The Montbell Plasma 1000 Alpine Down Parka is an ultralight jacket that provides exceptional warmth for minimal weight. Its “skip-stitch” quilting pattern ensures the 1000-fill power down stays equally distributed across the jacket. A variety of draw cords, zippers, and velcro features allow great flexibility in airflow and warmth while wearing this parka.
Product Overview
Montbell Plasma 1000 Alpine
Price: $479
✅ Ultralight
✅ Extreme warmth-to-weight ratio
✅ Adjustable hood and hem
❌ Price
❌ Not as durable as bulkier jackets
KEY SPECS
- Weight: 237 g / 8.4 oz (Men’s Large)
- Fill Weight: 96 g / 3.4 oz (Men’s Large)
- Fill Power: 1000 fill sourced humanely from European and Asian markets
- Material: 7-denier Ballistic Airlight nylon ripstop (water-repellent finish)
- Compressed size: 5.3 x 7.6 in (14 x 19 cm)
- Pocket Configuration: Two zippered hand pockets
Overall, the Plasma 1000 Alpine is an excellent ultralight down jacket. You get your money's worth, but the price definitely puts this in the “luxury” category of gear for me. The lightweight material does come at the cost of some durability, but with proper care, you will be able to get many miles of comfort and warmth out of this exceptional parka.
To see reviews on other ultralight sleeping pads, see our post on the best down jackets for thru-hiking.
Performance Test Results
What I Tested:
How I Tested:
I purchased a new Plasma 1000 Alpine Down Parka for a northbound Appalachian Trail thru-hike and used it from February to May on my hike. The jacket served as a means to keep warm during the late Winter and early Spring months on the trail.
I used it when walking around camp, as well as hiking and sleeping in it during a week-long stretch of below-freezing weather in Smokey Mountain National Park. As someone who runs hot, I sent the jacket home once summer hit, but I continue to utilize it for short spring and fall camping trips.
Warmth
The warmth of the Plasma 1000 Alpine cannot be understated. I have worn other jackets that take a minute to provide a sense of warmth. It takes seconds to feel cozy in this parka, which is a godsend when hiking in the winter or shoulder seasons. During the start of my AT hike, this was the perfect jacket to throw on while making camp or stopping for a meal.
During a particularly frosty hike through Smokey Mountain National Park, this parka was vital not only to my comfort but to my safety. There were two below-freezing nights where the jacket’s inability to let go of my body heat allowed me peace of mind, knowing that my core temperature would be safe and I would sleep well.
Weight
The Plasma 1000 Alpine is one of the lightest down jackets on the market. At just 8.4 oz, it joins the likes of Mountain Hardwear’s Ghost Whisperer and Arc’teryx’s Cerium Hoody in the single-digit oz club. Combined with its impressive 1000-fill power down, the warmth you get for the weight is arguably the best available.
When wearing it, the weight of the jacket is nearly imperceptible. I’ll never forget the reactions when passing the jacket around in its stuff sack to my non-hiking friends. They’d hold it, shake it a bit, and then ask if it was my pillow. This was always followed by a look of surprise on their faces when I pulled out a full-sized down jacket.
If 8.4 oz is still too heavy for you, Montbell has a lighter model simply called the Plasma 1000 (no “Alpine”). The Plasma 1000 is nearly half the weight of the Plasma 1000 Alpine at 4.8oz but also has half the fill weight.
Design
Like many other Montbell products, the Plasma 1000 Alpine utilizes a “skip-stitch” quilting pattern. This method aims to prevent the down from forming into clumps in the jacket. Clumping often results in a lumpier jacket or cold spots. The “skip-stitch” strikes a great balance of providing enough room for the down to hold heat without shifting around inside the jacket.
The water-repellent finish is good at protecting your down when hiking in humidity or on a socked-in mountain path. Thanks to the snug (but not too snug) fit, you can easily layer with this jacket. There were a number of frigid mornings on the AT where I wore my extra large raincoat over the top of my down jacket without a loss in comfort.
The entire jacket is made of a 7-denier Ballistic Airlight nylon ripstop. In other words, a very thin and lightweight material that is strong for its size. I repeat “for its size”. I experienced a rip in the material from the friction of rolling on my sleep pad when sleeping in the jacket.
This experience made me less inclined to wear the jacket when hiking, out of fear I would accidentally tear it again on the rougher sections of the AT. This, as you can imagine, kind of defeats the purpose of having a hiking jacket if you’re too nervous to wear it when hiking. That’s why I only use this jacket when at camp or on a day trip where I know I won’t be brushing past branches or scrambling up rocks.
Adjustability
This parka boasts a number of handy features for adjusting airflow. The 2-Way hood lets me set the hood further back during warmer days, while the drawcord can shrink the face opening when I need to minimize wind in my face. Montbell took great consideration into preventing air from getting in through the cuffs and hem.
The cuffs are elastic which I found to work well when pulled over my gloves, providing a snug fit that minimized cold air getting into my sleeves. My favorite feature by far is the pocket hem adjuster. Located inside each of the side pockets, the draw cord around the hem can be adjusted while my hands are safe and warm inside my pockets.
Price
Coming in at a whopping $479, this jacket is also one of the most expensive jackets targeted towards backpacking. It’s fair to say that this is a prohibitive price, especially for someone who is unsure if they will enjoy this style of jacket. My stance on the price boils down to two points:
- I feel that Montbell provides you with value for the cost. When considering the quality of materials, the impressive warmth, and the ultralight weight, this jacket is genuinely worth $479.
- As someone who does not have an unlimited budget: I would have rather purchased a slightly heavier and slightly colder jacket if it meant saving $100 or more dollars to spend on other gear.
If I could go back in time and purchase a different jacket, I would try out the lighter (and cheaper) Plasma 1000 or the budget-friendly Forclaz Trek 100 by Decathlon before springing for a luxury jacket like the Plasma 1000 Alpine.
Durability
For its weight, the ripstop nylon is very tough but it’s still a thin material and needs to be babied. After the night in the Smokies where I slept in the jacket, I awoke to an inch-long rip on the back. While I concede that the jacket probably wasn’t designed to be used as pajamas, it did make me conscious of the durability of ripstop nylon. Going forward I was gun shy about using the jacket for anything besides walking around camp.
I think this highlights a common example of ultralight gear. For a long-distance hike, I will gladly take the trade-off of less weight for a less durable garment. That said, it would be wrong of me to not mention that constantly having to baby your gear does take up some amount of mental bandwidth on a long hike.
650-Calorie Fuel
