Berghaus Gladstone Paclite Jacket Tested

Berghaus Gladstone Paclite Jacket Tested

Price: £140.00

Weight: 357 grammes (men's medium)

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'

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.

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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.

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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.

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Verdict

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 :-)

Performance
Value

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Berghaus web site

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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