Every item I’ve ever bought from Vollebak has exceeded my expectations for it, and these Off Grid Pants in the Lightweight edition are no exception. They are built for living off the land — whatever that means to you. They are a jogger which has been over built, over thought, over priced, and generally are absurd.
They are also one of my favorite pair of pants to wear. And if we are being honest with ourselves, when it’s just us living off the land, a pair of joggers with a lot of silly pockets and athliesure adjacent design is probably what we want.
Materials & Design
The core of everything Vollebak makes starts with the material. Here they have used a Japanese Cotton Nylon blend which is 70% Cotton, and 30% Cordura (190gsm). Vollebak claims these are ‘highly abrasion resistant’, breathable, wind resistant, and fast drying.
They have a lot of pockets: 2 side pockets with snaps to close them, 2 back pockets with flaps that snap closed, two large thigh pockets which open at the top and have snaps. From there they get crazier:
- Reinforced ‘seat’ which is a double layered section on your ass, completely over stitched.
- Elasticated waist with a rope tie.
- Belt Loops in case you need to wear a utility belt.
- Elasticated cuffs at the ankle.
- Zipped fly
- Gusset crotch
- Articulated knees
- Two loops at the backside seam for holding more gear — though unclear what gear.
These pants are designed to not fail, and to allow you to sit on a log, climb that same log, and do whatever else is needed. Wild stuff. The fit and finish is top notch, as expected from the brand.
Wear and Performance
Vollebak marketing is top notch, here’s what they say about these:
As parts of our planet become increasingly difficult to live on, and we’re forced into new and unknown terrain, we’re going to need solutions to help us. So our Off Grid range is a system of clothing we’ve designed to help you live remotely. It doesn’t matter whether you’re going off grid for a weekend, a year, or you’re selling up and unplugging for good. All our Off Grid gear focuses on toughness, comfort and utility to help you survive off the land.
The key part for the world right now, is this: “…the Off Grid Pants are incredibly hard-wearing, lightweight adventure pants that are easy to clean, easy to dry, and hard to damage.”
I put these pants through their paces: I hiked with them, climbed rocks, drove 16 hours to Boulder in a car, unloaded moving boxes, moved moving boxes, unpacked moving boxes, broke down moving boxes, and went to recycling centers and storage facilities. This is the type of work and use where you would expect to see wear and tear over time (I ripped a pair of chinos I was also wearing). Crawling around on your knees, box edges scraping against you, and branches brushing your body, pants sliding against rocks when you realize you are not as flexible as you thought.
These pants still look brand new. So we can go ahead and check off the “hard to damage” box here. I fully concur.
For the wearing performance Vollebak actually states:
The Off Grid Pants are moisture wicking, which means they absorb any sweat, quickly pull it to the outside of the material, and let it evaporate to keep you dry. It also means they dry quickly after you’ve washed them or got caught in the rain. So even if your clothes washing routine has reduced down to a bowl of hot water once in a while, these are low-maintenance pants that are easy to clean, easy to dry, and hard to damage.
When we moved into the house it was 90°F outside, the AC wasn’t working well, so the inside was 80°F. I was moving a lot, tens of thousands of steps per day. These pants held up. They are not the most breathable pants I own, but they are the most comfortable. And they did that all while still showing no signs of wear or abuse.
When I hike with them, I found they worked exceedingly well up to about 80°F outside in the sun. I tossed them in the washer, hung them dry, and they were ready to go about 10-12 hours later (indoors hang drying) with the fabric looking the same as I put them in. If I hang them outside here in Colorado, I’d peg them ready to wear under 6 hours.
All in all they manage moisture very well. I do not consider them overly breathable, but they are not stuffy or clammy to wear. They do wick well, and typically are fine to wear for hiking up to 80°F and for casual wear up to 90°F.
Let’s skip to where I think these pants really excel:
- Comfort: as I’ve said, they are the most comfortable pants I own. They are light enough to not overheat me, they have a zip fly, but a jogger level comfort. I can work on a washing machine without them binding me up, or I can laze about on a couch without any discomfort and drift off to nap-land.
- Temperate Weather Outdoors: as the weather cools here, these are even better outdoors. Keeping my legs cool but not cold, and never getting in the way.
- Pockets: there’s a lot of silly pockets here, but every pocket on this pair of pants is excellent. The depth and size perfect, and the snaps offering just enough security without getting in the way when you want to use the pockets. You can drive your hands into the pockets and feel the snap release, yet at the same time they keep the lines a little less slouchy around the pockets, and larger items in place.
The two front pockets are silly looking, but damned useful when you have something bulky you need to get out of your hands quickly. I often used them to hold tools, or a larger knife so that it was even easier to access when moving from box to box.
I have no way of testing how well these would fare in the Off Grid use Vollebak imagined them for, but I can say these are lounge pants which perform well for anything you might need to do in your day. And you can toss them on to go for a walk or a hike and not worry. Perhaps the highest use of these is camping, and thus, mission accomplished on the design challenge.
Overall
I love these pants. They are silly, yes. The design is out there, but not so much so that I can’t blend right in with others wearing hiking clothing all day here in Colorado. And they are my favorite pants to put on.
When I go camping, you can bet I’ll be wearing these.
Buy here, $495 (Sale price $247 or less) — yeah the price is no joke.