Rain Jacket Reviews

Review: REI Motility Rain Jacket

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REI Motility Jacket
REI Motility Jacket

Rain Jacket
REI Motility Jacket
$169, 1 lb. 2 oz. (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S-XL, women’s XS-XL
rei.com

There are, quite literally, few environments in the world wetter than New Zealand’s Fiordland National Park: It receives upwards of 400 inches of rain a year. (Fun fact: That’s 10 times more than Seattle.) To me, that means there are few places on the planet better for testing a rain jacket. I took the Motility Jacket on a four-day trek of Fiordland’s famously wet, muddy, and rugged Dusky Track, and a dayhike to Gertrude Saddle above Milford Sound, where plenty of rain mixed with lots of exertion on my part provided an excellent measure of this well-priced, waterproof-breathable rain jacket.

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Review: Marmot Boy’s and Girl’s PreCip Jacket

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Marmot Girl's PreCip Jacket
Marmot Girl’s PreCip Jacket

Kid’s Rain Jacket
Marmot Boy’s and Girl’s PreCip Jacket
$65, 9 oz. (girls large)
Sizes: boys and girls XS (4-5) to XL (13-15)
moosejaw.com

When the first thunderstorm dumped rain less than an hour into our eight-mile, family dayhike on the Iceline Trail in Yoho National Park, in the Canadian Rockies, we just pulled on our rain shells and kept on hiking uphill. The second thunderstorm rolled in later, while we were descending but still above treeline, fully exposed to the effects of the wind, steady rain, and temperatures in the 50s. My 12-year-old daughter has less body fat than a pika, but she stayed comfortable and dry through those tempests in her Girl’s PreCip Jacket.

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Black Diamond Alpine Start Hoody

Review: Black Diamond Alpine Start Hoody

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Ultralight JacketBlack Diamond Alpine Start Hoody$185, 7.5 oz. (men’s medium)Sizes: men’s and women’s XS-XLbackcountry.com A breathable, ultralight jacket that sheds light precipitation can be the most versatile garment you own—something you wear almost as much as your skivvies. I’ve pulled on BD’s Alpine Start Hoody to combat wind, light rain, and cool temps on a 17-mile dayhike over the four …

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Review: Marmot Crux Jacket Ultralight Rain Shell

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Marmot Crux Jacket
Marmot Crux Jacket

Ultralight Rain Jacket
Marmot Crux Jacket
$275, 7.5 oz, (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S-XXL, women’s XS-XL
moosejaw.com

Your relationship with your rain shell can feel a little dysfunctional at times: on again, off again. On numerous trips from early March through May, from backpacking the Grand Canyon’s Royal Arch Loop—including an unusual, full day of rain showers and wind—to dayhiking in the Tetons and Zion National Park, trekking the Kepler Track in New Zealand’s notoriously wet Fiordland National Park, and backpacking five days down Paria Canyon on the Utah-Arizona border, I found the ultralight Crux good for trips where you’re cycling between wearing it and carrying it.

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