What the Shell?

[VA paddler]

I have a NRS Riptide jacket - great for paddling in the rain and cold on top of a wetsuit. Oppressive if its not cold and raining.
Carhart Storm Defender for working in the rain around the harbor.
But for real durable, water proof, hard wearing gear, there's nothing like Grunden's.

 

[RPATCH]

I carry three shells. If I know it's going to be a rainy day, I wear an Arc'teryx Beta SL rain jacket under my PFD, which I normally keep packed away in my clothes pack. In my accessible grab bag, I have a Black Diamond Stormline rain shell in a size larger than I usually wear that fits over my PFD. If it starts raining, I can grab that and put it on quickly without removing my PFD. If it's really ugly and cold, I can wear both. What I end up using 90% of the time is a $15 windbreaker that I also keep in my grab bag along with a Rab Alpha fleece mid layer. I also carry Showers Pass Refuge rain pants.

 

[Black_Fly]

I have a NRS Riptide jacket - great for paddling in the rain and cold on top of a wetsuit. Oppressive if its not cold and raining.
Carhart Storm Defender for working in the rain around the harbor.
But for real durable, water proof, hard wearing gear, there's nothing like Grunden's.

I’m getting the Grunden breathable jacket sized up for snowshoeing. Blaze orange so they can find my corpse and because public land around here often has hunters. Thanks for he help.

 

[Punkinhead]

Maybe an unpopular opinion, but I'm not a believer in Goretex as far as breathability. I've owned, and still own, high end Goretex jackets and hiking shoes and, for me, they get every bit as hot and clammy as non-goretex. It's one of those things that is good in theory but doesn't pan out so well in real life. I no longer pay the premium. I'll only wear Goretex in very cold weather. The key for me is proper ventilation. Pit zips are a necessity. Another zippered vent high up on my back with a storm flap is nice, but those aren't so common. I recommend going to a large outdoor store that carries several brands and try them on. I like a jacket that has room for a medium weight merino sweater underneath without being so baggy it billows in the wind. Billowing sucks in the wind. Pit zips, of course. A comfortable liner so it doesn't feel like I have a plastic garbage bag against my skin. Packing size isn't as important in a canoe but I also hike so I want it to pack up reasonably small for a backpack. I like kangaroo pouch style pass thru pockets. An inner pocket for a cell phone is nice but not a deal breaker if there isn't one.

 

[scoutergriz]

I gave up on Goretex years ago when i came to the realization that almost every fall I was dropping $1-200 on new shells that seemed to leak by the next winter no matter what I did, now it's full-on commercial grade raincoats in anything more than a sprinkle my last Viking commercial fisherman's jacket lasted over 20 years and every single opening either zipped, buckled, or velcroed shut (all waterproof), and all the chafe points were all backed by polar fleece. Considering it was designed for Alaskan fishermen out in gales at 20f with wind-driven spray, rain, and sleet, it never once let me down in my comparative "walks in the park". Last year a couple of seams finally started to leak a bit (after 5-6hours) and is semi retired to in town use.
Of course I went and bought another one...

 

[lowangle al]

I took a hike one day to help a friend find a mountain goat that he had shot. It was raining on and off that day and we had to walk through wet brush. He had on goretex top and bottoms and I had on wool pants and shirt. When we got back to his truck he had to change out of his wet clothes ( I remember him wringing out his underwear) I was fine and comfortable on the ride home in my wool.

 

[Rubbaboo]

I’m very happy with my Kokatat pullover in goretex for paddling and my Mustang Survival Callan jacket has been great for the dirty work in camp and portaging. Both jackets pack up small so I don’t mind taking both on trips.

 

[Alan Gage]

Maybe an unpopular opinion, but I'm not a believer in Goretex as far as breathability.

I agree with this as well. I don't doubt that it really does breath but in my experience my ability to produce moisture generally outperforms it's ability to get rid of it. And it's long term water resistance leaves much to be desired.

I used to get all my shoes/boots with goretex liners. Inevitably they would leak water badly after 6 months or less and I'd send them in for warranty replacement (usually never an issue). I also remember my socks being wet and crusty with sweat pretty much every evening when I would pull off my shoes and I often had very cold feet in the winter due to wet feet because of sweat buildup.

I now refuse to get shoes with any sort of water repellant lining and I find that my feet are much cooler, fresher, and drier. My socks are usually dry when I remove them in the evening, even in summer. Plain leather performs great in the winter unless walking for more than a few miles through slushy snow.

It can be frustratingly difficult to find footwear without the nearly ubiquitous water resistance lining.

Alan

 

[Odyssey]

I've owned only 1 Goretex jacket, and I have to admit it was a beauty. An expensive beauty. It was worn strictly for family canoe tripping, and it held up quite well. I did feel morosely guilty expensively wrapped in budget busting finery whilst my nearest and dearest were adorned in plastic ponchos and dime store rubbery cartoon coats. But we were all dry. For a time (while wool was moderately affordable) my wife knitted toques, mittens, sweaters, and so were were well kitted out in those when needed. Most of that wool wear has been passed on to those who could grow into them as we grew out of them. The Goretex didn't fair so well. I loaned it to our eldest for a weekender bush party "hiking & camping". Yeah. I learned from other kids that it in fact had quickly turned into a couch burning party. Literally. Drag an old donation couch into the woods, party hardy and then light er up. Dance, sing, howl, whatever. Sift thru the ashes next morning for the springs and such, drag em back to the barn and toss into the scrap metal pile. Head inside for a pot of coffee. Part of me was outraged at such an idea, but mostly I was envious. How cool does that sound?! But I did my best mad dad act Health&Safety?!, Fire Suppression?!, Emergency contacts?! Irresponsible Mayhem!!...
Our son was mostly embarrassed by the melted pinholes scattered across that expensive shell. Somebody had tossed a can of pork n beans into the fire and... I went easy on my son telling him there's a lesson here to be learned. He thought I was talking about him.
That was my last expensive beauty Goretex jacket. I do however refuse not to loan stuff out to family. Always something to learn.

 

[Penns Woods]

I can remember one winter, I was pushing a surveying crew for a pipeline threw the mountains in snow up to your knees, Staying warm and dry was a problem. After trying different clothes, I started using wool pants. Even though the pants were covered in snow, I stayed warm and dry. From then on , I was convinced wool is the way to go in snowy conditions.
.

 

[scoutergriz]

I can remember one winter, I was pushing a surveying crew for a pipeline threw the mountains in snow up to your knees, Staying warm and dry was a problem. After trying different clothes, I started using wool pants. Even though the pants were covered in snow, I stayed warm and dry. From then on , I was convinced wool is the way to go in snowy conditions.
.

like you, for winter camping and late fall/early spring my go-to is wool- Canadian forces cold weather or winter weight wool socks, Marino longjohns, Codet/ Big Bill wool blend pants, and a CF or royal Navy virgin wool sweater, the only fleece I wear is a long sleeved shirt because wool around my neck or arms causes a rash, if it's snowing I have a simple cotton over jacket to throw on- cotton also sheds moisture as frost, for a hat it's either my tilley, a wool toque, or my fur lined "mad trapper" hat, really bitter weather means adding one of my down vests., and by really bitter I mean a a wind chill down to about -20c (-4f).
I've got a nice 600weight down jacket, but only really needed it once in the last couple of years.
I learned that valuable lesson years ago when working all week in snowstorms hanging off telephone poles, or in high rise buildings with no windows or doors (and sometimes no roof), and then heading out camping in temperatures down to -40
when your life can literally depend on your layers, wool will always be my first choice, even if it's pricey and no fun to wash...

 

[ErktheRed]

I believe that for minor rain days and maybe minimal use, a simple rain shell/pants are enough. Something with a good DWR on the exterior, decent coating on the inside.. most any brand will do.

For heavier rains/wet snow or prolonged exposure, a higher quality and membrane are better suited for the task. There’s a ton of preferences on this along with waxed cotton but for me, I go membrane. I choose something with underarm vents so I can dump heat and stay dryer. I always choose a storm hood over a collard hood or no hood. I choose Goretex with a higher denier fabric, because it will be put through a lot with me. I also wash and reproof, which varies in how often I wear it and how dirty it’s been. NikWax is my preferred brand, environmentally friendly and fully recyclable containers with eco dyes for labels.

I’ve been using a Beta SV for maybe 8-9 years, Beta AR for 10 yrs before that and non membrane before those. Nobody really makes a bad product these days there just happens to be more options, so I recommend a brand you align with and then choose the shell/jacket based off of your preference. Durability, breathability, looks, fit, functionality, waterproofness, etc etc. most Brands now also have used items that have been professionally brought back, same with major websites like REI, Backcountry, and other used gear shops (ferrel in CO and MI)

 

[ppine]

Working in SE Alaska with 150 inches of rain, we had to search for the right answer. I tried everything. I ended up with a wool union suit all year even summer.. For milder weather Filson tin pants and a Filson waxed cotton Cruiser. I have a wool Cruiser the Alaskan tuxedo for cooler weather. I wore a hard hat for the rain and big trees. When the rain stopped the brush was still wet and there were few trails except for those made by bears.

Helly Hansens are what a lot of Alaskans wear. They are good in heavy rain or when you are not that active. Goretex is over rated. I tried all kinds of it. It got ripped in the brush and still would sweat from the inside . Glaciated country is steep. I watched a guy slip on a steep slope and he took off at high speed. Goretex is like teflon in wet country. It is hard to stop.

I have some new fabric made by Eddie Bauer that is pretty good as long as I don't work too hard.
Filsons are really expensive. Sitting in a canoe in the rain a lot of things will work if you don't paddle too fast.