Hello,
I am looking to buy some new hiking/trekking pants.

I am hiking in Wrangell-St. Elias, Alaska this summer from July 7 to the 25. The weather is stated to be in the 40's to upper 60's - daytime

Here is what I have been looking at so far :
- The North Face Scrambler Convertible Pant
- Mountain Hardwear Mesa Convertible Pant
- The North Face Paramount Convertible Pant

Any recommendations or input is appreciated, thank you.

Edited by Garrett.Hupe on 06/09/2008 15:17:38 MDT.

I have always used EXOFFICIO convertable pants. They feel great on the skin, very breatheble, lightweight and some are made sun & bug proof. Oh yea they dry rather quickly. Goodluck!!

I've found the Mountain Hardwear pants comfortable when I have a lot of weight on the hip belt.

For lower price -- look at the REI Sahara convertible pants. Great value -- esp. when purchased on sale.

Thanks for all the help. I will definitely look into the ExOfficio's and all the others that were recommended

I tried many pants at REI - Sahara, ExOfficio, North Face, etc., and found that the best hands down were the Mountain Hardwear Convertible Pack pants. There are no bunched elastic parts to rub your waist under your hipbelt.

Even so, I've found that my pack (Gregory Z55) tends to push the back of my waistband down towards my hips. Does anyone else have this problem? (Maybe the pants are slightly loose on the waist). Do you guys wear your pants high or low, below your hipbelt? I certainly don't try to wear my pants low on purpose, as seems to be the fashion statement these days. I find a higher waistband more comfortable myself.

I really like Prana's Stretch Zion Pants. They weight abut as much as REI Sahara pants. They fit me well - no sagging or drooping - and I really like the stretchy fabric.

Exofficio. The Amphib! I have had the regular pants for about 6 years and wear them 1-3 days a week. I just bought my second pair, the zip offs. I took them both to South America for work and a jungle trek. They worked great and I stayed as dry as you can during the rainy season. I am buying a few more pairs because I go back at the end of the month and was washing them at the hotel every night. I get dirty at work.

They have a swim suit lining, I cut it out of my old pair. Lighter and a better fit. I have tried a lot of different kinds and these are my favorite. Even with the cost.

I can give REI Sahara's a hearty thumbs down. Perhaps it's just bad luck but I've had zipper failures on two pairs.

Do they have to be convertible? I would think that given the season, bug protection is going to trump getting a nice hiker tan. If I were lucky enough to be heading to Wrangell I'd bring long pants only. Currently I am wearing Rail Riders Weatherpants, which are possibly the most well constructed and durable piece of clothing I've ever bought outside of my Levis 501's.

A couple of years ago I went through the same paces of looking at which were best for me, no longer wanting to carry seperate shorts. I looked at just about any maker/model I could think of. I had a set of features that were important:

1. Not too heavy or flimsy
2. Shorts had to have an inseam longer than 7"
3. Plenty of pockets and most zippered

Cloudveil came into conciousness because Ryan J. called them out on one of his gearlists and they seemed to be goto for him. After looking into the CLOUDVEIL SPINNER CONVERTIBLE pants, I was sold. I shopped for deals and got the regularly priced $135 pants for half.

The materials stretchiness/comfort coupled with durability are the key to these pants. It had every other feature I was looking for as well.

http://www.cloudveil.com/mens/pants/spinner+convertible+pant--CV00008/

David P. might consider the length or position of the pack itself. When I notice that dreaded downward push on my pants from the belt...it usually has something to do with my pack adjustment.

Edited by scottalanp on 06/12/2008 13:37:34 MDT.

The cloudveil spinner convertibles are very nice nice... but they have one downside. They start to pill and generally look ratty a lot faster than the typical nylon hiking pants. My first part of ex officio supplex pants looked pretty good after several years of use (at least 1 a week around town, continuously worn in the back country and when traveling). The spinner pants started to look worn after much less use.

I have had good luck with the mountain hardware pack pants. They are extremely durable and well made. Generally though, I prefer the lighter weight ex officio pants (the non-stretch ones) which breaath better, and lighter, dry faster, and a sufficently durable except in extremely high abrasion situations. Both ex officio and mh pack pants can be found at approx 50% retail at STP.

--Mark