Best Practices for Cool Damp Weather Dressing

If you haven’t yet tried cold, wet hiking, then jump way up the curve by reading this…

Ryan’s LIGHTWEIGHT Backpacking and Camping book (the best 20 bucks I’ve ever invested for backpacking) Chapter 5 explains all the important variables. Staying warm goes beyond clothing.

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/00070.html

Here is most of Chapter 5…

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/00184.html

I like to re-read it. As I gain more and more experience, I appreciate the info more and more.

"There is something to be learned from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not to get wet and run quickly along the road. But doing such things as passing under the eaves of houses, you still get wet. When you are resolved from the beginning, you will not be perplexed, though you still get the same soaking. This understanding extends to everything." – Way of the Samurai

Actually I've got the book. It was the book that eventually led me to this forum.

I tried a little practice exercise this morning 2 MI around my neighborhood. When you talk about slowing down to find the level of effort required to maintain warmth, and minimize sweat, you forgot to mention how much discipline would be required to control your pace after years of training to cover ground as quickly as possible.

Tons of good advice already given so I won't regurgitate all that. The one thing I wanted to add is that getting cold in cold/damp conditions varies greatly from person to person. Some people seem to stay warm no matter what while others are freezing when it's 65 F. So my advice would be to try some of the strategies laid out above by just doing training hikes (just taking walks locally, day hikes, etc.) in cold/damp conditions to see how it works out. You might find you don't need much once you get moving, or maybe you can walk briskly without breaking a sweat and wear more clothing. Only you know how your body will respond to cold/damp conditions.

I know for me personally I tend to "acclimatize" to the cold so to speak over the winter where at the beginning I can get cold real easy, and then by the end I can usually wear much less clothing in the same conditions and still stay warm. My rule of thumb for my personal needs is that I wear a sil-nylon poncho in temps >50 F and a Marmot precip jacket in temps <50 F. It usually has to be pretty cold (maybe <45 F) for me to actually adorn the precip pants without sweating to death. Otherwise I just try to wear my shorts and get wet.

Sorry Cola, but hiking for 30 years in Scotlands climate means i'm used to handling wet and cold conditions. :)
My system isn't a theory. It works for me and all my friends, and i can't see myself changing it unless some new fabrics come along.
If my system was a wetsuit, i would have changed it by now. The merino layer next to my skin might get damp, but it stays warm. Moisture passes straight through the 100 weight fleece, and it never feels wet. The eVent shell lets most of that moisture pass straight through. I sleep in my hiking clothes, so if they were soaked, my sleeping system wouldn't work. I use a down quilt, and haven't had any problems.

The Paramo system isn't a wetsuit. It is one of the driest systems i know. It was designed to handle the wet and cold conditions of the UK.

To build on what Mike has said…

I have an old Paramo-like jacket that has been great. Mine is too warm for all but the coldest conditions, generally, but… I've worn it in 30*F rain with storms blowing over me straight off Lake Superior, and stayed warm and dry. Kind of amazing that something without any amount of seam tape, and indeed kind of inherently designed to "leak," in a way, can keep someone so dry! Actually, in those conditions I stayed dryer in the Paramo-like gear than a traditional hard-shell system. The breathability of the system is amazing. Just a thin base layer and the outer garment. I'd love to try a thinner Paramo in those kind of conditions to stay a little cooler.

Paramo seem to be listening to their customers at last, Brad. They have hired new designers, so i've heard, and are starting to produce lighter garments. It's the weight and warmth that stops me using Paramo all year round. The gear is designed for all day wearing, and not carrying.