Columbia Saturday Trail II Convertible Pant

True to size, stretchy yet durable, plus breathable with a flattering fit. Compounded with the affordable price, these pants are a steal! My go-to pants for all sorts of occasions.

These pants are fantastic, doing everything you need them to from athletic to casual to dressy-casual occasions. The fit is like your favorite pair of slacks, with a wide, flattering waistband (lined with soft micro fleece for carefree wear under hipbelts) and contoured seams.

They are remarkably lightweight and stretchy without straining the seams (or leg zippers) while leaping across a water crossing or scrambling up a slope. If you happen to dunk a leg on the way over, they shed a lot of the water and dry quickly.

The light colored ones are fully opaque and release stains with a cold wash and the fabric doesn't show signs of wear.

My only gripe is that the shorts, which are closer fit cut yet non restrictive cut, are a bit long for my taste. Yet, the zipper is so well hidden and easy to use. No issues with straining the zipper while wearing half-zipped either.

Made of thin material, which is both good and bad. Coverts to shorts: awesome!

Love that they convert to shorts if you get too hot. Had to use this feature last summer at the National Zoo in D.C. — instant relief. The material stretched enough that I didn't have to remove my shoes to turn the pants into shorts.

Anything you put in the pockets shows up as a huge strange looking bulge, except the one pocket near the right knee. This includes thin wallets. Even a single credit card looks strange in the one back pocket. The one pocket near the right knee is awesome but pretty small — just enough space for a tiny thin wallet.

You'll get visible panty lines if you don't wear ultra thin underpants underneath. Something as thin as the SmartWool NTS Panties. Merino wool bikini briefs are good.

Fit is loose enough to wear a Capilene 4 bottom baselayer underneath these Columbia pants. Snap button closure at the top of the pants (waist).

When I bought my pants, they were available in a "short" version which is perfect for my legs (I'm 5'1").