Having worn it in well past the ‘out of the box’ condition where the DWR coating does most of the work, I’ve worked the Ladakh to the point of failure (or tried to!) and feel confident now in my assessment. Below I’ve cached my review in a trip out onto Bleaklow during a midnight navigation session with the Howl team, that hike encapsulated a good range of what the Ladakh is capable of. (You’ll appreciate the photos have come from across my use of the jacket this winter, as it was pitch black during the actual hike.)

From a lay-by on the Woodhead Pass we took strides into the storm currently lashing the Bleaklow Plateau. 

I’ve been humbled to receive the new Ladakh GTX Jacket from Rab to accompany me on my winter hiking trips this past few months. I’d promised to give the new marriage with Gore Tex fabrics a thrashing to see how the different fabrics handled the conditions of a UK winter, so there we were at 9.30pm in early January about to walk into a rain washed heath-land via a tight, rocky stream valley. 

At the valley bottom the weather was mild, 8C and lightly raining. I’d layered for the climb up a stream path onto Featherbed Moss, so a merino base layer and a Shadow Hoodie was all I had under the Ladakh. I was also wearing the solid Kangri GTX pants but that’s a review for the future!

Working hard on the ascent I had the underarm vents wide open, with the wind yet to hit us I didn’t need to worry about rain being blown into the vents. This ‘pit-zips’ are critical in controlling your micro-climate within a jacket, and Rab have made them plenty big enough to give you maximum venting on this jacket.

As we began climbing the terrain was very steep at times, with large boulder sections to scramble over where you’re head is cocked back to look up the valley, this is when hood of the jacket really starts working for you. 

Rab’s hood designs are known for being simply perfect and with the Ladakh they’ve outdone themselves. In essence there are just two shock-cord adjusters, but it’s the arrangement that I like. The first is a straight-forward halo draw-cord, with a one handed pull toggle at the back. This fits the hood to your head and takes volume out of the top of the hood if you’re not wearing a helmet. The second draw-cord is ingenious, as it incorporates a toggle at the back to again cinch down the volume of the hood if you’re not wearing a helmet and helps to draw in the material to prevent droughts around the back of your neck.

Ascending out towards the top of the valley we had a bit of scrambling to do, we’d elected to follow the stream closely for a challenging route in the dark, so plenty of reaching for handholds while the rain started to turn sleety. The stream was a torrent, forcing us up onto rocky outcrops and heather-clad slopes in steep falls as the valley narrowed.

The Ladakh specialised cut for climbing really comes out for you during this stuff.

Rab have done three things here which set this jacket up for me in terms of its general tailoring. First, the jacket is long so it covers your backside properly when hiking and if you’re really reaching up the rear hem doesn’t ride up past you waist. Then there’s the shoulders being roomy, which makes for a freedom of movement when active, the last thing you want when clambering up a clough in a rainstorm is pulling against your own jacket to reach a handhold. The wide shoulder across the yoke and volume under the arm is spot on for this movement. Finally, the arms of this jacket is bang on. I really appreciated the length as I’ve used them to completely cover my hands when I forgot gloves, to having the cuffs done up tight around my wrists to free me hands for rope work and the length allows for that perfectly. As they’re articulated too and not just cylinders of fabric you get a high degree of free movement without flapping about like a duffle bag. As we climbed up that valley in the sleet I was grateful that between strapping the cuffs tight to my wrists over my gloves and the length in the arms I was always fully protected from any ingress of water while we scrambled our way to the plateau. The lack of storm flaps, excess material, and the minimalist approach Rab have taken to the overall constructions really works for you here during climbs, you feel streamline and tactical. 

As we left the valley and the hill rounded out to the plateau we got blasted by the winds and increasingly heavy sleet becoming snow.

It was flying in from the south and robbing us of any visibility quickly, as a huge wall of low cloud moved across Bleaklow we lost sight of the Emley Moor mast which is the easy option for bearings. So gathered on the lea side of a peat mound we whipped out the maps and compasses and took our bearings as the last of the masts' light disappeared. We wanted to do some micro-navigation on the hill and as we’d been forced to climb out of the valley short of the path with the heavy water flow we needed to locate our exact position on the hill. 

With our location marked, and a bearing to walk we continued to trek into what was now weather well beyond the scope of what I’d considered the Ladakh capable of handling. Ordinarily had I known we’d be up in 50mph winds, with a wet snow storm blowing around us sticking melty globs of the white stuff to every exposed part of us I’d have worn the heaviest, thickest jacket I own. So in terms of a test, Bleaklow really brought the fight that night.

Dry cold and snow would be no worry, equally would be torrents of wind, but man that transitional wet snow...that’ll ask for your hypothermic corpse as payment to pass the plateau on nights like that.

For more than an hour we moved through the snow, stopping often to hit stones we were navigating to, or stream junctions, ring contours and the like.

It started to get truly testing as we made our way towards the route out from the hills, aiming for a fractal branching of streams pouring into the Far Black Clough trail down from the plateau.

We were still working hard, moving fast and light across the snow blanketed peat moor. And through the cloud we find our way to the main track, having jumped many a stream and climbed up over a few peat sided cloughs.

Descending steadily we noted the time at 2am, we’d been walking for 5 hours so far. 

As the track is easier to walk, and the energy levels relax a bit we started to cool off. So far I’ve kept just the merino layer and softshell under the Ladakh, but I needed another layer now so I stopped and pulled out the Electron jacket to put under the hardshell of the Ladakh. We’d dropped off the hill by around 100m metres by then too, so the snow had eased and we were in light rain now.

The cut of the Ladakh easily allows for a down jacket underneath to loft, as Rab designed the Jacket to function as a part of a versatile layering system. The kidney drawcord at the back can be fully released and the volume of the Ladakh widened to accept the insulative layer. It was in doing this that I noticed I had gotten a little inside the Ladakh during the exercises on the hilltop. 

I was dubious about the zips I will admit, I’ve always relied on storm flaps to protect from water ingress on the main zip of a jacket. I must concede though, I’ve been highly impressed by the YKK aqua guard zip on the main front zipper. Having spent 5 hours in heavy, melty snow fall I’d say the persistent presence of melting snow stuck to the front of me while hiking did allow some osmosis action through to my softshell underneath. It may even be that water got through the C-knit fabric itself at the stitching to the zips.

I also got slightly damp again around the belly button area during a three hour hike in Storm Dennis a month later, I wasn’t wearing a waist-strap on the rucksack so I can only assume the excessive amount of rain either got through the zip or the seam where the zip a sewn to the C-knit fabric.

Given that this jacket is a lightweight breathable jacket for high levels of exertion, rather than a bomber like the Latok, you would expect some pay off with ultimate waterproofing. And I have indeed found I love this jacket for it’s comfort and range of function over a full 70D GT pro for regular use. If I was working for a wet and wild scottish season on the heath where I was perhap less mobile and just generally hiking, a heavier, thicker jacket may make sense. But for what I do this Ladakh is the clear preference. 

In the absolute worst conditions this jacket completely out performed by expectations for such a light layer, and even in the most excessive conditions where maybe a Latok or Kangri might make more sense...the pace and activities we were performing would more than likely have us soaked from sweat under a thicker fabric anyway. I’d always choose light, breathable,and comfort over ultimate waterproofing any day.

As we returned to the cars at 2.45am we’re worn, laughing with fatigue, and ready for bed.

But I’m 95% dry, warm and satisfied that throughout the hike I’d not had to consider my protection for the elements, and could focus on being efficient with my navigation. This highest compliment I can think of for clothing is that you simply don’t need to think about it when you’re out.

Thanks to the awesome team at Rab for the Ladakh, and for the continued dedication to crafting well thought out clothing to facilitate adventures in the outdoors.