Gaiters - worn under or over your trousers?

[gunwharfman]

I used to wear my Rab gaiters over my trousers but I've stopped doing this, for me, often a guaranteed way of getting wet feet! The one hiking stretch I remember most is that section between Alston to Garrigil, can be very wet grass on an autumn morning and after rain. Nowadays, I always wear my  gaiters under my trousers and in the main I have wet feet no longer. The Glynder's Way also has a wet grass problem and when I walked it, there were lots of it!

My Rab's are designed for outer use but they leave an elastic mark on my skin if wear them against my skin for too long, so I am now looking for a new pair. I may or may not buy Rab's again? None of the makes seem to be designed for under trouser use so I will get my wife's friend to fit some soft fabric over the elasticated tops, or maybe I'll wear long socks and fold them over at the top of the gaiter?

I know that my trouser bottoms get wet very quickly, but they dry very quickly as well. The inside bottoms can get muddy as well but I have an easy solution, I just use a nail brush to scuff the dirt away.

[ninthace]

The purist will tell you that gaiters should be under the trousers to prevent water finding its way inside as it runs down. However, gaiters are worn for two main reasons, to keep mud and water off your trousers and to stop heavy rain finding its way into your boots. The obvious solution is gaiters outside trousers for the former and overtrousers outside gaiters for the latter. The problem that remains is what to do if you are wearing water resistant trousers as opposed to ordinary trousers. I still go for gaiters outside as I find the DWR trouser gaiter junction is fairly leakproof anyway.


Kilt wearers can seek their own solution GW.

[Islandplodder]

Aren't gaiters a bit uncomfortable next to the skin?

[sussamb]

I've always worn gaiters over my trousers. If it's not raining they keep my trousers clean and also dry if walking through wet foliage.  If it's raining overtrousers outside the gaiters.  Always worked for me 

[ninthace]

Aren't gaiters a bit uncomfortable next to the skin?

I would have thought so and a bit sweaty too.

[NeilC]

Definitely over for me. Part of their benefit is keeping your trousers dry from wet ground.


I can't see the issue with rain getting under them unless your trousers are properly waterproof.

[Bhod]

As with many others on here I've always worn  my gaiters over walking trousers but have worn them under waterproofs.  Worn over trousers to protect the bottom half of my trousers from mud, dew etc and to keep water out of the top of my boots and worn under waterproofs because I've generally been too lazy to remove them before pulling my waterproofs on. 

[gunwharfman]

Nice to read the different views. One thing I can confidently say is that my Rab gaiters do not make my calves sweaty, I have never really noticed this problem. I find that after a short while I just forget I'm wearing them. They also, I think, give a certain butchness to my calves as well!

What does help a lot is my hiking trousers, they are fairly narrow at the bottom, with a short 4" zip up the side and they fit around the gaiters very comfortably and as I wrote before, the trouser material dries very quickly.

I'm only a recent convert to wearing my gaiters in this way and I found it very useful indee, especially when I hiked the Pennine Journey, it rained for nearly three days but my feet stayed dry. It was pouring so hard when I entered Greggs Hut and it was very nice to find out that my feet were not crinkled and clammy!

[archaeoroutes]

I'm definitely a 'gaiters over waterproof trousers' person. It stops the trousers flapping around and getting caught on things, and also protects them from bits of rock etc.
My trousers are long enough to come down over my boots, so having gaiters on the outside makes no difference to whether water runs into the boots.

[gunwharfman]

When I wore waterproof trousers I did not wear gaiters. I hope my contributions have not caused a confusion?

My trousers are not waterproof, they are just a pair of ordinary Montane Terra Pants. If I wear my Rab gaiters on the outside and then walk through long wet grass, or when its raining for some time, the wet soon soaks into the trouser material which then dribbles down inside the gaiters to tops of my socks. Socks can act like a sponge because soon after I become aware that my feet are getting wet. This can happen quickly if I'm not wearing my rain skirt.

When I have my rain skirt on, as long as I'm wearing my gaiters, the problem is minimised. The weak point of my rain skirt can be at the top of the gaiters. The skirt material can flap a bit when windy, (I have sewn in lead weights from Hobbycraft, used by dress makers to solve this) and because of this my knees can become wet which eventually leads to wet feet. Long wet grass is the other culprit. However if my gaiters are under my trousers, I find this keeps my feet dry.

[sunnydale]

 This can happen quickly if I'm not wearing my rain skirt.

What's a rain skirt gwm?  I'm intrigued!

[jimbob]

I try to wear my gaiters at all times. Usually over my trousers. When it is raining really hard I have taken to taking the lower parts of the zip offs off. I always leave the gaiters on. I find my skin dries even quicker than the trousers. The remaining shorts tend to be dry under my poncho and (probably luck pays it's part here) not had wet feet to date. On windy days I use a bit of thin bungee to tie off the poncho under my rucksack belt.

[Summit]

Traditionally when wearing gaiters during temperate dry days gaiters are best worn over walking trousers.
During rain your waterproof or over trousers should be worn over the gaiter to stop rain simply flowing in the top and inside to your socks that will soak the rain water up.
In snow the idea is to wear the gaiter under a waterproof layer. The snow tends to get inside the trouser but never deep enough to get over the top of the gaiter.
The only two times I have expressed a desire to wear gaiters over waterproofs in snow are one - the person using crampons for the first time can damage trousers by not walking with a wide enough gait. And two when practicing certain self arrest or ice axe arrest procedures. Where tucking your jacket inside your trousers may also be relevant.

[walkingthedog]

I have always worn my gaiters outside my trousers but it all depends on the individual whatever works for you at the end of the day.

[happyhiker]

Definitely over the trousers. I have never found that rain has got into my boots. However, I do not wear gaiters if the issue is rain rather than deep mud or snow. If it is primarily a rain issue, I have often taken off my gaiters and put on over trousers, for the simple reason that overthrows ears plus gaiters makes me far too sweaty. Over trousers keep main trousers clean and if the over trousers get muddy, they wash easily enough.