backpacking apparel reviews

Gear Review: MontBell EX Light Down Jacket

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MontBell EX Light Down Jacket

Ultralight Puffy
MontBell EX Light Down Jacket
$190, 5 oz. (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S-XXL, women’s S-XL
montbell.us

Don’t ask: How lightweight can a down jacket be and still keep you warm? Instead, reframe the question: How light a puffy do you want and how does it fit into your layering system? With sewn-through construction to prevent down from migrating, elastic cuffs to seal out drafts, and no hand pockets, this jacket stuffed with just 1.8 ounces of premium, 900-fill down feathers is no fat puffy. But it’s a very light stand-alone insulation piece for mild summer temperatures, or a versatile middle layer in a system that you can customize for a variety of outdoor activities in any season.

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Gear Review: Westcomb Shift LT Hoody Jacket

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Westcomb Shift LT Hoody

Rain Jacket
Westcomb Shift LT Hoody
$400, 12 oz. (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S-XXL
westcomb.com

Hiking the treeless, completely exposed rock and tundra of Besseggen Ridge in Norway’s Jotunheimen National Park, we started out in a cold rain in temperatures barely above freezing—but as we gained elevation, the rain changed to horizontal, wind-driven snow. On other days during that eight-day trek, we hiked for hours through spitting to steady rain in temps in the 30s and 40s Fahrenheit. When the sun did come out, we still met with strong, chilly winds that had us in jackets, wool hats, and gloves—including on a dawn ascent of the 6,667-foot peak Kyrkja. Almost every day, for several hours a day, I wore this jacket—and in such sustained, severe conditions, I was very happy to have it.

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Gear Review: Westcomb Switch LT Hoody Jacket

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Westcomb Switch LT Hoody

Four-Season Jacket
Westcomb Switch LT Hoody
$430, 15 oz. (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S-XXL
westcomb.com

A more breathable waterproof shell seems to be the holy grail of apparel manufacturers these days, and I’m all for that. Polartec says its NeoShell polyurethane membrane has the durability, ability to block wind, and waterproofing of a hard shell, and the breathability, stretch, and supple feel of a soft shell—while coming in lighter than competing technologies in both categories. If the Switch LT Hoody is an indication of where apparel makers can go with NeoShell, I think we’ll be seeing more and more jackets that can legitimately be called a four-season shell.

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Gear Review: Outdoor Research and Rab Winter Down Jackets

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Outdoor Research Maestro Jacket

Down Jackets for Winter
Outdoor Research Maestro Jacket
$325, 1 lb. 5 oz. (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S-XL
outdoorresearch.com

On January nights that dipped into the low teens during a four-day yurt trip, this fat, 800+-fill power, hooded down jacket was so warm I could hang around outside for hours in the evenings and early mornings, staying perfectly warm. At a bit under a pound and a half, it’s a burly puffy jacket made for very cold situations: ice-climbing belays, winter camping, or all-day backcountry ski tours on frigid days when you need a super-warm puffy for breaks (or even just inside your pack as an insurance policy in an emergency).

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