Poncho's

“I am looking for a good poncho that has the grommets for tiedowns, handwarmer pocket, stiff brim built into the hood, taped seams and lightweight. I tried searching the old threads but couldn't find anything. Any comments are appreciated.”

“I made my own cagoul, poncho with sleeves, and sewn down the sides, with hand-warming pouch and map pocket. No grommets and won't double as a tarp. Imagine it could be adapted to double as a tarp, but not light.”

“i thought that lightweight and poncho's didn't mix...the only poncho that i sorta liked was a sterns heavyduty...very puncture resitant...snaps on the sides...grommets at the four corners...full hood that covers great..but no brim...worked great as a tarp or groundsheet..but heavy as a mack truck and no pockets”

“You can get ponchos like that from Campmor. I don't think they have handwarmer pockets but you can't have everything. They have an ultralite silny version that doesn't have a brim on the hood. They don't have grommets but they do have nylon loops for tiedown.”

“hehe no grommets, no brim, no pockets..can't have everything

i think you found his poncho skully...*giggles*”

“Hey OPIE, open your campmor catalog and then read my post again.”

“I have one form campmor it dose not have pockets but everything else. It is pretty nice never leaks and has a flap that will extend it to go over my pack when needed. It is light and so far tough.”

“add what you want to
this ”

“Bitpusher has posted the link to the silny poncho I was talking about. The other poncho to which I referred is this one. See OPIE ¦ P .

Actually, if you can sew you're better off making one just the way you want it like uncliff suggested. You can buy nylon baseball cap brims at most sewing/cloth stores and put a visor on it.

BTW uncliff, thanks for the link!!!”

“I must say, I used a poncho for years as my rain gear. Two September trips to Isle Royale both had good rain days and I fared fine with the poncho (had the type with the extension so I could put it over my backpack). It was much heavier than that 8.5 oz. silnylon extension model at Campmor, so that looks like a deal for an ultralighter (if you like royal blue -- long ago had a gear store guy tell me that black flies love royal blue because they think it's a puddle of water -- but it remains a popular gear color).

Of course, I love my high tech PreCip jacket, and my daypack has it's own rain cover and my new backpack is waterproof, but it certainly makes me consider what I'd do if I were to re-equip myself truly ultralight.”

“I was searching the net and found this poncho that has what i am looking for. The only problem is that it doesn't show the weight and it isn't on Kelty's website. Has anyone seen this poncho before and know the weight of it.

Kelty Mud Flap Poncho”

“Not on the Kelty site probably because it's a closeout from prior season, but at $29.95 it's a cost-effective deal with those features. Can't touch the silny weight, I bet.”

“Thanks for everyone's input on this and the links that were given.”

“ Here you go Ewker. Looks like about 16 oz.”

“Hey, I'm getting good. I was going to guess a pound in my previous post after looking at the pic. I did find an old Kelty product news web page that said the poncho was part of its new "ultralight" line of rain gear back in 2000. Has 2mil coating. And the handwarmer pocket is fleece-lined.

Ah, decision, decisions, Ewker.”

“I called Mountain Sports and the guy went and weighed it. He said it weighed 14 ounces.”

“Just get the cheapest, lightest one you can find. Putting it in your pack with the rest of your gear will ensure it won't rain. If you forget it or leave it at home on purpose, it will rain. Simple. :-)”

“Okay, I stood it as long as I could.


Is that a real poncho?
I mean, is that a Mexican poncho
Or is that a Sears poncho?

Hmmmmmm... no foolin'...”

“But Seriously...

The poncho was great for ventilation here in the Sunny South, especially in the warmer months, but I had to give it up. Not because of the weight or anything --- but because if I did any climbing at all I would step on the inside of the thing and bust my... er, do a face-plant, <G>.”

“I've heard bugs like blue too. I'd like to see if there's any truth to it. Lot's of gear is made in blue.”

“I started this thread a long time ago and ended up buying some Frogg Toggs.

Now the FT are light and I like them. I have only used the pants once and normally don't even carry them. I have been thinking about a poncho again. I can see it taking the place of a few items.

You can use it as rain gear, a pack cover or a tarp.

Seems like you would get a lot more ventilation with a poncho than with the normal rain gear.

It seems more people use reg. rain gear than a poncho. Is there a reason why other than personal preference.”

“I have the materials and the plans to build a poncho but haven't gotten off my butt to do it. I'm building a sil poncho for summer use.”

“Actually I find that being able to open the front of a rain jacket during those times it slacks up really helps.

With a poncho, I would take it off. Then it would start raining again. Then I would put it on and it would stop.

So, with a jacket I can break that cycle up somewhat by opening it up for ventilation whenever I need to without getting so damn hot.

Breathable might be one thing, but I haven't worn a piece of rain gear yet that didn't add about 15 degrees of insulation to the mix.”

“I have the Marmot precip rainjacket and pants, and I bought the silnylon backpackers poncho for it's many uses, Tarp, wind break, groundcloth, raingear.....I use it more than the Jacket.”

“While ponchos vent much better I'd think that they would be a hinderance on some trails with snagging and catching on branches. Plus camp chores will be more challenging with that loose fit and exposure when reaching and bending etc.”

“I've hiked in the rain with a poncho once. I had a separate rain cover for my pack, a large garbage bag with holes for the straps. It worked OK, except the hood of the poncho was slowing tearing off, so I discarded the poncho (a cheap one) after that trip. I bought another one, a deluxe model with grommets at the corners so it would double as a tarp, but it's heavy and I've never used it. I think it'll be perfect for fishing though so I will probably use it for that.

I've heard people say that they're not as breathable as you might think.”

“Ponchos are quite versatile.

Uses you listed, plus ground cover and a sail....

Yepper. I once used mine as a sail for the Cumberland Belle on my T'giving '01(?) trip about the waters of Cumby Island NS. I used fishing rods for a mast and an arm.”

“I like taking a poncho. No one makes tacos like Poncho...



Oh wait sec...

I like a poncho cause with my hiking staff it makes me look like Moses.

I'm thinking of going back to one too. I simply can not use a jacket.
last edited: 3/28/05 3:15:20 PM”

“Considering your age Nigal, would that be a pre-murder Moses or a post-murder Moses?”

“Hell if'n I had that kind of power I'd just comand it to quit raining. LOL!

So mote it be!”

“I do not like ponchos because mostly when I see rain there is wind as well.

Wind driven rain makes a poncho not too good at keeping me dry.
Wind when I am on a ridge makes a poncho dangerous IMHO.”

“Ponchos can be dangerous on the trail. If there's wind, you may not be able to see your feet or where you are stepping, they also tend to act like a flag in the breeze, not good anywhere near the fire (imagion a 2 footed bottle rocket moving quickly through camp). They get hot and you still get wet. 'Course, that's just my opinion.”

“I ware my puncho some time so I do not get the moanya.”

“Ponchos suck.

When you get it out to use it it becomes a sail.
When you put it away you now have 9 yards of wet plastic with crap stuck to it.
It sticks to wet skin worse than saran wrap.
If it's windy you are wet from blowby.
If it's raining heavily you are wet from splash.
If it's just lightly raining you are wet from sweat.
If you bend down to pick something up the hem dips in the mud and then transfers said mud to your body.
If you have to get around a obstacle (deadfall anyone?) in the trail you will step on the hem and fall.
If the trail is brushy it snags and tears.
If it doubles as a pack cover the hood doesn't sit right and the backs of your legs are now even more exposed.
If it doubles as a tarp then you can't move around camp to go piss because your rain gear is tied to a friggin tree.
It sucks as a windbreaker because it doesn't have sides. (even the ones with buttons)
It can't double as an insulation layer. (not well anyway)
If you wear one during a stream crossing and fall, it will wrap up on you and possibly drown you.

Ponchos suck.
last edited: 3/28/05 3:43:34 PM”

“HPM, tell me how you really feel”

“Lemme tell ya about it......

lol

I used ponchos for 10 years and I don't miss them one bit.”

“But the grommets, man, the grommets!”

“Mine tore out of the poncho.”

“I'm still gonna use mine for fishin'. It would have been perfect the other day when I was just sitting in the rain with my rain jacket but no rain pants on.”

“Nigal?
Is that you?”

“I had blue jeans on. Hell man, my daughter was with me.”

“Don't listen to HPM... he obviously doesn't know how to use a poncho ;)

When it's hot I won't use anything but a poncho. Anything else and you're just dripping with sweat here in the SE. But, our hiking is quite a bit different around here then other areas.”

“I'm more SE than you. :P

When it's hot I'd rather use an umbrella or just get wet cause you can dry out quickly.

Of you can just go north where folks think it gets hot in the summer.”

“if its hot I dont wear any rain gear, if its cold or cool I will wear a rain coat (which doubles as a warm layer).”

“I like an umbrella with a water repellent jacket if it cool enough to wear a jacket. I sweat too much for full blown raingear and get wet and too hot. If you are out hiking in rain long enough you get wet no matter what you have on.”

“Nice poncho...

or...

Is that a real poncho or a sears poncho?”