Golite Wisp/Ether

My Wisp and the wife’s Ether are both a year or two old now. They are from the first year after the fabric change (was that a year or two ago? Can’t recollect).

Good wind resistance. Poor water resistance when compared to both the Montbell Wind Blast Anorak and the Montane Aero.

Furthermore, on mine, the zipper snags quite easily IF care is not used when zipping it up. Zipping up is a two hand operation – must use one hand to pull upward both sides of the zipper and attempt to hold both sides as close to parallel as possible while pulling the zipper skyward with the other hand.

Despite these “crabs”, i always have it in the small LLBean lumbar pack that serves me as a laptop case, but i no longer use it on hikes.

Much of the time, i do like the Wisp’s elastic bottom hem better than the drawstring hems on the Aero and the Wind Blast Anorak. However, i recognize that the drawcord hems allow for better ventilation by permitting more air to enter under the windshirt hem and then exit out the unzipped top and that in some conditions this might be preferable to the elastic hem over which i have no control.

I also like the Wisp’s stand-up collar better than the collar on the Aero (and of course the Windblast Anorak doesn’t have a collar since it’s hooded).

Of these three windshirts the Wind Blast is my choice for water resistance.

Being in a more rainy clime, when moderate to heavy rains are expected, i opt for the Wild Things Epic windshirt for more water resistance.

Thanks, p j. The fabric seems to be what I’m looking for, more breathable rather than more water resistant, but the snaggy zipper would be a deal breaker for me.