UKH

Good for both walking and climbing, Alan James gets on well with this snug and pleasingly simple fleecy top.

Tldr? It's a jumper. 😂

But there's nowt wrong with a good jumper.

Personally I love thin stretchy hoods on midlayer fleeces, but understand they're not for everyone. Well over 10 years ago I bought a Patagonia R1 pullover that looks rather like this Montane one - no hood - and I reckon I've used it more than any other fleece, both for serious wear winter mountaineering and just as a jumper when its a bit chilly! Gridded fleece is one of the smartest outdoor clothing innovations of recent decades I reckon.

I've still got a North Cape Glacier from 1998, with a waffle inner face; an early variant of Polartec gridded inner face fabric...

Admittedly, I prefer the more recent fabrics with a smooth, close weave/knit outer face.

Yeah, I think you're spot-on about gridded fleeces. I have a Haglofs Alder, which is Pontetorto Technostretch gridded; it's my favourite fleece. From memory it's something like 163g/sq.m, so very light, but it's warm for its weight. After 2 -3 years of use, sometimes with a heavy rucksac, there's no bobbling. It's a decent length too. They no longer make it.

I found another one recently in a clearance sale so bought it. This one's in horrible colours, unfortunately,  so I can only wear it under a jacket, or at night

I have a hooded MEC gridded fleece - it's newer than the Patagonia one but it's also well over 10 years old, so the Patagonia R1 must be closer to 15 years. Anyway, the MEC one has been superb and has been used more in the mountains because it has the hood, than the Patagonia that doesn't. Just last year on the basis that I take the MEC one away on ski touring trips and then tend to wear it for a week non-stop and the smell must be offensive to my house mates after some time, I treated myself to an Alpkit Griffon, yes another hooded gridded fleece. I think I got it for 35 quid and it is also superb - being a full zip it's even a bit easier to put on or take off as conditions dictate than the MEC one.

I see Montane do a hooded version of the Protium - which as 65 quid seems a very fair price even if a bit more than Alpkit's version.

But basically everyone should have a gridded fleece in their (mountaineering) life, whether hooded or not!

I'm glad someone else mentioned this! 

I'm normally a bit sad about reading gear reviews but come on, a whole article about 1 jumper?! 

You really don't want to go to a trade show then. There we get given press packs about a pair of socks!

Seriously though, UKC/UKH gear reviews, under the leadership of Dan Bailey, are well respected in the industry, in fact, I go so far as to say we are probably leading the way in actually using, testing and reviewing gear in the UK Outdoor media.

I was always historically in the 'just a jumper' camp but that last 10/12 years of going to trade shows and witnessing the effort and care that goes into developing these products have been an eye-opening experience. The small and medium businesses we work with have the approach of university research departments when it comes into designing gear, obviously with a commercial aspect. This is the reason that we do sometimes seem to go to town on items that some people might describe as a jumper, a bag or a coat.

Alan

Totally agree Toby! 

On the other hand, gridded base layers are horrific. If you ever wear one on a long expedition, the uncomfortable imprint it leaves all over your skin will remind you never to buy one again. 

I discovered I hadn't logged my gear purchases since 2011, some semi-lockdown has been spent doing that. Which has revealed a scary tally of 25 items with some degree of a waffle inner face. And, incredibly, that it is now six years since I bought my first Decathlon Techwinter 500, which I'm currently wearing, and still looks pretty much like new.