First Impressions

The search for the ideal Spring skiing glove is over. For years, I looked for a lightweight, lightly insulated glove for those late-season days when a regular ski glove provides too much warmth. I tried products from a range of manufacturers. And in the end, the best I found comes from a big name in base layers, Smartwool.

Out of the box, these gloves impress. Well constructed and with a set of well-thought-out features, the Smartwool Spring Gloves look ready and able to tackle the slopes, a snowshoe into the woods or other activities when the temps hover in the 30s and above.

Features

The Smartwool Spring Gloves pack a bunch of cool features into a compact package. The fingers and palm are constructed from a waterproof Graflex® leather. In tests, water beads up and rolls right off. The company backs the thumb with suede (more comfortable for wiping your nose or the granola bar crumbs from the corners of your mouth). The back of the glove is stretch nylon for ease of movement. And the wrist panel wraps around your hand and uses hook and loop to cinch down tightly under the cuff of your jacket.

Fit

The Smartwool Spring Gloves use unisex sizing. For men, go up at least one size from your normal glove. For me – typically a medium in men’s gloves – the large worked pretty well. It was just a tad snug at first wearing but broke in and stretched out slightly after a short time, conforming nicely to my hand. The wool lining is comfortable and provides just enough warmth. And the pre-curved cut of the fingers deliver easy flexibility.

Final Verdict

At this writing, the weathermen predict even more snow in Lake Tahoe this week. My favorite weather blog for the region – Northstar Weather Discussion – says “we should see at least several feet in total on the mountain over the next 10 days.” Nice. The extended season made possible by all this snow will be an excellent opportunity to put the Smartwool Spring Glove to even further test. These are definitely the best gloves I’ve found so far for those bluebird days we dream about.

First Impressions:
[Rating:4.5/5] Features:
[Rating:4.5/5] Fit:
[Rating:4/5] Final Verdict:
[Rating:4.5/5]

Thanks for reading another outdoor gear review from GearGuide. And thanks to Smartwool and the crew at Backbone Media for providing product for this review. Written by Matt K.