I have been on the hunt for the “best” down puffy jacket. As a gearaholic [or should I say “hello, my name is Dilley and I have a problem…I like gear”] I have a handful of puffy jackets for different purposes or because I’ve just gotten a good deal on them. 

I use a Patagonia Micro Puff for the summer weight adventures.

I have a Salewa Ortles 2 Tirolwool that I use for a daily driver and ice climbing (which I do about 7 days a year).

I have a Mountain Hardware down stuffed belay jacket (who’s arms are surprisingly skinny for being a belay jacket).

What I wanted though was a mid-weight puffy that I could use for early spring, late fall trips and even winter trips. In addition it would or could function as another daily driver, but warmer. 

I’ve had an Arc’teryx Thorium AR which I found to just not be that warm. It felt like an eternity to warm it up. It did work well under a shell though. I found some of the baffles in the back would frequently end up with almost no down in them. I really liked the fit, look and the design though. I gave it to a dirtbag friend and he fucking loves it! Gear should always go to a good home. Don't hoard it. Jackets are subjective as many people, including my buddy love the Thorium AR. That said, below are the key elements in my jacket search.

1. Overall Weight ideally as light as possible, but no more than a pound

2. Down Weight Should be between a belay jacket and Thorium AR (rarely listed/published)

3. 800 Down fill power or above

4. Has to fit me really well…no designs created for pot bellies! (I’m looking at you Patagucci!)

5. Must have a hood

   1. At least an adjuster at the back of the head to cinch it tight to the noggin

   2. Ideally has an up/down hook and loop tab at the back

   3. Ideally has two adjusters at the front. (If the back adjuster is perfect then it doesn’t need these)

6. Requires five pockets: Two hand warmer, one outside chest pocket, two inside hat/gloves stash pockets

7. High water resistance due to shell fabric, DWR quality, down composite mapping (A la Arc’teryx) or some other such water resistance wizardry

8. Very high wind resistance, ideally windproof

9. Hem adjuster(s)

10. Cuffs: Can be adjustable or not

11. Color: Something fun or funky, not just black blue or red

12. Baffles

1. Interesting in some way (not just horizontal tubes)

2. Much thicker than say a ghost whisperer and more than a Cerium LT

1. When I put it on I have to feel an immediate “ahhhh that feels warm.” This is perhaps the most important

2. Price…somewhat irrelevant, but my goal was under $300 either because it was used or that was the retail price.

So…I found that pretty much perfect jacket. It’s from Poland. It’s called the Cumulas Incredilite Endurance and it’s lovely.

So to sum up pros and cons

Pros

Lightweight, warm “ahhhh” feeling, plenty of pockets, weather resistant, fun color/design, functioning hood, great value, highest fill power, great fit (at least as good as it can be for me!) and even has a two way zipper which is great (mostly for peeing in the winter as I use a belay jacket for ice climbing).

Cons

Hood may be good or bad but potentially just takes some getting used to it. Buying from Poland is difficult to pin down your size, especially since the sizing chart seems to be way off. I managed it though, just buy some Skype credit and give them a ring. 

In conclusion this is my perfect down jacket for colder days in spring, fall and some winter that is until a company comes along marketing and designing just for me or I buy custom from someone. I can use it as a daily driver as well as a backpacking, climbing, ice climbing jacket etc.. 

I’m trying to get my local gear shop Ridge Crest Outfitters to carry this brand but we’ll see. In the meantime we’ll see how this jacket gets on in the next few months and I’ll update. If you need more info on sizing just let me know. 

Yeahhhh Jackets!