What to Wear on Your First Spring Hike

Three layers, one small bag, and why the fleece stays in the pack even when the forecast says you won't need it.

Spring in the Sierra plays tricks. The trailhead is 65°F and dry. The ridge is 40°F with 20mph wind. The descent crosses snow patches you didn't expect. The forecast said sunny, high of 70. The forecast is describing the town you drove up from, not the place you're going.

The layering system isn't complicated. It's three pieces doing three different jobs.

Layer one: the one touching your skin

Not cotton. That's the whole rule. Cotton holds sweat, stops breathing, and turns into a cold wet rag the second you stop moving. Wool or synthetic. Short sleeves if it's warm, long if it isn't.

→ Mammut Tree Wool Performance Tee  ·  Mammut Tree Wool Longsleeve

Layer two: the fleece. The one we're about to explain.

This is what you put on when you stop moving — at the summit for lunch, at the overlook when someone wants a photo, when the wind comes up and you're suddenly not generating heat anymore. A light fleece, a light puff, or an active-insulation piece. Nothing heavy.

Here's the thing about the fleece: it comes even when the forecast doesn't call for it. Because weather moves fast above 8,000 feet. Because you will stop moving at some point. Because if anyone in your group rolls an ankle, you're not hiking out in the next 45 minutes — you're standing still getting cold. Because I didn't need it is a good outcome, and I needed it and didn't have it is the other one.

The fleece stays in the pack. That's the job.

→ Rab Ascendor Light Fleece Pullover  ·  Rab Xenair Alpine Flex Insulated Jacket  ·  Patagonia Nano Puff Hoody  ·  Patagonia R1® Fleece Vest

Layer three: the shell

Windshell or rain shell. Something that packs down to the size of a fist. If there's any chance of precip, it's a rain shell. If it's just wind and cold, a windshell is lighter, cheaper, and does the job. You don't need three-layer Gore-Tex for a May day hike — but you do need something.

→ Patagonia Houdini Jacket  ·  Rab Vital Hooded Windshell  ·  Patagonia Torrentshell 3L Rain Jacket  ·  Rab Downpour Light Waterproof

The small bag

Day pack, 25–34L. Big enough for the layers, water, snacks, a first aid kit, and a headlamp (because you won't always finish when you planned to). Small enough that it isn't punishing your shoulders six hours in. Chest strap, hip belt, done.

→ Rab Protium ND25L Day Pack  ·  Rab Protium ND33L Day Pack

The rest of it

Sun hat. Sunglasses. Broken-in shoes — not the ones you bought last week. Hiking socks that aren't the tube socks in your drawer. At least a liter of water. More if it's warm. More if it's long.

→ Black Diamond Synthetic Surf Hat  ·  Black Diamond Synthetic Rope Hat

→ Falke TK2 Hiking Socks  ·  Falke RU Trail Running Socks

This is how we pack for the Sierra in May. It's also how we pack for our Yosemite Women's Camp & Hike weekends — if you want to learn the system in person, our spring and summer trips are right here.

— The Alpinistas Team