 Hi all Having (yet again) decided not to wear my crinkly paclite trousers because I dislike the noiseiness/sweatiness of them and (yet again) had the weather take a turn for the worse and ended up with soaked legs I was wondering if there is some alternative thats quiet and breathable but also not thick/warm like the offerings from the likes of Paramo & buffalo, are pertex overtroos any good? or is there something else out there that fits the bill?
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 I think I read somewhere that Ryan Jordan off of that BPL.com place uses a wrap of silnylon when it really chucks it down, like a skirt i s'pose. Supposedly lighter and would obviously be more breathable than waterproof troos. I could be wrong though  You never know, it may even open up a whole new world of possibilities too 
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| Edited: 25/09/09 13:12 |
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 There's those stretchy Kamlekia ones that OMM do. Just a single layer thing so I assume not warm. Waterproof with a pretty high breathability and the stretch should I assume cut down on crinckling  Never tried the trousers but the jackets do certainly stretch. Some new versions due out somewhat soon (they got a feature on the main site here) so some of the older ones going cheap (although seemingly not many left in sensible sizes.).
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Most pertex overtrousers, such as the Montane Featherlite ones, will keep some wet off for a while but then they wet out, usually on your quads. I have some Rab Bergen pants, which are noticeably softer than Goretex stuff I've used previously, and properly waterproof. Rab have just brought out some Off Limit Pants which are made from Pertex Shield, which is waterproof too. They'd definitely be worth a look too - nice and light.
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 Pertex isn't waterproof, and it does rustle. You might try something like Rohan Epic Bags which are treated cotton. They're not formally waterproof but the Epic treatment makes them mostly waterproof so it'll take quite a bit of rain to soak them out. Caveat: I'm repeating marketing claims, I haven't tried it myself! Pete.
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 Kamleika trous are definitely worth a look. I saw the new versions a couple of months ago - very soft and lacking in crinkle. Similar to Pete's idea, I imagine someone's still doing Ventile trousers. Those might work too but will be, I expect, a lot heavier than the Kamleika or your existing Paclite. Otherwise, trousers are the one area where I'm sold on the idea of single-layer softshell fabrics like Schoeller DrySkin. Water resistant, stretchy, quiet and can leave the overtrous behind most of the time - or at least take only the lightest possible thing you can find for the downpours or stops. I still find pack space for an ancient pair of Walrus waterproof trousers that I bought for cycling as a teenager. Not very waterproof anymore but light and keeps off the worst of wind and rain. My pertex overtrousers are saved for running in Canadian winter of for use around camp - I reckon I'd shred them quite fast if I used them for hiking with boots on.
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Hilltrek will sell you a pair of Ventile trews. I personally go for John's suggestion of stretchy soft-shell which needs to be pretty seriously rained on to need resorting to the overtrews. I use a pair of ME's in Schoeller Dryskin when it's cooler, Ronhill Tracksters when it's warmer. Being a very close fit they dry out very fast if they do get a soaking. Pete.
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My Schoellers are Nike ACG with a few funny 'features' for skiers... but at £17 in TKMaxx I wasn't going to argue too much! I've lots of leggings (à la Ron Hill but I've not owned a pair of those in many years). They are great for the reasons Pete states and they layer well under overtrousers but they don't have much (if any) wind resistance in most cases. In winter you can really get the warmth blasted out of them.
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Thanks for the advice all. I always wear hiking troos of some sort that do shrug off most of the rain, the problem for me is the way my top funnels rainwater into the top of the theighs/crotch, I find this overwhelms the DWR fast. What I'm after is something to chuck on over my hiking troos for my morning walk with my dogs that will deal with the runoff from my top and won't be annoying to wear (I prefer not to carry extra stuff if I can avoid it). Silnylon wrap eh? interesting idea but I fear my dogs would laugh at me. It's not an issue for me but is there a rule somewhere that waterproof trousers must be black?
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The rule is simple... Black goes with everything; so you can mix and match tops to trousers. A girl told me that. I don't really understand but apparently that's where a lot of the 'rules' come from
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I have had some Ventile trousers for years. In rain they quite quickly get absolutely sodden, heavy and cold. Once they are sodden and cold, they do not let any more water through. They take ages to dry. To be acceptably waterproof, you need two layers of ventile. Great trousers, but won't keep your legs dry.
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| Edited: 25/09/09 14:56 |
Got some Marmot Precip troos for christmas, they're not bad at all, light, waterproof, breathable, good fit and surprisingly non-rustley for what they are. Unlike any other overtrousers I've had these are fine to keep on (on a cool day anyway). I'm pretty chuffed with them.
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