Yup, never done any out door exploring here.
Why would you need shorts after 11am? Don't say the heat, just don't. You will only make your self look like a bitch.
Pants are nice to keep the bugs and sticker bushes off your legs. If you are in tick country, you can blouse them to keep the ticks off. The heat ain't that bad... Just deal with it.
If I want to wear shorts, I will wear shorts, from 4 am (or 2 or 3am) till I go to bed. I can put some over pants on if it is chilly out. F.Y.I The material that most zip off pants are made of has almost zero heat retention. Also, in the spring and summer, I don't get cold, just uncomfortable. (that is a lie, In May when it was 5 F, snowing and 40 mph winds, and I had no winter gear, I was cold!)