Ortovox Ravine Shell Jacket + Pants

Available in a variety of appealing colour options for both women and men, the new 3L Ravine Shell Jacket and Pants are designed to function best together. Their colour palette options allow for mixing and matching as I did for this review with the Sweet Alison green jacket and the Deep Ocean Blue pants.

The 3L Ravine Shell Jacket has incorporated several must-have features without increasing the jacket's bulk which would impede its oh-so-important packability. You’ll find an adjustable storm hood to keep the weather at bay while also fitting over a helmet should you wear one. There is also a rigid brim which helps keep wind, snow and sunshine from interfering with your view.

The jacket's centre zipper has a generous overlap at the top with a snap to fasten things snug as well as a soft merino insert in the chin area to absorb moisture and keep that next-to-skin feel at a premium.

To further help keep the weather out there are generous velcro cuff adjustments and a hem with dual adjustment and a rubberized band to help the jacket connect with the pants and prevent it from riding up and allowing snow inside.

When the skin track gets steep and you begin to exert yourself you’ll need to dump heat fast while keeping the Ravine Shell Jacket done up to ensure it buffets the wind. This is where the long pit zips come in as they provide good ventilation on the fly to ensure you don’t overheat.

There are two spacious front pockets where you can easily access small items that you need on the go such as a radio, sunglasses or a snack. To ensure that your phone stays safe and scratch-free, there is an integrated cell phone compartment in the front left pocket made of merino mesh which helps protect your phone’s battery from the cold.

Merino Deep Shell: Dermizax NX (non-porous PU membrane - durable and easy-care), windproof and waterproof (min. 20,000 mm water column), 100% windproof, breathable (up to 32,000 g/m²/24h)
DWR-FINISH: PFC-free: water and dirt run off

• Adjustable storm hood
• 100% Merino insert in the chin area
• 2-way front zipper
• 2 large front pockets
• 1 integrated cell phone pocket made of Merino mesh
• Long underarm ventilation
• Adjustable cuffs
• Adjustable waistband

• Adjustable waistband with optimized hook and loop fastener
• 2 extended thigh pockets, with an additional mesh pocket and light carabiner for an avalanche transceiver in the right pocket
• Side ventilation zippers
• Merino inserts in areas that are sensitive to the cold
• Anatomically shaped knee area
• Integrated gaiters
• Protection against sharp edges with Dyneema-Cordura
• Loose fit
• Compact pack size

The first thing you’ll notice about both the Ortovox 3L Ravine Shell jacket and pants is that they use a streamlined minimal design which is contrasted by asymmetrically placed fabric colours for a little fun, providing more personality than other solid-coloured shells. Both the jacket and pants have a spacious freeride cut without being baggy or oversized. This provides much-needed room for layering underneath and some built-in fabric stretch means that you get plenty of range of motion while skiing and climbing.

The Merino Deep Shell fabric is quite effective at keeping out moisture and letting heat escape but the wide pit zips on the jacket and leg vents on the pants did come in handy when I started to build up a sweat. After several days of touring, I have come to really enjoy wearing this kit, it looks good, performs well and also considers the environment when it was created which makes me feel good. I appreciate how small the shell packs down when I don’t need it as backpack space is a precious commodity, of which the Ravine Shell Jacket did not take up much.

One feature I was missing was hand warmer pockets on the jacket. Call me old school but I just think you can never have enough pockets and with only two on the jacket I was looking for more space to place things—but that’s just me. One feature that I thought was so simple yet so good was the second snap on the hem of the pants. This allows you to decrease the pant width at the leg hem which makes for a more snug fit around your ski boots and comes in very handy when you are in your city boots and don’t want massive bell bottoms.

Overall I give Ortovox high praise for their well-thought-out design of the Ravine Shell Jacket and Pants as they perform well and are light and minimal by nature. I think that the colour palettes they use and the unique blocks of secondary fabric colours are a bold style that really works well and makes the apparel stand out.