"Good Hiking Jacket" - Review of The North Face Cipher Windstopper Jacket - Men's

I bought this practically without thinking. It won the gear of the year award from Outside magazine last year so I assumed it would be incredible. I bought it the day before leaving on a 10 day glacier trek in the Wrangell range in Alaska. I really loved the feeling of this jacket, especially the parts made out of windstopper. In the field it breathed great and was a good outerlayer on clear, relatively windy days. I never once got sweaty in this jacket. I did however get wet. The apex fabric just sucks up water and takes a suprisingly long time to dry. This was the deal killer for me. Also it really wasn't windproof enough in stronger breezes. It cut maybe 60% but it really didn't kill the chill.
View Details: The North Face Cipher Windstopper Jacket - Men's >