Smith Venture Glacier Glasses Review

My first time on a glacier came during the summer of 2013. It was Mt. Baker’s Easton Glacier, and I remember just being dazzled by the new sights. I also remember being dazzled by the wild intensity of the sun – I grew up in the high desert, but this was something new. I was rocking some cool vintage glacier glasses back then, but times have changed: enter the Smith Venture Glacier Glasses with photochromic lenses.

Smith Venture Glacier Sunglasses Features:

• ChromaPop™ Glacier Photochromic lens tint adapts adapts to light conditions
• Anti-fog and hydroleophobic coatings
• Medium fit with medium coverage
• AutoLock hinges hold frames open for easy one-hand on and off
• 4-base lens curvature
• Megol temple and nose pads provide non-slip grip
• AutoLock hinges hold frames open for easy one-hand on and off
• Easy-adjust, QuickFit temples for a customized fit
• Removable TPU side shields
• Removable nose piece for added protection
• MSRP: $257

Glacier Glasses for Modern Times:

If I’m outside being active, there’s a good chance I’m wearing a Smith product. With a few exceptions, my preferred lenses and frames for running, cycling, skiing and fishing come from Smith. Previously I’d had a hard time with mountaineering: my old coke-bottle-and-leather mountaineering glasses had a retro chic, but their frames made my ears ache and I fogged them up all the time. Last summer, Smith debuted the Venture, and it was time for a change.

The Venture is meant for activities with high intensity sun exposure. In the PNW, that means glaciers, but if you’re living in the desert or the Rockies then you know that the sun at high elevations is a different ballgame. If you fish, these could be for you too. The Ventures offer a full coverage frame with stellar optics.

Let’s start with the optics. Smith built these with their ChromaPop photochromic lenses, with a special tint for glacier climbing. This photochromic lens has the ability to block the most light of any Smith lens, ranging from 7-45% of visible light reduction. The tint of the lens starts off as a low light copper, so you can pull these on at sunrise without being in a blackout. As the day goes on and the sun rises, they become increasingly dark grey.

I really like the lenses. Because they adjust over such a wide range, you can truly wear them all day from sun up to sun down. In the height of the day, they are extremely dark and it’s stunning to take them off for a moment and realize how good they are. I also love that the dark grey max tint is pretty neutral: you pick up the natural colors of the glacier and rock rather than having a significant colored hue from the lens. I want things to look natural when I’m climbing, partly for esthetics and partly to pick out subtle changes in rock or glacial ice.

The anti-fog and oleophobic coating are absolutely crucial parts of the ChromaPop lenses. I have always had a hard time with fogging during high-exertion activities, and have tried a vast array of anti-fog products (settling on Cat Crap, whose name I will always celebrate). The stuff that Smith put on these lenses is phenomenal. Despite really challenging conditions like working hard on really cold days, I didn’t run into fogging issues. Similarly, the lenses stayed cleaner thanks to the oleophobic coating that kept my greasy skin from smudging them as easily.

The frames are made from Smith’s ‘Evolve‘ bio-based material. This is indistinguishable from a conventional full-plastic frame and has excellent performance characteristics. They’re strong, light and tough. The temples and nose pads have Smith’s proprietary Megol hydrophilic grippy rubber. I am a profuse sweater and it’s even worse when I have heavy zinc facial sunscreen. The Ventures stayed put despite those challenges. Smith also included a fun goggle-style strap for added security.

The Venture comes with a few sweet features that distinguish it as a glacier frame. The most prominent are the removable TPU side shields that block peripheral light. These are a must-have on the glacier, since even indirect sunlight can cause solar injury. These fit comfortably on my face and gave me an excellent tanline. When you remove them, the Ventures actually look pretty normal (possibly even cool?) so you can go get a drink without looking like an alien.

Another piece that makes the Ventures ‘glacier’ are the removable TPU nose insert. This piece does a couple of things, including providing extra protection to the skin immediately around the bridge of your nose. It also helps keep the glasses lifted off of your face to help reduce fogging and skin contact. It does those things very well.

Finally, I always like to get a bit of the ‘in use’ experience of these products beyond going through the feature set. The Ventures really do the thing that I most appreciate in gear: they disappear. The lenses are so good at adjusting, and the frame is so light and comfortable, that it’s easy to forget that you’re wearing extremely dark high performance glacier glasses. I loved that I could just focus on climbing/sweating/breathing and take the great optical quality for granted. When you pause to appreciate them, they’re there: but when otherwise, they’re forgettable in the best way. The fact that they break down into something you can wear around town is a sweet bonus.

Buy now: Available from SmithOptics.com