DCH

I have a size L Renaissance. I've only used it a handful of times but for me, its 20 degree rating seems optimistic. I was in it last weekend, inside a tent, with good ground insulation, well-stocked on calories after an ample dinner, and felt a bit chilly in the last few hours of a night in the mid-30s. Of course everyone's physiology is different and there are many variables effecting comfort. I'm a lean 6' so don't retain heat well. Temp rating aside, I like the bag. It's spacious, well-made, and even though it's synthetic, seems to scrunch down to a reasonable size. I have lighter, snugger, smaller-packing down bags but appreciate the Primaloft insulation for its ability to cope with damp/wet conditions.

Agreed, the Pata Micropuff Pullover is hard to beat. The warmth-to-weight ratio is very high. It has the basic needed features, nothing more. The DWR on the fabric is typical high Patagonia quality and lasts a long time with reasonable care. It's only about 12 ounces so doesn't give up much to the lightest down sweaters/jackets. Being synthetic, it offers the security of dealing with precip better. I'm a lean 6' guy and bought the size L for shoulder fit and arm length. It's spacious in the body but that makes it good for pulling over whatever other layers you're wearing (rest stops, belaying, etc.). The zipper is long so it's easy to do this. I think it's a great piece and the price is reasonable.

Check out the Scarpa Charmoz. I just picked up a pair from Mountain Gear at a good sale price. They seem quite similar in function and design to the GTX Trango S. Check this link: http://www.mgear.com/pages/product/produ...level2_id/0/N/0

To answer your question, no. However, here's an option that might serve a similar(but lighter) purpose: the Charmoz GTX is a new model Black Diamond/Scarpa started carrying 2-3 months ago. It looks roughly equivalent to the La Sportiva Trango S EVO GTX; perhaps slightly beefier. I've never seen them in person but they look like they might be great 3-season alpine boots. Good luck in your search. Scarpa Charmoz GTX

Hi, I had similar questions when I first saw or read about these particular jackets a couple of months ago. I was also curious about the Ready Mix which I haven't actually seen in the men's version (REI has the women's in the Seattle store) since Pata is apparently out of stock. Anyway, I emailed Pata with questions several weeks ago and received the following information: Sorry it's taking a little longer than expected, but I finally have all the information. 1) The Ready Mix is the lightest, so with that comes some sacrifice of durability. We've used a heavier fabric (same as the Figure 4) in high abrasion areas like the shoulders and hip. The Figure 4 should prove to be the most durable over time because there's more substance to the fabric than the Ready Mix and the CSS seams resist abrasion better than the traditional sewn seams of the French Roast. The Ready Mix and Figure 4 will resist water better than the French Roast. I haven't tested these jackets, but have used many items with these fabric. If I were needing the most breathable item on a dry day for highly aerobic activity, I would choose the French Roast for the best breathability. 2) These fabrics are proprietary or custom fabrics, developed to our performance specifications in concert with the similar fabric mills as those that produce name brand fabrics such as Pertex. The difference is, we've done our own exhaustive lab and field testing to ensure that these fabrics are up to the high standards of durability, breathability and weather protection that our own fabric developers dream up and our field testers demand. These are our custom fabrics, built to our specs versus the factories' off-the-shelf versions. While we strive to improve our fabric performance every season, we believe that our garments benefit from the most advanced fabric development process out there. These fabrics simply and consistently out-perform everything else on the market. 3) Comparison of men's fit: The Ready Mix and Figure 4 are sized like our shells to accommodate base and insulation layers, whereas the French Roast is cut smaller to accommodate fewer layers. Here's a good real-life comparison. I took a size Medium Figure 4 and laid it flat on top of a size Large French roast, or the Large on top of the Medium and they are almost exactly the same. I hope this helps. Another consideration in deciding which one to pick should also be what activity or activities you will use it for. If you have more questions, let me know. Alli Patagonia.com Customer Service Pata Customer Service has always been helpful with providing tech info when I've emailed and will give you details such as measurements on different sizes of garments if you ask. The end result of my inquiry was that I bought a size medium "Bonfire Orange" Figure 4 jacket. I agree about the Pata sizing; it's all over the place depending on the piece. I usually think of myself as a large in jackets but the medium Figure 4 had a trimmer, better torso fit and the sleeves (surprisingly) were long enough. As for user feedback, none yet - I just got it and haven't even used the jacket so have no input on how it performs. I already have a more aerobic-oriented softshell and thought the French Roast would just duplicate it. Plus, that orange color grabbed me. Hope that helps. Dane

I agree with NOLSe and Jake Gano about the Patagucci jacket sizing. I generally wear size L for reasons of sleeve length and shoulder width. Most of Pata's shell-type jackets have way too much torso volume relative to sleeve length for those with slim, athletic builds. There are exceptions; I have their Core Skin (soft shell) jacket from two years ago and the large is a great fit on me. I think most of Pata's stuff is great (good design and materials; very high quality) but I think their outerwear fit is generally off. Room for layering is one thing but excess material is another. Who are they designing for? I'd say Arc'teryx has the best overall fit for me.

Mt. Cruiser in the Olympics - it's the one on the cover of the Olympics Climbing Guide. Easy technical climbing but a cool mountain trip. Warning: the mosquitoes are out and want your blood. They took a lot of the fun out of it.

Thanks all for the Bonanza info. We ended up doing some scrambling in the Chelan-Sawtooth Ridge area instead. We decided it might be a couple of weeks early for Bonanza and may have made the right decision (for us, anyways). There were good (but distant, probably 15-20 miles from directly east across Lake Chelan) views of the Mary Green glacier and gulley route and lots of snow still appeared to be filling the gulley to the summit ridge. Our perspective was distant but the view was direct. Anyone else happen to get a look this past weekend from closer up? Anyone climb it? It'll stay on my list a while longer.

Thanks for the bug info. I witnessed the ladybug swarming thing also this past weekend. I was scrambling Courtney Peak-Buttermilk Ridge-Oval Peak in the Chelan-Sawtooth Ridge area and all the high points had ladybugs crawling over them. Kind of creepy but interesting nonetheless. On another note, anyone else seen Star Peak (same area) from up close? It's an impressive-looking mountain. I'll have to go back to do that one sometime. Star Lake at about 7000' was pretty much totally frozen over though the snow in the nearby meadows was melting fast in the heat of the past week.

Looking for current conditions and route info for the Mary Green Glacier route on Bonanza Peak. Anyone been up there yet this year? We're considering giving it a shot next weekend. Thanks.

Went in to climb the N. Face of Buckner the weekend of July 20-22. We decided not to climb it (for several reasons) though we did start down across the glacier after having approached via Sahale-Boston. The crevasses at that time were many and large; it wasn't clear that a path could be found through them all in a reasonable and safe amount of time. The route itself (couldn't actually see the couloir route) had several large, apparently continuous gashes across it. Additionally, by mid-morning the sun was blazing down on the upper portions of the route, and the soft mush we encountered on the glacier didn't foretell good conditions on the face. Our group of four started off motivated but our minds were changed by what we saw. I'd never tried this climb before but the word was that conditions were about a month ahead when compared to the "typical" year. Our consolation prize was that loose heap of rock - Boston Peak. It's a cool summit (has a 35-year old summit register in amazing condition) but not great climbing.

Has anyone been up Sloan Peak via the Corkscrew Route recently? Any info on the condition of the Sloan Glacier? The Darrington Ranger Station didn't know anything. Thanks in advance for any useful info.

Check out Sierra Trading Post (www.sierratradingpost.com) ...they've got the previous version (in the wild green color which I happen to think is kind of cool) of the Lowa Triolet on sale for $90. Not bad - and many sizes, too. I've got a pair on the way and hope they fit well. The new version appears from the Lowa website to be a little sleeker and lower profile; I think the sole is the Vibram Sebolet, the same one that's on the Garmont Sticky Weekend.

Patagonia Stretch Triolet Jacket: men's size large; color is mango (a shade of orange) w/ cobalt trim; Winter 1998 model; rarely worn, so is in very clean, excellent condition. Great midweight mountaineering and backcountry skiing shell. New price is $379; yours for $160 (U.S.)