The Abisko trekking tights allow good freedom of movement. Photo: Bob Smith/grough

Price: £130
Colour: dark grey
Weight: 348g (size L)
Material: 82 per cent polyamide, 18 per cent Elastane; 62 per cent polyamide, 16 per cent aramid, 12 per cent Elastane, 10 per cent polyester; 88 per cent polyamide, 12 per cent Elastane
Country of manufacture: Lithuania
Sizes: men’s XS-XXXL; women’s XXS-XXL
Recommended wash: 40C

We’re not big fans of having trousers flapping around in the wind when we’re on the mountains, so these trekking tights from the Swedish brand caught our eye when they were introduced earlier this year.

Fjällräven says the Abisko tights offer the same performance as its tough walking trousers but with the freedom of movement that comes with stretchy tights. We tested the men’s version.

The construction of the tights is complex, hence the three different types of material detailed above. The waistband and front section of the top of the garment are mainly polyamide with a proportion of Elastane giving a nice stretchy feel. At the seat of the tights and the front of the knees, there are tough-feeling panels to give protection in rocky terrain. Between these are even stretchier panels.

The women's version of the tights

So the Abisko tights hug the body and legs well, giving a snug feeling and good warmth, though not completely windproof in high winds. The Fjällräven tights allowed good breathability, and we never felt clammy, even when tackling plenty of ascent.

The men’s version of the tights has conventional belt loops and fit just like trekking trousers in the waist and hip area, offering good comfort. There is press-stud fastening and zip fly. The women’s model has no belt loops but a wider waistband with drawcord adjustment, with a small zipped pocket incorporated.

Both versions have a small fabric loop for attaching a small item.

The men’s version has two zipped hip pockets. Both have a map pocket with a flap covering on the side of the right thigh, but this isn’t large enough for a standard OS map. There’s a smaller zipped pocket on the other thigh, ideal for items such as a compass.

The reinforced panels feel very robust and contain aramid, a type of tough synthetic fibre found in material such as Nomex and Kevlar.

The tights do allow complete freedom of movement when stepping up on scramble routes and also feel quite warm in all but the windiest of conditions. When walking in the Abisko tights, you can constantly feel the reinforcement at the knees against your body. It’s not uncomfortable as the panels are lined in the conventional stretch material, but there is an awareness of the areas while on the move.

The Abisko tights scored as a grough best buy

These Fjällräven tights are not waterproof, but they coped with showers well and the material dried out quickly once the rain stopped.

Quality was good and there are the usual nice Fjällräven touches such as the leather zip puller tags and the little Arctic fox logo.

We liked the feel of the Abisko tights and they have become our first choice for hill excursions in cool or windy weather. The close fit makes them ideal for confidence on the hill and mountain when you’re going to be stretching and don’t want flappy trousers hindering progress. They’re a bit on the warm side for hot days.

They might even stretch to use in ultrarunning though they’re weightier than most running tights and the reinforcement panels might feel irritating to runners, but for general walking, trekking and scrambling, the Abisko tights worked very well.

Performance 36/40
Comfort 26/30
Warmth 7/10
Quality 8/10
Value for money 7/10
Total score: 84/100