Women's Ortler Gore-Tex Jacket 26/27

Ortler is Ortovox's ski touring line, and the Gore-Tex Jacket is its hardshell. It is built from GORE-TEX PERFORMANCE with an ePE-based membrane: a soft, quiet 3-layer fabric at 86 g/m² that is thinner and more robust than the version it replaces. The jacket weighs 335 g and holds a minimum 28,000 mm water column for its service life.

Stripped down is the whole design. It packs small, breathes hard on the climb and does not carry the reinforcements or the extra pockets of a freeride shell, so it is not the jacket for daily lift laps through tight trees. For earning turns, that weight saving is felt on every step.

This is for ambitious ski tourers who count grams and still want full storm protection. If you ski resort and sidecountry more than you skin, a heavier freeride shell will wear better.

The fit is regular and ergonomic, with anatomically shaped sleeves, an extended back, and adjustable cuffs and waistband. The hood adjusts two ways over a helmet, there are two-way underarm vents, a ski pass pocket and two front pockets set clear of a pack hipbelt.

German mountain guides tested it and Prowinter gave it an award this year, and once you have skinned in one you understand why. A superb touring shell.