Performance-Driven Insulated Coats For Hikers

When you're wearing a jacket like this for performance, you want to be sure it can keep up with your activity without restricting movement or adding too much weight.performance-driven insulated coats Active insulation pieces like the Rab Xenair Alpine Light Insulated Jacket and TNF Casaval Hybrid are designed to balance warmth and temperature regulation with breathability and mobility. They're lightweight enough to wear while you move, and have tight cuffs and a dual-adjusted hem to seal out the wind, rain, or snow.

The shell and insulation materials also affect a jacket's ability to keep you warm, how it handles wet weather, and its packed size and weight.performance-driven insulated coats Some jackets use hybrid fills that combine down and synthetic fibers. These tend to be more affordable than pure down jackets and provide some of the warmth of down while maintaining a higher level of durability than synthetics alone.

For example, Norrona's Thermo40 (which recently replaced its warmer Thermo60) uses a unique 3D-weave pre-woven baffle design to optimize down loft and thermal efficiency.performance-driven insulated coats This, along with a thinner 10-denier shell fabric that's water-resistant and has a DWR finish, makes it a top choice for serious thru-hikers looking for a lightweight and packable option that can be worn while they hike.

In our tests, the Xenair Alpine proved to be one of the best-performing insulated jackets in terms of keeping out wind and cold moisture.performance-driven insulated coats This was largely due to its snub-fitting cuffs and hem, which were effective at blocking cold air and water, while being soft enough to be comfortable against your skin. As a purpose-built, technical jacket that's built to endure harsh conditions, the Xenair also has great storm protection thanks to its ripstop shell and Coreloft synthetic insulation.

The Xenair has the highest packability of any insulated jacket in our review. It packs down to the size of a basketball and comes with its own stuff sack, making it an excellent choice for backpackers and long-distance hikers. It's also significantly lighter and more packable than the Patagonia Nano Puff, despite its heavier insulation and a slightly less durable shell fabric.

Synthetics tend to compress a little less tightly than down, but recent improvements in both insulation and shell fabrics have made it so that many of these synthetic jackets have very similar packed sizes to their down counterparts. Some, like the Patagonia Micro Puff and Outdoor Research SuperStrand LT, even come with their own stuff sacks.

If you're going to be spending most of your time outside, it's important that your jacket can handle wet weather. Most of the insulated jackets we test have waterproof shells and/or DWR finishes that repel rain and snow, while still providing insulation and breathing well.

The Rab Xenair Alpine and TNF Casaval Hybrid are both excellent options for wet weather. The Xenair has a stronger focus on breathability than the DAS Parka, and its thin, soft shell and Coreloft synthetic insulation do a good job of dumping excess heat. It's not as waterproof as the DAS Parka, but it will be plenty protective for fast-paced activities like cross-country skiing and hiking.