jmt question

"My concern is if it just plain ole rained for days on end. Is this something that could realistically happen? "

Absolutely yes.

In August 2012, I was rained on for 2-5 hours per day for five consecutive days. Nearby, some friends were rained on for the same amount for eight consecutive days.

However, an excellent silnylon hooded rain jacket only weighs about 4.5 ounces, and some rain pants I have go about 2.5 ounces.

–B.G.–

There is a good chance the weather will be pleasant but prolonged rain is possible (more than the afternoon thunderstorm). I carry a O2 raingear jack which is similar to dri ducks and a dollar store poncho.

The few times I have tried to travel significant miles in the rain without some way to keep my lower body dry, I found that wet underwear chafes and is not pleasant. I now pull out the dollar store poncho to protect my torso from getting soaked.

12 days is a good pace for most people. Can you afford to lose a day or two of travel time to poor weather? If not, you may want to consider additional gear to get some miles in during a rainy day. It sounds like you know what works for you since you traversed Washington.

Have a great hike and please post a report.

I hike mostly in WA, so I know about rain. I also did the JMT last year where I carried a light Windshirt vs. a Hardshell. It rained for a about an hour one night and that was all.

Since you are doing this trip in 12 days, I would recommend making that decision as close as possible to your start date after you've checked the extended weather forecast for your route. You might also look at historical data for those weeks on your route to see rainfall patterns.

You can expect it to be much drier than the Cascades! In extended rain, you will be soaked in both.

I'd be thinking about Sun Protection more on the JMT. You are going to be very high up and more exposed to the Sun than you are used to in WA. My hands got sunburned pretty bad from holding my trekking poles.

"My hands got sunburned pretty bad from holding my trekking poles."

I found some thin cotton gloves (used by inspectors in the electronics industry) that weigh 0.36 ounce per pair, and they are sold for several dollars per dozen pairs.

They aren't much good except for keeping sun off your hands.

–B.G.–

Todays article on hypothermia popped up as I logged on today to look at responses and it pretty much sealed the deal:) My tendency, here in the Northwest, is to pack cautiously. Even though I work hard to keep my baseweight down I usually err on the side of caution at the expense of my pack weight. I think thoughts of sunny California was floating through my mind as I wrote the post spurring dreams of a featherweight pack that i could only dream of here in Seattle.
I have found that even in cold and wet conditions if I keep my core warm I will be ok. If I start getting cold I either move faster or set up a shelter and hit the bag. Not having the right gear as a result of trying to shed weight has put me in a number of hairy situations (mainly dealing with shoulder season snow and a reluctance to always pack my ice axe — A December overnight trip to Sahale glacier camp ended up with a VERY hairy descent on a slab of ice where I was using my snowshoes in my hands as a means of speed control). Any time I am not sure I must remember to just accept the weight and pack at the very least the survival essentials appropriate to mountain travel.
Thanks for the feedback and i will make sure to post a post-trip report later in the summer!

Is that Bigheart lake in your avatar pic? It looks kind of like that little camping spot right on the water just after the outlet if you don't turn up the hill to the campspots on the upper bluff.

Janos, its Upper Snow Lake on the Enchantments route.

We had pretty solid rain, along with hail, for more than two weeks in August 2012 on the JMT. I understand from other BPL members that 2012 was an anonomaly, but I would have my rain gear ready to take and watch the weather as your departure date approaches to see how the weather is behaving. I carried my Montain Minimus rain jacket and Montbell Stretch Wind pants and was very glad I took those instead of just a Houdini or a poncho.

+1 for gloves as well for both rain/cold and sun protection.