they have. the cost usually dissuades them.


less is more :cool:

mrhughes1982
09-30-2009, 17:46
I'm a Florida Gator Hator does that count?

Old Hillwalker
09-30-2009, 17:50
How bout them Bulls!


Is this especially woody or was the wet the issue?

Ticks, thorns, and often wet. Stuff called "Gorse", yellow flower and very sharp two inch spines. About a quarter of the 215 mile route from Ft William to Cape Wrath was essentially without discernible footpath or trail. Great hike!

WalkingStick75
09-30-2009, 18:50
I didn't respond to the poll... I use short gaiters primarily in muddy conditions and in loose rock. When hiking on the International AT both were very common conditions. Oh yea, they help keep my socks clean too.

Mags
09-30-2009, 18:53
(Psst! It's just gear. :D)

Skidsteer
09-30-2009, 18:59
Gaiters make huge sense in some non-winter circumstances. Here in the arid SW, snakes are a common problemr, and rattlesnakes feature prominently in that. Gaiters can extend leg protection above the ankle, and I am glad that I have my fairly heavy pack-fabric OR gaiters for when I am in rattler territory. They are also useful in the heavy chapparal-based brush that can scratch bare legs severely and even tear hiking pants.

In MIchigan or along the AT, they're not as useful, so I rarely used them outside of winter. But here? Yeah. Necessary clothing. At least for me.

TW

Really?

OR Gaiters will stop snake fangs?

Tipi Walter
09-30-2009, 19:05
I'll carry four books and a radio and a dozen Q-tips and some candles and a dozen eggs and a bag of grapes and a quart of white gas and a 3.10lb thermarest but you'll never catch me carrying a set of gaiters.

And Weasel, what gaiters other than specific snake gaiters while stop snake fangs?

The Weasel
09-30-2009, 19:12
Really?

OR Gaiters will stop snake fangs?

Mine are very heavy pack cloth, and very densely woven. It's hard to push a needle through, so they are better calf protection than pants. I'm not referring to the short lightweight kind for keeping rubble out of shoes; these are the calf-high type. They aren't quite body armor, but they are nice in southern California/Arizona snake country, even though a bit hot.

TW

Manwich
09-30-2009, 19:49
I'll carry a dozen Q-tips

You're insane! Do you have any idea how much that weighs? (http://imgur.com/5zFW7.jpg)

Toolshed
09-30-2009, 19:54
I swear by them. The uncoated rocky mountain lows save your socks and the inside back of your trail runners from abrasion due to the twigs and crap you constantly kick up. When climbing the the Dacks, I wear my tall OR Crocs. Don't like then don't wear them.

Bilge Rat
09-30-2009, 19:58
You're insane! Do you have any idea how much that weighs? (http://imgur.com/5zFW7.jpg)

There were 13 in the pic. 12 weigh less.................:-?:D

Tipi Walter
09-30-2009, 20:11
You're insane! Do you have any idea how much that weighs? (http://imgur.com/5zFW7.jpg)

6 grams? As Bilge Rat noted, I would never carry 13 at one time, so see, I do practice UL backpacking.

After careful study, I've found 12 q-tips to be much lighter overall than the half pound of earwax I extract with the things during a typical trip.

Manwich
09-30-2009, 20:12
There were 13 in the pic. 12 weigh less.................:-?:D

I purposely put 13 for people like you.

Deadeye
09-30-2009, 20:55
The real absurdity is that the original poster is concerned enough about others' choice of leg wear to waste the time writing up a poll about it... and that 38 people bothered to answer.

Dumb

Bilge Rat
09-30-2009, 20:58
The real absurdity is that the original poster is concerned enough about others' choice of leg wear to waste the time writing up a poll about it... and that 38 people bothered to answer.

Dumb
Including yourself............:welcome

Manwich
09-30-2009, 21:18
Took me 15 seconds to do the poll, thanks.

Legitimately curious about peoples validations for their (to me, seemingly ridiculous) gear choices, and tthe sheer numbers.

mudhead
10-01-2009, 05:11
Guys wear what you want.

Ladies, indulge a male, no gaiters please.:)

Yukon
10-01-2009, 08:20
You are from New York. Aren't people from the northeast supposed to take a ribbing better? :D

I didn't take anything wrong, I just get tired of people telling other people that what they do is wrong. I wear gaiters sometimes because they work for me, and there isn't a single person on here that can sway me from that decision, regardless of how much of a trail god they think they are.

Lone Wolf
10-01-2009, 08:21
so serious

CowHead
10-01-2009, 09:19
i carried a tater once does that count?

Blue Jay
10-01-2009, 10:43
i carried a tater once does that count?

If you rub it on your legs, then yes. Best thread in a long time.:banana

Jester2000
10-01-2009, 10:49
. . .but you'll never catch me carrying a set of gaiters.

Same here! Carrying them is kind of dumb. Wearing them on the other hand, makes sense for some.


The real absurdity is that the original poster is concerned enough about others' choice of leg wear to waste the time writing up a poll about it... and that 38 people bothered to answer.

Dumb

I dunno. Perhaps the real absurdity is not that a whiteblaze member put up a poorly written poll (assuming that he was genuinely interested it's poorly written), or that others who care about such things posted, but that someone who has no interest in it took the time to point out that he doesn't care.

Mags
10-01-2009, 13:10
I didn't take anything wrong, I just get tired of people telling other people that what they do is wrong. I wear gaiters sometimes because they work for me, and there isn't a single person on here that can sway me from that decision, regardless of how much of a trail god they think they are.


:rolleyes:
http://rlv.zcache.com/no_kvetch_zone_poster-p228102414160964349t5wm_400.jpg

(Remember..it's just gear. Cripe..people get so passionate about stupid things. Notice, most of us didn't say what we use or don't use).

Philip
10-01-2009, 13:57
I wear low gaiters when wearing shorts to keep dirt out of my boots and off of my socks (since I normally don't carry a washing machine with me while hiking). I do think there may be applications for the tall ones, even with long pants, but not necessarily for walking down a well-beaten path. HYOH

Jester2000
10-01-2009, 13:59
I wear low gaiters when wearing shorts to keep dirt out of my boots and off of my socks (since I normally don't carry a washing machine with me while hiking). I do think there may be applications for the tall ones, even with long pants, but not necessarily for walking down a well-beaten path. HYOH

BSR (Billville Safety Research) is, I believe, working on developing a Washing Machine Backpack.

Blue Jay
10-02-2009, 19:45
BSR (Billville Safety Research) is, I believe, working on developing a Washing Machine Backpack.

Billville Safety Research:eek:, like the concept of a black hole, I just cannot get my mind to even think about that.

Dances with Mice
10-02-2009, 20:04
Same here! Carrying them is kind of dumb. Wearing them on the other hand, makes sense for some. With a little work that could be a pretty good haiku.

Dances with Mice
10-02-2009, 20:11
Same here! Carrying them is kind of dumb. Wearing them on the other hand, makes sense for some.


With a little work that could be a pretty good haiku.What I meant was...

With just a little more work
that thought could be a
pretty good hiking haiku.





If I don't repeat myself
My post count won't rise
That's so important to some.

Seeker
10-02-2009, 20:19
I dunno. Perhaps the real absurdity is not that a whiteblaze member put up a poorly written poll (assuming that he was genuinely interested it's poorly written), or that others who care about such things posted, but that someone who has no interest in it took the time to point out that he doesn't care.

i'm just bored, so i answered... polls were made to be messed with...

Peaks
10-03-2009, 07:13
Gaiters: All depends on the likelyhood of getting scree in my boots. On a well cleared trail like the AT, perhaps not. But, on a muddy and overgrown trail (or herd path), then much more practical.

GrubbyJohn
10-04-2009, 11:48
i have them..... i almost steped on a rattle snake on floyd mnt. i ended up sleeping in mine. my buddy was about ten feet ahead of me and he hit it with his stick and pissed it off.. i was gonna be struck for sure. jump 3 feet up and 4 feet back at the same time........

GrubbyJohn
10-04-2009, 11:50
makes me a pack sniffer i guess.... huh mags?

Deadeye
10-04-2009, 21:14
i'm just bored, so i answered... polls were made to be messed with...

yeah, something like that. shouldn't an "I hate gaiters poll" be in hiking humor... or the Florida Trail section

Mags
10-04-2009, 22:15
makes me a pack sniffer i guess.... huh mags?


What makes you a pack sniffer? Caring what some anonymous dago on an internet BBS thinks of your gear? Then why..yes! :D

If you like your gear..use it. You don't need validation from people on the internet. ;)

(Remember..it is just gear. )

Jester2000
10-22-2009, 17:47
Billville Safety Research:eek:, like the concept of a black hole, I just cannot get my mind to even think about that.

The motto of Billville Safety Research is "Almost Better Than Nothing."