A flattering, feminine fit, 700-fill down insulation, and a water-repellant treatment makes the Eddie Bauer First Ascent Downlines Jacket great for everything from frigid, mid-winter temps to a wet, chilly spring night out on the town.
The Overview
Warmth and cuteness don’t always go hand in hand, but Eddie Bauer’s First Ascent Downlines Jacket manages to sneak a feminine cut and some technical performance all into one piece. A tapered waist makes this jacket look good on any body type, plus weather sealed seams and water-repellent finish beads up any precipitation, preventing the European goose down from becoming a heavy, wet mess.
The Test
Since this jacket is made to be both warm and water repellant, I naturally had to test it out on cold days and wet days. I can truthfully report that this jacket is indeed warm and it is water repellent. On a cold—single digits— day back in February of 2013 I was warm and toasty all day, in fact a little too toasty at certain points. When I walked the five blocks from my house to the Silver Queen Gondola on Aspen Mountian, I definitely noticed a heat build up. But, the pit zips allowed me to regulate my temperature quite well.
I was able to observe the jacket’s performance on a very deep powder day at Vail very recently. The snow was a bit wet and heavy by Colorado standards, ensuring that the jacket’s water repellent capabilities were pushed to the max. The Eddie Bauer Downlines Jacket kept moisture at bay and allowed me to enjoy the powder all day. I also appreciated the higher collar to keep snow out while getting face shots. The adjustable powder skirt was a nice touch, since you can snap in into the jacket for non-powder days and pop it out for those deep days.
That being said, I did have one very, very big complaint. No powder cuffs in the sleeves! And the sleeves were way too short. I kept getting snow up my sleeves and in my mittens. In my opinion, if you’re going to add a powder skirt to a jacket, you should probably add powder cuffs, since the jacket is obviously intended for ladies looking to get a little radical in the pow-pow. Plus if the sleeves are going to be on the shorter side, the powder cuffs would prevent the unpleasant occurrence of snow in places you don’t want it to be.
Rating
3 (out of 5)
Design: It’s hard to overlook the sleeve length and absence of a powder cuff, especially when a lot of thought clearly went into the adjustable powder skirt. +0
Style: I’ll say it again, the feminine fit does wonders for any female body, plus the diamond stitching adds a nice touch. However when zipped up the hood looked quite strange, sort of like an elongated alien head. I believe this is because the collar was a bit too small and constricting for that shape. +.6
Durability: I wore this jacket for a solid two weeks total, and sent it through the washing machine (with Nikwax Down Wash, of course) and saw no deterioration. +1
Performance: While this jacket excels in cold weather, and also stands up to precipitation, the issue of the powder cuff would certainly make me think twice about wearing this on a powder day again. +.4
Comfort: Fleece lining along the collar prevents neck and chin chafing. And who doesn’t like to be warm and dry? +1
Buy First Ascent Downlines Jacket on Sale!
First Ascent athlete Lynsey Dyer preview’s the Downline Jacket.
