Mountain Hardwear Phantom Hoody

Our take If shaving weight is priority number one, this is your jacket. While climbing the technical North Ridge of Washington’s Mt. Baker, one tester pulled it on during every rest stop, and packed it away in a Nalgene-size bundle in between. The Phantom’s thin baffles, stuffed with 800-fill down, are best for temperatures between 20°F and 40°F, but can be pressed lower if layered properly.

The details A 20-denier nylon ripstop face fabric—more durable than the stuff used on the Phantom’s daintier cousin, the Ghost Whisperer—makes this jacket surprisingly tough for its weight. Our sample survived bushwhacking in Colorado’s Mt. Zirkel Wilderness as well as being crammed into a pack with ice screws and snow pickets (it suffered minor scuffs but no rips). It only has two hand pockets, but packs neatly into one of them.

Trail cred “The Phantom’s DWR is good enough that it didn’t get too drenched during an hour of heavy, wet snow,” one Colorado tester says. “I stayed warm and dry.”

9.9 oz.; m’s S-XXL, w’s XS-XL