Living life between 8,500 and 9,800 during September in Idaho made the mountain vest an essential piece of gear for me. When cresting these ridges I found this lightweight vest incredibly important to helping me warm up. The sizing of the vest is perfect, its incredibly lightweight and is super quiet. If you are hunting anywhere you get sweaty and the wind blows, then you would do yourself a favor and have one of these.

This vest does what it's meant to, cuts wind. I like it over a First Lite Chama hoody for moderate activity in cooler weather or over a Sawtooth jacket in cold weather. If I'm moving at a hunting pace and not gaining a ton of elevation that works very well for me. When I stop to glass for an extended time I can add my puffy jacket and put this vest over the top to cut wind to my core. I like the Sitka Cloudburst jacket for rain most hunts because it is very breathable compared to most rain gear I've tried. The downside to that is it doesn't stop wind as well as some other options. The Mountain Vest under the Cloudburst keeps wind from reaching my core even in very adverse conditions. I consider the Mountain Vest a very versatile item that seems to fit multiple places in my layering system at a minimal weight. Some reviews list it as being loud, and it is louder than some softshells but it's much quieter than the Cloudburst or any other hardshell outer layer for example. I like it well enough I want a second one in Lead color to use for work.

This is a great vest if used as intended. For backpacking & high altitude hunting, this vest is best stored in your pack in a plastic baggie until the wind is freezing you to the core. I’ve used it a dozen times, but only as an add-on item to my layering system. It’s a really thin wind blocker that takes up almost no room - super important to a backpack hunter. I’d rate it a solid four stars since it does exactly what it was designed to do - block wind with minimal weight.

I have the new Subalpine vest. I should have found a local store to check it out before I bought it so it's on me not Sitka. High Quality and windproof but noisy. Not great for archery hunting in thick cover or with a pack on.

After using the Jetstream Vest, I wanted something windproof but lighter. The new Mountain Vest is exactly what I was looking for. I used it this bow season in Colorado. The Mountain Vest over a merino base layer got me through most of September.

The vest is great for wind but noisy in the timber. I would recommend wearing it under you're outer layer while hunting. I love vests and thought this was the ultimate vest for hunting when I bought it but the noise factor rates it down in my opinion.