Reviews > Rain Gear > Jackets and Pants > Red Ledge Full Zip Pants > Cora Hussey > Long Term Report

Field Use Summary I continued to use the Red Ledge Pants extensively over the summer and into the winter. I have stopped using them as the snow really began to fall because of their lack of internal gaiters, and their inability to fit over my ski boots. They have been used or carried on about fourteen trips since my Field Report. They traveled all over Southern California, Arizona, and the southern Sierra. The terrain was mostly mountainous, and I wore the pants in average mountainous three-season temperatures (25 to 75 F / -4 to 24 C). They shed rain and kept me dry in weather, as advertised. During the summer months, I especially liked to carry them around. They are light and fit over all of my boots and layers that I wore during that time. They served as a great wind layer to carry (just in case) and also provided another layer of warmth at night when I underpacked a little too much. They are very compact, and also lightweight, so I would pack them in every pack I carried to be forgotten about until I needed them. I also have a tendency to go 'sunset watching', which often involves bushwhacking up the nearest tall hill to watch the sunset. I was consciously quite careful with the pants on these excursions, but they came out of every trip unscathed. After a while, scratches appeared on the outside but only visually and not structurally (as in, the scratches did nothing else but discolor the fabric). This was the worst abrasion the pants faced, and they performed well. When snow began to fall again but the daytime weather stayed relatively warm (about 70 F / 20 C), I discovered that wearing the pants to keep my long underwear dry was hardly worth it. The warm weather cut down on the breathability enough that my long underwear was soaked inside of the pants anyway. But, this temperature differential is needed for any waterproof-breathable coating to work. Instead, I wore softshell pants and kept the Red Ledge pants in my pack for windy or non-aerobic and wet conditions. The pants have been excellent overall. Other than being less breathable in warm weather and not doing so well in snow over ski boots, I hardly have anything bad to say at all. And those uses are pushing the pants out of their intended use, I think. For three-season use, I will certainly continue to use these pants for as long as they last.

Long Term Opinions Care and Maintenance: These pants have required very little care and maintenance. I got them especially dirty on a few trips, and simply washed them in the sink with a few squirts of non-detergent soap. They dry very quickly (I never did get the elastic as wet as in my Field Report and so never repeated the super-long elastic drying time). Generally, the pants just get stuffed in and out of my pack and onto my legs without complaint. Durability: The pants are a bit scuffed, and have faded and greyed a bit with the dirt they have encountered, but their functionality is the same. The zippers have seemed to be immune to snags or grime, and the seam tape and waterproofing is still going strong. The inside waterproof-breathable coating has begun to grey out and wear a bit around the knee caps and butt, but with the use I've gotten out of the pants, I consider this to be just fine and more durable than I expected, if anything. And the durable water resistance treatment (DWR) is still repelling water nearly as well as the day they came out of the box!

Summary Overall, these pants have been fantastic. They have a great fit, especially with the articulated knees, and are very easy to get on and off. Their waterproof lining requires a large temperature differential (warm inside, very cool outside) to work well. They have survived a great deal of bushwhacking and abuse, and are still going strong. These pants have found a permanent spot in my three-season pack. Likes Dislikes Great fit Waterproof coating has begun to rub off a little Compact and light weight Do not fit over ski boots

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Reviews > Rain Gear > Jackets and Pants > Red Ledge Full Zip Pants > Cora Hussey > Long Term Report