I just got this jacket and I am in love with it. It is so warm and functional. It has kept me warm in -15 weather...and I'm always cold. The hood is amazing and I like that you can zip it off. It seems to be crafted really well and there's a lifetime warranty! All in all awesome jacket!

This jacket will warm you up in no time. I cannot wear it in anything about 40 degrees because I end up way too hot!I am more than happy with that because I got the jacket for mountaineering when its super chilly out. It works perfectly for that. I do kind of agree that the styling is not terribly attractive, but this is not made for wearing around the city. Plus, I don't understand all the complaints about the hood: It's removable people! If you don't like it, you can just take it off. Overall, a great buy if you can get it on sale.

The warmest down Jacket I have ever owned! If you're like me,(you freeze), this will be your new best friend! Great for belay or around town, or on a super cold ski day. No aerobics in this puppy! Way too warm!

I purchased the size small and it was a perfect fit for me (5'5 1/2", 134 lbs).

It is a beautiful jacket, though I bought it more for high alpine temperatures and conditions, so style is fairly irrelevant. Each of the features is both helpful and easily accessed. There are draw-string pulls on various parts (the waist and the hood most importantly) that allow for a snug fit that is custom-created by you.

The removable hood is also a great feature, and it is large enough to fit over a helmet.

It fits into a stuff-sack 1/5 of the size of the jacket and is a good weight considering the warmth of the jacket.

I have enjoyed it so far, and I trust it will serve me well in the upcoming season of mountaineering.

I am 5'2'' 130, I ordered the Medium & I was swimming in it! It fits large. In all others things I wear a Medium usually. I'm going to order a smaller size. It looks and feels like a great jacket! I love all the pockets inside and out. It seems to compress pretty small as well.

I slipped this bad larry on during a 28°F night and BAM, I was warmed up again in seconds! Fits great, nice shape, totally dig that the hood fits over the helmet! Wish it came in some more exciting colors but the bottom line is it keeps me warm and that's all that really matters!

This is truly a very nice jacket, but I had to return it because the hood was so ridiculously big. With the hood down, the fastening tabs were way out over my shoulders and it just looked pretty dorky. Since I'm not a snowboarder, I really have no need for such an oversized hood. Perhaps they could come out with a version of this jacket with a normal-sized hood for those of us who would just like to use the jacket to keep us warm for walking the dog, running errands, etc., in the cold. I exchanged it for the Mountain Hardwear Sub-Zero Parka, and I am very pleased with that!

This is my second Chicago winter with this jacket and I love it. It is super warm even on those sub zero days. I do a little bit of ice climbing and the helmet-compatible hood is great on those occasions but for regular wear the hood is really huge and looks pretty dorky. No one cares what you look like when the wind chill is -40, though. The pockets are lovely and warm, and with the fleece-lined collar I never need a scarf- so cozy.
OR is a great company, they helped me out when I accidentally ripped the jacket open on some crampons (feathers everywhere!!!). I tried to patch it with the patch they sent but when that didn't work they replaced the Jacket. Very friendly, very helpful! I'll be wearing this jacket for years and years!

This is a lovely jacket - it's soft, warm, light, and not even that puffy. I'm 5'8" and about 125 pounds and the small fit perfectly, plenty long in the sleeves and back. It's a pretty basic jacket - there are Velcro fasteners on the cuffs and a drawcord for the hem, nice hand pockets, and several internal pockets, but it's very well made. The hood is huge and looks pretty silly on, but it's very warm. The fleece-lined collar is fabulous - you'd never need a scarf. The outer shell of the jacket is made of Pertex, which is a really soft and light fabric, but I just didn't trust that it was waterproof (I wanted a waterproof jacket). I did some research online and the consensus seemed to be that Pertex is water-resistant, but there are several types of Pertex and I could be wrong. I never tested the jacket outside, so it might actually be waterproof, and when I stuck it under the faucet for a couple seconds the water ran right off. Regardless, I ended up returning the jacket because the hood was just too big for casual use.

Convinced the wife to go with this brand when it came up on S&C. She's 5'6" and 110 lbs, and the small seems to fit her well. Hood's big, she looks kind of like a pink helium balloon, but she's cool with it. She dug the features and seems content to keep it. Only eyebrow raiser was that to me it felt like there was not very much down fill. Seemed thin. I guess that provides for better shape, but I'm crossing my fingers that this keeps her warm enough through the winter. It's a nice one, but doesn't feel worth anything close to its retail price. Maybe that's why it made it to S&C. Hope its performance proves us wrong about that.

The only things I don't love about this jacket are the visor on the hood and the draft flap over the zipper. The hood on the Mountain Hardwear Sub-Zero SL is the best hood ever made and the fact that the down is located on the inside of the zipper flap is better than on the outside (as is on this jacket.) Other than that, this is a super comfy, uber warm jacket with the best pockets on any down jacket on the market. They are located in areas that when goods are placed within them they don't all gather in one spot (my abdomen) like on other jackets. And it has enough pockets to carry everything I need. Something that most gals' jackets never have. (I swear most manufacturers think we'll be carrying purses with us while backpacking. I like having pockets like the guys get. A place for my knife, headlamp, etc... Easy to access and darned handy!)The collar is micro fleece lined as are the pockets. Overall this jacket is wonderful! If the hood were as cozy as teh MH-S-Z-SL it would be perfect!! But it is so close!

Toasty warm, great length and capacious fleece lined pockets.

Silly as this may sound I got this to wear when walking my dog in the rainy Pacific northwest winter. (The shell-with-layers configuration was not working for me because the unlined pockets meant I had to wear gloves, and gloves are not always practical when you are the kind of person who constantly loses gloves.) I was looking for a waterproof down jacket with warm pockets and a hood, and there are not a ton of choices, but I am really happy with the choice I made. Now we go for longer walks since my hands aren't freezing after 5 minutes, so my dog is happy with it too.

When I finally get my act together and do some backcountry skiing I will be glad to be able to fit a helmet under the hood.

Yup, it's a big hood. But it's removable, and anyway, I don't do much looking in the mirror when I am outside so I don't really think about it.

After trying on this and the MH Sub Zero, It was an obvious choice! Both are waterproof, baffled, and have huge ugly hoods. BUT, the Refuge is longer in the body and sleeves than the MH, which is a HUGE complaint from many reviewers of that jacket-the sub zero is stupidly short. Being 5'11", that was VERY important to me. The OR jacket is also lighter (in weight, not warmth) feeling, and has more pockets. This big hood is great if you are mtn'eering or ice climbing and are wearing a helmet, otherwise the hood can be slightly compressed by the back drawcord to make it less goofy when not wearing a helmet. Yes, the whole jacket is very, very puffy. In my opinion, you don't buy this jacket if you want to look good. You buy this jacket if you want to be warm, no matter what. I spent two hours outside in 17 degrees F last night and the only thing cold were my toes!

This coat is awesome. Best purchase ever...kept me warm (totally, totally comfortable, wish I'd had the equivalent in pants) snowcamping at < 10 *F. Super comfy, love the hood (if you velcro it practically your whole face is protected, plus if you tighten up the hood it fits your head as opposed to a helmet) and so SO SO warm. The color is nice and also the sleeves are long enough for my arms which sometimes is a problem for me! Obviously it's a super intense puffy so it's not the most flattering but I don't generally feel like the Stay Puft man either. The pockets are nice and deep and plentiful. Woo!

Im absolutely in love with this jacket. Southeastern Wyoming winters are cold and windy but walking to class in 10 below temps with a 20 below wind chill, i find myself sweating. This jacket is almost too warm. The only bone i have to pick with it is that it tears quite easily. I have only had it for a month and i already have 3 or 4 small rips, even though i take extra precautions to avoid bumping into sharp things. Other than that its a terrific jacket.

This seems like a very well-made jacket; however, I went with the Mountain Hardwear Sub Zero Down Parka instead for several reasons. First, the OR jacket had a very shiny fabric sheen that I found kind of ugly. I liked the non-shiny, subdued look of the MH parka. Second, the fit was much boxier than the MH parka, which came down over my hips and butt nicely.

That said, it's a nice jacket and looks high quality, and OR makes great stuff. Yes, the hood is enormous, but you can easily pull the toggles to minimize it, or just unzip it completely. It looks fine when minimized. Nice pockets.

I am 5'3" and 117 and the extra small fit well.

I'm in love with this new puffy jacket. Many other buyers commented on the hood being too large, but I like to wear it over my helmet for horribly cold days skiing in the backcountry....if you don't like the bulk of it, it zips off so no need to worry about it flapping all over while walking the dog. It compresses well and lofts very quickly for ridge top warmups.

Initially, I was worried that this jacket would be too bulky to move around in, but it is perfect. Great size, great shape, and overall great jacket. I am looking forward to using this season!

This jacket is perfect for stuffing in my pack and pulling out at the summit. It keeps me perfectly warm and dry. The big hood is awesome over a helmet for toasty belays. I can't say enough good things about it!!

I bought this coat for the summit so color and style are secondary to warmth and compactability. The medium is bigger than I expected or needed, but it does make it easy to layer on top of whatever else I have on. And it's very warm and light so I'm happy with it! :)

I've had this jacket about a month now and really like it so far. I haven't used the hood yet because I haven't had a need for it yet. But the jacket is so super light and fluffy that I love wearing it anywhere (even though I look like a big black marshmallow...the only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5). The inside color of the black jacket is a sweet maroon color and I wish they'd made the outside that color. The pockets everywhere are perfect and handy. Pretty much the best way to describe the jacket is its like a warm, waterproof sleeping bag.

Very warm and versatile. Good for backpacking, climbing, or just walking around town on a cold night. i like the length and large hood

I know Ann Sue Riddick, and the Mountain Hardwear Sub-Zero Parka was a much better choice for her petite size. It's even great to wear when the weather is beautiful.

I live in Toronto, Canada where the cold can get as cold as -30 Celsius and with a few light layers underneath this jacket kept me warm. It's extremely lightweight but very poufy (I concur with the marshmallow statement from another review) and the hood is ridiculously big and dorky for city wear (thus the 4 star review). In terms of fit, I usually wear a Medium in North Face jackets but ordered the small in this one and it fits a little on the big side. So overall, I would recommend this jacket but beware of the hood if you are not going to wear a helmet!

I bought this for my wife for mountaineering. We had our doubts since there is hardly any info out there on the jacket. But it seems great - well designed, pockets are awesome, good fit length etc. It is a good weight and looks pretty robust. Can't fault it.

This is a very nice quality, warm jacket. i did return it for a couple of reasons: too big and i did not care for the shiny fabric. some might like the sheen but it's not for me. i also have a jacket that is very similar in color. otherwise the return process was a cinch. customer service is outstanding.