First trip to the BWCA for my 13 yr old. I've been tripping for 25+ years and am excited for him and another tripping friend's 13 yr old son to join us. Any recommendations for rain gear (jacket, pants) for these boys? They are big kids and probably would be men's medium-large in size. We want something that will do the job, but are a little apprehensive to break the bank when they are at the time of life where they outgrow these type of items each season. Thoughts?

Coach, I've been tripping about as long as you but I started my kids when they were younger. I recommend you start with something from the sporting goods section of WalMart or Meijer. Whatever you buy should do the trick for at least one trip. By next year your son will probably have outgrown that set and will need a larger size. Buy him something high end when he's done growing.

It also helps if you plan a trip for a week of sunshine and blue skies ;)

Cabelas used to offer a set of rain gear called Packable Nylon Rain Gear. This is several years ago, but the set was around $60 for the jacket and pants. They were a coated nylon material that worked pretty well, especially considering the price. My son and I both had a set. I used to recommend it to our Scouts as a budget-minded (but decent quality) item for all the camping and high adventure stuff we did.

Cabelas discontinued that specific product, but they might have something similar now, or maybe another company does. Hope this helps a little. Good luck!

Coach, check out some of the gear at Sierra Trading Post.

I usually stick my son in frogg toggs. I know they won't last forever but they also may not fit in 2 months. I always have a little extra duct tape to keep them patched but never really needed it for him(me on my first trip was a different story).
At 14 if my son decides to skip school and go on my september trip i will probably have to fight him for my good rain gear since he is at least my size, or maybe even bigger by then.

I'm starting to bring my boys in to the BWCA this year as well so found myself in the same predicament. We did manage to find Columbia rain gear on sale directly through their website and similar prices on amazon. For the jacket and pants, the total came in around $60. I wouldn't hesitate to use frogg toggs either if I knew it was for one or two trips but I'm hoping to get some mileage out of these (maybe wishful thinking).

I’ll add a second vote for Frogg Toggs

Froggtoggs has several price points. I found the more expensive jacket on clearance and it did me well for several years. I also knew someone who had the cheaper jacket and he said it worked great-he had been using it all summer working on farm.

I have two sons that were involved in Boy Scouts through High School. They grew through a couple pair of the Columbia Rain Pants carried by Dicks Sporting Goods. The pants were cheap (previously $50 but recently increased to $60), durable, breathable and kept them both warm and dry. They used them even in winter months as snow pants. They never wore out.

I seems we always bought better quality Jackets - Marmot or Patagonia but never needed anything other than the Columbia pant.

Another vote for Frogg Toggs. The cheaper models won't last a long time, but they should last long enough for kids that age to outgrow them anyway.

NEIowapaddler: "Another vote for Frogg Toggs. The cheaper models won't last a long time, but they should last long enough for kids that age to outgrow them anyway. "

Couldn’t agree more.

I'll take a look at Frogg Toggs. I also got his a set of rain gear for golf season that we may use as he'll outgrow that before next year I'd imagine. Thanks for the replies.

Frogg Togg sets are like $30 at target and should do the trick. I had a pair of their pants that lasted me several seasons of bwca tripping.

Have fun. I started taking my girls when they were 5 and they are now in their teens. There is nothing better than being in the wilderness with your kids. We have a Columbia outlet store near us so that is where we’ve gotten their rain gear.

I am really surprised how many recommending Frogg Toggs.
I bought a set (the cheapest version) once for my son to pack for a hiking trip. The pants didn't last the trip (too fragile for my kids' hiking style) and he never wore the jacket again (he didn't like the paper texture).

I realize that a teen will grow but Frogg Toggs is just buying disposable, single purpose gear. Investment is low but total cost per use is much higher that other available alternatives.

OCDave: "I am really surprised how many recommending Frogg Toggs.
I bought a set (the cheapest version) once for my son to pack for a hiking trip. The pants didn't last the trip (too fragile for my kids' hiking style) and he never wore the jacket again (he didn't like the paper texture).


I realize that a teen will grow but Frogg Toggs is just buying disposable, single purpose gear. Investment is low but total cost per use is much higher that other available alternatives."

I agree that their cheapest ones aren't very durable, but they should still last more than one use if the wearer isn't abusing them. And their midrange models have been quite durable for me, while still being pretty affordable.

As the owner of a teenager, there is one other thing to consider when buying raingear for kids... How is your kid going to deal with being wet (either because the cheaper raingear leaks or doesn't breathe and they get sweaty) and how long are you going to potentially be out in the rain if a storm rolls through?

If your son is going to be miserable if he's wet and sticky all day or you're going to be in the boat rain or shine, go to Cabela's or REI and spend a little more for the good stuff. If your son is a "trooper" and just goes with the flow, the cheaper stuff is perfect.

For my son, he fell into the trooper category when he was younger, but the last couple years he wants the good stuff (this statement applies to more than raingear...).