Patagonia Down Sweater Vest Review
The down fill on the Down Sweater Vest is amazing, and the vest is warm enough that I carry the vest instead of a jacket.
In the vest at camp near Thousand Island Lake in the Ansel Adams Wilderness, September 2024.
The Down Sweater Vest weighs 12 ounces on my lists. The down fill is amazing, and the vest is really warm.
I use the vest instead of a jacket, which keeps a puffy jacket out of my kit altogether. The vest has gone on every trip in my published trip kits, from three February nights on the Lost Coast in 2022 to the Tahoe Rim Trail in July 2026.
What works
- Excellent down fill and real warmth for 12 ounces.
- Replaces a puffy jacket in my kit.
What does not
- A vest leaves the arms to the base layer.
Open the Down Sweater Vest in Backpackers Friend
The link adds the Down Sweater Vest to Backpackers Friend as a small gear bundle with the weight filled in, ready to apply to the gear list of your next trip.
The trip kits in Backpackers Friend
The Down Sweater Vest appears in eight of my trip kits. Each kit is a real trip and opens in Backpackers Friend as a gear bundle with every item, weight, and quantity.
- Tahoe Rim Trail, Leg 1, July 2026The first leg of my loop around Lake Tahoe, with the hammock as my shelter. 70 items on a 19.7-pound base weight. Read the trip report.
- Solo near Mammoth Lakes, September 2024A solo trip out of Mammoth Lakes. 80 items on a 21.5-pound base weight, including the only iPad I have ever carried.
- Ediza and Thousand Island Lakes, September 2024Two nights in the Ansel Adams Wilderness with my backpacking partner. 79 items on a 20.5-pound base weight. Read the trip report.
- Ostrander Lake and Buena Vista, July 2024A Yosemite loop with a guidebook shortcut through an old burn. 75 items on a 21.2-pound base weight. Read the trip report.
- Young Lakes, June 2024One night at Young Lakes out of Tuolumne Meadows in peak mosquito season. 77 items on a 21.9-pound base weight. Read the trip report.
- Chilnualna Falls, May 2024A solo loop toward Buena Vista that ended one crossing short, carried with a tent instead of the hammock. 72 items on a 17.7-pound base weight. Read the trip report.
- Point Reyes in the rain, February 2024An overnight at Coast Camp with a close friend in steady February rain. 78 items on a 21.7-pound base weight. Read the trip report.
- Lost Coast Trail, February 2022Three nights on the King Range coast, with a tent and a bear canister. 73 items on a 30.8-pound total pack weight. Read the trip report.
More clothing and camp reviews
Keep your own gear list with the trip
The gear checklist in Backpackers Friend weighs every item by category, charts the pack as you build the list, marks each item packed, and saves a list as a reusable bundle for the next trip. The checklist lives on the phone next to the route, the camps, and the offline map. The gear checklist is part of Premium, and planning a trip, drawing the route, and tracking the walk are free with no account.
