Ponchos - anyone use them in the UK?

[Paul_B]

I was wondering, does anyone actually use them in Britain, particularly in the hills of Lakes, Wales, Scotland or other hilly and breezy areas?

My more normal kit like traditional waterproofs works well but I have a baby and was wondering if a poncho might be a solution to walking in the wet or windy conditions. Just wondering what they are like to wear. Also do you get funny looks from normal walkers when you do wear one??

What are the plusses and minusses for them for more mainstream use?

(By mainstream I mean those who aren't going to use them for weather protection and shelter in the way the armed forces types might).

 

[treadlightly]

If its peeing down and you wear one you don't get funny looks just envious glares! I wore one in the hills once but found condensation to be too much of an issue when working hard. I did get funny looks then.

 

[Shewie]

I wear one in the canoe for long rainy days, I prefer waterproofs for walking though

 

[sandbender]

I prefer a poncho to waterproofs, I find the condensation build up to be more bearable, I'm wearing shorts and sandals for most of the year which might help though.

I wouldn't wear one in serious mountain terrain, I do wear one when out for multi-day walks, I wear my pack over the poncho which stops the thing flapping about in strong winds.

"...I have a baby and was wondering if a poncho might be a solution to walking in the wet or windy conditions. Just wondering what they are like to wear. Also do you get funny looks from normal walkers when you do wear one?.."

When my daughter was much younger I could carry her on my chest under a poncho, although I'd usually used my gore tex jacket which was easier to get on and off while carrying her.

I generally don't get funny looks in any of the countries I walk in.

 

[rik_uk3]

No good out on the hills.

 

[blacktimberwolf]

I think there fine for milling about in the drizzle but not suitable for real walking or serious wind & rain & are about as useful as a cheap umbrella up in the hills.

 

[TheNative]

I personally love ponchos because they are very light and can pack down very small which gives you the option to carry more than one a pose to rain gear that would take up a lot of room in your pack. Also you could use them to collect water!

Was out walking one day and it was none stop lashing it down with rain to the point you would be soaked to the skin but my very cheap poncho kept me dry as a bone!

 

[MartiniDave]

I keep a couple of army surplus ones in the landy. One is the sort of rubberised ones which when rolled up tight makes a useful rest for my rifle. The other is a nylon type, thats used for sitting on or as a tarp substitute. I find them quite handy.

Dave

 

[sandbender]

"...but not suitable for real walking or serious wind & rain & are about as useful as a cheap umbrella up in the hills..."

Real walking? Here is a pic of me wearing my 58 pattern poncho, at the point the picture was taken I had just walked a little over a thousand miles over hills, a couple of mountains and lots of forests, it kept me dry, it doubled as my tent and I still use it today twelve years later.

I wouldn't wear it in the Cairngorms though.

 

[galopede]

I have a cheap ripstop American Army one I use when playing my squeezebox for the morris team in inclement weather!

I do get some odd looks with people wondering exactly what I'm doing under there but it certainly keeps the wet off £3k's worth of hand built Italian squeezebox!

It's a plain olive green one. Thinking about getting a camo one then the punters wouldn't be able to see where the music is coming from.

Gareth

 

[Bumbler]

I personally love ponchos because they are very light and can pack down very small which gives you the option to carry more than one a pose to rain gear that would take up a lot of room in your pack. Also you could use them to collect water!

Was out walking one day and it was none stop lashing it down with rain to the point you would be soaked to the skin but my very cheap poncho kept me dry as a bone!

I got a 10£ rain jacket and trouser that packs smaller than my US G.I poncho and does a better job. The only reason I purchased one is the use as a small tarp, or for general camp use.

 

[Ed Edwards]

Big fan of ponchos. They are multi use and, as someone said before, if you're like me you get just as soaked with condensation/sweat in ordinary waterproofs so I've never found the condensation argument to hold much water IMHO.

This said I do use both. The WP's are more practical to do 'stuff' (like camp chores) in, but walking about I'd rather the poncho. It may be because I used on at work for so long so just got used to it? But, I do like having the extra admin area/ground sheet/kit store etc......

For the negligible burden of space and weight I take both in the inclement months.

 

[Kernowek Scouser]

I have a modern poncho that packs down to the size of an apple, fits in a cargo pocket when out for a summer stroll and is 'shower proof', but it is a bit like wearing a noisy bin bag in anything stronger that a gentle breeze.

I also have a 58 Pattern poncho which is far more substantial, hard wearing and waterproof. In my experience you can do serious walking in one, up in the hills and along the coast, where the wind tends to blow and the rain shows no mercy. As above the poncho tends to get more use as my in pack waterproof, in supposedly drier, warmer months and when I do wear it, it is under my pack, as it does tend to catch the wind like a sale, when worn as originally intended. I also carry a pair of storm over trousers in my pack, for when it is really bucketing down, as the poncho will keep you dry to your thighs, but the run off will soak the rest of you down to your boots.

I do have a have a couple of waterproof and or insulated jackets for when I am heading out into the rain when it is cold. But, if it is dry when heading and I am not expecting to encounter any mournful brass monkeys, I'll pack the poncho. It is a good, inexpensive waterproof, that can also be used as something to sit on, a wind break or a rain shelter, atop a hill, making a brew at the mid point of a serious walk

 

[John Fenna]

I use a poncho in the woods or lowland ... not for windy ridges though!

 

[SimonM]

I use a poncho on Scout camps or in the woods, but never for hillwalking...

 

[santaman2000]

What's it like you ask? It's like being in a moving tent. I have no trouble with the wind; the edges blow about but so what? That may bother you as a personal thing, but if it does it's not because the poncho is any less effective.

As others have said, they're good for walking but not so much so for actually working. It's those flapping edges getting caught up in the work you know. For that reason I'd likely NOT use one hill climbing.

 

[MikeLA]

I have seen a family with 3 young children all wearing ponchos walking up Ben Nevis. Personnaly I wear one everywear BUT the hills but along as you tie the around the waist in wind should be no problem.

Its the wind on the hills to watch out for. Young children can be put in all in one waterproof outfits, OK if being carried but hot for them walking.

 

[Paul_B]

The other half has a couple. She's lived in various places like s america, eastern Europe and Asia. The first two regions she found that ponchos were actually quite commonly used. She wears waterproofs here though.

 

[Opal]

Real walking? Here is a pic of me wearing my 58 pattern poncho, at the point the picture was taken I had just walked a little over a thousand miles over hills, a couple of mountains and lots of forests, it kept me dry, it doubled as my tent and I still use it today twelve years later.

I wouldn't wear it in the Cairngorms though.

Before or after breakfast?

 

[presterjohn]

I rarely wear mine amongst people as it is DPM and quite frankly makes you look a prize doofus. Having said that in a solitary environment or when sitting out a storm it comes into its own.