Patagonia Quandary Pants

The Patagonia Quandary Pants are lightweight trekking pants (287g) with an internal drawstring. I wore these pants for five weeks straight recently and can attest to their breathability, elasticity, and comfort.

Overview

I bought these pants when I was looking for a pair of khaki trekking pants with waist adjustment for my trip to Nepal. I only brought the one pair of pants for my five-week trip and I wore them everyday. I can attest to their comfort, durability, and stretch.

Performance

These pants excelled in both the high mountains and low jungles. They dry very quick, don't show dirt, and have a good balance between breathability and wind resistance. I was able to wear them in Chitwan Jungle without overheating as well as the high mountain passes without needed the added wind resistance of my rain pants. They have a DWR coating that sheds light rain well. After hand washing them, less than an hour in the sun and they were dry. They also didn't smell 'too bad' between washes.

Fit

The fit is modern/slim. There is a slight taper that prevents them from being too baggy. Although there is enough room for a pair of light thermals underneath. The material is very elastic and the crotch is gusseted. These factors lead to excellent mobility. The pants never bind where they shouldn't. After a few days of wear they lose some elasticity, become baggier, and the waistband stretches out. Then the drawstring becomes important. The drawstring is very light and thin, but effective.

Build and Durability

The pants weight in at 287g for a size 30. This is lighter than most other pairs I have worn and the material feels light and thin. That said, after five weeks of constant use, they show virtually no wear. The internal drawstring is as wide as a shoelace and I find that it can dig in to my skin slightly when pulled too tight. I feel that this could be made a little wider to better handle the weight of the pants and prevent the need to over-tighten.

There are two hand-warmer, two rear, one coin, and one zippered cargo pocket. All are deep and don't allow anything to fall out easily.

Summary

These have survived everything I have thrown at them, and still look good as new. Besides their recent beating in the Himalayas, I also use them regularly for my work as a guide and in my personal adventures. If the drawstring was a bit more robust and they held their shape better, they would nearly be a perfect pant.

Background

I have lived in these pants for five weeks, and have been wearing similar trekking pants (by other brands) for years. These pants have conquered three Himalayan passes above 5000m, one trekking peak, Everest base camp, Chitwan Jungle, the Annapurna foothills, and a couple hundred additional kilometres here in Tasmania. For my first pair of Patagonia pants, I am happy with them.