Baerskin Adventure Chronicles

Sponsored in part by Baerskin Tactical through a free softshell jacket ahead of writing – however, the opinions featured here are ENTIRELY my own

The true start to this adventure began several months ago when an employee of Baerskin Tactical reached out to me about writing a review of one of their products. Camping and hiking are only rarely the topics of my adventurous tales, but I've been doing both more this summer with the Society for Creative Anachronism and my new man (who loves both hiking and camping). I may not be an authority on hiking gear, but I love to review products I have actually used – I hope that helps my readers get information, too!

When I first received my softshell jacket from Baerskin, I thought it looked too big – even though I based my size request on up-to-date measurements and the recommendations charted on the company website. This item is now only listed under “men's jackets” on the website, but there were measurements offered for women, as well, when I first did my research. Then, I tried it on.

I actually enjoyed that the length of the body was longer than my torso. It's the perfect dark forest or moss green – just as pictured in the online catalog. The concept of mesh areas under the armpits was thrilling! I do get sweaty easily when hiking. However, the place where the arms attach to the torso of the jacket is at the wrong height for my body, which I thought would cause issues.

Still, I packed it when I went camping on a weekend with a potential for rain. Despite the daily heat and humidity, it was actually extremely cold at night. Despite the two blankets I brought and the thick walls of the tent, as well as the tarp below the tent to keep the ground from sapping all the warmth inside the tent, and an exhaustion that sank through my bones, sleep continued to escape me late into the night. Finally, I pulled out my new jacket with the insulation properties. Wrapping the fleece-lined softshell jacket around my torso kept me warm enough to find lasting sleep.

During the night the skies were overtaken by clouds and thundering droplets pounded the uneven ground. Though it had become a gentle rain by the morning, I wasn't looking forward to being soaked through until the sun was able to heat the air, but I needed to hit the campground toilet early in the day. I put the jacket on (without zipping it closed, just holding it in place around my torso, but including using the hood and arms) to run through the light rain. The jacket kept me warm and dry – and it dried off quickly, afterwards. So that BAER-Tex water repellent coating really works.

On a practicality level, this venture is working out well. I am pretty happy with my Baerskin Softshell Jacket so far! It kept me warm and dry at times when I would otherwise have struggled to sleep for the cold or been soaked to the bone (and then had a difficult time getting back to sleep). High marks – though the jacket hasn't had to withstand my sweat, yet.

My next excursion with the jacket will be a hike – at least that's what I intend, before the hiking season has passed by. That will help with testing how well it helps when I'm working up a nice sweat or enjoying nature for longer periods of time as the weather turns from disgustingly humid to chilly. I'll let you know how things go as I continue to test my new jacket and its many fascinating high-tech features. Leaf peeping here I come!