Do you use a pack cover or dry bag in your pack when it rains?

[hflier]

Do you use a pack cover or dry bag in your pack when it rains? It seems to me that putting your stuff if a dry bag or trash bag in the pack would be better. Interested in what you folks think?

 

[colonel00]

Personally I am reworking all of my gear and my goal is to have everything in the pack protected in a bag that needs to be. That way, I can stop in a rain storm, pull out the dry bags with clothing and sleep system and still have access to dig out the shelter and get it set up.

 

[littlebuf]

day hunting nothing. if I were packing camp around id probably use a trash bag to keep my tent/quilt and clothes dry. but I've never packed camp in while its raining.

 

[ScottP]

I just got a lightweight seal-line dry bag for all the essentials, bag, pad, clothes, etc. Its a 60L so a bit big for my current setup (bought it to line a pack in future AK hunts), but I'll try it out this fall to see how I like it. I have a pack rain cover that weighs and ounce or something that I always have in a pocket with rain gear and such anyway.

If the weather looks nasty, I'll definitely use the dry bag. Nothing worse than soaked gear in October....

 

[rodney482]

dry bags for everything.. also a contractor garbage bag if needed

 

[TheRambler]

I typically use both. I keep my sleeping quilts and spare clothes in a dry bag, food in a dry bag, everything else is just in silnylon stuff sacks. I also use a pack cover when it starts raining. The pack cover isnt neccesarily to keep the contents of the pack dry(but it does), but more so to keep the pack itself dry. A water logged pack can really add a good deal of extra weight. My pack cover weighs like 2 or 3 oz, a soaked pack adds about a pound or two.

IMO dry bags, stuff wrapped in trash bags etc is the key to keeping the important stuff dry. The pack cover is just to keep the pack from getting water logged.

 

[gobbler1662]

I use three sea to summit sil nylon dry bags.Sleep system in one, Clothing in the other and food goes in the last one. That way no matter what the conditions my vital gear is dry. Its also much easier when i get to a bivy site to unload.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

Dry bags mostly, but every now and then I will break out one of the old rain covers just to remind myself I don't like it

 

[Larry Bartlett]

I'm mostly a lightweight dry sack guy for all my individual shiz like sleeping kit and food. But...went on a recent epic NW Alaska char adventure and was tapped out at 75-lbs of gear with food, clothing, survival equip and packraft, plus camera gear. I'm using a bad ass Kifaru Timberline pack that weighs somewhere around 8-lbs dry and empty. So, the scenario we faced on a 20-mile hike start day was a full day of rain. I didn't bring a pack cover, only dry sacks inside to keep my stuff dry. I weighed the pack soaking wet and it was about 17-lbs empty.

So, an added 9-lbs of water weight (1.3 gallons of water) and you'd feel that weight on the walk. Just something to consider if you're hoofin miles. Maybe a pack cover would save you nearly 10-lbs of water weight in a heavy rain spell.

My lightweight dry sacks are made by Seal-Line. Rock solid waterproof. worth the cost up front, IMO.

out

 

[TheRambler]

Damn Larry, i had no idea it was that much lol. I was just guessing it was a few lbs. I'm right with ya though, i feel the same way.

 

[armyjoe]

I run a Sea to Summit pack cover. I'm with Larry and the extra weight of a soaked pack sucks!! To many years hauling a military ruck to know that.

Also, SeaLine are great waterproof bags and definitely my top bag. The Cirrus are light and never leaked for me. Weird I don't see them mentioned more

 

[Backpack Hunter]

I'm mostly a lightweight dry sack guy for all my individual shiz like sleeping kit and food. But...went on a recent epic NW Alaska char adventure and was tapped out at 75-lbs of gear with food, clothing, survival equip and packraft, plus camera gear. I'm using a bad ass Kifaru Timberline pack that weighs somewhere around 8-lbs dry and empty. So, the scenario we faced on a 20-mile hike start day was a full day of rain. I didn't bring a pack cover, only dry sacks inside to keep my stuff dry. I weighed the pack soaking wet and it was about 17-lbs empty.

So, an added 9-lbs of water weight (1.3 gallons of water) and you'd feel that weight on the walk. Just something to consider if you're hoofin miles. Maybe a pack cover would save you nearly 10-lbs of water weight in a heavy rain spell.

My lightweight dry sacks are made by Seal-Line. Rock solid waterproof. worth the cost up front, IMO.

out

Any reason you don't waterproof the pack itself to save the water logged weight?

 

[TheRambler]

There is not a way to waterproof a pack to prevent it from becoming waterlogged. Even if its coated with a DWR, that only works to an extent. Eventually in a prolonged rain it will become waterlogged. Kifaru packs for example have some kind of DWR coating on the cordura, they do fine in light rain and all of the water tends to bead up and roll off for the most part. But in a prolonged rain, especially a heavy prolonged rain, the pack material becomes waterlogged and soaks through. DWR=durable water resistant, not water proof. For a truly waterproof pack it has to be made out of something like silnylon and the seams have to be sealed.

 

[Daniel_M]

Something to consider, empty your pack out completely.

Weight it.

Soak it with water. then put it back on the scale.

I rock with kit in waterproof bags, however depending on the time of year I will bring a lightweight pack fly.

 

[realunlucky]

Doubled the packs wieght and than some. I only used dry sacks but will look into a cover now. Of course it never rains in utah

 

[Biggs300]

Although I have a couple of good dry sacks, I use waterproof pack covers on both of my main packs. They stay in the top lid and are quick and easy to use.

 

[Above Timber]

I use a pack cover as well as contractor bags. I have the contractor bags anyway so why not use them to keep my bag and other essentials dry. Thinking of ways to have equipment double its duty saves weight. Here in Colorado I have only had to break out the pack cover half dozen times in twelve years.

 

[AK Troutbum]

I use LW dry bags for my sleep system and clothes, and also use a pack cover for moderate and heavier rains. I like to maximize the space in my tent, so I pretty much never keep my pack inside, I just cover the pack at night and leave it outside. It's nice to put on a dry pack in the morning when it's been raining all night.

 

[Mike7]

In N. Idaho, no pack cover in Sept. and I bring the pack cover after that. Most things inside my pack are in a silnylon stuff sack or dry bag and I am amazed how dry the Timberline can stay inside the pack after a day or two of rain, but it still gets really waterlogged and heavy as mentioned above. Also, once the whole pack/harness is drenched, it takes a long time to dry.

 

[KMD]

I wonder if it'd be a good idea to treat the pack lid with something like the new hydrophobic 'Never Wet' spray from Rustoleum? It is supposed to dry to a "milky haze" when applied to fabrics. I think I'm going to perform a test treatment on a Kifaru pocket to see how well 'Never Wet' beads water and see just how "milky" the treatment makes the fabric...