Montane Minimus Stretch

Our take Not surprising: As the weight of a shell drops, so do the number of features. Surprising: That rule doesn’t apply to the Minimus. Two mesh-backed hand pockets fit maps or light gloves, and a waterproof chest pocket kept our smartphones bone-dry in a downpour. The hood, which rolls away neatly (but doesn’t fit a helmet), adjusts in back and around the face with a moldable brim. The sleeves are long enough to work with gloves without any annoying gaps, even for long-limbed testers, but we wished for a little extra length at the hem.

The details In addition to everything above, you get slight two-way stretch that gives the Minimus enough mobility for dynamic activities like trail running, and it’s breathable enough for them, too. “I kept it on during steep climbs when my friends had to stop and delayer,” says a tester. Credit a special version of 2.5-layer Pertex Shield+: a PU stretch membrane matched with a stretchy, 20-denier nylon. But as you might suspect from such a lightweight fabric, this is not the best choice for high-abrasion bushwhacking.

Trail cred “This has one of the best hoods I’ve ever worn,” says our Rocky Mountain editor. “It preserves peripheral vision but still kept my face totally dry, and it even stayed in place in pounding rain in Montana’s Mission Mountain Wilderness.”