We asked our Operations Assistant Kerrie to drawn on her wealth of experience as a mountain leader and work in the outdoor retail industry to give us a guide to buying the perfect set of waterproof jacket and over trousers for your next trekking and walking  holiday.

Possibly the most important purchase after getting your boots is a waterproof jacket and over trousers. There is nothing worse than getting wet and cold on a trek. That’s not to say it won’t happen – but with a good set of waterproofs you are reducing the chance of that happening by a significant amount!

Are all waterproof jackets made equal? Absolutely not! Do you need to rush out and buy the most expensive waterproof jacket in the shop? Also no.

When considering which waterproof jacket to buy (and it can seem like a minefield at times!) you need to think about the activity you are buying it for. Some are made for high intensity activities such as running. These make breathability the main feature, which means they allow extra heat to escape and are made from very lightweight materials. You want to avoid these is you are wearing a rucksack. Others promote durability and waterproofness over breathability, and are for sports such as hill walking or mountaineering. These use hardwearing fabrics that may feel stiffer but can stand up to the demands of the mountains, and carrying a heavy rucksack.

Waterproof jackets also come with a rating of how “waterproof” they are. Without getting too technical, the higher the number in the rating, the better suited the jacket will be to being out all day in a downpour.

To give you an example of the type of jacket to look for, it should have a waterproof rating (hydrostatic head) of over 10,000mm, 20,000 or more being ideal. A jacket with a tough face (outer) fabric – which is measured in denier, combined with a high hydrostatic head will be able to withstand the worst of the weather and can also cope with the abrasion of rucksack straps.

Your waterproof over trousers don’t necessarily need to be as hardwearing and tough as your jacket, but it is worth considering buying some that are durable enough to cope with the demands of your trip.

Tick list for buying a waterproof jacket:

• You know what your main activity will be.
• You know how waterproof and breathable you need it to be.
• You know how durable the material needs to be if you intend to carry a rucksack.

There are other features you can consider, but if you visit a reputable outdoor shop armed with this tick list, you should be able to find your perfect jacket! Nevertheless, even the most durable high performance jacket will have its limits. Every jacket can and will fail in the most arduous of conditions, which hopefully you won’t encounter on your trip.