Customer Reviews Outdoor Research Foray Jacket

Of all my OR purchases this is by far my favorite, I own this in Taos which I ended up liking way more then expected. The jacket fits great and does an excellent job at ventilating with its full torso side zips. It does a fairly great job a blocking the wind as well. There's only one negative aspect to this jacket and that is, it tends to wet out fairly quick but you will stay dry underneath.

I waited for a year to write this review. That let me use the Foray in all kinds of weather and in both an urban and in outdoor settings. I bought the Foray to replace a 10 year old Montbell 3-layer Gore-tex shell. The Foray is a little heavier than the Montbell, but the quality level is about the same. Both of them are excellent, well built jackets. The Foray has a softer 'feel' than most gore-tex shells that makes it well suited to everyday wear. It almost has a 'knap' to the fabric. You don't look or feel like you are wrapped in plastic. The outer layer does wet through in a downpour, but the moisture never penetrates the Gore-tex layer to get to the inside. I was worried that the softer nature of the outer fabric would hold stains, but even after repeated use on my bike commute to and from work, wiping down the back with a damp cloth after a ride is all it took to keep the fabric from becoming deeply stained. Thanks to the full length pit-zips, the Foray ventilation is easy to fine tune for conditions and activity level. Warm July downpours hiking in the Porcupine Mountains, shoveling snow with Chicago's hawk wind blowing sideways or traveling through cold wet snow and sleet on XC ski trails in western Wisconsin were all comfortable thanks to the Foray. In the colder weather I would pair it with the transcendent down sweater I bought when I bought the Foray. It packs pretty small and serves a wide variety of conditions. It looks to easily last 10 years. It's not super light-weight, but it is the equal of many competitor's jackets priced much higher.

I have had this jacket for 4 years now and it is always my go-to shell for all of my outdoor pursuits. Hiking/backpacking, mountaineering, skiing, climbing, and even paddling, this shell is guaranteed to keep you dry. The Gore-Tex integration never ceases to amaze me. This jacket has never let a drop of water in! On the coldest, and windiest days on Mt. Washington, NH this jacket has kept the wind out and kept me warm (when layered of course). When I paddle on the coast of Maine it keeps all that cold ocean water out so I can paddle to the next island. Another great feature about this jacket is zips under the arms that allows the jacket to become ventilated. I have used this feature many times on warm days of ski touring and climbing. This jacket is also great for wearing around town as well, and gives you some added style points! So whether you are walking around town and/or throwing yourself to the elements this is the jacket for you!

Love this jacket! High quality, durable and ready to last a lifetime. I am 6'1" and ~170 lbs and I got a medium as the large was a little too baggy. Plenty of room for a couple layers, including a flannel. Thanks OR!

I work in Marine Law Enforcement in the Northern gulf of Mexico and this jacket is great for the job. it blocks the wind at 40 knots per hour and keeps me dry and is lighter than most jackets I have worn. I cant ask for more.

I've worn this on the Olympic Pennisula in cold, windy, and wet conditions; in the Rocky Mountains through rain and hail; and as an outer shell while snowboarding in 5 deg F.....in all of these scenarios the Foray has been amazing. The breathability is unmatched and the "poncho" style side zips are the best way to dump extra heat in the summer. In my mind the best goretex shell for its value, hands down. Fit is also great. I'm 5'9" and 170 and the M fits awesome with room to layer underneath.

Great light raincoat. The DWR wasn't as great as I would have hope for when I receive it, but it wasn't enough to take a star out. (I would have taken half a star...) but otherwise, I wore it in the fall while commuting/biking every time I knew rain was forecast. I wasn't sure about the torsoflo system, but after using it for a while, I like the possibility to unzip 1-2 inches from the bottom and under the armpit at the same time. A minor thing to get use too, the front pocket zipper is very close to the main zipper (same on my starfire hoody): it happen a couple of time that I wanted to unzip my shirt but ended up opening my pocket... It doesn't happen anymore, but it took some time to get used to. PRO: Goretex, TorsoFlo, Weight, overall construction CON: DWR is a bit under-performing in big pour. Pocket a bit small and would have been nice to have an inside pocket. Others: The fabric is very light, I hope it is as rugged as stated in the description: only time will tell

The Foray kicks some serious butt! I spent this last summer in the interior of alaska and put this shell through its paces. Running through brush, silt ridden rivers, and a secton of rain that lasted for 35 days... the jacket still looks and performs like brand new. It packs down to a solid size for easy travel.

Great lightweight jacket, full of features. This thing is bulletproof; great for the trails or bike. Love the attention to detail and the full seam taped seams. I would certainly buy this jacket again or recommend it to anyone in the market for a lightweight waterproof jacket.

I wore this jacket most of the time on a recent rainy three-day tent camping trip. One of my favorite parts about this jacket is that it is cut well and light. You almost don't know you're wearing a shell. I'm very happy with this purchase and would recommend it to anyone who needs a 100% waterproof jacket in a light, packable format.

I received this jacket from OR for review. This ultralight three season rain shell won't weigh you down and is packed full of features. I really like the water proof dual opening zipper and the hood on this piece. The poncho style side zippers allow you to really dump some heat if you are moving fast. To me, this thing is ideal. Check out my full review at: http://rockclimberlife.com/outdoor-research-foray-review

I've been using this jacket for a while now and on my past overnight backpacking trip. This really is a multi-use item, I can wear to in heavy rain to stay dry or as a shell on those chilly windy days. The torso-flow zips sold me on this jacket along with the great reviews. Defiantly top of its class!

I'm 6"2 and 175 lbs. I spend a lot of time outdoors in varying climate conditions The jacket fits a little larger than what I thought it would but after wearing it in temperatures ranging from the lower 40's to around 5 degrees, I'm glad that it does. I can put on a wool sweater underneath when it's very cold and can just wear a long sleeve t-shirt underneath when it's not. The breast pocket is large enough to fit a Nexus 6 and all of the pockets including the jacket are 100% water proof, I've tested them for hours. The draw strings are in the right places for tightening the jacket. The hood is large but can be tightened as well. I"m not sure if it will fit over a helmet but, I have read that it will.

I couldn't be happier with this purchase. This jacket performs in well all four seasons. I've used it as a ski shell, biking shell, climbing shell, hiking shell, rain shell, and a windbreaker. 5 stars across the board The GORETEX fabric is resilient, lightweight, and performed better than expected (and my expectations were high to begins with, know it was GORETEX I'd be wearing). The Paclite tech makes this jacket ideal for stuffing into packs when you don't need the coverage. Climbing : the side vents are clutch. Easy access to my harness during a belay. Easy access to quick draws and biners on a climb. Mountain biking : during high output activity, this jacket performs it's best. Because it uses GORETEx, it is fully waterproof and breathable. The side vents help to release excess heat and they also serve well with hip straps on packs (your jacket can hang over the hip straps without becoming a nuisance or being in the way). Hiking : I've been in damp conditions with this jacket, as well as dry and windy places too. It is quite astonishing how well this piece of gear blocks the wind. Even on cool/cold days. Even with a tshirt on. I was not expecting a performance such as this. Highly recommend, if even just for a windbreaker Ski touring : I was in Rocky Mountain National Park with this jacket as my shell. In 12 degrees F and 50 mph head wind, all over new snow, this jacket held its own. It was the only thing that kept me in the right mindset to push forward. Visibility was low, it was cold, and the new snow acted like a mist coolant in this whirlwind tunnel we were skinning up (if you've ever been to RMNP near Hidden Valley, you know exactly what I'm talking about). The 2L GORETEX Foray blocked the wind and the frigid chill, packed extremely well into my BCA Float 22, and stayed nice and dry when some of my other non-GORETEX pieces of gear were damp. Rainfall : I bought this jacket as a rainshell. All the other benefits mention above were icing on the cake. I wanted a jacket that I could take with me during summer camps, spring showers, fall sleet and rain, and I wanted to trust that I'd be dry and warm as long as I had it in my stash of goods. It outperformed that expectation, not only because it provided me with multiple uses, but because I have used it in many downpour situations, and it kept me completely dry. Not a drop of water through the jacket! AMAZING. GORETEX AND OR, thank you for teaming up on this one. Killer product. Check out my Instagram: @john.nolen

I've used this jacket in 3 seasons so far: summer, fall, and winter most recently. Let me start by saying this jacket is a do-it-all piece of gear. The GORETEX material is resilient, lightweight, fully waterproof, and wind proof (in my opinion). I've climbed in this jacket. I've mountain- biked as well. I've worn it in the pouring rain. And I've worn it skiing. Climbing: this jacket is athletically cut, but not in a small tight fitting performance way. It fits snug where it should and is loose fitting in the places where range of movement is key. The hip-to-pit full side vents are clutch!! Great for belaying/making room for access to your harness, and great for cooling down when you need it. I've worn this in the windy land of Wyoming as well as a cold and bitter Rocky Mountain National park. It performs great in any climate. Mountain biking - as mentioned before, it is cut very well. I ordered a large

5'10" and 180lbs. Size large fits with enough room to wear a insulated jacket under the shell. Well make and travels well as it has a built in stuff pocket. Great product.

Love the Jacket, use it for warm rain , and cold days as shell. Only thing missing is inside left "ticket" pocket. So when travel, put ticket, agenda, parking ticket......

This stays in my backpack, stuffed into its own pocket until I have to leave for daycare and it's pouring sideways for my walk to our remote parking garage. The Foray keeps me bone dry and actually feels cool when rain hits (and it's 103 outside in Austin).

Gore-tex, need I say more? The Men's Foray Jacket was recently purchased to replace an old warn out rain shell. I opted to go with the Gore-tex over the Helium 1 & 2 and I was pleasantly surprised. Lightweight, cuts the wind, Looks sharp, packs well into one of its pockets. Fortunately I bought this before a canoe trip that was a pleasant combo of wind & rain the entire time, and even after 4 days of that my fleece mid-layer stayed bone dry. I even tucked it under a motorcycle jacket for a few days when the weather turned cold and I was looking for any kind of wind protection possible. Buy this one, you'll be happy when mother nature is unhappy!

this jacket is a must have - if anyone knows RAIN it is Seattle folks! This jacket is perfect in any temperature of weather - add a layer for colder weather, wear over a tshirt in summer rain days. For those of us who find umbrellas lethal weapons, this is a great way to stay dry!

I use this jacket for spring skiing, hiking/backpacking, as a wind breaker, and sitting on a raft in the rain. Essentially it's my three season shell for any outdoor activity and it's been in some hearty Colorado sleet/snow/rain storms and has kept me bone dry. The side vents open all the way down the side, which is great for venting when I need it. It packs down small, clean up nice, and looks great. I'm 6'0", about 180 lbs. and the large fits me perfectly with a mid layer underneath or just a T-shirt.

Fantastic jacket for outdoor activities like backcountry skiing, backpacking & hiking. The gore tex fabric and pit zips allow maximum ventilation & breathing during strenuous outdoor activities. It is light weight, low volume and in my pack everytime I head into the mountains. After 3 years of continual use and abuse, it's still in great shape.

I absolutely love this shell. It is perfect for many applications, dealing with exterior moisture. That is why I bought it. I've owned it for about eight month's, and keeps doing what it is supposed to do. Simple Goretex membrane with paclite technology. Torsoflo zips, make things even better. Hiking with it stowed, using it for moderate heavy winter to summer rains. It just rocks!!!! Awesome product. Thanks OR!!!!

This jacket is one of the best ones I have utilized in my adventures. Its light weight goretex design and added ventilation create a harmonious living space in the back country and around town. When paired with the Mens Transcendence Puffy it is the perfect mix for comfort, warmth and all without breaking the budget.

Nice, light and easy to pack. Roomy enough to fit some fleece under it without being too billowy. Over two years old and still impresses. At 6'5" and 215lbs, the XL is pretty close to what I need size wise, but a Large Tall would probably be better. (Hint - please start making tall sizes)