My opinion: 7 reasons why hiking pants make no sense

I’ll say it: hiking pants are overrated.

When I go on a hike, I don’t take them. Ever. My leg system is simple. A pair of shorts, waterproof pants for the current weather, and lightweight merino tights strictly for sleeping. I almost never hike in anything other than shorts.

This isn’t some half-baked theory I made up after a lucky season. I ditched the hiking pants at the beginning of my first hike on the Appalachian Trail in 2018. Fast forward to now, about 10,000 miles later, and I still haven’t missed them. In my experience, hiking pants are unnecessary luggage on a long-distance hike.

Here’s why.

1. Your core matters more than your legs

The most important part of your body to keep warm is your core. That’s not a good idea, it’s physiology.

When it’s cold, I focus on insulating my torso and head. My layering system usually looks like this: a long-sleeve hoodie, an Alpha Direct midlayer, and a rain jacket. I’ll add a buff around my neck and face and adjust the hoods. With my core and head properly insulated, my body stays comfortable, even if my legs are bare.

The extremities simply do not need the same level of insulation to maintain overall warmth. As long as my core is regulated, my legs will be fine. I’ve hiked in windy and rainy conditions during the shoulder season wearing full layers for my upper body and nothing but shorts on my legs…and it works.

14,022 feet above San Luis Peak in Colorado

2. Moving generates heat (a lot)

When you’re walking, your body produces a surprising amount of heat. Even on cold days, you’ll likely be sweating once you get moving.

This is where hiking pants start to work against you. They trap heat and humidity, making temperature regulation harder, not easier. I found that keeping my legs bare helps me maintain my balance. My body is able to get rid of excess heat instead of overheating, which means I sweat less overall.

That’s important, because sweat control is everything on a hike. Excessive sweating causes your clothes to get wet, and wet clothes cause you to get cold the moment you stop moving. We’ve all felt that chill after a walk when your body stops producing heat and suddenly you’re shivering.

My system is simple: walk in shorts, sweat less and stay drier. When I stop for the day, I immediately change into dry sleepwear, including my merino tights, and get into the quilt. Dry equals warm.

Bonus: Less sweat buildup on your legs also means less chafing, especially on warmer days. Skin that can breathe is happier skin.

3. Hiking is a game of temperature regulation

Every walk is a constant balancing act. Put on enough layers, but not too many. Shorts give me more control over that balance. I can add or remove layers on top without overheating my legs and I don’t have to constantly stop to take off wet pants.

This strategy has worked for me in all seasons, climates and thousands of miles.

4. Pants are tight

This part is subjective, but it matters.

Hiking involves constant leg movement: high steps over drops, deep lunges over rock slabs, awkward foot positions on steep climbs. Any restriction gets old quickly.

I’ve always hated the feeling of fabric pulling, bunching, or resisting movement around my knees and hips. Shorts eliminate that completely. There is less drag, less resistance and more freedom of movement. The stride feels natural and unencumbered, which builds up over long days and long miles.

Call it convenience, call it efficiency, call it mental sanity. But I will always accept unrestricted movements.

Bundling up just before a storm in Idaho

5. Every ounce still counts

As I’ve perfected my backpacking setup over the years, one truth has remained constant: every gram matters.

If a piece of equipment is not essential, I don’t carry it. Hiking pants typically add about half a pound to your backpack. Half a pound may not seem like a lot, but over thousands of miles, it absolutely is.

Eliminating unnecessary items, including pants, has made my load lighter, my days easier, and my walks more enjoyable. If I already have shorts, rain pants, and sleep tights, hiking pants become superfluous.

6. Rain pants and shorts already cover the bases

I don’t need two different pairs of long pants for hiking.

My sleep tights have a specific function: to keep you clean(ish), dry, and warm at camp. I don’t walk with them. Rain pants are for real rain, high wind, extreme cold, or long breaks when I’m not generating heat. Shorts are what I walk in the vast majority of the time.

Between those three, all scenarios are covered. Adding hiking pants doesn’t expand my system; it just doubles it.

Wearing my rain pants on a cold morning while packing

7. Shorts dry faster (and river crossings are less miserable)

Wet pants are horrible. There is no way around it.

Shorts dry faster because there is less fabric and because the skin dries faster than the fabric. After storms, sweaty climbs or repeated river crossings, shorts always win.

I’ve had days where I crossed several rivers before noon. If I were wearing pants, I’d be walking for hours with heavy, wet fabric clinging to my legs. Instead, I get out of the water, keep moving, and let my legs air dry as I go.

It’s simpler. It’s more comfortable. And it’s one less thing to deal with.

Some hiking friends as we cross the Gila River many, many times a day.

Final thoughts

I’m not telling you what to do. If hiking pants work for you, great. Bring them. Do your own hike.

But if you carry them out out of custom, tradition or because you think you are supposed It might be worth questioning that assumption. I did it and never went back.

It turns out that pants may not be as essential as we’ve been led to believe. Are they for you?

Cover image: Photo via Livvy W; graphic design by Zack Goldman