Dyneema is a favorite of ours for good reason. For adventure gear, it’s a miracle material; brands like Hyperlite Mountain Gear, SDR Traveller and a host of rock climbing companies swear by it. When measured by strength-to-weight ratio, it’s the strongest material in the world. But Dyneema is most often applied to bags and rock-climbing hard goods — rarely soft goods. A brand called Northwest Alpine felt that that was a bit of a miss.
Based in Portland, Oregon, NW Alpine has applied Dyneema to a durable, ultralight rain jacket called the Eyebright. It’s handmade in Oregon, and each piece of the jacket is laser cut for an exact fit. The Dyneema is combined with an eVent waterproof breathable membrane for a high-performance jacket that will outlive any of your other hard shells.
NW Alpine also makes a handful of other garments, including mid layers, durable pants and technical t-shirts — each of which puts a premium on material innovation and fit. NW Alpine is small, but with the innovation it’s driving, the brand won’t stay that way for long.
