I am generally a very big fan of Sitka gear, and have many different pieces, all of which I depend upon to keep me warm and dry when I need. I had purchased the cloudburst pants last year prior to a back country hunt in Idaho, where I wore them for a day waiting out a storm. This year, I wore them once for one day of Blacktail hunting in the Oregon Cascades where is just rained constantly all day long. I hunted in and through evergreens, but nothing harsh or too abrasive. Unfortunately, when I got back to the rig, my pants were SOAKED, all over. Back, front of my thighs, ankles on both legs. Called Sitka, super helpful, they sent me a pre-paid shipping to a third party testing facility to see why they leaked. The tester confirmed they leaked profusely, and the rational was due to "multiple pin holes" all over the pants. In discussing this was the customer service rep, who was super nice and helpful, he said that this could only be from wear and tear, and thus they could not help me other than offer me 50% on another pair. But here's the deal. I had worn them TWICE. Never abused them, worn only in the situations I described. They sent them back to me, but why would I wear non-water proof rain pants? And there is clearly no way I will buy another pair of what I now know to be leaky pants. So I have a $330 pair of pants I am going to throw out. I am writing this review to let others know they may not be very tough pants, and if you are going to be using them for hunting in the PNW where it rains and we hunt in conifers all of the time, they they should be aware of this. Maybe I had a defunct pair, but then I would expect sitka to help out more with this. I know the customer service is AWESOME, but I am sorely disappointed. And for a piece of gear I depend upon, like rain gear, I guess I am going to try out a competitor as I am hard pressed to trust the "Guaranteed to Keep you Dry" motto. And maybe this is a Gore-tex issue, I don't know. Just really disappointed I wasted a bunch of money.

Elk hunting in the Frank Church Wilderness for a week, with the cloud burst jacket and bibs, rain , snow,, this gear is top notch

This review is for Sitka's service and not necessarily on the cloudburst pant itself. The gore-tex layer on this garment ultimately failed me. I filed for a repair/replacement and shortly after the item was in the mail (I mean a half hour, so had not even left the shipping facility) Sitka was calling me and asking me about an exchange. I was leaving for a long rifle hunt the next day so had already replaced the pants with the Stormfront pant and asked them if there was any way I could exchange these for the Dewpoint pant so I had a pair of rain pants at either end of the spectrum. All they had to say was "What color do you want, Subalpine or Optifade?" Impeccable customer service! After using the Stormfront and the Dewpoint I am convinced that the failure was a fluke. These pants were solid before the failure and after washing three or four times to soften, and once the face fabric was wet in the field, the rain noise was not bad at all. Pockets are well thought out, and full leg zips are a breeze to get on and off in the field. A great fit and slight stretch makes sliding over those high logs easier than ill-fitting pants with less give. As a side note I have the cloudburst jacket that I kept and is still functioning beautifully and pairs well with the stormfront or the dewpoint pant. You can't go wrong with Sitka products with such a strong warranty and customer service!

Sitka hit the nail on the head with this one. All the pockets in the right places, suspenders, belt, lightweight and nice stretch. I would also recommend that if you typically wear a size medium, get a large as I did.

Lightweight. Reasonable anatomical fit. I'm a 32in jean waist and the medium were too snug. Swapped for L to accommodate under layers. Belt allows tightening excess at waist. Unfortunately while I am a 32 inseam I found the regular 32in inseam length riding up my boots a bit too much for comfort. Would prefer a 33 inseam, but that's between sizes. My biggest issue with them is they are noisy as all get out. So not ideal for stalking game on foot. I haven't dared wear the jacket at the same time as the pants.

I used these Elk Hunting in MT. as weather changes there fast these pants work well. The side zippers making taking on and off these pants over hunting boots a breeze. I used these pants in heavy rains and they kept me completely dry. Once you are done using them they roll down tightly to fit into a back pack. They fit true to size as advertised

I've had these pants for 2 years. At first, i believed them to be a good set of rain pants as they are very comfortable for my build and offer good ventilation. Once i started putting these pants through a more rigorous test, however, i found out that they are not actually waterproof at all. They will resist light amounts of rain but when you need them the most, on those long cold hunts.... they simply turn in to cold wet hunts with expensive Sitka pants. I attempted to repair there waterproofing with no success. These pants are not "worn out" and no longer waterproof as a result of strenuous use. They are in fact in good condition. I would recommend spending your hard earned money on another product.

After A LOT of research and wearing other brands of "less expensive" (ok, cheap) rain gear, ordered Sitka's Cloudburst pants and jacket. Should have just done it from the start and been done...this is an EXCELLENT set!!! Comfortable, breathable, versatile, and most importantly, DRY, inside and out. Pit Zips on the jacket and full length zippers on the pants means you can adjust your internal temp and not overheat. Wore in warm temp August light rain, moderate temp September downpours, and now ready for cool October turkey and elk, and cold November Coues deer and elk hunts. Be attentive to base and mid-layers and the Cloudburst set will not let you down. PS...It is not designed as a truly light-pack-able set but, when rolled or folded tightly, can be stuffed in a pack.

I bought these pants and matching jacket for an upcoming goat hunt in the north coast mountains. I am 5'11" and 220lbs and the fit is great for me. They kept me dry and are very breathable, once I started to heat up while traversing the alpine with a heavy pack I just opened the zippers from the waist line down which worked perfectly. While spotting my partner and I decided to pack up quick and make a move on a goat, I did a butt slide and caught the sharp edge of a rock. I emailed customer service and within 12 hours got a message back saying a optifade patch kit is on the way. The material might not be bullet proof but backed by their amazing customer service they are perfect for me and have lasted 2 years of heavy use and I am expecting many more to come.

I never liked getting out in wet weather so I can tromp around and get soaked to the bone. Not anymore! FOWL WEATHER, BRING IT!!! Loving the Cloudburst jacket and paint for whatever Montana throws at me.

I saved up and did a lot of research for my sheep hunt up here in Alaska. I did not want to drop this much money and have it fail. I was happy with the fit and the look. The first day was hot so I just unzipped them on the side witch worked awesome. Next day it poured, my knees got wet and so did my butt. Needless to say I was not happy, cause now I wanted my H&H gear back. That night I hung them up in the tent and was hoping they would dry out but that did not work now the whole entire pants were wet now. Two days later the sun came out and they dried. Not as pleased with the money I spent for the gear I got.

Bought a set of the cloudburst jacket and pants. The first day out they leaked horribly! The whole inside part of my left leg was completely soaked. It got so wet the water started seeping into my boot. I exchanged the pants thinking I got a defective pair. But the exact same thing happened with the second pair. I even let the pants dry out and jumped in my shower with my rain gear and my boots on. Unfortunately they stilled leaked! All I own is Sitka gear, I've spent thousands of dollars on this gear because I truly believe it makes they difference between staying out and heading back to the truck. But these pants are definitely not water proof. And for a 300 dollar pair of gore-tex pants you would think differently. This is unfortunate because I'm leaving on a hunt In a little over a month and I NEED RAIN GEAR! Hopefully the good people at Sitka will see this and help me out some way. Other then these pants I have never had a piece of Sitka gear fail me, I will not wear anything else, that is how much I believe in this gear.

The fit of the Cloudburst is excellent. I have been through several snowstorm's and freezing rain and this gear has performed as promised. The only complaint that I have is the outer hip pockets opens are small, very small.I have a large hand but this pocket is designed for a childs hand. It is deep enough to cause an absolute headache when I make the mistake of using it. The jacket is great also and the pockets/zipper openings are large enough and useful on all other pockets.

I love the fit of my Cloudburst rainsuit. I live and hunt in Alaska. On our island it rains 63% of the days a year. I NEED good raingear. However, from day one they have not been waterproof as advertised. I walked through wet ferns the first day and my knees were soaked within an hour. Every time I've used them I've had wet pants underneath. It made for a cold brown bear hunt and last weeks blacktail hunt. I sent an email to Sitka and they quickly replied. They wanted me to send them to a repair service so they could determine what was wrong with them. There's nothing wrong with them, they're brand new. They're just not waterproof! Period! $325 down the drain.

Hey Chuck - Thanks for bringing this to our attention and I apologize for the delay. Please shoot me your phone number. This is certainly a warranty problem and not something you should experience with our Gear. Let's chat and get you into a replacement or something more fit for your use.

Just purchased these pants tonight (12/10/2013) and immediately began "testing" them in the North Dakota snow/shoveling. While they do not have the warm inner layer(it was -28 tonight), they worked phenomenal at preventing moisture. Obviously they will be used for hunting as well. LOVE the suspenders and belt! Really add to the pants. Plan on purchasing a jacket in the near future.

I purchased these pants for a Sitka deer hunt this fall. Southeast Alaska did it's job and produced five days of solid drenching rain. At the end of the trip my legs were one of very few things that were dry. End of the day it was an awesome hunt that I would do again in a heartbeat. I have since these pants hunting Elk and Deer in my home state of Idaho with great results. Thanks for making a piece of gear that I feel comfortable putting in my pack no matter where the drive to hunt takes me.