A rain jacket that survived 36 hours of heavy rain: Mountain Hardwear Cloud Cipher Jacket review

Perhaps there is no place more associated with rain than the Pacific Northwest, So there’s probably no better place to test a rain jacket. I wore the Mountain Hardwear Cloud Cipher Rain Jacket on a week-long, 96-mile backpacking trip along the Oregon coast and its rainforests to put it through its paces.

cloud cipher ($310) is the brand’s newest, most high-end shell made from the signature Dryspell fabric, which Mountain Hardwear claims is lab-tested to be completely waterproof as well as breathable and durable. In addition to my week in Oregon, I wore the Cloud Cipher for months during the rainy Midwestern spring, including during a storm in Arkansas that resulted in a tornado sighting.

In short: The Cloud Cipher isn’t great at breathability, but it excels at the basic function of a rain jacket: keeping you dry. If you’re looking to upgrade to a lightweight shell that still offers protection, this is an excellent option.

Check out GearJunkie’s guides to the best rain jackets and the best rain jackets for women.

Mountain Hardwear Cloud Cipher Jacket Review

Fabric and sustainability

The Cloud Cipher is one of three mountain hardwear jackets dryspell label. The brand says each Dryspell jacket goes through 20 lab tests and is washed more than 20 times. The fabric is 20D Micro Rip 3L made of 100% nylon. The interior is fully taped to provide better protection.

I appreciated the soft nature of the jacket’s interior. Some waterproof jackets can be scratchy, but this one wasn’t itchy and was quite comfortable with just a t-shirt underneath.

The brand says the jacket is PFAS-free, and given the documented harmful effects of PFAS, or so-called forever chemicals, on the environment and human health, this is worth noting and appreciating.

Design, fit and features

It has two pockets (one on each side of the hip), and an adjustable cord with two pulls at the waist. Additionally, the jacket features two large underarm pit zips and a hard-sided hood and an accessible cinch cord.

I appreciated how large both pockets are; Just one can easily fit my smartphone, wallet and keys. I wish there was a zipped chest pocket. With my pack, the waist belt covers the hip pockets, meaning I can’t really put much in them. It would be helpful to have a chest pocket where I can easily keep my phone with my pack.

The jacket has a comfortable fit, which I appreciated. I want to be able to get a full range of motion while backpacking. Unlike other women’s jackets, this one doesn’t cling at the waist, so you have plenty of room. I usually wear a medium size in women’s shirts, and I tested the larger size so I could layer under it. I had no problem wearing a fleece and a hat with a jacket.

It’s worth mentioning that this jacket is only available in sizes XS-XL, which is quite a narrow size range these days. Many other rain jackets we’ve tested in the past extend from XXS to 4XL.

The sleeves of the jacket are a bit awkward. I’m accustomed to jackets having some kind of adjustable setting (either a drawstring cord or velcro) at the end of the sleeves. Cloud Cipher has no way to roll down the sleeves, which means less security. There’s a little elastic in the sleeves, but it’s not really doing anything.

The women’s version of the jacket is available in grey, light blue, black and lemon. I tested lime, which is similar to neon green.

Initially, I hated glitter—it’s not really my style—but during my hike in Oregon, I came to realize it. Most days I had to walk a lot on the shoulder of the road, and the shine of the jacket made me more visible to cars than the black jacket. From a safety standpoint, it’s a good idea to have a jacket this high.

protection from the elements

For the first few days in Oregon, the weather was perfect: mid-60s and sunny with only a few clouds during the day. But then a terrible flood started. It rained continuously during the last two days of my trip. I had this jacket with me whenever I was out of my tent, and it gave good results in testing. No part of me got wet under the jacket.

I wanted to keep my phone secure and keep it handy for directions, but I couldn’t use the hip pocket with my pack’s waist belt. Instead, I stuck it in my sports bra under my T-shirt and jacket and it worked great.

The hood has a reinforced brim and the pack has a drawstring cord. The lanyard was definitely a necessity. If I didn’t use it, the strong wind would blow the hood off my head and expose me to the rain.

At night, to keep my pack from getting wet from the flooded tent, I wrapped as much of my pack as possible into the jacket like a makeshift burrito. The parts of the pack that were safe remained dry.

I was trying to lose weight on this trip, so I only brought this jacket, a fleece, and a sun hoodie for warmth. cloud cipher This was a useful, versatile layer to add when I was walking along the beach in case the wind blew. I rarely needed to break out my fleece: When I got a little cold, I put the Cloud Cipher over my Sun hoodie, and it was warm enough on the trail or around camp. This jacket will be a versatile layer for shoulder season.

In another demonstration of this jacket’s waterproofing, I was camping in Arkansas on a lightly rainy June night. I woke up in the middle of the night to loud thunder, lightning in my tent and a tornado alert on my phone. I immediately put on my jacket and raced to get all my stuff in my car to get out of there as quickly as possible. Almost every piece of gear – my tent, my sleeping pad, my shoes – was completely drenched, but I wasn’t.

breathability trade-off

Breathability is probably my biggest complaint with this jacket. Whenever I wore it while exercising, I started sweating. I had to climb a big hill during heavy rain, and then I had to stop to take off my sun hoodie lying at the bottom.

Although the pit zips certainly help, I wouldn’t want to wear this jacket in temperatures above 65 degrees. I went for a run wearing it on a rainy 45 degree day and quickly had to take it off because I was overheating. As with most waterproof jackets, there is a compromise between breathability and protection. It’s hard for any jacket to excel at both.

strong durability

The path I took in Oregon was sometimes more of an idea of ​​a trail than an actual path. Some days, I had to walk through bushes, fallen trees, and thorns, through bushes so dense that I could barely see the ground. I wore the Cloud Cipher through all of this, and it held up like a champ. After careful inspection, I didn’t see any notable damage.

Weight and packability

The Cloud Cipher clocks in at 11.1 ounces, which is lighter than most of the jackets in our buyer’s guide. weighs less than Outdoor Research Aspire II (11.7 ounces) and patagonia granite crest (12.6 ounces). This jacket is a good example of how losing weight doesn’t have to mean sacrificing protection. It’s one of the lightest on the market, but it doesn’t cut corners.

I appreciated how packable Cloud Cipher is. I placed it on the top of my pack so it was easily accessible, and tucked it into small crevices among my gear. Ultimately it took up very little space. The pack I was testing didn’t actually have any external pockets, but if yours did, the jacket could easily fit into a very small pocket.

a note on price

Cloud Cipher sells for $310, which is steep but not unreasonable. The Aspire II is priced at $260, and Patagonia’s Granite Crest is priced at $290. It’s definitely cheaper than the alternatives Arc’teryx And the North FaceWhich easily exceeds $400. There are definitely more affordable options available from brands like REI And cotopaxiThat comes to around $150 and $200.

Whether or not you can justify spending more than $300 on a rain jacket is a personal decision. That high price comes with great weather protection and good durability. Personally, I would wait for the sale and get this high-performance jacket at a slightly lower price.

Mountain Hardwear Cloud Cipher Jacket review: Conclusion

If you already have a good performing shell that you trust to keep you dry, it’s probably not worth spending the money on it. Mountain Hardware Cloud Cipher. However, if like me, you’re still using your old rain jacket from college that has seen better days, this jacket is worth considering.

As a backpacker, I look for weight savings and versatility, and the Cloud Cipher delivers on both counts. And for those who value security most, this is a top-tier option. It’s not the most breathable or cheapest, but it’s reliable, durable, and comfortable.