Finding a replacement for Hydropel.

Hydropel was legendary in its day, for performance and also for the high cost, although many people absolutely swore by it. Mike Clelland praised it in his  Ultralight Backpackin' Tips book. It had an ability to lubricate to prevent chafing, but more important, it could seal skin from moisture to prevent pruning and maceration from prolonged wet conditions. Plus, these properties were durable, so repeated applications were usually not needed throughout the day.

The current wisdom is that Trail Toes is a similar replacement, and it has very good reviews. However, I think Trail Toes can be tweaked a bit to make a closer approximation to Hydropel.

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The original Hydropel label information:
Active Ingredient: dimethicone 30% Inactive Ingredients: Petrolatum, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate

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Trail Toes label information:
Petrolatum, Beeswax, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Dimethicone, Phenoxyethanol <1%, Ethyhexyglycerine.

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As ingredients are listed in order of predominance, it it likely that Trail Toes, while being similar, has rather less dimethicone, which was the “magic ingredient” for Hydropel. Fortunately, we can get products that are pure dimethicone, or made mostly of dimethicone.

The most precise Hydropel reproduction formula uses Trail Toes with added pure Dimethicone gel. This is available from several sources, including Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/MakingCosmetics-Iso-Dimethicone-Copolymer-5-3oz-150g/dp/B01GBVYLN8/

Now it gets tricky; there are many different formulations of dimethicone, from soft and nearly liquid all the way to very stiff paste. We want a fairly firm paste, in a non-water soluble form.

This is ideal: “Lotioncrafter EL61 Dimethicone & Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer (http://www.lotioncrafter.com/lotioncrafter-el61.html) is a thick paste-like silicone gel formed by cross-linked polysiloxane and a low viscosity dimethicone used as a dilutent. It offers a powdery, smooth feeling for formulations, reducing greasiness and tack. It is water repellant and acts as an emollient on the skin, reducing water loss. It is especially useful in formulating makeup and under makeup primers.”

A mix of the resulting product works very, very well. It has a fairly thick body, so you can put on a robust layer.

The final product:
Dimethicone crosspolymer gel 30%, Petrolatum, Beeswax, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Dimethicone, Phenoxyethanol <1%, Ethyhexyglycerine.

This is very close to the original Hydropel.

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An alternate "quick and dirty" solution is to add Lanacane Anti-Friction Gel to Trail Toes.

Lanacane Anti-Friction Gel label information: Cyclopentasiloxane, dimethicone crosspolymer, dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, Zea mays (corn) starch.

To try and get (more or less) 30% dimethicone, I just mixed 2 parts Trail Toes with 1 part Lanacane Anti-Friction Gel. As an added attraction, Trail Toes comes in a 2 oz tub, and Lanacane Anti-friction Gel comes in a 1 oz tube. How convenient.

The two products blend together easily, and the resulting paste is about the same consistency as Trail Toes.

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Notice that there is no water listed in any of the ingredients, for either formula. Nothing in this is water soluble, and as a result, it creates a very water-resistant barrier on the skin. Water just beads and runs off. It works so well that it’s actually difficult to get this stuff off your hands: while mixing it up, I needed to use dish detergent and some scrubbing, which worked well.