Hiking in the rain has a special place in our heart; the nature is more lively and beautiful when raindrops cover everything. Don’t get us wrong, hiking in the rain is less safe than waiting it out in a shelter, but there’s a kind of magic in being out there and not getting (as) wet. And we’ll teach you how to stay dry and still go an extra mile in the rain.
What gear do you need?
If you’ve followed our proper backpacking gear checklist, you’re basically set for the most part. It only takes a few adjustments and extra pieces of gear to really make it work.
1. Trekking poles
If you’ve never used them, now’s your chance to redeem yourself. Trails get really slippery and unstable during rainfall, and having two extra “legs” will help you keep your balance and not fall into the muddy trail.
2. Pack Cover
Your backpack most likely isn’t completely waterproof, and it’ll collect rainwater on its seams and slowly get wet. A waterproof pack cover will keep your pack completely dry. If you’re caught out in the open, or you’d rather DIY a cover, you can use a trusty trash bag to cover your pack.
3. Dry Sack
Don’t forget to keep your essentials and your electronics dry using a dry sack. Ziplocks aren’t waterproof enough and are prone to ripping and tearing inside your pack.
4. Waterproof Boots and Gaiters
A good pair of waterproof hiking boots and quality, high gaiters will keep your feet dry. Dry feet are happy feet, and you’ll avoid blisters this way. Be sure to pack any blister-care items in your first aid kit in the case your feet do get wet.
5. Proper clothes
A good waterproof jacket is a no-brainer. Go with synthetic materials like Gore-Tex or polyester, or even wool. Cotton gets drenched easily and holds water. This water cools you down and can give you hypothermia at worst, or a nasty cold. Synthetic materials work even when they’re wet, and they’re quicker to dry. Top notch outdoor clothing manufacturers clearly state if their clothing items are waterproof or not.
6. Pack extra socks
Finding dry socks in a dry bag if your feet are wet is one of the best feelings in the world. Pack a few pairs of extra socks, because you’ll need to leave your wet socks to dry.
7. Try not to get your gear wet
Try to keep your backpack, yourself and your feet as dry as possible. Drying something takes quite a while, especially if you can’t build a campfire on the trail. Don’t fidget with your backpack and its cover, and don’t fidget with your gaiters. Put them on properly and keep hiking. Only take the backpack cover if you really have to.
General Hiking in the Rain Tips
We’ll leave you with a couple more tips for rainy day hiking, as most beginners don’t know them. Please keep an eye on yourself while you’re hiking in the rain.
1. Stay aware of how you feel
Hiking in the rain can fill us up with a special kind of excitement and adrenaline. This clouds our judgment and makes us a bit too optimistic about how dry we are, how cold we are, and how we feel. You can easily forget to eat or re-hydrate in the rain, and that leads to headaches and a bad mood.
If you feel cold, you should warm up, not “brave the elements”. You should give in to Mother Nature, and respect her authority. There’s absolutely no fun in getting sick on a hike, or after a hike. You might even get seriously sick or have hypothermia, which is a very serious and potentially deadly issue.
2. The trail is slippery
Remember that the trail is slippery, and that you may fall. Be very careful on and uphill and downhill parts of the trail, as a slip there could injure you. Even if you don’t injure yourself, you just fell into the wet mud. Respect Mother Nature and take your time, it’s natural that hiking in the rain will take twice or thrice the time you’d normally take on the trail. Your safety is the most important part of the rainy day hike.
4. Be ready to be late
A rainy day hike takes twice or thrice as long to cross, as you will be slower. You should be ready to camp it out, and to take your time getting to your destination. If there’s phone coverage, call your family and friends and tell them you’ll be late.
3. Beware of lightning
Thunder and lightning are scary when you’re inside, and extremely scare when you’re outside. Lightning generally strikes at the highest points, so it’s advised that you get off the hill/mountain, and camp it out as low as you can. You can guesstimate how far a lightning struck from you by counting the seconds until the sound of thunder reaches you.
One second means that a lightning bolt struck within 1200 feet from you, which is a very bad sign. If the time between the lightning and the thunder is 10 seconds or more (which means that the lightning struck 2 miles away from you), you’re generally safe unless the storm comes over your location.