A Tribute to the Feathered Friends Volant Down Jacket

I have frequently been asked by climbing partners what is my favorite piece of gear, and over the years my answer has never changed--My Feathered Friends Hooded Volant Down Jacket.

The Volant Jacket is filled with 11+ ounces of hot tub-warm 850+FP Goosedown.  The day after the picture of me above was taken on Mt. Rainier this jacket earned a permanent place in my gear closet.  It was so cold high on the mountain at 2am that I ended up wearing the jacket while climbing Disappointment Cleaver and the decent back down to Ingraham Flats.

There are tons of warm down jackets on the market from many different manufacturers and big box stores like REI and Backcountry, but there are several reasons why I would spend the extra money and buy from this small custom down manufacturer in Seattle.



#1 The Quality of the Materials.
You really have to try this jacket on to appreciate the quality of the fabric and how little down it leaks.  My jacket was purchased in 2009 and is made of the older eVENT fabric (Feathered Friends now uses Pertex Shield XT) and it has shed surprisingly few feathers for how much it has been stuffed and unstuffed over the years.  Also, the design of the front pockets are the best of any jacket I've tried.

#2 The Taslite Fabric on the Shoulders and Arms
The fabric on the shoulders of the Volant Jacket are made of an extremely durable abrasion resistant material called Taslite Nylon.  It is great if you are wearing a pack while in the jacket or if you are doing any bushwhacking.  Once on accident I scraped the pick of my ice axe against the outside of my arm while wearing the jacket and I hear a tearing noise. Looking down and expecting to be upset I was shocked to see it didn't have a hole.  This stuff is tough!

#3 Removable Hood
I love the fact that I can pull the hood off this jacket with a few sturdy snaps.  It makes the jacket more versatile in moderate conditions and also gives me the option to simply leave the jacket at home and take a warm down hat with me as part of a lightweight sleep system in warmer weather.

I have used this jacket for cold weather backpacking, as a belay parka ice climbing, and doing slogs up Cascade Volcanoes in 4 seasons and it has performed beyond my expectations.  It is truly like wearing a hot tub when you are cold.  The only complaint I have about this jacket (other than the cost) is the design of the drawstring on the hood. I find the drawstring sits too close to my eye for comfort when synched down in bad weather.  With that being said, I love this jacket and if I ever wear it out I will immediately buy another!