[pct-l] Umbrella

[Scott Williams]

I carried a Chrome Dome and a rain jacket on the PCT and CDT and used them
enough to justify the weight on both hikes.  In the desert when it's hot, I
hiked in the shade, which makes a huge difference.  In rain, hail or snow,
it acted as an adjunct to my rain jacket by keeping my whole upper half
dry.  Often I could hike with the rain jacket open which really cut down on
condensation.  I pulled it down over my pack so that it too remained drier
than it would otherwise have been.  It provided a shelter from which I was
able to take some of the best pictures of the mists swirling around the
cliffs in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness and other really rainy spots in the
Cascades.

I tuck the bulb at the base of the handle below my chest strap and then
snug the umbrella down over my head and my pack.  In all but the heaviest
winds, I can continue to use both hands without needing to hold onto it.
 Most of the time this allowed me to use my poles when it's most important,
when the trail is wet and slippery.  In heavier winds I just tighten the
chest strap a bit more.  Only in really ferocious wind did I have to use a
hand to hang onto the umbrella.

Others I hiked with used them for part of a hike and then sent them home,
feeling the weight was not justified, but I like feeling relatively dry
when I'm living in lots of rain, and the comfort of 10+ degrees lower in
the desert made it worth carrying for me.  It's really a personal thing.
 It is probably not life or death either way, but I just love that little
bit more protection.

Shroomer