How Do You Protect Your Phone/Charging Bank on Rainy Hikes?

I usually keep my charging bank inside the largest compartment of my backpack and run the cable through the zipper to my phone in my pocket. I want my phone easily accessible for photos while hiking, but during heavy rain on-trail, do you have suggestions for better gear to protect my charging bank and phone? I’m considering waterproof waist packs for the charging bank and wondering if a backpack rain cover would suffice if I stored it as usual. I’m definitely interested in your gear recommendations for hiking in the rain. Thank you!

Edit: Unfortunately, my phone needs to be attached to the charging bank because the battery drains quickly over 6-10 hours (due to GPS tracking, occasional music or podcasts via Bluetooth earbuds, taking photos, and staying connected in case of emergency).

I use a small dry bag.

Hartley said:
I use a small dry bag.

A 2-liter roll-top dry bag is perfect.

My phone is waterproof, and I keep my charging bank in a ziplock inside my pack. No issues with water so far.

I use ziplock sandwich bags. If it’s really pouring, I use two.

Owen said:
I use ziplock sandwich bags. If it’s really pouring, I use two.

This is the answer! Ziplock freezer bags are cheap and easy to find on the trail if you need a replacement.

@Cory
My wife and I hiked LeConte this summer. We went up Alum and came down Rainbow. It rained heavily going up Alum, making it dicey. We stayed at the lodge overnight, and the next day was supposed to be constant rain. It was torrential, like tropical rain. We had maybe 15 minutes without rain. The trails flooded in many places, making crossings unsafe, but we couldn’t just sit. It took us seven hours to cover 7.5 miles due to the storms.

We wore ponchos covering our packs mostly, but everything got wet. Both my wife’s and my phone and power bank were in two ziplock sandwich bags (two for the phone, two for the bank). They stayed completely dry.

@Owen
That’s great to hear! I’ve been using ziplock bags so far but wasn’t sure if I should invest in better gear. Sounds like they’ll be just fine!

Is your phone not water-resistant (IP67 or IP68)?

Marlo said:
Is your phone not water-resistant (IP67 or IP68)?

It is water-resistant, but I want to keep the ports dry, and the charging bank should stay dry too.

My phone goes in a waterproof chest pouch. The power bank is in a dry bag inside my rucksack. I don’t need to charge my phone during the day, so I charge it overnight. I can get two days of use from my 5-year-old Samsung on airplane mode and power-saving mode. I don’t need connectivity while hiking.

@Corey
This!

Finley said:
@Corey
This!

Exactly!

I always bring several ziplock bags. They’re great for keeping things dry and for containing stinky stuff like used toilet paper.

I use a sling or hip pack to keep mine dry. I just got the Matador Freerain Hip Pack for my trip to Iceland for this reason.

I use a waterproof bag on my strap.

I either use a ziplock bag or dry bags for swimming.

I keep my phone in the internal chest pocket of my rain jacket.

Kieran said:
I keep my phone in the internal chest pocket of my rain jacket.

Love this solution!

I keep my phone in the chest pocket of my hardshell. If I’m not confident, I use a regular ziploc bag.