HikingBerghausWaterproof Jacket

Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro jacket review: lightweight, packable and made for the mountains

A lightweight and ultra-technical hardshell designed to keep you safe, dry and comfortable on fast alpine ascents, cold Scottish winter days, or when journeying through the worst of the British weather.

✓  Top PickBerghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro Weight426 gMembrane3-layer GORE-TEXPrice£400 The good✓  Huge pit zips
✓  Very lightweight at 426g
✓  Adjustable helmet-compatible hood
✓  Wrists cinch down over gloves
✓  Durable 100% polyamide shell
✓  Reflector strips
✓  Two large Napoleon chest pockets
✓  Berghaus free repair service
The not-so-good✗  Expensive at £400
✗  No built-in RECCO chip
✗  No hip pockets
✗  No internal dump pocket

At a glance

Overview

Berghaus’ MTN Guide Alpine Pro waterproof shell is one of the brand’s top-of-the-range lightweight mountaineering jackets. Coming with a 3-layer GORE-TEX membrane, two large Napoleon dump pockets, and a fully helmet-compatible hood, it is a stripped-back version of the brand’s even more expensive MTN Guide GTX Pro layer, designed to be as lightweight and packable as possible — all while being incredibly protective.

The MTN Guide Alpine Pro weighs in at an impressive 426 grams in Medium. Which, despite being decidedly lightweight, is a little misleading considering that Berghaus themselves state that the jacket in Large weighs 16 grams less at 410 grams. That marketing mishap aside, however, 426 g for a jacket this protective and purpose-built is genuinely impressive — especially considering similar lines, such as the Rab Latok GORE-TEX Pro (Rab’s equivalent lightweight alpine climbing line), come in at 505 grams in Medium. What is more, as well as being lighter, the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro is £100 cheaper than the Latok too, coming with an RRP of £400. And while this is certainly nothing to scoff at (£400 for a jacket is still very, very expensive), it is actually well priced on the market for the performance it is set to deliver.

Feature-wise, the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro is decidedly void of any bells and whistles. It comes with a front zip, two large Napoleon dump pockets for optimal compatibility with a climbing harness, a fully helmet-compatible hood, two large pit zips for dumping heat, a small internal pocket for storing a phone, and a high neckline for keeping the wind off your chin. But that is it: there are no hip pockets, no sleeve pockets for inserting a ski pass, and there is no RECCO Reflector anywhere in the coat. This jacket has been optimised to be as lightweight as possible, which means that Berghaus have had to make some sacrifices in regards to versatility and features.

How we tested

We got our hands on a Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro jacket right at the start of the 2023/2024 winter season, which saw us use it on a variety of trips throughout the season, as well as on an untold number of day walks in some less-than-mountainous areas, all in the name of kit testing. Most notably, we took the jacket on a mid-January testing trip to the Cairngorms, where we put it up against snow, ice, driving wind and rain; we used it on several trips to the Beacons where it got battered by wind and rain; and we took it out on a series of windy overnighters in Dartmoor National Park. All in, we would guess that we wore it on well over a combined 150 miles through the season, with the majority of those in decidedly wintry conditions.

Features and performance

Waterproofness and breathability

The first thing that impressed us about the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro hardshell is its ability to keep off rain and snow. It is basically impermeable, and it is easily up there with some of the best waterproof shells we have ever tested. The reason it is so impressive, however, is it does this all while still being substantially smaller and lighter than competing lines — such as the Patagonia Triolet, which is over 100 grams heavier. Whether you chuck it on in a snowstorm or a deluge, it holds it on amongst the best of them. This is down not only to the industry-leading GORE-TEX materials the jacket is made from but also the athletic cut of the coat that prevents any water from seeping through. Take the sleeves, for example: here, the hems are slightly longer over your hand in order to allow water to run off more easily and not soak up into the wrist of the jacket, as has often been a complaint of ours when it comes to waterproof jackets. The hood, which you can cinch down so tight that you have only got a small porthole to look through, also does an amazing job at keeping rain and snow off your face. Unlike other helmet-compatible hoods which can bunch up around the sides of your head when worn without a helmet, however, the hood on the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro somehow stays round even when cinched down as tight as it can go. This prevents pooling around the hood line and stops water dripping into the inside.

Made from a 3-layer GORE-TEX membrane, the breathability of the jacket is also worthy of note. Due to its lightweight construction and the complete void of any unnecessary bells and whistles, it breathes tremendously well. On test, we found it to be more breathable than both the Patagonia Triolet and the Helly Hansen Odin 9 Worlds 3.0 jacket, and we never once felt any real moisture build-up even when we were charging up Cairn Gorm with the jacket done up as tight as possible to keep out the brutal Scottish winds.

“We never once felt any real moisture build-up even when charging up Cairn Gorm with the jacket done up as tight as possible to keep out the brutal Scottish winds.”

Windproofness

The Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro jacket makes easy work of the wind, as any alpine mountaineering jacket like this should. Even in a gale, it cuts everything out and all but hermetically seals you inside. What is more, thanks to the high collar, you can easily keep the worst of it off your face and, if worn with a pair of ski goggles, you can windproof your entire head — which we particularly appreciated numerous times when walking into driving wind.

Weight and packability

When dry, the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro weighs 426 grams. This is substantially lighter than most jackets this durable and protective, being almost 200 and 100 grams lighter than the equivalent hardshells from Helly Hansen and Patagonia respectively. When folded away, it also packs down to about the size of a grapefruit, especially if you stuff it into a dry bag. In this sense, the jacket is one of the lightest and most packable climbing hardshells we have ever come across.

Durability

Manufactured out of 100% polyamide, the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro is reasonably durable considering the level of protection it affords. That said, it is certainly not as hard-wearing as more heavyweight lines, such as the Helly Hansen Odin 9 World 3.0 shell jacket or the Patagonia Triolet, so you should be more careful with this if climbing rocky crags or crossing ridgelines in the snow.

Now, that is not to say this jacket will get damaged should you scrape it across a rock: our own experience doing so showed us that is not the case. But we probably would not wear this when driving through gorse or charging through anything sharp as the thinner material may pierce. Thankfully, Berghaus offer a robust and completely free repair service should anything ever happen to your MTN Guide Alpine Pro.

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Our verdictOne of the lightest and most packable waterproof hardshells we have tested.Overall, we really rate the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro. It is light enough to wear on rainy summer trips, as well as being durable and protective enough to put up with all the demands of a busy Scottish winter. One of the lightest and most packable waterproof jackets we have ever tested, it is also incredibly easy to just toss in your bag on the off-chance the heavens open, which — in our opinion — makes it a very versatile layer for a huge variety of adventures.Naturally, due to the lightweight design, it forfeits some features you might find on other jackets. But we think the weight and packability of the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro more than make up for its stripped-back feature set.

FAQs

How waterproof is the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro jacket?Super waterproof, making easy work of sustained showers and heavy deluges. Smart design considerations in the hood and along the sleeves — including extended hem cuffs that let water run off rather than soak in — keep rain out even in parts where waterproof jackets typically fail.

How breathable is the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro jacket?Remarkably breathable for a jacket this durable and protective. We never noticed any major moisture build-up inside even during tough ascents. More breathable than both the Patagonia Triolet and Helly Hansen Odin 9 Worlds 3.0 in our testing.

How does the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro perform in UK winter conditions?Excellently. It cuts out all wind, is suitably breathable for wearing while climbing hills, and the helmet-compatible hood can be tightly cinched down or opened up for use with a climbing helmet. Well-cut for use with a harness and technical mountaineering kit.

Is the Berghaus MTN Guide Alpine Pro worth the money?Yes. Durable, reliably waterproof, excellent breathability and one of the lightest jackets in its class. At £400, it is £100 cheaper than the equivalent Rab Latok GORE-TEX Pro, while being lighter and performing comparably.