Hiking Pants: Convertible, Capris, Running Pants, MYOG…?

Hey Jed,

I don't use convertibles either. I use regular hiking pants and just roll them up (no buttons needed) when it gets hot out. Dead simple and works great.

As for the pockets, slash pockets might be hard to remove but cargo pockets should be pretty easy.

there are convertibles that are simpler in construction, quite like any good supplex (or similar fabric) long pant but in convertible fashion. I won't mention models because all I know are european anyway but I'm sure you'll find something if you shop some.

Convertibles or not, one feature I like is a elastic + cord lock around the bottom hem so I can raise the leg and adjust below the knee in a second. Reversing the operation is another second. If the pants don't have those, I add them: it's very easy, just open a hole at hem level and run the elastic cord. Then add the cord lock (two-way lock looks fancier).

I like convertibles for the versatility. They're usually my only on-trail leg wear. One big advantage of convertibles is the carried weight is just the zipped off legs (typically 4-5 oz) or none which gives a very good (low) average carried weight for a piece that's a long pant, shorts and it's good to wear in town where I particularly appreciate some pockets (nevermind the aesthetics).

A few months ago I contemplated the same thing as you when looking to replace a pair of REI Saharas I didn't care for; but I picked up a another pair of convertibles on a whim and I have been satisfied since.

I have typically used convertibles in the past, but never use the shorts option. Maybe it's the fact that I grew up in Florida, but wearing the right pants while backpacking doesn't bother me even in extreme hot conditions.

The convertibles mentioned above are a pair of Exofficio Amphi convertibles, and they have been very comfortable as a pant from exposed, windy mid-30s (without a baselayer) and up to humid high 80s (in forested shade).

I have a pair of shorts that I occasionally wear just for the heck of it in the summer. I also have a pair of eVent pants I wear over baselayers if expecting sub-freezing daytime temperatures.

Luckily, bugs and bites typically do not bother my lower legs; so when wearing shorts the only thing I have to worry about are ticks.

Regardless, for 3-season backpacking, a pant that has adequate wind protection and breathability works for me — and the Amphis fit the bill that the Saharas did not.

In the final few days before a trip last summer I was running around trying to find a pair of long shorts/short pants that were light and breezy and went just low enough to keep the sun off my knees on the front, but short enough to not get wet hiking with a ULA rain skirt.

I ended up with some basketball shorts that were okay but not perfect (heavy and too stretchy). Now that we have an operational sewing machine I plan to cutoff pair of lightweight hiking pants (10 ounce ex-officio) and hem them just below my knee.

I don't think I would like the bunched up extra material if I rolled and buttoned the full length pants up to that level. I may try it by safety pinning them in place and going for a hike.