MontBell U.L. Thermawrap
Parka
Initial
Report - November 13, 2008
Field Report - January 27,
2009
Long Term Report - March
30, 2009
Tester
Information:
Name: Pam Wyant
Age: 51
Gender: Female
Height: 5 ft 5 in
(1.65 m)
Weight: 165 lb (77
kg)
Bust:
41 in ( cm)
Waist: 36 in ( cm)
Sleeve: 32 in (81 cm)
E-mail
address: pamwyant(at)yahoo(dot)com
Location: Western
West Virginia, U.S.A.
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Backpacking Background:
Pursuing
a long-time interest, I started
backpacking four years ago, beginning with day-hiking and single
overnights. Currently I’m mostly a ‘weekend warrior’, hiking and
backpacking mainly in the hills and valleys of West Virginia, but have
started
a project to section hike the Appalachian Trail (AT), accruing a little
over
200 mi (300 km) in the last two years. My usual shelter is a
hammock, but
occasionally I use a tent. In general my backpacking style is
lightweight and
minimalist and I try to cut as much pack weight as I can without
sacrificing
warmth, comfort, or safety.
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Initial Report - November 13, 2008
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Product
Information:
Manufacturer:
MontBell
Year of manufacture: 2008
Model: U.L. Thermawrap Parka
Size tested: Women's XL
Color tested: Honey
Advertised weight:
10.7 oz (303 g) - size M
Actual Weight: 12.6 oz (358 g) - size XL
Actual stuff sack weight: 0.3 oz (8 g)
Advertised stuffed size: 4.7 x 8.2 in (12 x 20.8 cm)
Actual stuffed size: 4.7 x 11 in (12 x 28 cm)
(in manufacturer provided stuff sack)
Note: Potentially can be
stuffed smaller
Website: www.montbell.com
MSRP: $170 US
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Product Description:
 The
MontBell U.L. Thermawrap Parka is a light weight insulated
jacket with an insulated hood. Although light in weight, the
parka has several technical features. The hem has an adjustable
round elastic drawcord, with a cordlock and bead attached to the inside
of the hem on each side of the jacket. The cordlock is also
attached to a stationary loop made of flat cording. This makes
it easy to grab and depress the cordlock on either side, pull on the
beads to tighten the drawcord to the desired adjustment, and release
the cordlock to hold the adjustment in place. This is easiest to
do one side at a time, but with a little practice I was able to adjust
both sides at once. The hem is reinforced in the cordlock area
with a small grey piece of fabric that appears to be heavier than the
shell material. The adjustment cord also passes through two small
metal eyelets for further protection of the fabric in that area.
The Parka also features a large pocket on each side
measuring approximately 6 x 12 in (15 x 30 cm). These pockets
fasten
in the seam area with a 6 in (15 cm) 'invisible' zipper; that is, other
than the
pull, the zipper isn't visible when it is zipped shut. The zipper
teeth can barely be seen when the pockets are open. The zipper
pull consists of doubled piece of cord with a rubbery pull at the end
embossed with the MontBell name. The cord attaches via a lanyard
style knot to a small metal connector that is attached to the zipper
head. The zipper works smoothly without catching in the fabric
even though the zipper head is running directly adjacent to the
material.
A separating zipper allows the Parka to fully open in the
front. The Parka I received is of the color 'Honey' which is a
dark gold hue. Both the front and pocket zippers match very well
and blend into the fabric of the Parka. The front zipper is
simply sewn with a tucked under seam on each side and does not have any
sort of storm flap on the outside, although it does have a small narrow
insulated flap on the inside that backs the zipper. A 0.5 in (1.3
cm) wide piece of grosgrain ribbon is sewn to the front of this flap,
which I presume is to keep the zipper from catching in the more
delicate nylon fabric. A small sewn over flap at the neck covers the
zipper head when the jacket is fully zipped up, and the top of the
inner flap has a soft fleecy material on the inside in the neck area,
which makes for a very soft feel on the throat. The front zipper
has a pull similar to those on the pockets.
The hood has a 2 in (5 cm) long x 1 in (2.5 cm) wide tab in the back
with a 1.5 in (4 cm) long piece of hook side fastener that attaches to
a 4 in (10 cm) strip of loop fastener. The hook section can be
attached at any point on the loop section, allowing the hood to adjust
in depth to accommodate a helmet or fasten more snuggly around the head.
 One
feature that I find very unique is the face opening in the hood.
The hood is articulated to fit a rounded head, with a wide section sewn
into the top. This section has a stiffened cord to support the
brim. On each side of the brim an elastic cord runs through a
small channel. Near the end of the cord is an oblong plastic
tensioner which allows the cord to be tightened and retains it at the
desired adjustment. The really unique feature is that once
adjusted the tensioner can be slipped into a small pocket built in the
channel so that it is completely covered to eliminate rubbing against
the skin or hair. The photo to the left shows one tensioner out
of the pocket and on the opposite side of the hood the other is hidden
in the pocket.
When pushed back, the weight of the hood isn't noticeable on my back
or
neck, and it stays comfortably out of the way.
The Parka shell is 15-denier Ballistic Airlight calendared nylon with a
Polkatex DWR treatment. MontBell's website explains that the
process of heating and stretching the nylon fibers that form the
Ballistic Airlight fabric is supposed to increase tear strength and
abrasion resistance. In the 'calendaring' process, each fiber is
'shingled' on top of other fibers, making it more wind resistant and
stronger. As MontBell claims, the fabric does indeed feel 'silky
soft', and it is not noisy. The insulation layer is of 80g/m2
Exceloft synthetic.
The jacket is quilted in 'sewn thru' style straight across the width of
the fabric, with no vertical quilting. The width of the quilted areas
varies, being wider in the center sections and narrower at top, bottom,
in the hood area, and in the area under the arms. The areas under
the arms are quilted on a diagonal instead of straight across.
The insulation is not very lofty, appearing to be about 3/8 in (1 cm)
on average. The insulation appears even with no thin spots.
The Parka is lined with a slightly darker gold colored fabric.
All of the seams are bound with similar fabric and neatly finished with
no raw edges. Inside the rear neckline are two labels. The
burgundy one
gives the size (USA & Europe XL; Japan XXL). The white one
states that it is "Made in China" and indicates "Care Label Inside" on
the front, and "Sold by MontBell America, Inc." and gives the company's
US address, an e-mail address, and toll free phone number. In
the area of the left side pocket two additional labels are attached to
the lining. The black one states in gold lettering "Since
1975", "mont-bell", and has the phrase
"Function is Beauty". The white one gives the style number,
factory number, fabric content (100% nylon shell and lining and 100%
polyester filling) and gives care instructions - hand wash cold, do not
bleach, do not iron, do not dry clean, do not wring, line dry in shade,
tumble dry normal heat - as well as showing international laundering
symbols.
 The
front of the Parka measures about 23 in (58 cm) from the hem to where
the hood attaches to neck. The neck area of the hood is almost 4
in (10 cm) high. The rear of the Parka measures 26.5 in (67 cm)
from the neck seam
to the hem. The sleeves measure 23.5 in (60 cm) from the armpit
seam to the cuff. Another technical feature of the Parka is a
triangular section of super stretchy
material on the inside of the cuff. This allows for a trimmer fit
to
the cuff to seal out cold air, while still allowing ease in pulling the
sleeve over the hands, even over gloves. The photo to the right
shows the stretchy elastic panel, and to the right side of the sleeve
is the 'invisible' pocket zipper, evidenced only by the zipper pull at
the top. To the left of the sleeve the unzipped front zipper is
visible.
The Parka appears to be well constructed, with even stitching.
I did find a thread that pulled loose in the cuff area after wearing
the jacket for the weekend, however this appears to have merely been a
loose thread from the inside of the fabric that worked its way out from
the sewn area and it did not create a pull or hole in the fabric.
The U.L. Thermawrap Parka does come with a cylinder-shaped stuff
sack that appears to be made of the same fabric as the jacket exterior,
measuring about 11.25 in (28.5 cm) tall and 4.75 in (12 cm) across
the bottom. The stuff sack appears well made, with a folded over
section of fabric on the bottom providing a place to grab hold when
pulling the Parka free from the other end, and a simple cord with cord
lock to draw the top closed. The Parka stuffs into the sack with
a little room to spare, and could be compacted somewhat further if
placed into a
smaller sack or a compression sack.
Fit and preliminary
impressions:
The women's XL is a good fit for me other than being slightly snug
in the stomach and hip area. The chest, shoulders, and sleeves
fit very comfortably. Due to the snugness in the lower portion of
the Parka, I probably will not be able to wear more than one medium or
two thin base layer garments comfortably with the Parka, so I have a
few concerns about comfort with the Parka as an outer layer in colder
temperatures. I did however find that I could wear the MontBell
Men's L Down U.L. Inner Parka over the Thermawrap Parka, so this may
prove a good solution for colder weather.
The Parka does not seem to ride up when I stretch or lift my arms, and
the sleeves seem just right - long enough that I can pull my hands up
inside them if I want, but not so long that they are in the way when I
want to use my hands for cooking or other tasks. The hood fits
comfortably and can be snugged up for extra warmth and protection from
the wind.
Other than the somewhat snug fit of the lower section the only
concern I have with the Parka is that the stretchy panels in the cuff
area are already beginning to pill a bit after a weekend trip and a few
additional days of wear, so I am a little concerned about what they
will look like after a couple of months of use.
This concludes my Initial
Report.
Field Report - January 27, 2009
Field Conditions and Use:
 Shortly
after the MontBell U.L. Thermawrap Parka arrived I took it on a 24 mi
(39 km)
2-day hike of
the North Fork
Mountain Trail in eastern West Virginia. Since the mid-point of
the hike was accessible by automobile and there is no water source on
this trail, this was broken up into two day hikes with a base camp in
the middle. Temperatures ranged from 30 to 50 F
(-1 to 10 C), and there were intermittent breezy gusts. The trail
was fairly typical for eastern woodlands, consisting of a variety of
terrain ranging from smooth dirt to a lot of rocks and roots, with
several hundred feet (a few
hundred meters) of elevation gain and loss. Although the days
were nippy, I tend to overheat if I wear a jacket when hiking, so I
used it for breaks during the day and in camp at night. With a
light wool top, chest warmer, and arm warmers as my top layer and light
wool base layer and synthetic insulated pants, I found I was a little
chilly in camp, especially when the wind gusted. I did find its
warmth supplemented my 20 F sleeping bag (used quilt style) very nicely
and in spite of strong breezes blowing around my hammock, I slept warm
and toasty through the night in the jacket, wool base layers, and
synthetic pants.
In
mid-December I used the U.L. Thermawrap Parka on an
overnight backpacking trip of approximately 9 mi (14 km) in the Wolf
Gap/Big
Schloss area along the border of Virginia and West Virginia. It
was definitely a
frosty trip, with temperatures hovering just above freezing during the
day and falling to around 20 F (-7 C) during the night. There was
about 1 in (2.5 cm) of snow on the ground and a lot of ice on the
tree branches. The Parka was definitely welcome warmth during
lunch break and in camp. Due to the colder temperatures I had
also brought along my MontBell U.L. Down Inner Parka which in a men's
size Large fits very well over the women's size X-Large U.L. Thermawrap
Parka. I wore a mid-weight wool base layer top, a chest warmer,
and arm warmers on top and a light weight wool base layer bottom and
insulated pants. After my experience of being cool on the earlier
trip, I was pleasantly surprised to find I did not need to add the Down
Inner Parka to keep warm and was able to relegate it to pillow
use. The thicker wool base layer (along with a fleece hat under
the hood) was apparently enough to do the trick even in lower
temperatures.
I have also worn the Thermawrap Parka on 8 day hikes of 3-4 mi (5-6 km)
on a variety of trails or old back roads in western West Virginia,
including around Charles Fork Lake and in the Kanawha State
Forest. Temperatures on these hikes have varied from 20 F (-7 C)
to 50 F (10 C) and conditions have ranged from dry to light mist and
light snow. On one of the hikes I wore a full size daypack, on 2
of the hikes I wore a small fanny pack, and on the other hikes I simply
stuffed an energy bar and a bottle of water in the jacket pockets.
I have also worn the Parka nearly daily for general use, which includes
an hour or so spent outdoors on most days. For general use I've
experienced moderate rain, wet snow, and sleety ice balls.
Experiences and Conclusions:
The U.L. Thermawrap Parka has been a good weight jacket for general
purpose use and all of the hiking and backpacking trips I've taken so
far. It requires a little layering thought for what I've found is
the lower comfort range of 20 F (-7 C) and the full length zipper vents
it nicely for use when it's merely cool (around 50 F/10 C) or so.
I've found with a mid-weight wool layer or a light weight wool layer
and a light fleece top I'm very comfortably around camp or running
errands down to 20 F (-7 C). About the only time I haven't been
able to use the Parka comfortably has been when temperatures drop below
the upper teens (below -7 C) when I find the layers I would need to use
it are a nuisance and I prefer just going with a heavier jacket.
The DWR finish has done a good job of shedding light rain and snow
simply slides right off. It even does well with heavier rain for
a short period of time such as when dashing from the car to the house,
and will quickly dry.
The hood snugs down nicely around my face and is generous enough that
it is very comfortable when worn with a fleece hat underneath. As
with most other hoods, it does limit my peripheral vision and I find I
have to turn my upper body rather than just twisting my neck to get a
good view to the side. Adjusting the draw cord around the face
for various conditions has been a bit of a pain. I've found it a
nuisance to maneuver the tabs that hold the tension on the cord in and
out of the little pockets, and nearly impossible to do with even light
gloves on. Fortunately, once adjusted the cord stays put well and
I only have to mess with the tabs and cord when I want to change the
snugness. I do have to admit that it's nice to not have a toggle
in the way near my face, so this feature is a mixed blessing.
I've found it easy to operate all of the zippers when wearing light
gloves, including getting the two halves lined up at the bottom, and I
can move the zipper up and down with heavier gloves, but as is typical
with other jackets, I haven't had much luck getting the bottom lined up
to start the zipper when I've had heavy gloves on. The zippers
have operated smoothly for the most part, although every now and then
one of the pocket zippers sticks a bit.
The pockets are very generous, and I can carry a water bottle, pair of
gloves, and a couple of energy bars easily. They are also large
enough that if I am wearing a hat and want to take it off I can stow it
in one of the pockets.
The draw cords at the hem have come in handy several times during
blustery weather, and are easily adjusted even with gloves on.
The shell fabric is very wind resistant, which helps keep me a lot
warmer in breezy conditions. Although naturally a cold windy day
still feels colder than a calm day of the same temperature, the wind
does not penetrate the jacket fabric itself so I don't get those little
pockets of chill blowing through that I have often experienced with
fleece jackets that are even heavier than the Thermawrap.
So far the Parka is holding up quite well although it has a few barely
visible punctures where thorny briers have caught it along the trail,
and a tiny hole with sealed looking edges that I assume happened from a
stray camp fire spark even though I did not feel one hit me. The
elastic material at the sleeves still looks much the same as it did
after my first weekend of use - a few picks, but not really any worse
than before.
The warmth of the Thermawrap Parka has been about what I expected,
although it does not feel quite as warm to me as MontBell's U.L. Down
Inner Parka, it is very close. I have not yet washed the Parka,
but expect to do that soon.
Summary:
So far the Thermawrap Parka has been a nice balance of a warm yet light
jacket with a good feature set. At this point I find it not quite
as warm or light as the MontBell U.L. Down Inner Parka, but a good
compromise when I expect conditions that I might worry about getting
the down piece wet.
The light fabric has sustained some minor damage from snags and
campfire sparks, but is still performing well overall as far as
shedding wind and light precipitation.
Long Term Report - March 30, 2009
 Over the
last two months I have worn the MontBell Thermawrap Parka on ten 3-5 mi
(5-8 km) hikes in a variety of conditions ranging from
around 20 - 50 F (7 - 10 C), in sunshine, light rain, and light to
heavy snow. The trails have primarily been either single track
rock and root strewn hardwood forest trails or semi-maintained one lane
dirt county roads.
Probably my favorite hike was in the Kanawha State Forest, which was
also the trip with the worst weather - lots of wind lashed snow.
The photo to the left was taken on this trip.
I've also worn the Parka nearly every day as a casual jacket, other
than a few days that the weather was just too warm. I work in the
real estate industry, so part of most of my days are spent
outside. I would estimate
I've worn the jacket over 300 hours total, including time in my vehicle
while driving.
Use and Conclusions:
The Thermawrap Parka has performed very well over the course of the
test. I haven't been able to escape for a backpacking trip in the
last two months, but I've found it to be a great jacket for
dayhiking. For colder hikes (mostly below freezing) I find that
wearing it fully zipped up keeps me amply warm with a medium weight
base layer. On the pictured hike I wore it with a mid-weight wool
top and the light weight gloves that can be seen in the photo, and was
amply warm even in the cold and windy conditions.
One thing that I also appreciate is how easy it is to throw the hood
back and unzip the jacket to quickly ventilate. Even on this
cold and snowy trip I found myself needing to do this on some of the
uphills. On the more level or downhill areas, it was easy to zip
back up and pull the hood up to add warmth. Since the hood
drawcord is elastic, I don't have to constantly fiddle with it; I've
pretty much just left it at a moderately snug adjustment. It's
nice that it stretches enough so I can pull it back comfortably without
having to loosen cords or unzip the neck of the jacket. It's also
nice that neither cold breezes nor stray snow can find their way down
my neck when I wear the hood, and unlike a hat, it's always
conveniently attached and easy to find.
The sleeves are just as nice - the elastic gusset means I don't have to
loosen or tighten any sort of snaps or hook and loop closure.
They simply stretch enough to just pull the jacket on, yet are snug
enough that I haven't had a problem with stray wind finding its way up
my sleeves.
The pockets have been great. They are roomy enough that I can
carry a few snacks like a packet of nuts, an energy bar, and a bit of
jerky, and still have room for light gloves and even a light weight
hat. The pockets are deep enough that even when I left them
unzipped I never had a problem with losing anything out of them.
This held true even when I took the jacket off and tossed it in the
car, in a shopping cart, or over a chair at a restaurant; nary a glove
was lost, which is a record for me over the course of a winter!
On several short hikes I've just tucked a snack and a water bottle into
the pockets and didn't need to carry a pack of any sort. Other
times I've used a fanny pack. In colder weather I wore the fanny
pack over the Parka for extra warmth, but in more moderate weather I
would push the hem of the Parka up a bit and wear the fanny pack just
below the Parka. I also used it on two trips with a larger day
pack, but on these trips I ended up growing too warm and taking the
Parka off and stowing it inside the pack, hiking in arm warmers and a
hat. This is typical for me when I wear a pack that covers most
of my back - I just get too warm with much exertion.
A few times in colder weather the hand pockets weren't entirely
satisfactory in warmth. Since they have only a single layer of
fabric on the inner side, with no insulation or fleece lining, they
didn't provide a lot of warmth to encompass my cold hands. This
isn't entirely unexpected, since the Thermawrap isn't really intended
for extreme cold weather. Given its light weight, I've really
been a little surprised that I could push it down to temperature into
the low 20 F (7 C) range with a couple of layers. I did find that
the sleeves felt a little restrictive when I wore it with heavy fleece,
but they were fine with mid-weight wool or a light wool layer combined
with a light fleece layer.
The only other problem I had with the jacket is that sometimes it
'rode' up a bit in the back if I had it fully zipped up. This was
especially problematic with pants that fit below the waistline (as many
women's pants do recently), when I'd sometimes get a blast of cold air
on exposed skin. With pants that fit at or above the waistline it
wasn't really a problem.
The Thermawrap Parka proved very windproof, and did a good job shedding
light snow or rain, as well as drying quickly once I was out of the
weather. Most of the water would bead up and roll off, but in
prolonged precipitation the outer shell would begin to wet out a
little. The only time I experienced significant wetting out of
the jacket was during the snowy hike pictured above. The snow
that day was very wet, and humidity was high. After a couple of
hours of hiking in the off and on snow, I could feel moisture seeping
through the jacket, but I didn't really feel cold from it. The
jacket began to dry as I drove home, and was nearly dry within 30
minutes. When I wore the jacket for more casual use and it was
exposed to light to moderate rain for a short period of time while
measuring a house or walking from my car into a store, the surface
moisture on the jacket always dried within a few minutes and it never
felt like the moisture soaked into the insulation.
The Parka is showing some very minor signs of wear. The pilling
on the elastic gusset in the sleeve still looks about the same as it
did a couple of months ago. There are a few very slight puckered
areas in the fabric here and there where the sleeves are sewn
underneath and on the area of the sleeve near the back shoulder
seams. It has a few stray loose threads, which seem to be more
excess thread ends that have worked their way out of the seams than
stitches that have come loose since all the seams are still
tight. The small hole on the back of the jacket that I guess was
caused by a flying campfire ember has not grown any larger. There
is a very small tear in the fabric on the right front of the jacket
near the hem that likely was the result of an encounter with a patch of
briers from my last day hike when I went bushwhacking with some
friends. All in all for the light weight of the fabric I think it
has held up well considering the heavy use I've given it.
Summary:
The MontBell UL Thermawrap Parka has been a great jacket for a variety
of weather conditions. It has a good set of useful features such
as the articulated and adjustable hood, zippered hand pockets, and
cinchable hem, and still manages to remain light in weight. The
fabric is very windproof, and did a good job of shedding light rain and
snow. The insulation is optimal for comfort in a wide range of
temperatures and with proper layering the Parka is useful in
temperatures well below freezing.
I anticipate that I will mostly use it for car camping and casual use
in the future. For most backpacking trips, I will likely go back
to my MontBell UL Down Inner Parka, which seems a little warmer to me
and which is a bit lighter in weight and packs smaller. I won't
rule out using the Thermawrap Parka for backpacking though, especially
for trips where I anticipate a lot of precipitation, in which case the
properties of synthetic insulation might prove advantageous over down.
This concludes the test series.
Thanks to MontBell and BackpackGearTest.org
for
the
opportunity to test the U.L. Thermawrap Parka.
Read more gear reviews by Pamela Wyant
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