Klättermusen outdoor gear is a robust and generally pricy, but considered very high quality, and they present a product line with about anything you would need to stay outdoor for a longer period of time. The wetter and colder the better. And, and these emerging eco-friendly times, the Klättermusen products also comes with cleaner conscience.

Moving to Trondheim in 2005, I realized I had to acquire improved outdoor gear in order to get to classes. The somewhat specialized store «Ute-butikken» had Klättermusen jackets, which I at that point had never seen before. But compared to the other brands available, this manufacturer had quite a different focus on details and design.

I have now owned a Klättermusen jacket since then, and I am quite satisfied. I use them at work, for hiking, cross country skiing, and even downhill skiing. This year I also received a new Froste jacket – but this is quite different than the older model I have. Which is interesting. Have a look:

This shows the two jacket on top of each other, the new one at the top. Here they have made one very important improvement: the strap for tightening the bottom waist is moved from hip to the front, so that your hip is not turned into bleeding wounds when carrying heavy packs.

The next picture shows how the velcro type is changed – to a much sturdier noe, and less prone to pick up threads and attach to anything wool-like. Also, it is less likely to come off, as the material is thicker.

This also shows the details of the new velcro. One other big change is that the front pocket is moved from the left to the right side. Clearly very difficult to get used to. But the flap attached to the zipper is now made of rubber, not textiles – as this is simply determined to wear off at some point.

The sleeves are also different – but in my opinion, I wish that there should be velcro there to attach the straps. (The older jacket is to the right).

Finally, the jacket now is made of a completely different fabric. It is possible to see the difference in pattern above. The new fabric is lighter, glossy and seems more synthetic than the old one. I have not gotten to try this out just yet, to see if there is any difference in weatherproofness.