I am about to start a long backpacking trip through South America, and I would like to take as little weight as possible. I have the rest of my stuff more or less sorted out, but I am a bit at a loss of what kind of pants I should get.
I would like to have versatile pants, that could be worn while traveling, but would also be suitable for hikes. As the trip will be long, pants should be quite durable, not too heavy, not too long drying, and suitable also for warm/damp climates.
For example, jeans would be durable, suitable for every day wearing, but they dry too long, weight too much, and are the last thing I want to put on in tropical countries.
I plan to travel in between Amazonian Jungle and Patagonia. I do not expect to find something perfect for all conditions, but I assume I could get some sort of pants that would be fine in hot weather, and could be used in colder weather when combined with e.g. underpants. I am not planning to use them on snow or as rain protection, but they should be fine for most of other conditions, I'm afraid.
When travelling in Asia I had simple cotton pants from EDC. Those were fitting almost all my requirements, except of durability. They faded within a couple weeks, and were completely broken in a couple of months. I guess this is because they were intended for being used in the city.
I do not, however, want to get hiking pants, as I am extremely sensitive to most kinds of synthetics that are used for making hiking pants. Some I might be able to tolerate just for a day on a hike, but would not want to wear every day. In addition to that, my legs are quite bulky, and I find most of the hiking pants are made to have quite a tight fit, and stretch weirdly over my thighs..
What I am considering now is climbing pants. I guess they could be durable enough, and would for sure be good for sporty activities. My only problem is that they are usually quite colorful, so might be not exactly perfect for wearing on the street.
Do I have any other/better options?