Gear Review: HH Dry Stripe Baselayer

This baselayer from Helly Hansen implements their “Lifa” fabric, which helps keep your skin dry from perspiration. When paired with a midlayer, such as a fleece, hiking during cold days becomes much more enjoyable- this shirt is excellent at what it does. Take a look at the details:

Basic Specs

Measured weight: 5 oz
Size: Medium
Price: $40.00

 

Uses:

Helly Hansen claims the best uses for this baselayer include “climbing, skiing, sailing, and sports training”, which I would agree with. In fact, add hiking and trail running to that list, because it works great during both. I took this shirt out in temps ranging from 20-60 degrees Fahrenheit, often layering over it.

Pros: 

This shirt has kept me (mostly) dry for many running and hiking outings since November. I’ll be the first to admit how sweaty I can get, and this shirt keeps me dry for longer (disclaimer: I haven’t had a chance to use this in a hot and humid environment, so keep that in mind- my guess is it works well for a while, but would get saturated…like basically everything else).

I also liked how well the shirt fit. I usually have problems with annoying bagginess in the sleeves, but the wrist cuffs helped keep everything snug. I didn’t have problems with it riding up my arms underneath other layers, which sometimes bugs me.

Cons:

I don’t like the striped pattern on the arms. I didn’t notice how it helped the function of the shirt at all, and removing it would actually cut down the shirts weight, since there are currently two sleeve seams. This is incredibly picky, but what something I noticed that I didn’t like.

Also noteworthy are the inseams of the arms- they don’t like to stretch. Multiple times while taking off/putting on the shirt, I encountered popped seams, even though the shirt is correctly fitted. I would suggest the HH uses a more forgiving seam thread. Obviously, this leaves the impression that the long-term durability of the Dry Stripe is questionable, but being gentle with the shirt helps mitigate this problem.

Overall

The Dry Stripe is an awesome baselayer with sufficient moisture wicking properties. For cold to mild temperatures, it helps keep you dry despite your exertion level. Helly Hansen’s “Lifa” fabric does exactly what it’s supposed to, while staying soft and comfortable with an awesome fit. If you want a new layer for some winter hikes, right now would be a cool time to checkout this shirt. For $40.00, you can snag a new HH Dry Stripe!

*After several more hiking outings, an overnight trip, and more cold weather activity, I would still consider the Dry Stripe a viable option for a long distance hike. Wearers should be mindful of the stubborn seams (see above cons), but I stand by the positives that the Dry Stripe offers.

 

*This item was donated for review purposes.