I posted about the Marmot Variant jacket last year when it came out.  Mostly I liked the look, but didn’t have an immediate need for it.  I just picked one up recently (in the color above) and so far have been very happy with it.

 The sleeves and back are Polartec Power Stretch, not softshell.  It’s kind of like stretchy, fleece-lined sweatshirt material.  This is definitely a mid-layer, as it has no degree of waterproofing.  But it’s incredibly warm, fits like a glove, and has sleeves that are actually long enough (this is rare, for me).  Also, gotta love those thumb holes.

 Pairing the Variant with a heavy hooded softshell would cover nearly any kind of weather condition.  My only concern is its long-term durability. The Power Stretch material feels a little fragile, and seems prone to pilling and velcro damage.  I’ve had a couple strands of insulation leak from the front panel.  This may be the tradeoff for how lightweight it is.

Naturally, I can’t make a full review until I’ve used it for a winter (working on that), but my impression after using it for a few weeks is that it’s going to be a staple of my winter gear.

We went through several different climates on this trip - from freezing in the passes to needing AC in the flatter areas.  There was also extremely limited space in the car, so choice of outerwear was important.  I found myself mostly using my Marmot Tempo.  

It’s made of a super light soft shell material that’s wind and water resistant, but not too warm.  The water resistance was put to the test during a couple of short but enthusiastic rain showers in Yellowstone.  And it held up equally well to a freezing walk at night.  Its light weight and stretchy material made it comfortable to wear in the car, too.  I got this one on sale at REI for half off, so I didn’t expect much from it - I have to say though, I’m impressed, and Marmot will definitely be on my list next time I’m looking for a jacket.  Three issues: The cuffs don’t have thumb holes.  The cuffs are too tight, making it difficult to push the sleeves up.  And a hood would be nice.

All pretty minor stuff though.  Available directly from Marmot for $90.

I want one of these, really bad.  The Marmot Variant jacket is a combination of my favorite outerwear material (soft shell fleece) and synthetic fill insulation.  Besides looking distinctly sci-fi, it has thumb holes (a necessity) and a nice fit for layering.

I have an unfortunately small number of slots in my gear inventory for outerwear, but I think a little more research on this one may be necessary.  Too bad it’s not green.

$140 from Marmot.