Bailing off the sixth pitch of Petit Grepon (5.8) in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, in the face of a rain and hail storm, our tester put this “emergency storm jacket for an alpine environment” to the test. The Arc’teryx Alpha SL Jacket ($319; arcteryx.com) was a godsend for the two-hour downpour while the tester and her partner rapped down almost 800 feet.
Would you rather drop a few hundred clams for an ultra-specialized glove that ends up relegated to ski-slope use or pay way less for a warm workhorse glove that handles your dirty work? That’s what we thought. The North Face Work Glove ($80; thenorthface.com), an all-around and full-leather paw-warmer, stood up to plenty of rappels and belays.
As gear and apparel get more specialized, you wind up owning a quiver full of pieces that are perfect for a few things and, well, less than awesome for others. Enter new technical midlayers that our testers have used from last winter through the beginning of fall. We focused our test on synthetic fleece, which provides warmth and breathability in a slim profile. Bonus: Many are $100 or less. From the dozen midlayers tested, we culled the five best— each would do well for any and all of your upcoming adventures.
After a year on the U.S. market, Adidas has been looking to make a splash in climbing apparel, and the German giant just might do it with the Terrex Swift Flex Pants ($95; adidas.com/us/outdoor). Made with stretchy, lightweight, synthetic fabric, this elegant and simple pant has no unnecessary stitching, pockets, or “features” all too common on other climbing pants.
I’ve always wanted that one warm jacket that I can grab for approaches and belays in times of near-freezing temps and blustery winds. That one jacket that I can throw over a tank top when I’m running to the gym, and trust to keep me completely warm. Downs weren’t cutting it for such uses (especially with that skin-to-nylon fabric contact—eek!), and regular fleeces weren’t windproof or warm enough. The North Face Polar Hooded Jacket ($299; thenorthface.com) came to my rescue at the end of last winter.
For rock climbers, finding functional, good-looking threads for your lower half isn’t easy. Ladies have an especially hard time, given the wide range (pun not intended) of our shapes and sizes. The Vertical Girl Signature Knicker ($40; verticalgirl.com) is the answer to our collective prayers. They’re sleek, soft, comfy as hell, and will make your butt look good—nobody will scoff at your butt-shot photos.
The Outdoor Research Mithrilite Jacket ($199, outdoorresearch.com) presents an extremely lightweight (24 oz.) and versatile softshell with full waterproof capabilities.
The new Arc'teryx Gamma MX jacket for climbers is a definite upgrade, with its proprietary Fortius 2.0 fabric, which is blessed with enhanced durability and water resistance without any sacrifice of stretch or breathability.
Outdoor companies have adopted the word "hybrid" to mean apparel that combines multiple fabrics within a single layer for comfort and smart performance. Employing what they call “body mapping,” designers examine the way certain parts of our bodies work, and then put waterproof shell fabric where you need waterproofing, stretch panels where you need breathability, and insulation where you need warmth, all in the same layer.
Testing a waterproof shell jacket during a dry Colorado winter is like bringing your trad rack on a family vacation to Disneyland: pointless and futile. Ergo, we sent these seven shells from Climbing magazine headquarters in Boulder to climbers across the country, from unpredictable Vermont to the soggy South and up to the waterlogged Pacific Northwest.
After months of testing on hundreds of routes, Climbing magazine's editors offer up their picks for the most innovative, useful, and just damn good gear of the year. The Singing Rock Crux, Mammut Smart Alpine, Black Diamond Gridlock Screwgate, Petzl Grigri 2, Five Ten Arrowhead, Arc'Teryx Squamish Hoody, Beal Joker 9.1, North Face Verto, and Salewa Rapace GTX all won high praises and took home the Editors' Choice Award.
Renowned for their stance on matters of ethics and environment, Patagonia (patagonia.com) has had a host of top-shelf synthetic-fill insulated jackets, the burly DAS Parka and the Micro Puff Jacket being two staff favorites here at Climbing magazine. In late 2009, Patagonia pushed the limits of weight and packability in an insulated jacket even farther.
Share