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| Climb high and dry in Patagonia's Post Foamback Cagoule. Plus it's got that cool William-of-Baskerville look in The Name of the Rose. |
Patagonia has sent their limited edition, retro classic Cagoule (a long, pullover rain shell) to the Dillon outlet store. Prices have been slashed by a third, and soon there won't be any more left. Who knows if they will ever make this amazing piece again?
GoreTex Packlite provides waterproof/breathability over a wide temperature range with a soft, quiet hand. Perfect for walking in the rain all day with very little else worn beneath. The jacket folds into its own pocket (you can clip it to your harness). In driving rain, for grace under pressure, pull the long skirt down over your knees and sit out the storm.
I started coveting this elusive garment as a student learning to navigate icefall on the Roosevelt Glacier on Mt. Baker, years ago. I awoke on Day 2 to rain pissing down at 36 degrees Fahrenheit, and it never stopped for the rest of the week.
My instructor, on the star-spangled team at the American Alpine Institute (the best climbing school there is, in my view, which puts me in agreement with Jon Krakauer for once!), spent the week shouting encouragement at the base of various seracs, totally dry under an umbrella in a Scottish cagoule from the 1960s or something, and I've never been so jealous. He just rolled it up and cinched the drawcord waist when he needed to tie in. Today's Patagonia version even has side zips for kangaroo access.
Expensive, but worth every penny.
If there's only one gift you ever give the long distance hiker in your life, this is it. But hurry, because they'll soon be only just a dream once again.
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| Sideways: check. Climbing? Not. This is an ass-kicking 17th century downpour from Brotherhood of the Wolf. The Patagonia Cagoule protects from these, too. |
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