I’m in TN and just went through this exercise to find a 20f-39f clothing setup. Explored down at first but shifted course and looked at synthetic puffy’s. In reality, days in those temps are not often for me (it about never stays in the 20’s all day) and addressing it, once I decided synthetic could do the job, wasn’t where I wanted to put $350+ dollars for down. Decided on Primaloft and wanted no less than 100gsm fill but more was better. First Lite read my mind and released the North Range puffy. It’s 133gsm of Primaloft Gold throughout (body and arms). Got it for $200 (pre shipping & tax) after 20% off.
It’s much more quiet than down. Synthetics don’t need the same (loud) shell material down uses to keep the down from eventually poking through and coming out. It’s not silent but 15+ yards out on a quiet day I’m confident I could draw a bow undetected. If I were really careful, probably less. To quiet it more, add wind proofing, and more warmth, I’ll layer it under a quiet, windproof soft shell. Something I needed for down as well. My KUIU Kutana rain jacket adds wind proofing but I’d only want to use that for rifle hunting. It’s not super loud but a little to loud for close range bow hunting (under 20 yards).
Haven’t proved this all out yet because it is still warm here. That changes tomorrow but I’ll be muzzy hunting, not bow, Two things that really help with warmth are dry base layers, dry socks, and a warm balaclava and hat. A real pain in the *** to be changing out before you climb but it makes a noticeable difference. I use a giant pack for whitetail hunting in the cold just so I can haul in the clothing with the saddle gear and other extras.
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