I own a bunch of puffy jackets. Most are pretty thin with the goal of being very small/packable. Yesterday, I hunted in 20-30 degree temps and was cold in the AM after ~ 1.5 hours. My legs/feet were fine, my upper body was cold which is weird for me. Admittedly I underdressed a bit for the occasion. I wore a merino base layer, Kuiu Kenai, and a Kuiu Guide. I discovered the Kenai isn't as warm as I thought. I'm looking at Kuiu Super Down but thought I'd throw it out to you'se guys. Warmest puffy that is packable - it will ride in/on my pack except to sit.
Thanks.
What temps are you looking for and what are the conditions? Do you want to be able to wear it while moving, or is it for putting on after you hike to a glassing spot where you will be sitting still for hours?
I have 2 purposes for a warm puffy - one is eastern treestand hunting, mainly in NW PA; temps from 10 to 40. Sitting all day even when its 30 degrees requires more clothes than one would think. The other purpose is mountain hunting in the east and west. In elk season (late October), temps are mostly 10 to 40 but I normally hike in 2-3 miles and climb 500-1500 feet. I need a puffy layer for those 2-3-4 hour stands/glassing sessions. I'm less concerned about the mountain hunting because of the movement involved, a guy can always move around a bit if he gets cold, plus I have a few different puffys to use depending on the temps/activity. Not so with the TS hunting.
As a side note, I've always defaulted to synthetic insulation for the sweat/wet factor. Once down gets wet, its next to useless. But synthetic isn't nearly as warm as down, nor as packable. I posted my question here because the guys here are always up on the latest and what works/doesn't work.
