Hiking Jacket

What jackets do you guys like using on the escarpment? Does anyone know where one can get a puffer jacket with a hood?

In summer I use a light weight primaloft jacket, in winter a down jacket. And always my outer shell.

In winter I occasionally carry a down jacket, but rarely - a sleeping bag is warmer anyway.

Down isn't great to hike in - if conditions are wet, it gets wet, your sweat also wets the down. A pack pushing down on the jacket also renders the loft largely ineffective.

I find thermal inners, a fleece and, if it is windy, a raincoat works better.

I generally use my down jacket in camp (I like to sit outside at night for a while after dinner to look at the stars etc. and it gets pretty cold in the wind at night in winter on top of the Berg) and not while hiking. The newer down jackets are DWR treated or something similar so down getting wet is much less of an issue than in the past. I have hiked with it when it was really cold and I found that sweat wasn't really an issue for me, but hiking in warmer temperatures will be an issue. Fleece jackets are at the bottom end of the spectrum on a warmth to weight rating, but since I generate a lot of heat while hiking I use a thin fleece top at most to hike in (under my shell jacket if it is windy and cold).

You can also look at something like the Thermoball jacket which gets pretty close to a down jacket in both performance and weight (more expensive though) as a synthetic option, whereby you can then eliminate any sweat related issues as these jackets keep you warm even when you get wet.

I have a North Face Primaloft jacket (bought for me in Nepal) - think it is the predecessor to the Thermoball. It is amazing, from a slight chill to 0 degrees it does a great job. When the temp really starts to drop then I add a thermal layer but it is my legs, head, hands and feet that get cold long before my upper body.

I will probably replace it with a Thermoball when the time comes...assuming funds are available - they are not cheap.