Why We Chose The BlackYak Mishima Hoody: Great breathability, useful features, quality build
BlackYak, in case you’re not familiar with them, are like the South Korean version of Arc’teryx. Their kit is all made for climbing and mountaineering, catering for anything from crag climbing to 8000m ascents, and it’s all got a real premium look and feel to it.
This particular item in their women’s collection is one of those softshell jackets that will be able to serve a range of purposes, like most good softshell jackets should.
Who Is The BlackYak Mishima For?
There are a lot of things about the Mishima that climbers will like, the articulation, durable weave and breathability for instance, but it’s also one of those items that ticks all the right boxes for hiking, scrambling and even cold weather trail running.
On milder days, it’s that layer that you can chuck on over a t-shirt and go all day in. On cold and wet days it’s that bit of insulation you need underneath your rain jacket. Then in extremely cold conditions you can wear it under a down jacket and/or shell as part of a layering system.
Materials
The Mishima is made from two types of Cordura: a Cordura 4-Way Stretch on the outside and then a Cordura Heavyweight Fleece on the inside. If you’re familiar with those thick, heavy-duty coats that are made out of Cordura, these versions of the fabric are nothing like that. Instead, they’re both soft to the touch – kind of like a cross between standard fleece and standard softshell. The tight, dense nylon weave of the outer fabric offers a good level of durability, enough to easily withstand a sharp rock face, but it also has a nice bit of stretch to it so it won’t hinder your movement. There’s also some weather resistance – certainly enough to keep the wind off you and to withstand some light rainfall.
