There is a lot of credence given merino wool hiking garments from the likes of Smartwool and Icebreakers, but I've seen plenty of high quality merino sweaters in thrift stores and I've wondered about using them for mid-layers. I didn't jump to it as many don't have hiking-oriented features and I haven't found many with a long enough torso for my liking.
Today I was in a thrift store and found a light sweater vest by Banana Republic for $6. I think it has good potential for a mid-layer, used over my base layer and topped off with a shell to trap all the air in the weave. This one tips the scale at 6.2oz (size large) and rolls up a little smaller than a Nalgene without compressing it. For comparison, I had a Marmot Power Stretch vest that was more like 8oz.
Nothing earth-shattering with a sweater vest as the Brit's have donned them for ages to ward off the chill. It might even approve the appearance of ratty thru hikers when in town– or make them look like staving poets :)
So why not?
