Make no mistake, while you’re still getting moist during your morning commute and the temperature is still troubling the high teens, we’re not far off big coat weather. Indeed, ahead of Proper’s landmark 50th issue, we’re already thinking about said large jackets.
As you’d expect, Hiking Patrol have clearly had the same thought, because their third season, neatly titled Renewal in Repose, is all about embracing the quieter side of the outdoors.
Summer is great, and it’d be nice if it lasted longer here in the UK, with its Instagram sunsets and long, light-filled days, but autumn and winter are where the magic actually happens. Things slow down, the colours deepen, and the world seems to take a big deep breath. Hiking Patrol have channelled that feeling into a collection that’s about layering up, staying warm, and taking stock before the next chapter begins. Though we all stay busy throughout the colder months, there’s definitely a feel of regeneration, hibernation even.
If you’ve followed Hiking Patrol from the start, you’ll know they began life more as a documenter of the outdoor lifestyle, highlighting good gear, and generally celebrating the stuff that makes us want to traipse off into the hills. Along the way they’ve worked with everyone from Reebok to Diemme, and now they’ve properly put their own flag in the ground with a clothing line that feels just as considered as their photography and curation ever did.
AW25 keeps that philosophy going. It’s quiet but purposeful: technical garments stripped of the unnecessary, but still full of the little details you only notice after you’ve lived in them for a bit. Built to last, built to function, but not built just to chase trends. In short: exactly the kind of kit you’ll still be reaching for when the weather’s doing its worst. Whether GORP is still a thing where you live or not, the legacy of its peak is a more mainstream appreciation for the outdoors. JD has Arc’teryx in store now, which suggests those trend-conscious types will be hanging up their dead bird jacket some time soon. But surely the whole beauty of getting outside in nice clothes is that it’s a long-term thing, not just the latest cool thing to instagram.
Hiking Patrol calls this understated mentality the Quiet Outdoors mindset and expresses this through clothes that’ll see you through rain, wind, and the odd bit of snow without turning you into a walking billboard. Understated branding, resilient fabrics, functional shapes. Whether you need something nice for Rotherham away or you intend to get more steps in than ever, Hiking Patrol is here for us all.
And because the cycle of things is sort of the point here, it all ties back into that idea of endings and beginnings and that regenerative thing I mentioned before. Shedding the old, preparing for the new, and letting change do its thing. Hibernation isn’t about inactivity, it’s about moving forward, recalibrated.
The Hiking Patrol AW25 collection lands Wednesday, September 10th at hikingpatrol.com and with selected retailers worldwide.
