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Berghaus Gladstone Paclite
Jacket Tested
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Price:
£140.00
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Weight: 357 grammes (men's
medium)
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Features:Gore-Tex
Paclite Helium fabric, full length zip with hook and loop
fastened double storm flap, rollaway hood with volume
adjuster and stiffened peak, elasticated hem drawcord, hook
and loop adjustable cuffs, two mesh hand pockets with
water-resistant zips and flaps, two zipped internal security
pockets, mesh stuff sac. Also available as women's version
called 'Kimberley'
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Light, breathable, small pack size.
Theoretically it's a travel jacket, so you may get itchy
feet?
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The Concept If you were wondering what the difference might be
between a lightweight waterproof outdoors jacket and a lightweight
waterproof travel jacket then you're not alone. I mean, the Gladstone
isn't even beige, or sand, or khaki.
Which says it all really, in fact it's pretty much the same as the
Berghaus Paclite jacket though a claimed 40 grammes heavier, so what
you're looking at is a small bulk, lightweight, very breathable
waterproof jacket with a reasonable peak, plus enough pockets to keep
your belongings safe. The main difference between this and the
standard Paclite Jacket are, we think, different colours and the
addition of two internal zipped pockets for your travelly valuables and that's it, even the stiffened rather than wired hood is, we think, the same.
So, a lightweight waterproof jacket for adventure travellers.
Features As we said, the Gladstone is near identical to the
standard Paclite, albeit with internal zipped mesh pockets. That
means you get pretty much all you need from a waterproof shell, a
proper storm flap, pockets with a mesh lining protected by a
water-resistant zip, a roll-away adjustable hood and a soft chin
guard panel.
In Action The Gladstone sort of snuck up on us with a discreet
but effective performance in the heart of the defence against rain
and wind. It's light and packable, but still does the job.
The
latest version of Paclite is one of the most effective fabrics around
when it comes to breathability, though it seems to work partly by
using the grey inner layer to soak up the initial surge of excess
moisture. That doesn't really matter though, it works, perhaps the
only proviso is that constant high intensity work will eventually
overwhelm it with a sudden increase in internal moistness once the
buffering effect can't quite cope, but you have to be going some to
do this and for most walker it won't be a problem.
The cut is good, very three bears, so not too loose and not too
tight plus despite the weight, you still get useful things like
pockets and a properly protected front zip. The main front pockets
have a mesh liner so with the water-resistant zips open, act as
discreet vents. They'll also happily swallow either size of OS
map.
The internal mesh-lined internal pockets sit behind them and are
ideal for a wallet or passport, though you could just as easily use
the outer pockets for either. Travellers eh?
The rollaway hood folds neatly into the collar, but is still
pretty reasonable. The lack of a chinguard is a disadvantage in
really fierce windy conditions, but for most use is more than
adequate. The 'stiffened' peak though isn't very stiff at all and
while it's fine in still conditions, you wouldn't want to use it in a
real hoolie. Then again, this isn't a full-on mountaineering jacket.
The wired peak on the Paclite Pro Jacket or Smock is more
effective for UK conditions.
What makes the Gladstone an 'adventure travel' jacket rather than a
standard waterproof one is, we think, just the addition of two handy
internal zipped pockets. The stiffened hood peak isn't as good as a wired one for UK conditions, but no worse than the standard Berghaus Paclite Jacket we think.
Other than that proviso, the Gladstone's an effective and very
breathable lightweight waterproof jacket that you can stick in a day
pack or bum bag and forget about till needed. We'd happily use either
this or the Paclite Jacket - at the same price - in all but savage
mountain conditions. And yes, we'd happily take it travelling. Nice
that it's not beige as well.
One last thoughg, mesh stuff sacs, what are they for. We lose
them, always, far better to simply fold the jacket into its own
pocket :-)
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Pushed for time:
Waterproof, breathable shell aimed at adventure
travellers that's effectively a Berghaus Paclite Jacket but
with extra internal pocket. Light, small, very breathable, we'd happily pack
it for a trip or a trek. And it's not beige.
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