baselayer thoughts

[Megapixel]

would you go with one or two baselayer bottoms on a thru?

if one, which i'm guessing would be the way i want to go, which rating would you go with?
(all the ones i'm looking at come in baselayer 1lightweight, 2midweight, or 3heavyweight)

[HiKen2011]

For ME, I like the lightweight to hike in during cold weather and the midweight to sleep in.

[SurferNerd]

would you go with one or two baselayer bottoms on a thru?

if one, which i'm guessing would be the way i want to go, which rating would you go with?
(all the ones i'm looking at come in baselayer 1lightweight, 2midweight, or 3heavyweight)

Matter of personal opinion. I would suggest one layer, not two. And then, between 1,2,3..its up to you. How cold blooded are you? Can u hike a 40* day sweating? Or are you so cold your going to Popsicle. I have a high heat signature, and my base layer just gets me warm in the morning, then it comes off. As soon as I get to camp, on it goes. But its person specific.

[Luddite]

I'd go with a lightweight and use rain pants over them

[SurferNerd]

I'd go with a lightweight and use rain pants over them

No breathing with rain pants tho, and they get your base layer hot, steamy, wet... tried that before.

[topshelf]

yes I carry always carry one for hiking and one for sleeping no matter the weather expectations.

But then again I never hike in anything I sleep in or vice versa.

[fiddlehead]

Depends.
What season are you wearing them?
Do you have a lot of body fat? (keeps you warm)
Do you sleep cold?

Only YOU can decide.
If you wear the lightweights and wish you could be warmer at times, then you need more.
If you took the heavyweights and find them too warm, send home for the lightweights.
There's no perfect one.

[ShelterLeopard]

would you go with one or two baselayer bottoms on a thru?

if one, which i'm guessing would be the way i want to go, which rating would you go with?
(all the ones i'm looking at come in baselayer 1lightweight, 2midweight, or 3heavyweight)

When are you starting? I hiked through about a month of snow (well, there was snow in existence for about two months, but only splotchily for the second month)

I started in February and after a terrible combination of freezing and sweating, finally learned to hike cold and sleep warm. So wore thin/ short layers during the day, and many fluffy things at night.

[DapperD]

yes I carry always carry one for hiking and one for sleeping no matter the weather expectations.

But then again I never hike in anything I sleep in or vice versa.I think this is smart. Have a pair to hike in when/if the weather really gets cold, and have an additional pair for camp that is kept/remains dry. These could easily be worn in your bag if your bag is not able to provide enough warmth for the conditions. This may add some additional overall weight to your pack, but being able to remain warm is in my opinion well worth it.

[bigcranky]

For a thru-hike? When are you starting? In February, I'd take a lightweight base layer to hike in, and a mid or expedition weight for camp/sleeping. For an April start, I'd just bring the light layer, mostly for camp and sleeping.

[Blissful]

For a thru-hike? When are you starting? In February, I'd take a lightweight base layer to hike in, and a mid or expedition weight for camp/sleeping. For an April start, I'd just bring the light layer, mostly for camp and sleeping.


Agree.....
I like Smartwool

[Chummin' for Bear]

Good advice from redeye, "I carry always carry one for hiking and one for sleeping no matter the weather expectations. But then again I never hike in anything I sleep in or vice versa".

As for me, when it's cold and/or wet, I like hiking in longsleeve lightweight top with running tights, or even light-weight underwear bottoms, and shorts instead of rain pants. I like a mid-weight top and bottom to wear in camp and for sleeping assuming below freezing temps. Here's another vote for SmartWool.

[BrianLe]

I started last year about the same time as ShelterLeopard, but don't recall using a (bottom) base layer to hike in, just my trail (long) pants. I had rain chaps, but pretty much didn't use those either.

For night time I had a pair of capilene 1 longjohns, 5.3 oz in size large. These helped boost my 20F rated bag, and of course I would have used them during the day if I had been cold enough. Maybe there was a morning or two when I kept those on and changed out of them later, I already don't remember (!), but at any rate, a single very light base layer was fine for me.

Of course, as fiddlehead suggests, things like your metabolism and related factors can certainly impact this. My engine tends to run "hot" and I don't take long breaks along the way.

Note that part of the key for me is a willingness to crawl into the sleeping bag once in camp if I'm cold. Did a lot of things in shelters "half in the bag" (and no alcohol was involved ...).

[Praha4]

I started last year in mid April, had Capilene-2 long-sleeve top and bottoms, hiked in a pair of Quicksilver board shorts during the day with a Capilene-1 tshirt top. By early May the temps were definitely warming up so the Cap-2s were no longer needed, could have just used Cap-1 base layers.

Usually wore the Cap-2 base layers inside my Marmot Hydrogen 30 degree bag at nite for xtra warmth thru early May. Sometimes wore the Cap-2 bottoms under my hiking shorts in early mornings and in camp at nite when temps dropped. But always removed the Cap-2s by mid morning so they could dry out b4 nite.

I'm like Gadget, prefer Patagonia Capilene base layers. Smartwool is a good product too. If you start in February or early March, you'll frequently have daytime temps below 40, and may need a long sleeve baselayer during the day or long hiking pants or a base llayer under shorts. You will learn from experience what combination of base layers, clothing, and sleeping bag system will work best for you ...while trying to reduce weight, which will rapidly become more important the longer you hike up and down the mountains. good luck