Our journeys in the mountains are peopled by characters.  Not only our companions, but also places we love, mountains that feel like home, and even equipment and clothing that has become special to us. I remember shivering in a winter bivouac and feeling such relief when I put on my down jacket and felt its protective warmth. I also recall a wet afternoon by Loch Ness when the heavens opened and my supposedly waterproof jacket caved in leaving me saturated and nearing exposure.  Mountain clothing can mean the difference between life and death in the mountains – so what you are wearing becomes part of your journey.

Here is my review of Klättermusen’s Brede 2 jacket

I knew, when I zipped up Klättermusen’s Brede 2 jacket on a snowy day in the Cairngorms, that this was going to be the start of a long relationship. What instantly impressed me was the feel of the jacket.  The jacket has a robust feel to it I had never experienced before.

If it could talk it would say…

                “Don’t worry, I can handle anything this place can throw at us.”

And, as anyone who has been on the Cairngorm plateau in a blizzard will testify, that’s saying something.  The durability of the Brede 2 is instantly apparent, the material has a very tough feel to it.  I have had problems with other jackets wearing badly due to abrasion.  I often carry a fairly heavy rucksack into my bothy trips and other jackets have simply worn through where the rucksack rubs against them.  I’ve every confidence that this won’t be an issue with the Brede 2.

Klättermusen don’t claim that the Brede 2 is lightweight although I found it compared quite well to the jacket I have been using year round in the Scottish hills in terms of weight.  Generally speaking the terms “light weight” and “durable” don’t sit well together.  Outdoor gear manufacturers have long sought the dream of producing their equipment as light as possible but have been forced to abandon durability.  A jacket may look and feel great in the shop but what will it be like in two or three years time?

As Klättermusen’s technical team explain.

The jacket is reinforced with Duracoat on elbows, hips and shoulders to protect against abrasion increasing wear resistance by up to five times. Duracoat is a surface treatment, meaning that no extra seams or layers of fabric are added, while keeping it very flexible. Durability is improved without increasing the weight of the garment or weakening the fabric with seams. The cut and construction is kept intact as Duracoat doesn’t distort the shape or impede movement in any way, making it ideal for the agility required by mountaineers. This makes the jacket extra durable to last a lifetime.

Whilst the jacket feels comfortable and tough enough to give you protection from the fiercest weather I found it also gave me great freedom of movement due to the exceptional fit of the garment.  As I climbed higher the weather closed and the wind picked up driving hail into my face.  It was then that I was really grateful for the design of the jacket hood.  You can bury yourself inside and it gave me great all round protection whilst allowing me good visibility.  I have found good face protection essential in foul weather. You need to keep your face warm and protected whilst being able to see where you are going. That’s not easy but the hood design of the Brede 2 is exceptional and achieves this really well.

One other design feature I think should be mentioned are the great ventilation zips that run up either side of the back and up under the arms. These allow you to roll up the back and almost open the jacket apart.  Good ventilation is really important as over heating with exertion can be almost as bad as getting cold or wet.  I opened up the zips as I climbed and closed them as the temperature dropped higher up.  I did find I struggled to access the zips at times and needed to be a bit of a contortionist but I am not the most flexible of folk and that was probably the results of the design faults in this old man.

One major downside of the jacket has to be the price. The Brede 2 comes in at a little over £700 and is very much at the top end of the market.  I always think it pays to buy the best outdoor gear you can afford, after all your life, as I said earlier, might depend on it. The important thing is that Klättermusen’s gear is made to last.  My previous hill jacket was worn out after three years, I expect my Brede 2 to still be giving me good service in 10 years time. That works out at only £70 a year which actually compares quite favourably with les high spec gear.

There is also an environmental issue here. Klättermusen’s philosophy is to lessen the environmental impact of their jackets by ensuring they last longer.  Manufacturing three jackets has to have more impact on the environment than making one that just keeps going.

Klättermusen have also worked to lessen the environmental impact of the materials they employ.

The waterproof fabric of the jacket is made of Cutan, a proprietary Klättermusen waterproof and ventilating technology developed to improve on existing fabrics both in performance as well as sustainability by developing PTFE-free membranes to become fluorocarbon-free in production. Cutan fabrics are soft, flexible, have great stretch and are fluorocarbon-free. 

Overall I was delighted by the performance of the jacket and very impressed with its breathability.  The important thing about all outdoor gear is not how it performs on the its first day on the mountains, when it just out of the box, but how if functions after years of regular use.  I’ll be coming back to review this jacket after each year of use so I’ll be able to let readers know just how it stands up to heavy use in a wide variety of conditions.

Keep safe and do come back and see me.