Which Rain Pants???

For rain-rain or in-case-of-rain?

I have precips and am not looking. I like them and haven't seen anything that looks like a decent upgrade.

I also have a Precip pant. Although I like it, I don't find it breathes that well (I have a 3 year old model.)
If I could, I would get the Integral Design eVent pant. You can check for reviews at backpacgeartest.org under the Rain Gear section. Check if the fit is adequate for you.
I have an eVent jacket (different brand), which is great and breathes very well. I would expect the same performance from an eVent pant. It would be nice to hear from other people and their experience though.

Frogg Toggs don't seem to get much play around here, but they sure do breathe well. They don't pack the smallest, though. No biggie.

-Todd

I'd second the Frogg Toggs. We have a couple of pairs. They are relatively comfortable, breath very well, and reasonably lightweight and rugged.

MikeB

As I'm sure you already know, rain pants are usually subject to more wear and TEAR than rain parkas.

In light of that I'd go for Cabela's (Cabela's .com)Rainy River Gore-Tex PacLite pants at only $79. a pair for regular sizes.

I have the parka and pants. They are excellent in construction and features. The pants zip to the knee and stuff into their own hip pocket.

Lots of fancy name companies sell pants of this laminate – and lesser performing laminates – for much, much more.

Cabela's garantee is just like REI's. Whenever you don't like it send it back for a full refund.

Eric

If it's gonna rain all day, I want more than just some light nylon hiking pants. I want something that's very breathable, and I want it to be light. I carry Dry Ducks when there's little chance of rain, but if I've planned a trip I'm gonna go rain or shine (too hard to find the time to get away to give it up), so I want the pants that will help me make the best of a bad situation. Any suggestions?

I grabbed a pair of these a while back, and they're pretty good for the price. Don't know that I'd call them an upgrade from Precips though ;)

Tom

I guess that we're all different – I've never really felt the need for breathable rainpants. Precip or similar all seem to strike a good balance between durabily and weight. I tend to wear either supplex pants or longjohns under the raingear to avoid the clammy feeling of wet nylon on skin. Recently I've become intrigued with the idea of a rain kilt but have not yet risen above my pruned up New England sensibility.

Nobody discuses them much, but I have been using the GoLite Whim pants lately to stay dry. At only 2.5oz they are among the lightest option (short of no rain pants!). Some people have reported a very small amount of leakage may occur in the seam area, but I have not experienced this issue. The DWR coating is a lot more waterproof than most other wind pants. There are no ankle zips so you need to remove your shoes to put them on. But they work pretty darned good for the weight, and for me have proven to be surprisingly durable so far.

Ive tried a bunch. When rain is possible I carry my TheNorthFace DIAD jacket and Montbell 1/4 zip Rain Trekker pants. If I'm on crampons its the full-zip TNF Hyvent pants (same material as the DIAD).
These all pass the sitting/kneeling water'proofness' tests.
I tried lighter rain-pants but they tore open.

So I must be the only one in the world who doesn't use rain pants? I just wear some polypropylene long-underwear. It's fast drying and keeps me warm (that is, if it is cold and I even need to wear it).

If its cold and wet I'm not normally hiking, so when I do encounter rain on the trail I get by with fast drying shorts. I like the looks of something like the ULA Rain Wrap if I do decide to start bringing some protection for my legs. Even when I used to bring rain pants along I didn't wear them very often because they took so long to put on that I decided to just tough it out. The Rain Wrap looks like it would be nice and quick to put on.
If I were to do hiking in sustained rain/cold conditions I would definitely bring rain pants along but hiking isn't my idea of fun in those kind of conditions. Different strokes for different folks.

Adam

For me, rain pants are not worn to keep rain off me. They are worn to avoid hypothermia. In other words, they are only worn in cold, wet conditions. As many of my backpacking trips are in New England throughout the year, many of my trips are in cold, wet conditions.

To each his own, but for some reason, these conditions do not phase me. I hike with complete contentment in the cold and wet. I'll admit that if you throw in wind, I look for low lying, sheltered areas. Thanks to the eastern forests, there is usually some natural protection.

I have two pair of rain pants. If no snowshoes, skiis or crampons are involved, I use GoLite Reed pants. For winter shoulder seasons with a mix of rain/snow/ice I wear the heavier TNF full zip H2O No rain pants.

Yeah, you make a good point that I failed to mention. I carry rain pants only when it is cold, and typically only wear them in camp. If it's cold enough for me to wear them without overheating while I am actually hiking then I will do so.

For warmer conditions I wear quick drying materials. Then I just get wet and don't have to bother with the rain pants.

If you absolutely have to have very high breathability, you cant't find anything better than EVENT, but it's correspondingly pricely and probably overkill for the legs. It's also more durable than Frog Toggs, O2, etc. Given that the legs don't produce as much perspiration as the torso, I'd consider a pair of Golite Reeds, as long as you're not bushwhacking or scrambling on granite or some other abrasive surface. They're light, cheap, and breathe adequately. Any clamminess can be dealt with by wearing a lightweight base layer under them-I use an old pair of silkweight Capilene(pre Capilene 1), but there are lots of other choices. If you go this route, you'll free up $80 or so for other gear or whatever.

I wear an ID eVent Rain Jacket and the GoLite Reed Pants in sustained rain mainly off the plains. :-) Works for me, despite the poor Reed breathability, as my legs just don't sweat much (unlike the geyser that is my upper torso). To lighten my load, I often use the Reeds' lack of breathability to my advantage in the cooler months; one pair of ultra-lightweight mesh athletic shorts, a pair of Smartwool tights under those, and the Reed over both is just fine for chilly nights and mornings in camp (with suitable upper body insulation and a hat, natch).

Mostly I don't, but I carry lightweight rainchaps partly for the reason the one poster mentioned, for use in camp and as a hedge against possible hypothermia situations.

What I don't do much is wear them while walking. One exception is when there's lots of wet brush — in which case I'll wear shorts underneath the chaps, because my pant legs would get wet anyway from sweat. But particularly in colder weather, the constant wetting/rewetting from brush that's overgrown on the trail can deliver incredible amounts of (cold) water. I'll typically wear a goretex sock inside my (not waterproof) shoes, and having the chaps limits how quickly my goretex socks get overloaded and completely wet inside.