I am going to question one of the "sacred cows" of backpacking equipment - the system of layering clothing.

I find layering awkward. I am hiking- all is fine. Get into camp and I have to take off my pants, which means taking off shoes, to get my long johns on. Same with top layers. If the weather turns very cold (high mountain passes with wind) and I want to put on long johns, again the struggle. My rainpants also require me to take off shoes to get on. I find myself changing clothing a lot.

Extra weight- One 16 oz down jacket gives me more warmth than 2-3 layers of 100-wt fleece at 8 oz each. With fleece I also need a wind shirt.

Properly sizing- If I layer with same size clothing, the top layer just squishes the lower layer. My shell is too big (too much breeze) with my hiking clothes alone; yet it is too tight when I put on all layers.

Do I really need clothing for ALL temperature ranges? I seem to have only two temperatures- hiking when I am warm enough not to need anything more than my hiking clothes and in camp where I need a lot (the minute I quit moving I get really cold).

OK, I am totally aware of the danger of depending on one layer for warmth -if that layer gets wet you are in big trouble.

What are your thoughts?