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Craghoppers Walking Trousers – Water Repellent Pants with Lots of Pockets

I bought a pair of Craghoppers Classic Kiwi Men’s Walking Trousers a couple of years ago and have been using them while travelling ever since. The reasons which make them so good as travelling pants are the following:

  • The Craghoppers Classic Kiwi Trousers are water repellent, which makes them suitable for use in rainy weather. Please note the word “water repellent”, in other words they are not completely water proof. Water repellent trousers are fine for a couple of hours walk in light rain. However as they become wetter and wetter some water will eventually penetrate the material. Having said this, there is literally no comparison with jeans, which provide no resistance against water and take forever to dry. One the other hand, the material used in the Kiwi Men’s Walking Trousers dries very quickly should the trousers get wet.
  • The Kiwi pants come with 9 pockets of which 5 are zip fastening. This makes them ideal for travelling. First of all it is very difficult to steal from them and it would take a great pick pocket to unzip and steal from a pocket without the wearer of the trousers noticing. Secondly it allows several personal belongings to be carried around in the trousers.
  • The Classic Kiwi trousers are hard wearing. I have used them several times these last two years and they still look like new.

The Craghoppers Classic Kiwi Trousers is available in different models for men and women alike:

Craghoppers Classic Kiwi Men’s Trousers at Amazon.com

Craghoppers Classic Kiwi Women’s Trousers at Amazon.com

Craghoppers Classic Kiwi Men’s Trousers at Amazon.co.uk

Craghoppers Classic Kiwi Women’s Trousers at Amazon.co.uk

There is also a zip off model that enables the trousers to be used as shorts.

Important Note: While I am very happy with my Kiwi Trousers, it seems that Craghoppers have changed the model of the trousers for the worse. I have read on Amazon.co.uk that the new model is made of inferior quality material. Apart from that it seems that some of the pockets are now shallower, which makes them less useful than the previous models. To make matters worse, it seems that the pattern has also changed and that the new model is not as comfortable as the older one. While I cannot verify these claims, I would check out the reviews in more detail and perhaps even contact Amazon or Cragshoppers should I be interested in buying another pair in the future.

Why Do Jeans Make Bad Travelling Pants?

Many people wear jeans day in day out. They go to work in jeans, they go out in jeans and they go on vacation in jeans. While there is nothing wrong with this in principle, I have learnt from experience that jeans are not really suitable as travelling pants. Jeans may be tough and hard wearing and are also suitable for clubbing during the night. Asides from that, jeans are really bad for travelling. The main reasons for this are the following:

  • Most jeans contain two pockets at the sides and two pockets at the back. Four pockets are okay for most people; however the back pockets are usually not very useful for keeping valuable objects like wallets and smartphones. Sitting down on a wallet is not very comfortable while sitting on a smartphone can easily break it. Apart from this, one must not forget that any objects in the back pockets can be an easy target for pick pocket. Having said this, the side pockets are not completely safe either as a skilful pick pocket can easily steal from the side pockets of any jeans or trousers, especially in places like metros and clubs.
  • Jeans feel cold as the temperature falls and when they get wet they become colder and pretty heavy. Sitting down on a wet or damp bench is also out of the question if one is wearing jeans. While jeans are already bad for winter weather conditions, torn jeans are obviously worse. Torn jeans may be fashionable but wearing them while travelling means getting your feet wet even in the lightest of drizzle. The reason why jeans are so bad in wet weather is that they are made of cotton which absorbs water easily and takes a long time to dry.

So what makes good travelling pants you may ask? For more information please check out my next article: Craghoppers Walking Trousers.

Using Hiking Socks to Get Rid of Blistes and Foot Pain

The most important pieces of equipment for anyone who goes on long walks or hikes are the shoes. However wearing a good pair of shoes of the correct size does not eliminate all the friction between the foot and the shoes. Therefore after hours of hiking, this friction could easily lead to blisters in the feet. Apart from the blisters, one can also feel pain in the feet or joints, in particular the knee joint, especially when walking on uneven terrain.

For the above reasons, it is essential to wear appropriate padded socks when hiking. Such socks are usually called hiking socks or walking socks. Unlike any normal pair of socks, a pair of hiking socks will contain padding in certain key areas, like the toes, the bottom of the feet and the heels. The padding of the socks when combined with the padding of the shoes should diminish the production of blisters and reduce the impact of the terrain on the feet.

Having said this, no pair of hiking socks can do miracles, irrespective of the amount of padding it possesses. As already mentioned, it is the shoes which are the most important, so if you wear poor quality or worn out hiking shoes, you can still get foot and joint pain irrespective of the quality of the hiking socks being worn.

One popular brand of hiking socks on Amazon.co.uk is Bridgedale. Bridgedale produces several different hiking sock models but the most popular ones on Amazon.co.uk are perhaps the following:

Bridgedale Woolfusion Trekker Men’s Sock – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bridgedale-Woolfusion-Trekker-Mens-Sock/dp/B006HY44Y6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1410700703&sr=8-2&keywords=trekking+socks

Bridgedale Merinofusion Trekker Men’s Sock – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bridgedale-Merinofusion-Trekker-Mens-Sock/dp/B006HY4J7S/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1410700703&sr=8-7&keywords=trekking+socks

Bridgedale Woolfusion Trekker Women’s Sock – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bridgedale-Woolfusion-Trekker-Womens-Sock/dp/B006HY46GW/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1410700703&sr=8-9&keywords=trekking+socks

Bridgedale Merinofusion Trekker Women’s Sock – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bridgedale-Merinofusion-Trekker-Womens-Sock/dp/B006HY4L2G/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1410700703&sr=8-10&keywords=trekking+socks

Anyone who finds the Bridgedale socks to be a bit expensive may consider the following socks:

2 Pairs of Wool Coolmax Walking socks – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Coolmax-Walking-Socks-Hiking-Trekking/dp/B00GH0HVIQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1410700703&sr=8-1&keywords=trekking+socks

Amazon.com contains a somewhat larger variety of hiking socks, with the most popular ones being the following:

Thorlo Men’s Wool/Silk Lt Hiker Crew Sock – http://www.amazon.com/Thorlo-Mens-Hiker-Heather-Large/dp/B0009MZXT2/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1410701147&sr=8-13&keywords=hiking+socks

Darn Tough Vermont Men’s Merino Wool Micro Crew Cushion Hiking Socks: http://www.amazon.com/Darn-Tough-Vermont-Cushion-Oatmeal/dp/B008J1ADPO/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1410701147&sr=8-4&keywords=hiking+socks

Fox River Steel-Toe Mid-Calf Boot Work Sock,Set of 2 pairs – http://www.amazon.com/Fox-River-Steel-Toe-Mid-Calf-X-Large/dp/B00465G978/ref=sr_1_13?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1410713970&sr=1-13

Thorlo Men’s Coolmax Lt Hiker Crew Sock – http://www.amazon.com/Thorlo-Coolmax-Hiker-Walnut-Heather/dp/B0009MZVU8/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1410701147&sr=8-3&keywords=hiking+socks

Wigwam Unisex Men’s/Women’s Merino Wool Comfort Hiker Crew Length Sock –http://www.amazon.com/Wigwam-Merino-Comfort-Charcoal-Medium/dp/B0044BVTU6/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1410701147&sr=8-14&keywords=hiking+socks

Darn Tough Vermont Women’s Merino Wool Micro Crew Cushion Socks – http://www.amazon.com/Darn-Tough-Vermont-Womens-Cushion/dp/B00B7XW7F0/ref=pd_sim_sg_17?ie=UTF8&refRID=0RGGYZBVP52NMJASK5KB

Fox River Women’s Strive Socks – http://www.amazon.com/Fox-River-Womens-Strive-Medium/dp/B007179M4U/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1410701147&sr=8-12&keywords=hiking+socks

Thorlo Women’s Thick Cushion Hiking Sock – http://www.amazon.com/Thorlo-Womens-Cushion-Thorlon-Hiking/dp/B0009MZV94/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1410701147&sr=8-7&keywords=hiking+socks

The following pairs of socks are also pretty good while at the same time being less expensive alternatives:

Kirkland Signature Outdoor Trail Sock Merino Wool Blend (Large – Pack of 4) http://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Signature-Outdoor-Trail-Merino/dp/B009LB8CX6/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1410701147&sr=8-11&keywords=hiking+socks

HEAD Men’s Power Cushion Crew Sock / Size 9-12 (6 Pair) – http://www.amazon.com/HEAD-Mens-Power-Cushion-Crew/dp/B005P9M9DC/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?s=apparel&ie=UTF8&qid=1410713761&sr=1-1-fkmr1&keywords=costco+hiking+socks