When it comes to skiing and snowboarding, having big feet or being tall puts a damper on the clothes and gear you can choose. Back in the early 2000s, when snowboard companies made extra-long pants due to the loose, baggy style, it was easy to find items that fit my 6’3″ frame and 36″ inseam. Now that companies are selling more form-fitting styles, a normal pair of ski pants makes it look as if I’m wearing capris. If you’re one of those men who is frustrated with what’s available, here are some brands that sell men’s tall snow pants.
Keep An Eye Out For Waterproof Rating
When you’re trying to find the best snowboard pants out there, one of the most important things that people often overlook is the waterproof rating. This rating indicates how much water pressure the fabric can withstand before you end up feeling like a wet, miserable cat—grumpy and gloomy. We recommend a minimum rating of 15,000 mm.
Note: Being waterproof doesn’t come cheap.
If you want to get super technical and learn the differences between 2L and 3L, types of seams, and even venting, we dive deep into all this as part of our backcountry ski jacket article.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the ratings:
0 – 5,000 MM
Think of this as a windbreaker. It offers you almost no resistance against any moisture. This is good for sunny days or an occasional rain shower or dry snow.
6,000 – 10,000 MM
Most pants you see will fit in this category. They offer some waterproof ability under light pressure. Good to protect you against light rain or average snow.
11,000 – 15,000 MM
This is when the materials start getting serious. Rainproof and waterproof for pretty much any conditions except the most severe. Great for moderate rain and average snow.
16,000 – 20,000 MM
The jacket and pants work under almost anything Mother Nature throws at you. Sierra Cement? Cascade Concrete? Wet Slop? Pshaw. It can take all of it with a deep belly laugh.
20,000 MM + (INCLUDING GORE-TEX)
This is bomb-proof. If you need this level of toughness, you must be riding in a hurricane. Good for heavy rain, wet snow, AND very high pressure. Great for the legendary Tahoe snow-storms where it’s coming down in feet.
Always Pick TALL
Except for Norrøna, be sure to select models that explicitly state “TALL” when ordering from any of the options we list below.
Burton
As you would expect, the giant brand in snowboarding offers a variety of men’s tall snowboard pants. The tall-cut pants have a 34.5-inch inseam, which provides a bit more length than the standard 33-inch models available.
Men’s Burton Cargo 2L Pants (Tall)
Suggested Retail: $199
Waterproof Rating: 10,000 mm
Breathability: 5,000 g/m²
Check Prices: Burton
There’s a reason these are more than half the price of the other pants in Burton’s product line below. If you typically only snowboard or ski in sunny or very dry conditions (i.e. Colorado or New Mexico), these will work well for you. The materials they’re made from provide a 10,000 mm waterproof rating using their patented waterproofing technology: DRYRIDE™.
Men’s Burton Ballast GORE‑TEX 2L Pants (Tall)
Suggested Retail $259
Waterproof Rating: 28,000 mm
Breathability: 17,000 g/m²
Check Prices: EVO
Instead of Burton’s patented waterproofing, these bad boys come with GORE-TEX as part of their 2-layer protection. This means greater waterproofing and breathability. The outer fabric used on these is recycled polyester, which absorbs almost no water.
Men’s Burton [ak] Cyclic GORE‑TEX 2L Pants (Tall)
Suggested Retail $419
Waterproof Rating: 28,000 mm
Breathability: 17,000 g/m²
Check Prices: EVO
The fanciest of the three. On the surface, both provide two-layer protection and GORE-TEX, but it’s the details that differentiate the two. These pants are built to withstand wear and protect you from the elements, thanks to the use of recycled 70 Denier nylon. While nylon does absorb a bit more water, it more than makes up for it in tensile strength and flexibility compared to polyester. In addition, Burton also triple-stitched its seams to make them bomb-proof. To ensure extra mobility, they feature articulated patterning in their design along with a crotch gusset.
North Face Freedom
Suggested Retail: $170
Waterproof Rating: 25,000 mm (unconfirmed)
Breathability: 12-15,000g/m2 (unconfirmed)
Check Prices: EVO
Out of all the brands for men’s tall ski pants, The North Face provides the biggest selection of colorways beyond classic black or khaki. Compared to Burton’s 34.5” inseam, North Face’s tall pants have a 34” inseam. While GORE-TEX is the gold standard for waterproofing and breathability, it comes with a hefty price tag. Instead, North Face uses their proprietary solution, DryVent™. They used to have a technical page that provided their waterproof rating and breathability, but they’ve since removed it, so we can’t confirm or deny the information above.
Obermeyer Orion Tall
Suggested Retail: $199
Waterproof Rating: 10,000 mm
Breathability: 10,000 g/m2
A workwear-inspired ski pant, these are simple, straightforward, and solid. Compared to the other models on this list which are just shells, they include 40g insulation alongside their water-resistant HydroBlock® Sport fabric. If you’re looking for a bit more waterproofing and breathability while still in a tall length, they also offer the Force model. Their tall versions feature an inseam that is 2.5 inches longer than their regular size, so for a size large, that means 34.5 inches.
Norrøna Lofoten
Suggested Retail: $699
Waterproof Rating: 28,000 mm
Breathability: 25,000 g/m2
Check Prices: EVO | Backcountry.com
Norwegians must be a tall bunch because their pants run longer than usual. When you take a look at their sizing chart, it’s a bit strange because it states that for a large, the inseam is between 32.7″ and 33.5.” I can personally tell you that they’re on the longer side and fit the best out of any pants I’ve owned since Special Blend went out of business. As you would expect from Viking country, the design focuses on functionality, providing space where you need it for layering in the thighs and legs, but not baggy or saggy where you don’t, such as along the waist and butt.
Why so Much?
That price tag could be hard to swallow, but these pants are the ones to get if you want to have just one pair for a decade or longer. These aren’t just for resort skiing; they’re built to take on what backcountry skiing throws at you. They’re ridiculously light and feature a 3-layer design, which none of the others offer. They’re made with 200 Denier GORE-TEX® PRO fabric. Compared to the next toughest option on this list, the Burton [ak] Cyclic GORE-TEX 2L Pants come with 70 Denier and provide nowhere near the protection these pants offer.
Option B: Bibs
One thing you may notice about tall snow pants is that the color selection is downright drab. If you’re okay with rocking a pair of bibs, there are a lot of companies selling them in that design. After my experience with Burton’s new regular fit design, I made the leap and got a pair of Trew Gear Capow bibs. They seem to have a bit more room in the legs and great waterproofing, so we’ll keep you posted on how they perform this season. Trew Gear, Flylow, and even Burton have a variety bibs in tall varieties.
Additional Possible Brands:
The list of brands that manufacture tall snow pants is short and like manual transmissions getting shorter. Salomon used to sell a pair called Untracked that came in tall. And 686 Smarty 3-in-1 Cargo Pants also had a tall version. Both of them seem to have stopped making them. If there are any other brands that do make snow pants with an inseam longer than 34”, let us know and we’ll add it to the list!
