Emergency pants for winter dayhikes

[marty]

Hi everyone,
Just wondering what pants you bring in your packs in case of emergency when winter dayhiking. I currently carry a pair of thick fleece pants, but am curious as to what everyone else brings.

Appreciate your replies!

Thanks,
Marty

 

[BillK]

Hi Marty,
I currently bring 200-weight fleece pants in case of an emergency, but I've been planning to pickup some insulated pants that have a full length zipper for convenience. I've been eyeballing the Patagonia Micro Puff pants as they have the full length zipper and they only weigh 14 ounces. I own the Micro Puff coat and it's extremely warm. I'm sure there's some cheaper alternatives out there that people are using.

http://www.altrec.com/shop/detail/18825/?sch=clk

- Bill

 

[Chip]

what's the nature of the emergeny ? are you still mobile ?
I think you'd be dressed and packed appropriately for anticipated conditions.
If you're immobile it might make sense to carry a VBL and some ensolite.

Ensolite Does anyone say that anymore ? What's a thin, light, foldable insulating pad called these days ?

 

[MadRiver]

I hike in shorts even in the winter so I carry my ski pants in the pack just in case the wind picks up or my legs get cold. I also carry a bivy sack and a closed foam pad. In addition, I sweat a lot so I always have a complete changed of clothes and at least 4 pairs of gloves. Once your gloves are wet from sweat, they are useless if not dangerous to wear.

 

[michaelb]

Since I wear softshell pants most of the time, I carry my hardshell pants for emergencies in the winter, although they are often the last thing to make the cut into my pack (I don't like the extra weight). I don't carry fleece or any other insulated pant, although would do that for planned winter camping. The cocoon pants on BPL would be very nice and warm for the weight (so if I was buying, that is what I would be looking at first).

I don't carry a sleeping bag either, and for an extra 2 lbs over the weight of the insulated pants, I would think that would be much, much better in an emergency. I would probably go for the bag for trips with more exposure or risk (like the Daks with no cell phone coverage, or the whites, above treeline).

One of the problems with pants is actually using them in an emergency. They probably need full zips to get them on reasonably. With a broken leg, it would be almost impossible without zips and still pretty hard depending on how bad you were.

This may not be rational, but on bigger trips I will often bring a back up pair of wool socks (mostly for my feet if I need them), and figure if I really was in my bivy sack trapped for the night, I could cut the toes off and pull them on as leg warmers.

 

[jime]

Synchro Pant

This is what I use.

http://www.mountainhardwear.com/Product.aspx?top=1&prod=255&cat=8&viewAll=False


If I'm not wearing them they are in the pack. I always have hard shell pants as well.

I'd wear shorts more often but I don't have pretty legs

 

[marty]

Thanks for the great advice, folks. Much appreciated.

what's the nature of the emergency ? are you still mobile ?
I think you'd be dressed and packed appropriately for anticipated conditions.
If you're immobile it might make sense to carry a VBL and some ensolite.

Sorry if I was vague, Chip. I meant what pants you would normally have in your pack on a winter dayhike. THANKS.

Marty

 

[Chip]

Wearing Mammut Champ Pants.
Carrying Marmot Precip pants as rain/hardshell.
Carrying or wearing also Capilene long johns. And maybe carrying an extra pair.
This is my first season with the Champ soft shell pants so I'm not sure how warm they are on their own yet, but I'll find out this weekend !

 

[cooperhill]

Wearing Mammut Champ Pants.
Carrying Marmot Precip pants as rain/hardshell.
Carrying or wearing also Capilene long johns. And maybe carrying an extra pair.
This is my first season with the Champ soft shell pants so I'm not sure how warm they are on their own yet, but I'll find out this weekend !

Another vote for Mammut. I have a pair of the Mammut Castor softshell pants and they've worked great for me with a polypro base layer.

 

[dave.m]

Highly temperature and location specific.

I have a pair of EMS brand Primaloft sidezip pants that come along in really cold temps. Packs smaller than fleece but warmer.

Sleeping bags and bivy bags are other choices for emergency gear. I'm guessing here that you're talking about "get me through the night" type of gear that comes in the pack?

 

[Kevin Rooney]

I used to carry 3-ply Goretex bibs as emergency gear on cold/above treeline hikes, but since wearing softshells made of Schoeller Dryskin (warmer than Dynamic) the bibs aren't necessary. I just carry summer rainpants for as backup.

 

[hikerfast]

i put up a thread about warm pants a couple years ago also. i hike hot so i wear polypo and wind pants on the legs, but carry 300wt fleece in the pack. but who the heck is going to take off their boots and wind pants and put the fleece on, then the wind pants, then the boots again? i wanted a zippered pant solution, like down or something. i remember getting a couple links.

 

[DougPaul]

I carry 200-wt fleece full-side-zip pants and full-side-zip shell pants.

Doug

 

[Mongoose]

I carry a pair of Feathered Friends Frontpoint pants. They are incredibly warm! I camped out once when it was -20F. The pants, matching parka, a layer of fleece and a layer of long underwear made me perfectly comfortable sitting around camp. It's almost like a walking sleeping bag. I figure if things go bad, I can put these on and still be mobile, without having to move around to stay warm.

 

[sleeping bear]

quilted military liners for field pants, less that $10 on ebay!

 

[sapblatt]

Who wears pants?
Seriously, my cold weather pants have a light microfleece liner and I carry long underwear bottoms - I also carry my sleeping pad in winter and bivy bag all the time. If I am expecting a real chance of issues (for instance if I were to solo on a sub-zero day) I would also bring 200 weight fleece pants and a down sleeping bag...I tend to run very hot and often wear shorts into the mid 20s.

 

[Lawn Sale]

I bring the GTX overpants, but I also bring a lightweight down bag "just in case". I've had to use the overpants a number of times, but thankfully never the bag.

 

[Tim Seaver]

what's the nature of the emergency ?

Hopefully it's not "laughing too hard after eating cream of broccoli soup the previous night"

(Laughter which generally ends quickly)

 

[Mike P.]

200 weight full zip fleece & G-tex shell pants.

Typically wear long underwear & either convertible pants (wore this on 11/17) pants without zip-off feature, less stitching a little better in wind or a lined pair. Lining is some type of syntheic. Also have a warmer pair that resemble linded carhardts, very durable if a lot of downed trees are possible.

 

[cbcbd]

Sorry if I was vague, Chip. I meant what pants you would normally have in your pack on a winter dayhike.

Depending on the day I'll wear my summer zip offs, softshells, or gore-tex pants.
If I'm not wearing them already, I take my Gore-tex full zips just in case.

Hopefully it's not "laughing too hard after eating cream of broccoli soup the previous night"

(Laughter which generally ends quickly)

For those conditions I pack an extra one of these - they're pretty lightweight, so sometimes you can take two just in case.