Shorts in the alpine

Who’s with me????

with you 1/2 way.  Literally.  

Summer alpine, often I wear shorts under lightweight pants for alpine start walk in, then whip off the pants when conditions and terrain warrant, and wear the shorts for the walk out.   Usually in places like the Tetons or RMNP, etc  the mornings and early shaded climbs can be on the cool side, but the return trip to the car is typically blistering hot. I like having both options. 

Over or under your harness?

Typically just around my ankles

I may look like a middle-aged dad (ok, I'm 36, better start leaning into it), but I live by those zip-off pants.

Never have to take off a harness, most have zippers at the cuff so you can take them off over shoes...

The perfect pant.

If my fullzip puffy shorts count I’m in.

Eli W wrote:

If my fullzip puffy shorts count I’m in.

I'm having an urge to see what two oven mitts Velcro'd together looks like

Not Not MP Admin wrote:

Over or under your harness?

Obviously shorts over the harness and pants under harness here. A classic reversal.

I know damn right… Flippyfloppys too!!!

If in the alpine why not just wear your underwear? I've worn shorts in the alpine a few times just for approaches, I generally put my trousers on right over the top when I get to an appropriate altitude (usually the snow line), even if its still warm enough for shorts it's always better to cover up on glaciers.

If going over 4000m I'll be wearing long underwear so will skip the shorts and just wear that and trousers on later. 

Glacier approach + shorts = sunburn in awkward places.

that guy named seb wrote:

If in the alpine why not just wear your underwear? 

I've done exactly that before. No sunburn so must have used enough suncream. Nice match with poly shopping bags sticking out of  tops of my boots.

Jim Titt wrote:

Glacier approach + shorts = sunburn in awkward places.

This and I don’t like to apply loads of sunscreen when I can’t properly wash off daily so even in balls hangingly warm conditions I wear full length pants and longsleeve t-shirt at minimum. 

J B wrote:

Who’s with me????

Wore shorts up the Exum last week with a wind chill of 20° lol. But shorts season is shorts season, odd looks be damned!

I remember getting chastised by a guide at the top of Grand years ago for topping out in running shorts, right after a 5 minute snow/graupel flurry hit us. I was on my own and he was leading clients, so I guess he wanted to impress on his clients just how irresponsible I was being, and how sensible they were to pay him lots of money to haul them up.