Gear of the Week: KÜHL Jetstream
This weight-saving shell will keep you dry in any weather.
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Our take For thru-hikers who want more than just a packable poncho, this shell offers great weather protection at a light weight. The Jetstream breaks the 10 ounce barrier and packs down to the size of a guidebook, but has competently shepherded one tester through nasty weather for years. “In the forests around Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, it kept me dry during hours of unending rain,” he says. “Plus, it’s breathable enough that I never felt like I was wearing a plastic bag while pushing uphill.”
The details While the Jetstream is light, it’s full-featured too. Two chest pockets can each hold snacks, a headlamp, or a smartphone, and hand pockets fit a hat or gloves. (Ding: They sit below a hipbelt.) The hood has three-way adjustability, and a drawcord on the bottom hem keeps fit dialed. Durability is high, too: After more than two years of hard use, our tester’s jacket hasn’t suffered any rips or delamination.
Trail cred “The nylon face material’s stretch is good, and I had no problem reaching for handholds during a climb of 14,294-foot Crestone Peak in Colorado’s Sangre de Cristo Range,” our tester reports.
$189; 9.6 oz. (m’s L); m’s S-XXL, w’s XS-XL