User Review: Patagonia Storm Jacket

Patagonia Storm Jacket
Above: The current Storm Jacket, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed January 8, 2000 by Stuart

Rating:
Fabric: h2no
Price Paid: �$180-ish

There appears to be a lot of reviewers out there unimpressed with the Storm Jacket. Mine was the best jacket I ever had. Good fit, light and flexible for everyday wear. Also tough, I'd trashed gore-tex jackets by berghaus and north face in a single scottish winter, but the storm jacket coped with over four years climbing/backpacking abuse, as well as the odd bicycle crash. I am unconvinced of the need for "robocop" style jackets even for hard mountain use. Light can still be tough.

Design wise it was near perfect, and I found the front pocket vents much more efficient than pit zips, as well as being more windproof when you don't want vented. It could have done with a meatier front zip flap closure than patches of velcro, high winds could openn that up. One thing I agree with, it doesn't breath as well as goretex, but in really shitty (typical) scottish weather nothing does. The same applies I suspect for the american northwest, Patagonia and other areas.

A great jacket, which was still in good condition when some **** stole it.