Apparel to keep you dry during early hiking season

It seems spring has arrived early in Western Washington this year, which means we'll have a longer hiking season in the Cascades.

Folks who want to get an early jump on the hiking season need to be prepared for cold, wet conditions. Fortunately, a couple Northwest companies know how to deal with Northwest springs.

Seattle-based REI offers one of the best bets for staying warm and dry during the transition from winter to spring. The outfitter's newly redesigned Taku series of outerwear delivers an ideal blend of weather protection, comfortable fit and breathability.

The Taku jacket and matching pant utilize both hard shell and soft-shell fabrics in a hybrid design. The use of REI's proprietary Elements waterproof/breathable fabric in the shoulder yokes and arms blocks even the hardest rain and wet snowfall. Panels of four-way stretch soft-shell material through the underarms and sides of the jacket, and around the knees and hips of the pants, provide great breathability with excellent mobility.

We used the Taku jacket and pants while hiking through ankle-deep snow during a cold rainstorm along Gold Creek Valley near Snoqualmie Pass, and while trekking up the Quinault Trail in the Olympics during a drenching downpour. In both instances, we stayed warm and dry. We also scrambled through fog-shrouded rimrock above the Sun Lakes area of Central Washington and found the Taku gear not only flexed and moved with us during that rigorous activity, but also breathed well enough to prevent sweat buildup.

The Taku jacket, available in men's and women's sizes, sells for $209, while the pants — available in several lengths for men and women — sell for $159. More details: www.rei.com.

For more serious snow or cold conditions, Boise-based Core Concepts offers its Powder Play Bib for women. Though the bib is designed for snow, our testers found this a great option for cold, wet spring outings. Made from a four-way stretch soft-shell material, the bib provides great freedom of movement as well as weather protection. The bib section can be zipped off to leave just the high-waisted pants for moderate conditions. Our testers snowshoed around Paradise and scrambled Umtanum Canyon during a wet snowfall wearing these pants. The fit is slim and athletic, and both testers said the bib section is especially snug, making it difficult to wear insulating layers beneath. They suggest buying a size larger than you'd normally wear if you want to layer for colder, true-winter conditions. The bib runs $220 (though on sale recently for $199). See www.coreconceptsoutdoor.com.