Well- the jury is no longer out on our Altus ponchos. They are good in a light rain for an hour or so. They are definitely NOT GOOD for an all day walk or a heavy rain. And that's unfortunate because that's what we have. We were soaked through to the skin in the rain - even my credential and passport, which were inside the Altus and inside my fannypack were totally soaked. I guess we need to find ourselves some large green garbage bags. The other problem with a poncho/jacket like the Altus or Ferrino is that in reality you need another light jacket of some sort because the ponchos are just too awkward to wear when it's cold but not raining.
Our Salomon boots are rain proof but not waterproof when you have to step in it which has been half of the day recently. The insoles are thin with little give and the outsoles are hard and unforgiving on hard surfaces of which there are many.
Our baggalini fanny packs are okay but not great.
Our merino wool sweaters - our regular long-sleeved t-shirt style and Suzy's hoodie are all great. Even on a cold day when we were completely soaked our wool shirts kept us warm.
Our silk long john tops and bottoms are also good.
Our Osprey Kestral 38 backpacks are okay but I would never recommend them and will never take another trip with this one. They're not nearly as convenient as almost any other backpack. The water container which almost has to be an Osprey because it is so hard to get into the space provided crowds into the packing space leaving little room for other things. The pack adjustments don't stay on the settings you put them on and gradually slip longer on a daily basis. The shoulder straps dig into the collar bone and under the arms on the outside edge unless we have thick layers of clothes underneath and most importantly for me, I can never get it balanced properly no matter how I adjust the back shortener/lengthener. It's one of those backpacks that you have to always stand with a bit of a forward lean when carrying it. So all in all it's about a C- or D. At some point you just decide it doesn't really matter, but if you are going to buy a new one make sure that you can stand comfortably in it without having to tilt forward (or any other way) to keep it easily balanced.
If you look at others on the camino you will see that are many people whose backpack either is not right for them or is not properly adjusted. So quite a few people are putting more strain on their bodies than they need to. You can avoid that if you persist before you buy.
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