I received the Hi-Tec Sandstone Peak Parka (I will refer to it as the parka throughout the review) a few days after Christmas and was very excited about Santa delivering a present via Fed-Ex after he made his rounds. I pulled the parka out of the box and my first impression was this is a nice, lightweight parka. I chose the Petrol / Charcoal color to test and I do like the color combination.
Below in italics are the features of the parka taken from the website.
- Features
- -Outer shell is a two-layer 75D*150D Polyester Ripstop with Dri-Tec for full waterproofing without the weight
- -100% Polyester lining with Wicking Mesh provides a comfortable fit and feel
- -Liner is the Alpine Start Parka and is a removable down jacket featuring a 550 fill power to keep you warm
- -Adjustable and removeable storm hood on outer shell which rolls up for quick storage
- -2 hand warmers and 2 exterior chest pockets protect your valuables
- -Interior security pocket with headphone cord loop provides a safe place to store your tunes
- -Single hand drawcord doe on the fly adjustment
The shell is a two layer 75D x 150D polyester ripstop. The outside layer is 100% polyester with a 100% nylon lining on the inside. There is also a mesh lining on the inside that is 100% polyester. All the seams are fully sealed and it is waterproof and breathable. There are two exterior chest pockets that are large enough for a smart phone or a GPS and two handwarmer pockets that zip closed that my whole hand easily fits in. On the inside of the liner there is pocket that will fit a smart phone and it has a small slit in it for your headphone cord. There is also a draw string at the bottom to tighten the shell at the bottom. The sleeves have Velcro at the bottom to allow you to snug them tight on your wrist to keep wind out. The zipper looks and feels very sturdy. Once zipped, there is a flap that Velcro’s down to keep wind and rain out. The shell has an adjustable, removable, roll up storm hood. The shell on this parka is designed very well to keep the wind and rain out but made to be breathable.
Velcro Flap to keep wind out
Everything but your eyes are protected.
Insert easily zips onto shell. Large inside pocket in the shell.
The parka also has a nice removable down jacket insert with 550 fill power that easily zips onto the shell and attaches at the sleeves. The shell and liner of the insert are 100% polyester and the insulation is 70/30 duck down. It has two outside handwarmer pockets that zip closed and two inside pockets that do not zip closed but are large enough to put a smart phone and small gear in.
Large inside pocket
Loop to attach to the inside of the shell and Velcro at the bottom of the sleeves to keep air out.
I am testing a large parka. I am 6’3” 185 pounds and my wife says it is the best fitting jacket I own. I have had an opportunity to use the parka out in the field. My son and I did a 20 mile hike a couple of days ago in theCongareeNational ParknearColumbia,SC. The temperature was 25 degrees when we started. I had a base wicking layer, a flannel shirt and the shell of the parka (I took the insert out). I carried a day hydration pack. My hands and face were a little cool but my upper body was plenty warm. I kept the parka on until mile 11 when the temperature warmed up to the mid 40’s. The parka rolled up nicely so I could put it inside my hydration pack.
Several strings on insert and shell like this.
Shell rolls up nicely to fit in a day pack.
There were a couple of strings hanging off the parka when I received it that I thought should have been removed before it was packaged up but they appear to be cosmetic only and not affecting the integrity of the parka so I just cut them off with a pair of scissors. Other than that I am very impressed with the parka the short time I have had it and look forward to using it more this winter. I hope we get some rain soon so I can see how it does in the rain. More to come in about a month.
Update 2/14/2012
Come rain, come snow, come cold, come wind, the Hi-Tec Sandstone Peak Parka will keep you dry and warm. I have been out in everything Mother Nature can throw at me over the past month or so and the parka has yet to be anything but impressive. I have worn it almost every day since I have received it. Being in the south, I have not had to wear both the shell and the down liner together except for one time but have worn one or the other almost every day.
Living in the upstate of South Carolina we are fortunate to have good weather almost all year round. Normally in the winter, the highs are in the mid 50’s F and the lows in the mid 30’s F. Because of the nice temperatures I usually just wear the shell and a couple of light layers underneath it for my every day wear. It keeps me warm enough even if I’m not doing anything other than standing around and talking. The parka has kept me dry in the heaviest of rain. I have worn it out in downpours and I pull the storm hood over my head, tighten up the Velcro sleeve and zip up the parka all the way and the rain stays out. The only bad part is the rain drips down onto my pants and my legs get wet. I wish Hy-Tec offered rain pants to test. I have worn the down liner on cool nights and have had several compliments on how nice it looks. It is super warm and very comfortable. I wish we had more cold weather so I could wear it more.
I recently took my younger two boys fishing. It was a sunny day in the low 50’s F with a 10 – 15 mph wind out of the west. We loaded up the boat with our fishing gear. I put snacks in all the pockets that are on the parka and stuck my phone in one of the chest pockets and we were off. The wind always seems stronger and colder when I am on water and that day was no exception. I tightened the sleeves, zipped up my parka and I was very comfortable. The jacket fits nice and it was very comfortable to fish in. I never had issues with the parka feeling tight when I was casting whether I did an overhead cast or a side cast. I don’t know how many of you have ever fished with an 8 and 10 years old but no matter how careful you tell them to be you are going to get wet. I really don’t know how it happens. Luckily, the parka kept me totally dry even though there was water in the boat and my boys were wet. Unfortunately we did not catch anything but we had a great time being out on the water together.
Fishing with my boys
Recently on a business trip I was going through the mountains and the Appalachian Trail crossed the road I was on. It was snowing and near lunch time so I decided I would pull over and go on a hike. I always pack gear in my car for this kind of occasion. I changed in the car and was off. It was 26 degrees F and there was a brisk wind. I had on a base layer, a mid layer, a flannel pull over and the parka shell. For a South Carolina boy it seemed like a blizzard but many of you would probably disagree. I hiked for about 45 minutes and was exposed to the elements the whole time. The parka shed all the snow and kept me warm and dry. Again, it would have been nice to have pants that were made as good as the parka.
Nice hike on the AT. Parka kept me warm and dry
The parka is very easy to clean. I slipped in the mud one day while wearing my parka and my whole left sleeve was muddy. I did not remove the mud right away and let it dry so I could see how easy it would be to clean. After it dried, I took a damp washcloth to the sleeve and the mud came right off. I cannot see anywhere where the mud was.
So far I am impressed with how well the Hi-Tec Sandstone Peak Parka performs in the field and as an everyday parka. I have not had any issues with it to date and the only problem I have found with it is the previously mentioned strings that hang off the parka around zippers. I look forward to wearing the parka on a daily basis. More to come in about a month.
Final Review 3/26/2012
I am glad I got the Hi-Tec Sandstone Peak Parka when I did because like a lot of the country, here in South Carolina, we jumped into early summer. For the past two weeks we have been very warm and dry so I have not needed the parka at all. Luckily, I did get some use out of it since my last review and it was exactly what I needed on a camping trip a few weeks back.
I went on an overnight camping trip with my sons scout troop that included a 7 mile hike. We went up to Table Rock State Park which is a very popular park in the upstate of South Carolina. It has numerous trails and since the sky was crystal clear that day we decided to hike to the top because we knew the views would be spectacular. The hike has a 2000 foot elevation gain so we knew the weather would be different at the top than it was on the bottom. The temperature at the bottom at 8 AM when we started was 42 degrees F with light winds. They were forecasting the high temperature to be in the mid 50’s F and high winds later in the day. I decided I would leave the down insert in my truck and go with two layers under my parka. The beginning of the hike follows a beautiful stream so the temperature stayed cool but I was very comfortable with the parka and 2 base layers. Once the trail split and we didn’t follow the river, it started getting warmer. I started off just unzipping the parka and that worked for a little while but it then got too warm so I removed it and it easily stuffed in my day hydration pack. As we continued up the mountain and got on the west side of it the wind really picked up. They predicted 30 + mph winds and I know it was every bit of that. It was blowing the boys all around. It turned very cold very quick so I pulled the parka out of my pack and put it back on. I tightened up the sleeves around my gloves with the Velcro straps, zipped it up, closed the front flap and put on the hood. Once I did that, I was plenty warm and continued up the mountain. I kept the parka on the rest of the hike and was comfortable the rest of the way up. Once we were at the top, we were rewarded with the best views I think I have ever seen from up there. It was so clear, we could see for miles. I wore the parka on the decent until we got to the other side of the mountain and the wind was blocked. I again took off the parka and put it in my day pack and left it there until we got to set up camp.
Sandstone Parka very comfortable on my hike
My son and I were rewarded with a beautiful view.
We are out of your way.
A view from the bottom of where we were.
Once we got the campsite set up, it started to cool off again so I put the parka back on. I was comfortable and kept it on until I went to bed. The temperatures dropped down to 27 degrees F so I knew I would need my whole arsenal for the morning. When I got up early the next morning it was very cold. I put on my base layers then the down insert and the parka. I went out of my tent and felt the cold on my face but felt quite warm with all my layers on. The down jacket insert really adds a layer of warmth that I definitely needed that morning.
Other than the camping trip I have only needed the parka a few times since my last review. Once when we had a big rainstorm for a couple of days and a couple of times on cool mornings. The parka continues to come through and keep me warm and dry. I don’t have any complaints with the Hi-Tec Sandstone Peak Parka other than the before mentioned strings hanging off the seams. They don’t seem to affect the integrity or quality of the parka, they just look bad and I have since cut them off.
My opinion is the Hi-Tec Sandstone Peak Parka is a high quality parka and down jacket made to keep you warm and dry in just about anything that Mother Nature can throw at you. I plan to wear the parka on rainy days and look forward to next winter so I can wear the down jacket insert. Thank you Hi-Tec for providing the Sandstone Peak Parka for me to test and 4AllOutdoors for the opportunity.
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