Prana Halle II Pant - Women's Review

Made from a 95% recycled nylon and 5% elastane blend, the Halle II pants have a slightly flared or straight-leg fit. The popularity of these pants means that Prana offers you options like crazy. You can get these pants in a straight-leg cut and shorts. All three options come in plus sizes (18w to 22w), and the Halle II we tested comes in three inseam options. We love that you can wear them around town, and they are comfortable and technical enough for active pursuits like hiking, biking, and traveling.

Performance Comparison

Comfort and Mobility

We love the flexibility and comfort we get from these, and they have a wonderfully pleasant mid-rise that is slightly higher than the originals. The hip and thigh size ratio has also improved in the new version. The waist fits snugly, and the legs aren't too tight. An integrated waist tie helps tailor the fit and account for bloating or weight changes during a longer adventure. There is some extra room in the hips for many of our testers, making them seem a little less flattering than the originals to some.

The cut is very comfortable. The Halles are never restrictive, moving with us while hiking, climbing, or walking out to check the mail. The new version does include a gusseted crotch, which gives you more room to move. Articulated knees keep the pants flexible even in the middle of the most extreme high step. When we took these pants hiking or climbing, we never went for a move and felt like the pants held us back. The Halle II allows for full motion without any restriction. Our tested version has a slight bootcut flair, and the extra fabric isn't always welcome when the ground is wet or we need to roll them up.

Venting and Breathability

While we find the Halles breathable, seemingly more so than the originals, they aren't the lightest, most breathable we've seen. We stayed comfortable when working up a sweat on warm days. They may not be the best option for blistering temps, though, but are thick enough to work well in temperate and chilly weather.

If you want to roll the legs up to get some air on your ankles and lower legs, the pants give you snaps for that, and they work well to keep air moving around your legs.

These pants, rather bizarrely, also include two vents in the crotch. They're just two rather small holes with thread sewn around to keep them from ripping. We were pleasantly surprised that we never felt them while wearing the pants. But we can't say that we noticed the additional ventilation either. These seem unnecessary.

Weather Resistance

The Halle pants use a DWR coating, which lets water droplets bead and roll off. It worked wonderfully to keep us dry during light rainstorms and mists during our testing period.

We put these pants through intentional (and some unintentional) water testing. We sprayed them with a water bottle, stood in the shower, and managed to get caught in the rain with these on. In every situation, the DWR shed water briefly before it started to soak the outer layers. Since the pants are thick, they take another couple of minutes to soak through to your legs.

These pants did take longer to dry than some of the more lightweight options we tested. This can be an issue when deep in the backcountry. While a bit thicker than many options in the test, these pants don't block out wind either. If you opt for these on a longer venture, you might bring a spare set of pants or be sure there is shelter nearby in case of heavier precipitation.

Features

The Halle II pants have features galore, including an internal waist tie, snaps to the secure roll-up cuff, and new and improved pockets. The hand pockets are an acceptable size, and we like the chapstick-size pouch on the left side.

The side pocket on the right thigh is big enough for a smartphone. But it's a close call, especially if you have a bulky case, which we need to keep our delicate devices alive. It works well for a small map, a key, or credit cards. The back pockets have snapped and are reasonably sized, but we don't particularly care to pack our back pockets full of things anyway.

There are belt loops, but we're not fans of wearing a belt with a pack or climbing harness, so we appreciate the internal drawstring as an additional waist cinch.

The Halle II now uses only snaps to secure your hems if you'd like to roll them. It's an original solution. The previous version (and most similar designs) have tabs inside the pants that snap to a button on the outside, effectively holding the fabric rolls in place. These pants just give you two snaps. One on the inside and one on the outside. It's clever and reduces bulk in the pants when they aren't rolled up.

Unfortunately, it increases bulk when you do roll them. You have to keep the roll quite narrow, about an inch tall, to fit between the two snaps. That means it's thick, and the two rolls can rub slightly when walking. We like the original tabs better.

Prana reinforced the waist closure buttons with a ribbon of webbing. We often lost buttons on the original version and don't anticipate having the same problem with these.

Versatility

While we find these pants quite acceptable for everyday wear and technical hikes and climbs, they are not the best for the heat or the rain. With a longer drying time and thick fabric, they are not your friend if you're going to be in hot, muggy weather, though they are good at hindering mosquitos.

Although we like these pants and the way they look in general, we find the Halle II a bit unflattering, with extra material around the middle. Of course, everyone will have a slightly different look in them depending on their shape. And the higher the rise, the far more comfortable it is for our testers. We'll take that trade-off.

Value

The Halle pants are expensive, but if you are looking for a versatile pair of pants that can move from town to the trail, they may be worth it to you. While the older version of these pants, the original Halle pants, were highly durable, the jury's still out on the new Halle II. We'll let you know how things go as we continue our testing.

Conclusion