A good pair of shorts for hiking or running may sound like a daunting task. Honestly, though, you’ll probably be fine with anything you pickup. If you’ve got some money to toss around, you can probably try the dissipatr air shorts. I really like them, but you can absolutely find something else that also meets your needs for a fraction of the price (or free!).
Please note that I don’t typically use shorts for hiking. I’m a fan of pants, specifically convertible hiking pants, for a variety of reasons (e.g. poison oak). However, I do find it invaluable to have some shorts for running in the summer. My summer shorts nicely augments the variety of fun leggings I use for running from the fall through the spring. So when I am using shorts in the hot Sacramento summers, here’s what am I looking for:
- Something that doesn’t chafe
- Something that won’t fall down (too much)
- Something that is comfortable
- Something that will dry quickly
- Something that doesn’t smell
I’ve tested a variety of shorts for hiking and running purposes using these criteria. I’m much pickier about the shorts I’m running in for an ultra marathon than I am for shorter runs. That’s because chafing can become a real issue as you get significantly beyond 10 miles and sweat accumulates.
Summary Table
| Criteria | Jorts | Stretch Zion Cargo Shorts | Patagonia Nine Trails (newer model) | Kuhl Dissipatr Air Short |
| Retail Price | Priceless! | $78 | $79 | $89 |
| Chafing | 3/5 | 4/5 | 5/5 | 4/5 |
| Doesn’t fall down | 2/5 | 2/5 | 5/5 | 5/5 |
| Comfortable | 4/5 | 3/5 | 4/5 | 5/5 |
| Quick-drying | 1/5 | 2/5 | 4/5 | 5/5 |
| Smell | 5/5 | 5/5 | 1/5 | 4/5 |
| Overall Rating | 3/5 | 3/5 | 4/5 | 5/5 |
Jorts?!
Yea — honestly, I really like jorts for short runs! I know, I know! a lot of people are very skeptical of jeans (and cotton) for athletic endeavors. This is mostly because of decades of companies trying to sell you on technical fabrics. The main concern that I have with jeans is that they have limited flexibility — they’re very rigid relative to any athletic stretch fabric. However, once you turn a pair of jeans into jorts, your knees are free and stretch no longer matters.
“What about cotton being death?” you might ask. Nah — just not a concern in arid environments where you’re not gonna have risks of being exposed to elements for uncontrolled amounts of time. Cotton keeps you cool, is soft on your skin, and is a great fabric for a lot of purposes!
While there seems to be a fad, these days, to insist on technical fibers for performance, cotton (used to make denim) is a very soft fiber. As such, you’re less likely to chafe in cotton garments than polyester or nylon. In arid environments, cotton is also efficient at wicking and cooling.
The main plus of jorts is that I get to take whatever pair of holey jeans I’ve had, and promptly turn them into a pair of highly usable, lovable jorts that I can continue to use for a few more years. I only gave jorts 3/5 for chafing in the table above, however. This isn’t necessarily because the jorts will chafe, but because whatever pair of underwear you’re using with them is likely to hold water a little more over longer runs, and this can lead. to discomfort and possible chafing, depending on what underwear you’re using. My main downside to jorts, however, is that they need a belt! Blah.
Stretch Zion Cargo Convertible Pants (Shorts)
Prana seems to have discontinued the convertible line of Stretch Zion Pants. I hear from other hikers that the new line of pants are genuinely terrible. I wouldn’t encourage getting the stretch zion shorts that aren’t also convertible pants, as they seem over priced for what they are and can do. My main dislike for these shorts is that when I use them for running, the belt continues to loosen and needs constant re-cinching.
I have a lot of pairs of these shorts, only because I’ve used a lot of pairs of the convertible pants for hiking. The main things to fail on the pants is the zip-off bottoms (so you zip them off and toss them when they’re toast), and the mesh pockets (which get very holey). The stretch zions dry marginally quicker than jorts, and they have their own built-in belt. However, the built-in belt is not great for running, but works for hiking! They do slightly better than jorts on the chafing front because they’re slightly better at drying. Overall, use your convertible pants as shorts once the bottoms fail, but don’t buy these specifically to be used as shorts.
Patagonia Multi Trails Shorts (previously Nine Trails)
This is the first pair of shorts I intentionally purchased for running. They have a liner — so you don’t need to bring your own underwear (yay?). The shorts have two zipper pockets to securely hold stuff and a back pocket as well! They dry quick, feel comfortable, and overall fit very well! Having the built-in liner is is a blessing and a curse. It’s nice at times to not need to figure out underwear and add to additional chafing concern. Because of the liner integration, I’ve also found these shorts to be less likely to chafe compared to other polyester underwear options. However, because the liner is integrated, it also means these shorts aren’t very suitable for casual wear, as you’re gonna be washing them more often.
The cinching waistband is great, and overall I really, really like these shorts for a long day on trail. More than one day, however, and I’d encourage looking for something else. Because the shorts are made of polyester rather than Nylon, they’re going to smell once you sweat in them. More than one day of use just isn’t too viable. These shorts are perfect for ultra marathons, but other shorts are better for different applications.
Kuhl Dissipatr Air Shorts
I need to disclose that Kuhl sent me a pair of these men’s shorts at no charge. I wasn’t expecting to like the shorts more than other things I’ve used, but after a few hundred miles of use, I can say that I really love these shorts! I’ve used them for dozens of day hikes and quite a few runs now, including an ultra marathon! I am very happy to have these shorts in my collection, and think they perform great!
The shorts dry rapidly (more rapid than anything else I’ve used), feel comfortable, and don’t fall down! Because the shorts are made of Nylon — they also won’t smell when you sweat in them! Put together, this makes the shorts suitable for multiple days of active use. The shorts don’t have liners, so you’re left figuring out your own underwear, which means your choice of underwear could result in chafing when being active. The two side pockets can hold most things, and there’s a back zipper pocket to hold your keys. I think, overall, I’d opt for using my Patagonia shorts with the built-in liner for long, hot ultra marathons, but these are pretty perfect for everything else!