Black Diamond TreeLine

Don’t be fooled by the price tag: This is no bargain-basement jacket. The TreeLine earned a place alongside shells that cost three times as much after shielding us from horizontal rain in Alaska and 30-mph winds in British Columbia. And despite the jacket’s relatively light weight, the 50-denier nylon face fabric impressed us with its durability. “I fell down a scree slope in B.C.’s Pinecone Burke Provincial Park and slid about 20 feet, grabbing at everything I could to stop the slide—but no rips,” notes a tester. Caveats: moderate breathability (the 2.5-layer fabric and lack of pit zips had us overheating at 40°F during big pushes), and the face fabric wets out in sustained rain, a common issue with PFC-free DWRs like the one the TreeLine uses. Vents on the shoulders help a bit with breathability, but only when you’re not wearing a pack. The whole thing smushes down to the size of a butternut squash.

m’s XS-XXL, w’s XXS-XL