Down or fleece for ultralight underwear

[Chris Fillion]

I currently have a Polartec 100 top and bottom made by a Quebec (Canada) company called Chlorophylle, but lately I’ve been considering purchasing a new lighter suit as the jacket and pants weigh about 10oz each. While browsing these forums I found someone mention the Mont Bell U.L. Down Inner Jacket and Pant which are stated to be 7.4oz each. Now, I’ve always used fleece as a base layer in the cold but would it be better, with regards to warmth/weight, to buy an ultralight down setup instead of fleece?

Cheers,
Chris

[Al Shaver]

I own the Montbell jacket and pants and they are everything the manufacturer promises them to be. I took a light sun shirt, the down jacket (lighter than a T-shirt) and a 12oz., 15 year old Montbell GTX jacket as my only torso covering for an unsupported John Muir Trail hike and it worked beautifully in camp and in my sleeping bag (too warm to hike in except for the first 20 minutes of a pre-dawn start). I wore the down jacket and pants (along with a down hood) inside my 14oz. RAB top bag in 10 degree weather this winter testing gear on Donner Summit next to the highway. I slept fine for 2 hours until I was rudely awakened by the output from a Caltrans snowblower pelting me and my campsite with a fusillade of hard,salty ice clods. Camping next to the freeway in winter gets a big goose egg. The Montbell U.L. down inner pants and jacket score 10 out of 10.
Cheers, Al

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