KUIU Assault Pants are heavyweight softshell pants which have facet vents alongside the higher thigh to vent warmth and assist regulate your temperature on strenuous hikes. Initially designed for hunters, they’re a good selection for winter mountaineering when you run chilly, by themselves, or layered over lengthy underwear. Whereas they’re not as form-fitting because the softshell pants designed for winter sports activities and lack extra technical options like ankle zips or a buried belt, their low-profile pockets, breathability, and sturdiness make them a sexy possibility for winter mountaineering. Though KUIU makes a speciality of clothes for hikers, their clothes are additionally out there in a variety of non-camouflage colours and nicely well-suited for backcountry use
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- Gender: Males’s (Girls’s out there)
- Pockets: 6
- Closure: Button, zipper
- Thigh vents: zippered
- Materials: 247 g/m² Primeflex Polyester
- Weight: 19.5 oz (Males’s 38s)
- Brushed inside to remove chafing and add heat
- Articulated knees
- Gusseted Crotch
- Belt Loops
I first realized about KUIU Assault Pants right here on SectionHiker from one in every of my readers, but it surely was solely after working into an acquaintance sporting them (on a distant winter hike) that I made a decision to purchase a pair and check out them out. Whereas KUIU charges them as moderate-weight pants to be used in 40-70F diploma temperatures, they’re considerably heavier than the opposite softshell pants I usually put on for winter mountaineering. They’re additionally fairly roomy, virtually boxy, with straight legs and pair nicely with lengthy underwear.
One of many issues that makes the Assault Pant so fascinating as winter mountaineering pants is their zippered thigh vents. These are 11 inches lengthy and backed with artificial mesh to maintain out particles or snow. They’re nice to crack open whenever you begin to really feel perspiration accumulating in your underwear on strenuous hikes or snowshoe journeys. In addition they pair nicely with KUIU’s Extremely Merino 145 zip-off lengthy underwear which additionally has full-length facet zips for air flow and might be taken off with out having to take off your boots or pants first.
The Assault Pants have six pockets: two mesh-backed drop pockets in entrance, two zippered mesh pockets on the thighs, and two zippered rear pockets on the again. The zippers are lined by a fold of cloth for added sturdiness and safety since hunters usually stalk animals off-trail by woods and excessive brush. The thigh pockets are deep sufficient to retailer a full-size folded map and compass, offering hipbelt-compatible storage, which might be arduous to come back by in winter when sporting a backpack and a hardshell jacket.
The legs are minimize straight and are broad sufficient to suit over insulated winter mountaineering boots, though they’ll get a bit heat when worn with gaiters. When sporting lengthy underwear with them, you would possibly take into account sporting a 3/4 size leg to keep away from sweating into your boots. The bottoms of the legs are plain with out ankle zips to accommodate bigger footwear or gaiter strap hooks to forestall them from using up. The waistline is equally plain, with out additional adjustability apart from 1 and 1/2-inch belt loops, a button closure, and a entrance zipper.
The Assault Pants have a brushed inside so they’re fairly heat when worn alone. They’re additionally on the heavy facet, weighing 19.5 oz in males’s 38s (quick), which is about 30% heavier than the softshell REI Activator Pants (15 oz) I normally put on when it’s 15 levels or hotter. Along with additional heat, that additional heft offers that added sturdiness, making them a wonderful possibility for lengthy winter bushwhacks the place you’re more likely to encounter deep brush.
Softshell Winter Mountain climbing Pants – Comparability Desk
Suggestion
The KUIU Assault Pant is a heavyweight softshell pant appropriate for chilly climate mountaineering with zippered facet vents so you possibly can regulate your heat degree on strenuous hikes. They’ve six pockets and plenty of inside room to layer with lengthy underwear. I believe they’re very best for hikers who run chilly and for off-trail use on winter bushwhacks, when their added heat and sturdiness present added assurance in rugged terrain.
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