When I did the West Highland Way last May, there was a day when the weather kept changing from bright sunshine to heavy rain and back. Getting in and out of my overtrousers was a pain, but when I gambled on not putting them on my legs got soaked. And tackling steep ascents with overtrousers on was not fun.
Since then I've been thinking of all-day waterproof trousers, the sort you can wear like ordinary walking trousers. In theory they're great but there aren't many models around and not many people seem to use them. I have a pair of Craghoppers Stefan trousers which are waterproof and stretchy, but so far I've only used them for short urban walks in winter because they rustle loudly and they have knee darts which feel uncomfortable on the knees as you walk. Also, whatever trousers you wear out in the countryside in the rain are likely to get muddy, which is not a problem if you're using overtrousers, but if you're on an LDW and you have only one pair of trousers you'll look rather unpresentable when you go to the pub for your evening meal. Gaiters over waterproof trousers would be overkill, surely ... ?
Does anyone here walk in all-day waterproof trousers? What model of trousers are they? Would you recommend them? Are they good for spring walking or would they be too warm?