Why We’re Climbing With These Sunglasses All Summer

I have never been a fan of superheroes, but I will happily overlook the Batman-vibes of Julbo’s new Ultimate Cover sunglasses.

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Basics

The Julbo Ultimate Cover is a super light, super protective pair of sunglasses intended for harsh mountain environments. The Ultimate Cover has an easily removable nose guard and side shields, a cord attachment to secure the glasses in exposed terrain, and large vents to prevent fogging when you’re working hard on the uphill.

Our thoughts

I have never been a fan of superheroes or their ridiculous costumes, but I will happily overlook the Batman-vibes of Julbo’s new Ultimate Cover sunglasses. They are light and flexible and stow in a jacket’s breast pocket without any fuss. The frame can be paired with your choice of five lenses, my favorite being the accommodating “Reactiv” lens, category 2-4, which adjusts to the available light. While spending all of last December alpine climbing in El Chaltén, Patagonia, I appreciated how once I put the Ultimate Covers on, I could climb gray rock in the shade, glaring white ice in the sun, and watch the sun set behind Cerro Torre without needing to adjust my eyewear. But my favorite feature is the Ultimate Cover’s removable Spandex nose and side shields for blue-sky days. My nose has yet to see sunscreen or a sunburn while wearing these glasses, and I don’t notice the nose shield whatsoever. The Ultimate Cover achieves the ultimate metric of gear success: it performs so well you forget it’s there.

Buy the Ultimate Cover here

Pros

• Nose guard: A protective nose guard is a game changer for sunny days in the mountains. No more forgetting to apply sunscreen, or getting your fingers greasy before a crux pitch.
• Frame: The Ultimate Cover is designed to be worn beneath a helmet, and its frame fits seamlessly under a lid. The super-light frame feels like it would be easy to break, but it is also quite flexible and therefore bends with any rough-handling, rather than absorbing the impact. I have unceremoniously stuffed the Ultimate Cover more than once in my pack—nearing the end of a long day, swapping the sunglasses for a headlamp—and it’s shown no sign of wear or breakage.

Cons

• Sunglasses case: In an effort to make the Ultimate Cover package extremely light, Julbo made the unfortunate sin of providing a case that is entirely too small. You must remove the Ultimate Cover’s Spandex nose guard to make it fit. This fact didn’t feel hugely important when I first received the sunglasses, but after several months of testing I’ve realized the plastic toggles keeping the nose guard in place will eventually wear out with repeated removal. I’d recommend buying a larger third-party case.

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