The Town Shirt Company Scarlet Tanager Hoody is a mid-weight grid fleece hoody that’s great for cold-weather hiking and hanging out in camp on chilly evenings. In addition to comfort, it has thermoregulation features that let you fine-tune your warmth level, including an adjustable hood, quarter zip, thumb loops, and a kangaroo pocket. It’s long enough to be worn under a hipbelt without riding up but is just short enough to be a mid-layer under most rain jackets.

• Type: 1/4 Zip Hoody
• Gender: Unisex
• Colors: Red and Black (only)
• Polyester Grid Fleece Weight: 210g/m2
• Fit: True to size
• Weight: 16.1 oz (size large)
• Price: $95

The Scarlet Tanager Pullover is red and black. Those are the only colors in which this hoody is available, which is named after the Scarlet Tanager, a songbird that is a member of the cardinal family. The sizing is Unisex and runs to the waist, making it suitable for use under most rain jackets. If you have to hike in the rain, you want to avoid mid-layer garments that run below the hem of your jacket because they’ll be soaked by the water that runs off it.

The Scarlet Tanager has an adjustable hood with neck controls and is made with two layers of fabric for extra warmth. With its neck controls, you can adjust the hood opening size for extra warmth, which is good on cold mornings or when sleeping under a quilt. The side neck cords are a bit large, but they’re perfectly functional.  The chest has a 1/4 length zip in front, which is often missing on hoodies from other brands, but gives the Tanager a much wider range since you can vent it if you start to overheat.

I can get my hands into the kangaroo pocket while wearing a backpack

The arms have thumb loops at the wrists, which help prevent the sleeves from riding up when you pull a shell layer over them and provide extra warmth by covering your wrists. There’s also a kangaroo pocket on the front that you can put your hands into for additional warmth if they’re not holding trekking poles. When wearing a backpack hip belt, I can get my hands into the kangaroo pocket, which is a big win for cold hands. I can’t guarantee that this will work with all backpacks but I’ve tried it with a few of the packs in my gear closet from Zpacks, Granite Gear, REI, and ULA, and I can get my hands into the pocket with all of them..

While grid fleece is prized for its breathability, the weight of the fleece used in the Tanager Hoody places this garment solidly in the mid-layer range, emphasizing warmth more than ventilation. This hoody is so warm I can wear it for winter hiking by itself over a base layer on a sunny day, but I’d be hesitant to take it on a summer trip because it’d be too warm and heavy, weighing just over a pound in a size large. You’d probably want to switch to a sun hoody or an ultralight fleece in those conditions to save weight anyway. But for winter hiking and cooler shoulder season weather, the Town Shirt Scarlet Tanager Hoody is a winner. And for $95, it’s very reasonably priced too.

Disclosure: Town Shirt donated a hoody for review.

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