[pct-l] trail clothing

[Stephen Adams]

See, different preferences.  I don't like sleeping with a hat on, and I like my light down bag which I do more above timberline stuff.  If I were marching up the trail and sleeping down in the forrest more where it tends to be a bit warmer I would seriously consider the 1lb rig you like.  1 lb is 1lb after all that you can't eat.  Sounds good to me.  
Back to clothing, I was really impressed with my new wool long johns.  I thought they were too light but turned out to be really nice and warmer than my light patagonia stuff.  So I have been getting more wool instead of polypro like my glove liners, beenie etc...  And I first used zip off pants on that cold trip in the Fall and I am converted.    I got light weight convertible pants from ex-officio, and they are well made, and liked the shorts better than I thought I would.  After reading your woes about hiking wet in WA though I think I'd switch to something different like lycra stretch pants like runners or I used to use cycling in the rain as they still keep your knees warmer and don't bind like a pari of soaked pants or rain gear.  What do think about that?  Have you tried this?  It worked pretty good cycling.  Knee warmers like I used to tuck under my bib shorts would probably continually fall down without the elastic trim of cycling shorts to keep them up your thighs... Thoughts?  The only problem I have in the rain with shorts on is getting cold sore knees, and it is good to keep the knee caps warm.     
On Feb 13, 2010, at 9:53 PM, Diane at Santa Barbara Hikes dot com wrote:

> I have a 1lb 20 degree quilt. I've used it into the 20s, staying warm even with frozen water bottles next to me.
> 
> Instead of long johns, I slept in my clothes and balaclava. I had long underwear to sleep in and changed into it every night until one night when I was too tired I just fell asleep in my clothes. When it turned out I slept just as well, I ditched the long underwear and never looked back. Whenever I was a little chilly, I either wore or draped my jacket over me under my quilt like an extra blanket. Sometimes, when my pants were wet, I wore my jacket like a skirt. I was toasty and happy.
> 
> I left my house with 11lbs of gear. It was pre-tested in colder conditions than the PCT, and also pre-tested on the PCT itself since I did the trail in two long sections. It served me well.
> 
> Diane
> 
> On Feb 13, 2010, at 9:14 PM, Stephen Adams wrote:
> 
>> I don't much like seeping binded up in clothing.  Long johns are enough.  And wearing a bunch of clothing in a sleeping bag only helps a little.  If you had a decent bag it should actually be warmer without all that stuff on.
>> Actually starting with a light backpack is the key to lowering your weight.  Lowering your sleeping bag weight will remove that safety factor form your kit.
>> My kit excuse me.  My light rig weighs about 10 lbs and includes a 2lb 20 degree bag.  To me sleeping in clothing is uncomfortable, but it is a stop gap if you get in trouble or uncomfortable.  But if it works for you I can't argue that it doesn't.  But I would suggest anyone thinking about this get out there and test out the theory.
>> On Feb 13, 2010, at 8:21 PM, Diane at Santa Barbara Hikes dot com wrote:
>> 
>>> My Patagonia down sweater is a very light jacket with only a tiny bit of down in it. It's not a big puffy thing. It was the most I ever needed.
>>> 
>>> My philosophy is, if I've got a bunch of clothing I'm not wearing, my sleeping bag is too warm. Making full use of your things is key to keeping your pack weight down.
>>> 
>>> Diane
>>> 
>>> On Feb 13, 2010, at 8:02 PM, Stephen Adams wrote:
>>> 
>>>> I'm an old man, and actually live in So Cal.  And my down sweater, maybe I meant to say jacket, weighs more like 2lbs or a little over.  winter only.  And why didn't you just get a more comfortable sleeping bag?
>>>> For a light sweater I got the Mountain Hardware Compressor on sale and that is a light weight sweater and still only used that when the temps really dropped, but never hiked in it.  I'd venture to say the Mtn Hdwr sweater is too lightly built to last thru a three season of constant use, but I'ma a young old man who is hard on things...
>>>> On Feb 13, 2010, at 2:11 PM, Diane at Santa Barbara Hikes dot com wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>> My down sweater didn't weigh even 1 lb. I wore it every night in my
>>>>> sleeping bag through late June and often in early July, too. I also
>>>>> wore it constantly during town visits. It's not always as warm in So
>>>>> Cal as you think. I thought it was weight well spent. But I am female
>>>>> and might get colder than young men do.
>>>>> On Feb 13, 2010, at 1:17 PM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
>>>>> 
>>>>>> Do you really need a down sweater that weighs two pounds when you
>>>>>> may only wear it for thirty minutes and then only on a few nights
>>>>>> when it will more often than not be overkill?
>>>>> 
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>> 
>