The Backcountry Skier’s Guide to Insulating Jackets: Real Warmth, No Fluff

I’ll never forget staring down the barrel of Colorado’s Cross Couloir with skis on my back. The wind was hammering on a frigid April dawn as I slowly lost feeling in my fingers. A deep shiver set in. I stood on top hunkered behind a rock waiting for my partners scrambling through the rimed scree below me. Was it the cold or the anxiety causing me to second guess this whole day?

I pulled the greatest insulating jacket ever made (Norrøna’s Trollveggen Primaloft100 Full-Zip Hooded Jacket) out of my pack and put it on over my shell. I waited another ten frigid minutes as the doubt grew in my mind. I poked at the wind slabs, still alone at the summit. My hands were gone. I wouldn’t last much longer up here. Then I yanked it all off and re-layered with the Trollveggen under my shell. By the time my partners arrived at the summit, my fingers were back. My core was glowing. I had a rope anchored, ready to deploy some slab mitigation. My confidence and decision-making capacity were back.

Here’s what made the Trollveggen Primaloft100 a perfect 10: It had a relatively long cut, warm Primaloft synthetic insulation, very long arms with plenty of room in the shoulders, just two chest pockets, a hood that fit over a helmet, and basically nothing else.

Norrøna doesn’t make the Trollveggen Primaloft100 Full-Zip Hooded Jacket anymore. I snagged one of the last ones on sale for $149 in 2022. I’ve been on a journey since then to find the next best insulating jacket for ski touring, which is practically futile because models come and go before you can ever really get to know them. Hence the inspiration for this guide – what we hope is a useful and evolving rundown of a few of the puffy jackets currently available that make sense for ski touring. 

 

What the puff

Warmth strategy in ski touring is one of distinguishing dilemmas in our sport compared to other outdoor pursuits, even those of the winter variety. Weather and temperature are only a fraction of the equation. Sweat and movement play an equally important role. Backpack space is at a premium. 

Then there’s the “what ifs” that linger in the back of our minds. After a ski partner took a nasty crash that rendered him immobile until SAR could haul him out, I started taking my puffy layers more seriously. They’re a literal lifeline in the backcountry. “Winging it” with warmth isn’t a great strategy in freezing temperatures. And Colorado is mild compared to what our friends in the northern regions ski in. 

80% of the time skiing in Colorado I can get away with a shell over a gridfleece midlayer, or even just a base layer and sun hoody if I’m still warm from the climb. But you won’t catch me out there without a big puffy to go over all of it, ever. So the ideal puffy has to fit over a freeride shell — and bonus points if it still fits underneath when the weather turns savage.

And really it’s not even just about emergencies. I like sitting at the summit and enjoying a homemade ski snack without rushing to drop the line. Warm jackets make that possible. 

The Layering System

From backcountry laps to Ski Alpinism in Alaska, most folks agree on the general architecture of a layering system for backcountry skiing with the assumption that you’ll be adding and removing layers throughout the course of your itinerary. This guide focuses on midweight insulation — the piece you throw on for transitions, summit snacks,  emergencies, and sometimes skiing. Here’s the quick and dirty on the other components:

Base Layer – typically lightweight and very quickly drying. Sun Hoodies like Black Diamond’s Alpenglow is a standout favorite. A hood adds a lovely amount of protection from the sun and wind. 

Mid Layer – Grid fleece layers are the most versatile insulation in the game since they can be worn under a shell or just over a baselayer for breathable protection from a wide weather range. They tend to dry quickly too after you’re done huffing it up the skin track. A SCUBA style hood adds a lot of warmth and protection. Patagonia’s R1 Fleece Pullover Hoody is one of the best in the game. 

Shell Jacket – Softshell or hardshell, depending on your specific needs and climate. Most skiers need something lightweight, relatively weatherproof, uninsulated, and breathable. 

Midweight Insulation – The heavyweight end of the midweight insulation spectrum is the primary focus of this guide. This category tends to have the most variety. The key qualifier in this category, in our opinion, is that a ski touring midweight insulating jacket needs to fit naturally over a shell (even if you’re not always layering it over a shell). 

Parka – If you’re climbing big technical peaks in frigid weather, winter camping, or ice climbing, the mega-puffy parka is indispensable. The North Face’s Pumouri Down Parka could be my favorite piece of gear, period. It’s a gigantic feather bunker. But it and others like it are typically too big and puffy to move on skis very well. So this layer only gets stuffed in the pack on the most arctic occasions (Or basically any day of ice climbing). Still, the lighter end of the parka spectrum can be the sweet spot for ski touring over-the-shell puffies because parkas are generally designed to fit over a shell. 

Synthetic Vs Down

Unlike the pants vs bibs debate, down vs synthetic puffers isn’t so polarizing. I repeatedly shuffle through the down and synthetic jackets in my arsenal depending on the itinerary and the weather. When it’s dry, sunny, and cold, you bet I’m packing that big down jacket into my pack for big warmth and compressibility. That’s where nature’s nearly perfectly insulator has yet to be overtaken by synthetic mimics even if they’re getting closer. But of course down is basically worthless when it’s wet. If you’re wearing it while you’re skinning and that back panel gets sweaty, that insulation is basically toast for the rest of the tour.

Synthetic insulation is the move when storm skiing is on the menu, especially if the itinerary calls for lots of transitions where you’ll repeatedly stuff the puff into a backpack covered in snowflakes. As it gets wet over the course of the day, synthetic insulation like Primaloft stays lofty and insulating. You can get away with wearing it for short sections of skinning without rendering it totally useless.

When it comes to filling, I lean into the puffy-as-possible side of the spectrum. The filling, be it down or synthetic, is the compressible part of the jacket. Insulation means air pockets. Air pockets are compressible. Why faff around with a half-filled jacket? So when a jacket comes in different fill options for the same general cut, I’m always going big. A perfect example is La Sportiva’s new line of Lumina jackets, the puffiest of which I’ll get to below. 

Taking Care of Down

I won’t pretend that I’ve always taken care of down the way these companies suggest that I should. And by that I mean I’ve avoided washing them for years at a time. Recently I’ve been turned onto Nikwax down wash and I can confidently say it’s pretty neat stuff. It’ll re-fluff your puff while it cleans the coffee stains out of the face fabric. 

The other key to keeping your down lofty and luxurious is storing it uncompressed. Don’t leave it in your ski touring bag. Take that thing out and fluff it up. Hang it for best results so it can take care of your warmth needs for years to come. 

The best insulating jackets for ski touring

We’ve tested dozens of insulating jackets over the past three seasons in an effort to put together a guide to some of the great options that exist. And note that a few of the pieces on this list showed up this fall, meaning more testing is of course required. We’ll keep updating this guide throughout the season as real world testing progresses on those newer products.

Let me save you the suspicion – none of the companies in this guide paid to get on this list. Wildsnow may earn a small (And I do mean small) commission from link clicks to keep the lights on. The authors are not affiliated with, sponsored by, or compensated by any of these brands, though the jackets were mostly provided free of charge for testing purposes.

Insulation options that stuck out from the crowd 

Stellar Technolight Hood

Why it made the list: On par with an all-time favorite, exceptionally packable synthetic insulator

Price: $349

Weight: 468g

Insulation: Primaloft Gold

Fabric Weight: 20D

Baffle Type: Sewn-through

Well, it didn’t take me as long as I thought to undermine the entire premise of this guide – I found the puffy jacket that matches, almost exactly, the things I love about my trusty Norrøna Trollveggen. The equally Scandinavian Stellar Technolight Hood is new for this year and ticks just about every box that I laboriously laid out above. 

The Technolight is a lightweight synthetic puffy jacket insulated with Primaloft Gold that meets my warmth requirements for most of the year. It’s not quite a belay style jacket, and it won’t quite match the warmth of a high quality down piece, but it offers just enough insulation for mid-winter ski touring. And when you’re draped in Primaloft, you of course get the benefits of synthetic insulation – the fill doesn’t get saturated, and the whole package ostensibly stays warm while it’s wet. 

The fit is dialed for ski touring. By that I mean it fits comfortably over a gridfleece and shell jacket without feeling restrictive thanks to a relaxed and plentifully long cut. It’s also not so bulky that you couldn’t throw the shell over the top for full warmth mode. But the former layering strategy is the sweet spot for ski touring.

The jacket is held together with a light but reasonable 20D nylon ripstop fiber that straddles ultralight and just plain light. 468g is light, but still about 100g heavier than the other Stellar puffy on this list, the Ultralight Down Hood 2.0. I haven’t taken any major jabs from tree branches yet, but so far it has held up to a lot of mud-season scrambling and a handful of camping trips. 

The Technolight packs into its own right hand pocket, which is decidedly rare for a synthetic jacket since they’re typically too bulky for such constriction by tiny zippers. Rather than being a recurring strategy for my ski touring pack, it moreso illustrates how packable the Technolight actually is – pretty dang packable, especially considering the synthetic fill, warmth, and protection it provides. 

The other details are streamlined. Big handwarmer pockets, a hood that fits with or without a helmet, one small internal pocket, and a drawstring along the bottom hem that can cinch tight to the waist. It’s got everything I’m looking for in a ski touring puffy plus one small internal pocket. 

It’s still early days testing Stellar’s newest insulator, the Technolight Hood, but so far it’s holding down a blue ribbon in the over-the-shell puffy category. You could literally stop reading this guide right here if you came for a solid synthetic puffy recommendation. 

 

Stellar Ultralight Down Hood 2.0

Why it made the list: So dang light and compressible, intensely warm.

Price: $429

Weight: 328g

Insulation: 850 fill down

Fabric Weight: 10D

Baffle Type: Sewn-through

I love when companies stuff down into a jacket’s baffles like they actually mean it. Stellar’s Ultralight Down Hood 2.0  has been one of my favorites for the last four seasons, from ski touring to bikepacking. Reason being this jacket is light – I’m talking 10D fabric and 850 fill down. My large weighs 328g. It’s the lightest-for-the-warmth jacket I’ve been able to get my mittens on. 

The Ultralight Down Hood 2.0 isn’t necessarily designed to be worn over a shell, but the cut is just roomy enough that it works, especially with lower profile shells and softshell jackets. And it’s compact enough that it easily slots underneath a shell if you wanted to burst into flames. It’s intensely warm as only down can deliver. 

The Ultralight Down Hood 2.0 sports a medium length cut with a drop tail to keep your upper tush covered. I wish it were even a little bit longer on my relatively long torso, but it’s cut to work for mountain activities all four seasons. But both the arms and shoulders provide enough room that the non-stretchy fabric rarely felt restrictive, even when layered over a shell. 

Stellar is better known in Europe but has been slowly building a reputation in the US. Their insulators, in my opinion, showcase their very best work. The Ultralight Down Hood has a high quality feel, and the down’s loft is outstanding. The Stellar Ultralight Down Hood 2.0 is distinct from the other jackets on this list by being legitimately very light thanks to the mix of thin fabric and high quality down. It’s supremely packable as you’d expect, the most packable in this guide other than the much lower profile Norrøna Down800 SuperLight. 

The tradeoff to the feathery character is that it’s not weatherproof. All those feathers don’t do a whole lot when a stiff wind rips through the fabric or snow soaks it. So it’s a great option when conditions are on the more predictable, sunnier side. It’s intensely warm for its weight, but it’s not protective like the Das Light Jacket, nor does it put up much of a fight against wind as the Phantom Alpine Down Hooded Jacket’s 20D outer fabric. 

This would be a perfect companion for a race like the Elk Mountains Grand Traverse – super packable and light, but with dependable warmth for if you get pinned down. I really like this jacket. It’s one of the few pieces on this list that gets stuffed into my pack twelve months out of the year because of its versatile, packable warmth even if it’s on the less protective side for really nasty winter summits. 

Mountain Hardwear Phantom Alpine Down Hooded Jacket

Why it made the list: Well balanced warmth and durability for down

Price: $470

Weight: 524g

Insulation: 800 fill down

Fabric Weight: Pertex® Diamond Fuse ripstop

Baffle Type: Sewn-through

Mountain Hardwear’s Phantom Alpine Down Hooded Jacket strikes a nice balance of packability and durability. I ended up sporting it through some frigid days on Colorado peaks and for a weeklong trip to Chamonix during March. But more importantly, Vivian Bruchez routinely packs this jacket (the hoodless version, interestingly) for big mountain objectives. Need I say more?

But yeah, I’ll say more. The Pertex Diamond Fuse ripstop shell fabric is what makes this puffy stand out from others on this list. It’s a sturdy 20D fabric that feels thick to the touch. With Pertex you get some decent weather resistance, which can make a difference in a down garment. It fends off wetness better than a simple Nylon face fabric. The ripstop pattern laced through it adds an additional layer of protection from tears, ice screws, and other pointy bits. It’s burly enough that I wasn’t worried about tearing out from the bottom of my backpack. 

The Phantom Alpine Down Hooded Jacket’s fit is dialed for ski touring, especially over-the-shell scenarios given its relatively boxy fit. It’s not oversized like a belay parka (But MH does offer a Phantom Belay version). It was still low profile enough to wear under a pack while skiing. And for emergency scenarios or extended rest stops, it was thin enough to wear underneath my shell for maximum (more than I could handle) insulation. The one fit characteristic I wasn’t in love with was the length – it’s shorter than other jackets of this style which will only really bother the long torso crowd among us. It’s not a style that covers much of your tail.

The Phantom Alpine Down Hooded Jacket utilizes 800-fill RDS certified down and comes to a total weight of 524g in large. It’s the heaviest down jacket on this list, but still light considering the protection and warmth it provides. 

This is a solid puffy jacket. But my main critiques are that I want more. Just slightly more length and a little more down in those baffles to really maximize the warmth. 

Norrøna Møre thermo60 aero200

Why it made the list: Interesting features, great cut

Price: $369

Weight: 494g

Insulation: Synthetic (thermo60)

Fabric: aero200

Baffle Type: 

Norrøna’s newest ski-focused line, Møre, didn’t grab my attention as a perfect match for ski touring when it first launched last season. It wasn’t until a summer trade show when I put my paws on the new Møre thermo60 aero200 Jacket and its new-to-me fabric (aero200) that I was struck with intrigue. It’s a lot like the fabric on Patagonia’s Nano Air or Arcteryx’s Proton. Essentially a breathable fabric for synthetically insulated jackets. 

The key difference in the Møre thermo60 is the cut – it’s much roomier than the Nano Air and Proton, meaning it handily enters into over-the-shell insulation territory without sacrificing breathable under-the-shell capability. Like a lot of Norrøna’s jackets, the Møre is long and aesthetic. I love that it hangs below my waist for a little extra wind coverage.

Is it really breathable? Kind of. The jacket’s inside lining is more traditional nylon fabric that seems less breathable than the exterior. Still, the whole thing has resisted getting clammy so far. I’ll report back after a few long days on the skin track.

The Møre thermo60 comes with a few other interesting features. For one, the arms zip off to transform the jacket into a hooded vest and so far I’m not mad at it. It adds some versatility even if I haven’t pinned down if or how I’ll use that feature for backcountry skiing. Again, I’ll report back. 

So far I have two small critiques on behalf of ski touring. First, I’d love for the Møre thermo60 to stuff a little more of that sweet, sweet thermo60 insulation in those baffles. As I alluded to in the intro, I like really warm insulators. And yeah, this jacket wasn’t necessarily designed to be worn over a shell, but still I’d love another sheet of insulation in there to boost the warmth factor. It’s only moderately warm as it is – similar to a Patagonia nano-puff, for example. 

My last critique is that the hood is quite cavernous – it’s designed to fit comfortably over a freeride helmet (which it does). And that’s great when you’ve got a helmet on, but it feels like wearing a tunnel when you’re just rocking a cap or beanie.

I love this jacket’s long, roomy fit so much that it would be at the top of my list if it was just a tad bit warmer. Still, it’s a high quality and interesting ski-centric insulator that readily functions outside or inside a shell.

La Sportiva Lumina 300 Down Jacket

Why it made the list: 1,000 Fill down = Super Compressible

Price: $439

Weight: 387g

Insulation: 1,000 fill down

Fabric: PERTEX  QUANTUM 

Baffle Type: Sewn-through

La Sportiva quietly makes super high end down jackets. The last few years I’ve been enthralled with the Supercouloir 1000 down jacket, which was in a lot of ways a breakthrough for the Italian brand’s apparel offerings. The original Supercouloir is now gone, replaced with a variety of different down jackets. I managed to get my hands on the new Lumina 300 Down Jacket, which continues the 1,000 fill down legacy of its predecessor that stole my heart in the first place. The Supercouloir gets a warmth boost this year as the new Supercouloir Down Parka. 

The Lumina 300 is positioned as the warmest of the three jacket Lumina range and it’s so far the only 1,000 fill down jacket on this list. 1,000 fill is incredible. It’s not necessarily warmer that 800-900 fill down, but rather higher quality; you need less of it to attain the same loft as a lower quality down. There’s less actual material inside those big baffles. Logically then it packs down even smaller than its 800 fill competitors even if it’s tough to tell while you’re stuffing it into your backpack. You can feel the puff power of each baffle. Like the Stellar Ultralight, they’re filled like they mean it.

The Lumina 300 uses stitched-through baffles unlike the 3D baffling of the Supercouloir, so it has cold spots at the stitches. That’s pretty much the norm in this weight and price range. 

Other than the incredibly high quality down, the Lumina 300 sticks out from others on this list primarily in the shoulder region. Like with most of La Sportiva’s apparel, it’s shaped around a human in climbing mode. The extra room lends itself well to layering over a shell, and the extra long arms reach all the way to my shell’s cuffs even when I myself am reaching. The body section is on the narrower side of the spectrum, while still working fine in the over-the-shell deployment. 

Being new this season, I haven’t deployed the Lumina 300 into ski touring yet (even though it did keep me warm on a thoroughly frigid ridge scramble). Keep an eye on this space for an update. If you’re looking for something even warmer, the Supercouloir Down Parka is worth a look. 

Patagonia Das Light Hoody

Why it made the list: The best warmth-to-weight of any synthetic jacket ever?

Price: $349

Weight: 352g

Insulation: Synthetic (Polyester PlumaFill)

Fabric: Ripstop Nylon (<20D)

Baffle Type: “Hung” face fabric with quilted interior

The Patagonia DAS Light Parka is dueling with the Stellar Technolight for the top spot in this guide. The Das Light is not just light, it’s warm. It’s very much a slimmed down version of the revered DAS Parka, which falls more into the belay jacket side of the puffy jacket spectrum. But the Das light feels impressively dialed for ski touring. 

It of course starts with the fit. The Das Light is roomy in fit without being an absolute bunker like some belay jackets. It accommodates many layers underneath, including a gridfleece-shell combo. And it’ll fit under a shell when it’s truly frigid. Plus the arms are long and roomy for layering – fit boxes checked. 

The Das Light is stuffed with synthetic insulation. Patagonia describes “Revolutionary lightweight 100% recycled polyester PlumaFill insulation replicates the structure of down in a continuous synthetic insulation material, offering the warmth and packability of down but with the warm-when-wet performance of synthetic insulation.” There’s obviously some marketing hyperbole in there, but I can at least confirm the basic tenants. The fill is really light and really compressible. Better than Primaloft? I’d need a laboratory to know for sure, but both do a pretty dang good job at being warm and packable. 

The Das Light uses a nylon ripstop shell fabric throughout that is very light. I don’t have specs available, but the exterior feels lighter than 20D, the interior closer to a feathery 10D. Rather than simple sewn-through baffling, the pattern falls somewhere between box and sewn-through. Patagonia calls the exterior fabric “hung,” which is great. The interior is more of a quilted pattern – the baffles are both open and offset. While they aren’t “box” per se, the stitching doesn’t penetrate through the entire jacket, meaning fewer cold spots. 

Features are, as you’d expect from Patagonia, minimal. Two hand pockets, a chest pocket, an internal drop pocket. And most importantly for skiers (and ice climbers) that will don a harness, a super smooth two way main zipper. 

The Das Light hits an impressive balance of warmth, compressibility, and weight on par with the lightest down jackets in this list, yet it comes with the real world storm skiing benefits of synthetic insulation. It clocks in at just 346g – nearly the same as the two ultralight down puffers on this list. It’s 70g lighter (and slightly less insulated) than its closest synthetic competitor, the Stellar Technolight.

Bottom line, the Patagonia Das Light Hoody is das great option for ski touring. 

Great Insulated Jackets with limited or specific ski touring applications

Throughout the testing process over the last few years, a few puffy jackets stuck out as great products with limited or specific ski touring applications. We’ve detailed them below, take it or leave it. 

Black Diamond Solution Belay Parka (Formerly Stance Belay Parka)

Why it made the list: Size down for skiability in frigid climates

Price: $449

Weight: 893g

Insulation: Primaloft Gold and Primaloft Rise

Fabric Weight: 50D

Baffle Type: 

The Black Diamond Solution (AKA Stance, AKA Belay – the name seems to have changed this year) Parka is a jacket that’s worth a mention because it effectively bookends the burly side of the protection spectrum. It’s an absolute bunker of puffy jacket that could make sense for some skiers in the right scenarios.

The Solution probably won’t make it into your ski touring rotation very often because it’s just so dang big and bulky. Frankly it takes up a lot of space in a backpack. It just doesn’t make sense for the day-to-day skiing I find in Colorado. But it is the jacket I’ve wished I was wearing during the really nasty days out there. 

The Solution Belay Parka utilizes a burly 50D Polyester Ripstop that has fended off all but one or two clumsy ice tool punctures. A near continuous sheet of Primaloft Gold and Primaloft Rise insulation fills out the big insulation baffles, which are sewn in a way to prevent heat loss or cold intrusion.

I’ve spent many frigid days burrowed inside two different sizes of the Solution. It’s nicely oversized to the point that I had no problem wearing multiple layers and a shell underneath it with room to spare. It’s wide enough that it can drape over a harness full of steel and aluminum in true belay jacket fashion. And the shoulders are roomy enough to keep movement uninhibited. The downside is that it’s just a lot of jacket for skiing in the backcountry. 

It wasn’t until I tried a size down (Men’s Medium) during a cold spell on Red Mountain Pass that it clicked. Downsized it fit like a normal, albeit hugely insulated, puffy jacket. It still worked over a shell and gave me enough room to move around even if it still had a pretty big packed size. The hood on both sizes is appropriately oversized and almost requires a helmet to not feel like a cavern.

The Solution Belay Parka can meet the needs of backcountry skiers in very cold climates whose backpacks are in the 35L+ realm, but it’s worth playing with sizing to get the right fit for your needs.

 

Norrøna Trollveggen Down800 SuperLight Hood 

Why it made the list: One of the lightest down jackets available

Price: $299

Weight: 273g

Insulation: 800 fill down

Fabric Weight: 10D

Baffle Type: Sewn-through

The layering system warrants extra thought on the really wet or really snowy days. When it’s going to be both, I’ll typically bring a big synthetic over-the-shell puffy and an emergency under-the-shell ultralight down layer just in case, even if it usually rides at the bottom of my pack. 

Norrona’s Trollveggen Down800 SuperLight Hood fits the bill almost perfectly even if it wouldn’t be a great option for ski touring on its own. The reason? It absolutely disappears into your pack. This “SuperLight” jacket actually is. It weighs in at 266g in size large and packs down to the size of a softball. I recognize that’s a weird justification for adding it to this list, but it’s the lightest, most packable warmth-for-the-weight jacket that I’ve been able to get my mittens on. 

The jacket is relatively slim fitting, with Norrøna’s signature long torso and long arms that accommodates mountaineering moves like reaching overhead. The secret to the light weight is the 10D fabric, paired with 800 fill power down and minimal feature set. Most importantly, it stuffs into its own pocket. The catch? 10-denir fabric is delicate. You wouldn’t catch me skiing with this on the outside in the trees.

 

The North Face Summit Series Breithorn Hoody

Why it made the list: Intensely warm midlayer

Price: $430

Weight: 416g

Insulation: 800 fill down

Fabric Weight: 15D

Baffle Type: Sewn-through

The Breithorn Hoody is the North Face’s high end mid-weight down jacket that’s both lofty and compressible. Compared to others on this list, it lands in the mid-weight midlayer category. 

The 416g (Size Large) jacket utilizes 800 fill down stuffed inside medium sized baffles. The main fabric is a 15D Pertex Y Fuse recycled Nylon Ripstop coated in a DWR finish, so it’s a feathery little package. One chest and two handwarmer pockets add some additional details that lean more into the casual rather than the techy side of the spectrum.  

It’s a relatively slim fitting jacket. It didn’t really work for over-the-shell scenarios in the backcountry – the arms and torso were simply too snug. Though I guess you could grab a larger size if you wanted to make it work. Normally sized, it fit better over a baselayer and/or gridfleece. In those layering scenarios, it was an excellent insulator. But I absolutely cooked when I put a shell over it because it felt intensely warm for its weight. In the right (or wrong?) scenario that could save your life. 

The Summit Series Breithorn is a solid puffy jacket that I thoroughly enjoyed wearing, especially during shoulder season backpacking, but its ski touring capabilities are limited by its slim fit. It wouldn’t be the worst idea to size this one up or reserve it for under-the-shell capabilities. 

Conclusion

There’s of course no perfect jacket for every backcountry skier in every condition out there. Skiers in dry climates can get away with that sweet sweet down. Those in the rainier zones will be better served by synthetics. 

It’s still early season, but so far the La Sportiva Lumina 300 is sticking out in the down category and the Stellar Technolight is on top of the synthetics. Stay tuned for updates after additional backcountry testing and new additions from Mammut, Black Diamond, and others. 

Which insulating jackets have you trusted in the last few seasons? Let us know in the comments.