- Written by Mat Young. Outdoor Professional, Tasmania Guide, and an Ambassador for K2 Base Camp. -

Tested in Tassy - Mont Guide Hoodie Review

For an outdoors-person looking to buy an insulated jacket there are a few factors to consider, and in my mind, the price comes last. For starters, deciding whether to go down or insulated is a tough choice, especially with modern synthetic insulation becoming much lighter and more compressible than it was historically.

For me, it comes down to how you’re using the jacket. For example, if it’s just a warm layer for camp and you’re not likely to be in a very wet climate, a down jacket is perfect. But if conditions are cold enough that you’ll need to wear the jacket while you’re moving fast, and it will potentially get wet from considerable amounts of sweat, light snow or rain, then synthetic is the better choice.

When down gets wet it starts losing its loft and therefore its insulating ability. Conversely, synthetic insulation like PrimaLoft is designed to be hydrophobic, which means it actively repels water and insulates comparatively better. Although the Guide Hoodie can not replace the role of a traditional waterproof rain jacket under heavy showers as it is not fully seam-taped, Mont’s waterproof lightweight Hydronaught XT fabric combined with PrimaLoft will still keep you warm in cold, lightly wet conditions.

Using advanced monolithic PU membrane technology, Hydronaute XT™ fabric is completely waterproof (up to 20,000mm), totally windproof & highly breathable (20,000g/m2/24hrs). Guaranteed to maintain greater warmth & comfort than coated fabrics, Hydronaute XT is the best protection for insulated clothing and sleeping bags in the cold to extreme conditions.

PrimaLoft® Gold is a performance insulation engineered for superior warmth, water resistance, loft, softness and compressibility. PrimaLoft® Gold insulation keeps the body warm, dry and comfortable, even in extreme conditions. PrimaLoft Gold absorbs less than 1% of its weight in moisture.

The weight vs insulation factor is another key consideration, while it is hard to quantify how much warmth a jacket gives you, I would say synthetic is slightly less than an equivalent weight down jacket. The Guide Hoodie comes in at 450g whereas an 800+ fill-power down jacket like the Outdoor Research Helium comes in at 436g and would keep you warmer.

After too many cold days of alpine climbing, I decided I needed to up my game and get a better synthetic jacket. After researching a few products, I came upon Mont’s Guide Hoodie and I stopped looking immediately. It’s perfect for Antipodean climates where it doesn’t get ridiculously cold, and the snow is often wet.

The jacket's first test was a snowy November trip to Cradle Mountain where I was guiding a group through the peaks and valleys of the area in a full on snow-storm. Underneath my rapidly soaking outer shell, my Hoodie provided ample warmth even after it too began to soak up water. Before too long the sun came out and by the end of the second day, the snow and ICE had melted away, along with any concerns about my Hoodie’s ability to keep me warm in adverse weather.

The next big test for my Hoodie was on a ski touring trip to the main range. I’d driven up for Splitfest, an annual split boarding festival, and decided to head out solo for a couple of days to do some touring and enjoy the mountains. After dropping some gear in an igloo that I found, I skinned up Mt Twynam, Australia’s second-highest peak. Before I could crest the summit and take in the splendour of a clear winter day I was hit by a bitterly cold Nor’wester. After some exploring I found that this kept everything except leeward slopes locked up solid, so I turned around and rode the gradually softening east-facing terrain off the ‘front’ of the mountain.

From bitter gales to wet spring snow and a cold night spent in an igloo on the main range my Mont Guide Hoodie has done everything I’ve asked of it. Safe to say I’m very happy with my purchase.

As I prepare for another winter of ski touring and alpine climbing in the Southern Alps of New Zealand, I am confident that my Mont Guide Hoodie will be the warm insulating layer that I need. The jacket will be a fundamental component of my layering system throughout the winter as I traverse glaciers and scale 3000m peaks. I’ve tested it in the worst Australia can throw at it, now it’s time for bigger hills and colder days.

For anyone spending time in cold, wet climates in need of a well-made synthetic insulated jacket I would strongly recommend the Mont Guide Hoodie.