New Cold/Rain Gear

Yesterday I got my first shipment of the new mostly cold and rain gear that I bought for both Melissa and me. I really wanted to have decent cold and rain gear for Yellowstone so that no matter what the weather we can get some good hiking in. I basically just looked at Campmor and Sierra Trading post for everything, and went with whichever place I could get the better deal. Generally, I have an easier time finding stuff at Campmor, but sometimes Sierra has some amazing deals. Anyway here's what we got:

Binocs - I wanted a pair of small hiking binocs, because my astro binocs are too big and bulky. I just got the cheapest I could find - a 10x28 pair for $25.

Rain Coat - The single item that started this whole shopping spree. I knew I needed a decent rain coat before Yellowstone - Melissa has the one her Dad gave her from Sheila. I was a bit disappointed to not find anything under $40. I went with the small lightweight version to fit in my bag as opposed to a very nice, heavier, bulkier one I found from Sierra on serious markdown.

Rain Pants - I figured these would be nice if we get caught in the rain, and were only 10 bucks each.

Rain Pack Covers - Again, another $10 a piece that I just thought would make life better in the rain.

Long Underwear - This seemed essential for cold weather, which is a definite possibility in Yellowstone, but also for hiking in the fall/winter in Ohio. As is all of our hiking clothing, made of nylon. Another $10+ each for three pieces - top and bottom for me, and bottom for Melissa (she already had a top - but I just realized I should check if it is nylon!).

T-shirts - I got Melissa two nylon hiking tees- partly for the nylon, partly to have tees to get beat up. I had bought two nylon tees from Campmor ($7 a piece!) a month or so ago.

Long Sleeve Tees - One for each of us.

Fleece Jackets - These were the biggest thing I was unsure about on the list - quite possibly overkill. But I am now thinking that they are going to be very useful in the fall (and quite possibly in Yellowstone) and we will be glad we have them - they really seem quite nice and warm. I guess the question was really whether hoodies wouldn't work just as well, but we really got these for the same reason we got a lot of the other clothing - to be lightweight, nylon, and OK to beat up. Besides they were only $25 each and they look pretty nice - especially the color I got for Melissa.

All the stuff above was from Campmor. The stuff below I should get from Sierra on Monday.

Socks - We wanted to both have 3 pairs of liners/socks before Yellowstone. I needed 2 liners and 2 socks, and Melissa got 3 liners and 1 sock.

Convertible Pants - We wanted to have dedicated hiking pants for the usual reasons - nylon and beat-up-able. The convertibles will be nice too, since they can be either shorts or pants.

That's it! Over $300 :(. Stuff still to think about getting - one more t-shirt for each of us, a water treatment kit for emergencies, a nylon long underwear shirt for Melissa, waterproof gloves... I am sure there is plenty of other shit.