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the best breathability and lowest weight, you
might want to splurge on that Mercedes af ter
all. We steamed up with temps in the 40s (al-
though 10-inch pit zips helped keep things out
of sauna territory), and the Kento is not super
light or packable (it’s a hair under a pound and
packs down to the size of half a loaf of bread).
$229; 15.3 oz. (m’s M); m’s S-XXXL,
w’s XS-XL; mammut.comSECURE SHOE
Salewa Wildfi re Edge
On steep and rocky trails, you want a shoe
to match. One guide-in-training swears by
the Wildfi re Edge, an approach shoe that
toggles between hike and scramble modes
via a neat trick: Simply cinch the laces that
extend around the heel, which forces your
foot to the front for increased groundfeel and
precision. “It gave me the confi dence I needed
to navigate twisty approach hikes in France’s
Gorges du Verdon with 30 pounds of gear on
my back,” our tester says. She also reports
that the Wildfi re Edge has survived monthsof scrapes with sharp limestone; credit
the thick suede upper wrapped in a TPU
exoskeleton, as well as higher-than-normal
TPU rands on the heel and toe. Caveat: Our
tester found the thick suede upper results in
subpar breathability. $169; 1 lb. 14 oz.
(m’s 9); m’s 7-13, w’s 6-11; salewa.comFIELD NOTES
DO-IT-ALL SHELL
Mammut Kento HS
Hooded Jacket
Why pay for a Mercedes
when a Toyota will do?
That’s the easy com-
parison after testing
this full-featured
rain shell, which
has the protec-
tion and durabil-
ity to serve as a
year-round jacket.
The 2.5-layer
fabric kept us
dry through three
straight days of rain
near Moab, Utah. It
was aided by adjust-
able cuff s that angle
slightly over the back of
the hand, a three-way adjustable, brimmed
hood that cinches tightly over the face (and
fi ts a helmet), and a PFC-free DWR. The
durability of the Kento’s 40-denier nylon
also wowed one tester: “I squeezed through
tight cracks and I scrambled slot canyons in
Arches National Park’s Fiery Furnace, and
it never abraded,” he says. But if you needThe latest word from our testers