The North Face

Summit L3 Down Jacket - Men's

We're drawn to the mountains because of their unpredictability, uncertainty, and wildness. It's easy to fall into a rhythm and live a life of routine; driving the same roads, waking up in the same places, and seeing the same sights, but when you need to break out of the ordinary, where do you go? Up. That's why The North Face created the Summit Series, a technical alpine lineup that has been keeping the most serious climbers, alpinists, and adventurers warm and dry since 2000. In 2014/15, The North Face gave the Summit Series a year off to get a top-to-bottom redesign, and this year's lineup blows previous iterations out of the water. It consists of a full six-piece kit, from the L1 baselayers to the L6 Jacket, and it's designed to provide ultimate protection, mobility, and functionality in places where gear issues can be more life-threatening emergency than minor bummer.

In the middle of the lineup sits the Summit L3 Men's Down Jacket, a lofty, light, and warm midlayer that boasts 800-fill RDS (responsibly sourced and traceable) down that is held in place with The North Face's ZLoft welded baffle construction to reduce bulk and eliminate cold spots. High-loft down is incredibly warm, lightweight, and packable, but the L3's Fuseform construction improves durability and reduces bulk even further by weaving different fabrics together seamlessly to improve articulation and eliminate stitching, seam taping, and other weak points, so you don't shed feathers when you're hiking up a ridgeline before the sun rises or huddling down into your sleeping bag for a night at 18,000 feet.

As a result of the superlight down and Fuseform construction, the L3 is sleeker, slimmer, and lighter than other comparable jackets, but just as feature-packed. An insulated hood cinches down easily over your climbing helmet, while the hidden hem cinch prevents drafts and spindrift from creeping up your back when you're building an anchor or swinging axes into never-climbed alpine ice. The L3's low-profile cuffs are designed to facilitate smooth layering, and the jacket has six pockets for on-the-move convenience.