I love gear and gear talk.
I just bought one of the aforementioned Patagonia sweaters (Special Edition, 900 fill) on Ebay. I wear down under my shell if it is windy or rainy, so I went the small size route. Less volume and weight to carry! For me, (1) base layer, (2) fleece layer, (3) down sweater layer, and (4) uninsulated, gore-tex shell will handle any weather condition that I am likely to encounter, but they have to fit in that order, like those nesting Russian dolls. But I don't do hard core winter mountaineering ... yet .... I just don't like to get cold in the evenings at camp.
And I can't believe I did this, but I just bought my first set of mountaineering boots, Scarpa Charmoz GTX, great price off sierratradingpost.com. Need something crampon compatible for Shasta.... And here I thought hiking/backpacking was the cheaper alternative to hotel vacations...
