From Mt. Rainer to Rain Gear!

Reading so many other blogs and books about the Camino, to say nothing of my own experiences on the Camino Portuguese, I realize it's time to start thinking about my physical preparations.  On the Portuguese route, we had rain.  Lots of rain.  Rain every day.  So I'm painfully aware of how valuable good rain gear is.

Ray looking snazzy in a regular
backpacking poncho.

 Last time, I took along a green backpacking poncho and then my hubby tells me he forgot to bring his.  So, (deep breath here!) I gave him mine, as I had a fairly water repellent jacket with me.  Neither was quite up to the task as it turns out. I'm not sure anything would have been perfect but I know want better this time around.

Altus, which you can see is
pretty long, but more of a raincoat.

During my research on the Camino Forum I like to frequent, I've found several options.  One is called the Altus and it's actually a type of rain coat that has a large gusset in the back to allow for your backpack.   We saw two girls from Germany wearing them and they seemed pretty good at keeping the rain off.  However, they also seemed long, too long for my liking.  They almost looked like they were mobile tents hiking along!   Perhaps it was a matter of fit, I'm not sure.

Another group of Brits, had rain jackets with their packs over top and rain pants too.  The only draw pack is you then need a cover for the pack too  and knowing my ability to overheat...I think the pants would be a bit too much.  They also used gaiters, and I can see a big plus there especially when your on gravel, as it gets into the boots or shoes and hurts like hell!

The last option, the one I'm thinking of going with is something I found reading about long distance hiking here in the US.  Here the long trails don't have villages conveniently dotted along the way.  Often you go for a week on the AT before you come to anything resembling civilization.  As a result, the folks doing this have to be really self reliant.  From what I've seen and heard talking to them, if they endorse something...it's worth a listen.  One of them has come up with something that, for my money, seems to be the best of all of the above.  It's called the Packa, and it fits over your backpack.  It looks at first like nothing more than your typical elastic edged pack cover.  However, there is a rain coat attached that can be pulled out without ever removing the pack from your back, and then zipped, tied and cinched to fit.  This negates the whole problem of getting yourself covered quickly when it rains, digging in the pack to find your gear etc.  It's got a hood and that has a brim to keep the water out of your face and eyes.   I'm attaching a video I found on Youtube.  It's not cheap but then none of the other gear is either, at least not the good stuff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y6Belr3mrA