The North Face Pantheon Jacket - First Look

The North Face Pantheon Jacket - First Look

The North Face says that the Pantheon is 'a superior jacket for mountaineering and severe-weather pursuits'. We'd say it was aimed as an all-round mountain walking and general mountaineering shell with an emphasis on toughness and durability.

We were a little confused by the pre-release publicity surrounding the Pantheon which made it sound as if it were a hybrid Gore-Tex Pro Shell and Performance Shell jacket. In fact the bulk of the jacket is made from three-ply Performance Shell, with just two stretch panels of Pro Shell - at least we think it's Pro Shell - behind the shoulder blades.

That means it uses a knitted backer like the old XCR and Classic Gore-Tex fabrics rather than the new tougher, lighter, woven Pro Shell backer together with what feels like really tough face fabrics, particularly in the reinforced areas, the dark bits in the pictures.

Most of the rest is fairly conventional with water-resistant zips abounding, but there are two other technical changes. One is that The North Face has finally relented and fitted a stiffened, wired peak to the hood after years of floppiness, the other is that the jacket incorporates an elasticated snow skirt, which - if nothing else - should make it an option for skiing as well as mountaineering use.

The over-riding first impression of the Pantheon is that it's solid and possibly indestructible. The thicker Performance Shell fabric on high-abrasion areas feels very stiff and tough, 'bombproof' even. And next to the new breed of lightweight Pro Shell jackets, it feels quite weighty, even though 770 grammes isn't that much.

The North Face's 'Performance Fit' is reasonably generous, so great if you're on the larger size of the race whippet divide and also ideal for wearing over thicker mid-layer clothing, length is short, but not ultra-short.

The stiff feel off the hanger is born out when you actually wear the jacket. On the plus side, it feels reassuringly sturdy and dependable, on the negative scale though, it does actually inhibit movement slightly and you can feel the resistance if, for example, you raise and bend your arm.

It's an interesting contrast to the new Gore-Tex Pro Shell fabric which feels generally light and flexible and because of the woven backer, tends to slide over mid-layers easily making for uninhibited movement.

The built-in powder skirt adds to the feel of protection against the elements by double-sealing the bottom of the jacket, though if you really don't want it, you could always cut it out and save some weight at the same time.

Where the Pantheon really does score over previous North Face shells we've used is in the hood department. At last the company has come up with a stiffened, wired peak that stands a fighting chance in typical UK conditons. It's a definite improvement over previous floppy offerings.

The rest of the hood is okay rather than exceptional. We found a bare head tended to move inside the hood rather than moving with it, but it worked fine with a hat giving the hood cord better grip on the head and fitted easily over a climbing helmet.

There's no shortage of pockets, but we found the main alpine ones sat a bit low, so a pack waist-belt or harness tended to foul them, so that's definitely one to check if you do consider a Pantheon. The main pockets will take maps, but the chest Napoleon pocket is actually quite small and best reserved for choccy bars, wallets, phones and the like.

Finally, breathability is what we've come to expect from Gore-Tex, so reasonable, but not quite as good as say, eVent or Paramo, though you can use the substantial pit-zips to aid ventilation.

At £290, the Pantheon's not cheap, but it's very well featured with lots of pockets, pit-zips and that snow skirt as well. However for the same price, you could pick up a full Gore-Tex Pro Shell jacket from another brand.

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