I have wanted an ultralight rain jacket and pants since ages - something which is compact, very light and which keeps me dry when it starts to pour down 💦. I’m happy to report that I finally got something which fulfils my expectations - the Montane Podium Pull-on & Pants!
Disclosure: The pull-on and pants were provided for free to me by Montane. In addition there are Affiliate links in this article which are marked with an ∞ Infinity Sign 😊 You can use these AT NO EXTRA COST TO YOU but I get a small provision from the company. As you know: I’m keepin’ it real and tell you how it is - I maintain full editorial control of the content published on Hiking in Finland. Read the Transparency Disclaimer for more information on blogger transparency and affiliate links.
In the above Video you see everything which you need to know and I have to say about the Podium Pull-on Hoody & Pants from Montane - in the rain 🌧 ! These are Unisex rain garments made for trailrunning, but with a light or SUL backpack on your shoulders they also work really well. Just don’t use it if you carry a 15 kg or more heavy pack!
If you squeeze them together in the included stuff sack then the pull-on in Size S weighs 103 g, and the pants is even under 100 g at a mere 98 g. The rain gear I have worn (and still wear on longer trips where more rain is expected) is closer to 1 kg in weight together, so this is a major update & weight saving for summer trips where I can get away with such light kit.
I also used the pants and Pull-on on my recent packrafting trip in Lapland as a waterproof jacket + pants while paddling (as I don’t yet own an ultralight drysuit!), where they did a great job. On the first day I forgot to switch jackets and the sleeves of my Black Diamond Alpine Start Hoody got really (soaking) wet, a problem I didn’t have at all with the Montane Podium Pull-on. So it’s also multi-use, which is great!
It obviously also works well as a rainwear kit when trailrunning, the small pack size means it fits in your trailrunning pack without problems. So if you practice trailrunning at home to keep fit and want something to take along on long runs to keep dry in the rain, this will suit just fine!
The only downside I found with both the pants and Pull-on are that I run really hot under them. Now both garments are made from Montane’s Aqua Pro Lite fabric which has a breathability rating of 15.000 g/ m2/ 24 h MVTR but in practice I found that it can get sweaty and warm underneath them if you throw them over your normal (hiking) garments. My solutions to this (and as a Disclosure, I do run hot easily!) is to only wear boxer shorts and a T-Shirt underneath them and have the zipper on the Pull-On open as much as possible. That keeps the temperature underneath at a bearable level, especially since I used these in summer temperatures where it was between 15°C and 30°C air temperature. Maybe in spring and autumn when it is cooler and less humid, that it will be less warm under it.
Finally, it’s not the most durable piece of kit, so do not wear this if you have to bushwhack or carry a heavy 20 kg backpack. The intended purpose is firmly for trailrunning, Ultra runs and not for backpacking - though it is completely fine to use it with an ultralight backpack in my experience. The material is really thin, and very stretchy, and hasn’t suffered on my trips in the past four months, but then it also hasn’t rained that much here and hence I haven’t worn it so often.
In conclusion, if these looks like something for you and you also want to carry a real UL rain jacket and pack in your pack, which does a good job of keeping you dry in the rain, then you can pick up the Montane Podium Pull-on at Ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk, at ∞ Amazon.co.uk, where you also can get the ∞ Montane Podium pants. Currently both together cost around 178 €, which is less than their combined weight 😁
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