FJÄLLRAVEN

Abisko Trail

RRP £130 Target price £120 The Abisko Trail is about as a technical as a fleece can get. Fjällraven have shifted the focus away from pure warmth towards pure performance – forget the ritual of throwing a fleece on and stripping it off again after 10 minutes, here’s a piece of kit that’s designed to stay on, in all weathers. The fleece is only distributed where it’s needed the most – at the hood, shoulders and chest sides, while the lower torso and underarms are made in a different, grid-structured fleece which offers noticeable ventilation. The hood and the moderate wind-proofing also make it a viable outer-layer on mild, breezy days, but I would say it truly excels as a mid-layer. It’s light, dynamic, close-fitting and extremely comfy. As you’d expect from Fjällraven and for the price tag, there are some little luxuries, such as thumb loops, a good-sized zipped chest pocket and even – most remarkably – a hole in the hood for a ponytail. For all its technical prowess however, the Abisko Trail lacks the simple warmth and cosiness of a traditional fleece, and on balance the price tag is hard to justify. RB