Helly Hansen Vanir Hybrid Pant

Piling on performance-enhancing features can be a slippery slope: Before you know it, you start to look like you walked out of an Everest documentary. These trousers resist that by balancing aesthetics and functionality (there’s a men’s version, too). The Vanir’s polyester/elastane material breathed well on a 100°F hike up Schweitzer Mountain in Idaho, and a smooth interior makes it feel like pajamas next to skin. (Nylon sections on the sides and bottom add durability.) “The loose ankles let me roll the pants up above my knees while chasing steelhead in Oregon’s Santiam River,” one tester says. “And because they’re so light, they were dry by the time we hit the local taproom for a cold one.” One zippered pocket on the hip fits a credit card and ID, and another on the thigh holds a smartphone.