PNW rain footwear… recommendations, please…

[Billy Ray]

I will be hiking Mt Rainier for about 8 days at the end of July… Northern Loop plus Spray Park. Would like to hear what the Pacific Northwest hikers would choose for footwear assuming I get a week of rain. Do you use trail runners and just have wet, cold feet for a week? Or a Gortex shoe/light boot?

Thanks,

Billy

[Sr Al]

It won't rain a single day, and it will likely be hot as hell

[Dale Wambaugh]

I would take breathable quick drying mesh shoes and spare socks. I have Gore-Tex boots for winter and spring run-off, but they are blister buckets in the summer. It *can* rain like that in July, but it's quite rare. It's been a really warm dry year so far.

Check this out:

http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/psd/cgi-bin/data/usclimate/city.pl?state=WA&lane=fast&itypea=1&loc.x=253&loc.y=170&.cgifields=itypea

http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/psd/cgi-bin/data/usclimate/city.pl?state=WA&lane=fast&itypea=1&loc.x=189&loc.y=180&.cgifields=itypea

[Billy Ray]

"It won't rain a single day, and it will likely be hot as hell"

Not unless I am prepared for a week of rain… that's my strategy… prepare for the worst week of rain I've ever seen and… wala… sunny days here I come!

Funny eh?
But now back to the serious planning for a week of rain. I'm quite sure that if I don't don't prepare for rain with the utmost determination, sincerity, and prolific spending on rain gear, then I won't get my sunny days…

So… what footwear do you experienced PNW backpackers recommend?

thanks,

Billy

[Dale Wambaugh]

I've been using Patagonia Drifter AC shoes: stiff sole for rocky trails and breathable. If you were talking shoulder seasons and particularly spring with lots of run-off and trails like little waterfalls, then Gore-Tex boots make sense.

DO take your rain gear.

+1 on hot. It's going to be in the 90's for a week– an inferno for the Washington locals.

http://www.wunderground.com/weather-forecast/US/WA/Mount_Rainier_National_Park.html

You're gonna like it!

[Steven Paris]

Trail runners here, too. The only shoulder-season/rainy forecast addition I'd make would be maybe adding a pair of neoprene socks with a very thin wool liner. Then I'd have wet but warm feet.

But I doubt I would add those in July.

[Ian]

I use La Sportiva Wildcats paired with wright socks coolmaxsomethingorother. In my experience, Gortex boots and shoes are only going to act like buckets and take longer to dry out. Dry feet in those conditions is mission impossible so I embrace wet feet and stick with shoes and socks that won't act like a sponge and dry quickish. I've had wet feet for days at a time and have been fine.

[Jerry Adams]

from dale's data, worst day in 29 years, last half of July, 3/100ths of an inch of rain in a day. You don't need anything to protect yourself against that.

(that doesn't make sense – you'de think an occasional thunderstorm would rain more than that in a day, anyway…)

I'd probably prefer mid height WPB boots, but breathable shoes would work fine too. Lots of dust and rocks on the trail to get into shoes, mid better.

I had breathable shoes on Mt Hood and dust got between the mesh and the liner. I assume Rainier may be the same. Added a couple ounces and you could hear the sand moving around inside. Leather may be better than mesh.

[Jerry Adams]

"Gortex boots and shoes are only going to act like buckets and take longer to dry out."

I've used Goretex (or eVent) and breathable.

In the summer, when it's hot, especially if you have streams to cross, breathable shoes are best. They dry out enough during day.

Rest of the year, as long as I can keep the water level below the top of the boots/shoes, Goretex/eVent keep my feet much drier.

I just did a trip with wet feet for multiple days – with breathable shoes. With WPB I would have been fairly dry.

[Katherine .]

bread bags for putting on over dry socks at the end of the day.

EDIT: and dual use — trash bags for picking up others' trash on the day out.

[Justin Baker]

If you are going to let your feet get wet, use THICK wool socks. With thin socks your feet will freeze.

[Jeff Jeff]

It won't rain much. Take something with a lot of mesh just in case. They'll dry super quick.

[Russell Lawson]

I hike the olympics from august to feb and can say that my favorite is zero shoes, i wear them all day everyday and with injigu socks in the morning or if my feed are beat up. It is great to be stuck in a rain storm in the rain forest, never to complain about wet shoes.

Not for everyone, even me sometimes. I generally keep some merrel ascend shoes with me if its snowing.

we live in a critical climate which means it's either raining and dreary half the year or bone dry the other. Low chance you'll have to deal with rain.

[Dale Wambaugh]

One thing you need to consider is HOW it rains in the PNW. Thundershowers are rare and usually short lived. Big storms with hours of downpour are more winter things and even then on the rare side. More typical rain is hours of drizzle that doesn't add up to much. Think cool, gray, humid, and no sun to dry things out. I would expect cool dewy mornings and warm afternoons.

[Ian]

I have to disagree some. I hiked the Wonderland in its entirety in six days last year and didn't see a drop of rain. It dumped the day before and the day after we left. On our first day, we met people on their way out who were bailing because their gear was soaked. We saw one waterlogged kelty tent that appeared to be abandoned at our first campsite.

I've hiked sections of it where it rained most of the time. Even if it's only doing the Seattle drizzle, there are sections where the trail is overgrown and you'll get soaked from the wet plants.

I've seen both extremes but a thorough soaking is a really possibility that should be planned for. It's Rainier. She makes her own weather.

Justin's recommendation for thick wool socks is a perfect example of why it's difficult to recommend socks and shoes. I may bring a pair for sleeping in but my preference is for something that will dry quickly in my pockets. Wright socks do that for me. I had to wade through more streams than what I can count on the Seven Devils loop, saw temperatures dip to the high 30s, and my feet stayed wet for all three days. My feet were fine. Your experience may have been different

[Paul S.]

I've had good success with merino liners for the hot days and mid weight for the cold/snow days. Nice thing is you can combine them for extra warmth in a pinch. This is with very meshy shoes.

Just this week i hiked in snow with liners and merino liners. Worked great. Once I went feet first through a snow bridge into a freezing cold stream. I quickly removed my socks and warmed my feet in the sun, runge my socks and shoes out and continued onward. Once the sun went down I switched to heavier socks in camp but didn't need them while moving.

[Ross Bleakney]

I agree with Ian. It probably won't happen, but it does happen to lots of people. That is the nature of hiking for a week. You might get a week of sunshine, or you might get rain 5 out of 7 days. I would bet on the sunshine, but be prepared for rain.

I've never figured out a perfect system for rain. I just carry plenty of extra socks and wear normal breathable trail runners. As Ian said, thinner synthetic tend to dry faster, but maybe thick wool socks are more comfortable. I tend to bring a variety for that reason and adjust accordingly. If it has been wet but we enter a dry stretch, then I dry out my shoes by putting in dry socks and essentially transferring the moisture to my socks (and then switching to another pair of dry socks). I've considered making socks out of the pack towel material for this exact purpose (as a means to dry the shoes). Thin liner socks would probably do just as well at absorbing moisture and drying out very quickly.

I could easily see a better system with shoe coverings. I've often thought about (and there has been some discussion of) bike shoe covers. You would have to adapt them a bit, but the idea is that rain would slide off your shoes, but you can quickly take them off (to let your feet breath) when it stops raining. That seems pretty slick, but most people just endure the rain.

Rain jacket and rain pants are a must. When it rains, it is usually cold, and if you don't keep your core dry, you can die.

[jscott]

So I'm going to be considered old school and wrong…possibly true…but I do keep my feet dry wearing light gore-tex boots and MLD event (2 1/2 ounces a pair!) gaiters in wet conditions–including relatively shallow stream crossings. Non gore-tex boots and event gaiters would probably work too…no one wears leather boots anymore, but if you did, and combined them with gaiters, your feet would stay dry.

I know, everyone will claim that sweaty feet will result. But speaking as someone who blisters the second my feet get wet in any shoes, I find the above works for me.

I don't know that you have to assume having wet feet with this combination.

[Edward Jursek]

You are doomed. Either it will rain and you will be under prepared, or it will not rain and you will be over prepared. No matter what you do, it will be wrong, and you will be screwed. Just wear what works for you normally and hope for the best, which is likely what will happen. It is an amazing hike. I got rained on 3 out of the 6 days when I did it, and it was still epic, even with wet feet. No amount of planning on footwear would have made any difference. In my case, the footwear was Brooks Pure Grits with mid weight Injinji wool socks.

[Paul S.]

"Just wear what works for you normally and hope for the best, which is likely what will happen."

QFT. I hiked the Enchantments last week and saw every shoe you could imagine, from Mountaineering boots, to Hokas, VFFs, chacos and even flip-flops. As long as you have a comfortable, tested system that works for you, I'm sure it will work. But will it be ideal? That's the question.

[Billy Ray]

" But will it be ideal? That's the question."

It's a pretty rare thing for any piece of equipment to be ideal for an entire week long trip. Just trying to get an idea of what you PNWers do for footwear if you go off into a forecast for a week of rain.

billy

[Billy Ray]

Jeffrey:
" MLD event (2 1/2 ounces a pair!) gaiters in wet conditions"

Checked these MLD eVent gaiters out. Problem is they are not 'wrap around' design; rather, you need to take off your boots/shoes to put them on… that seems like a real PITA to have to take your boots/shoes off when it's raining to put these on.

Does anyone know of a lightweight set of eVent gaiters like these MLDs, but ones that can be put on without taking your shoes off?

thanks,
Billy

[Jerry Adams]

I find that lightweight breathable nylon works for gaiters. Water tends to run down the fabric, because it's vertical. Doesn't need to be WPB. Being more breathable is good. But you have to make your own : )

[Eric Blumensaadt]

(As the SEALs say)

Yeah, if it's VERY wet GTX boots will likely fail after a few days. Just get good draining boots or shoes like Merrill Moabs and wear synthetic/wool blend socks. Take 3 pair for this.

->You may even want to get a pair of military mesh insoles that are used in jungle boots. They drain extremely well as they are made from 4 layers of mesh. Less "pruning" and possible damage of your foot soles this way. Just GOOGLE for them.

[Author]

Posts