Canada Goose Men's Expedition Parka Coat

The Canada Goose Expedition is an absolutely outstanding parka, which obviously most reviewers agree on. There continues to be some question about two things; the appropriate size and how cold the weather needs to be to justify one.First, regarding size - I am 6' 0", 205 Lbs, and have a 43 inch chest, 35 inch waist, have a 35 inch sleeve length. Based on the size calculator on the Canada Goose site, I fall right in the Large category. Although I toyed with the idea of getting a medium based on some of the reviews here, I went with the Large and am very happy I did. The size calculator is dead on accurate. While I would certainly have been able to wear a medium, these parkas are designed to fit over other clothes (underwear AND heavy thermal fleece, etc). A medium would not have been large enough to do that without affecting the loft of the down in the parka somewhere, potentially creating a cold spot. For comparison, my wife has a CG Mystique parka which is regular-fit. Again, I bought the size the CG sizing chart recommended and it fit much more closely than the relaxed-fit Expedition fit me. She could wear lightweight fleece underneath it but not much more. That was the way these garments were designed. You can go down a size in relaxed-fit items like the Expedition, but they will NOT be relaxed fit anymore. All that said, while there is plenty of room inside the parka when I am only wearing a T-shirt underneath it, it does not fit like a tent.On to temperature. As the Canada Goose web site implies, there is no way to give an exact figure for temperature rating. What is comfortable for one person will be very warm or too cold for another. I live in Oregon, not Yakutsk, so one could easily argue this parka is epic overkill. I have worn it almost continuously since I received it for Christmas in 22-32 deg F (-5 - 0 deg C). In temperatures that warm, it is very comfortable standing still or walking at a modest pace on level terrain. Much warmer than 35 and I would have to unzip it. That is what I bought it for, however - standing around, watching winter sports outside. It would be uncomfortably warm to wear around the mall or even in temperatures down to the low 20's (F) if you're engaged in any significant activity. It is not a ski parka unless you regularly ski on Denali.Beyond those two things, I would agree with most of the other reviewers here that the finish of the garment is absolutely exemplary. There are plenty of internal and external pockets to keep gear, with two of the outside ones fleeced in case you need to keep an ungloved hand warm (photographer). The ergonomics of the fleeced pockets are not perfect; the upper pockets are a bit too high and the lower pocket entry is horizontal rather than angled, which would be more comfortable. Those are minor points, however.Amazon is an authorized dealer for Canada Goose according to the CG verification tool and their handling of the order was the customary great service you expect from Amazon. My only critique is that the description of the parka for the Large in Graphite gray indicated that the hood is removable. This is a feature only available on the PBI versions of their parkas, and apparently not easy to get. My parka did NOT come with the removable hood, which was a bummer, but not wholly unexpected. If you see one advertised claiming the hood is removable, and that is important to you, make sure you check into it with Amazon before buying.

I brought my Expedition and my Arc'teryx Camosun.Both jackets I bought on Amazon.It was 30 degrees and snowing when I went for a walk down the Magnificent Mile toward the Chicago River on Sunday, December 1st.I walked outside my hotel a few blocks down from Michigan Ave and my Arc'teryx felt a little cool along the zipper line.That was enough excuse to go back up and grab my Expedition.My Expedition was the best coat for the job. The only complaint is that zipper!The zipper is almost a dealbreaker!If you go inside anywhere, you have to take the jacket completely off! It is the hottest jacket I've ever worn.Perfect outside with 30 and below.The Arc'teryx warmed up along the zipper and was probably the best jacket all around, especially for walking in the Chicago cold. There was no rush to take it off when I walked into the hotel lobby.I'm an outdoor junkie. I have the Columbia Heatzone 1000 which probably would have got the job done until that wind off the lake came through.Then the Camosun and the Expedition would be the best jackets for the job.My wife wore a 800 downfill windproof waterproof Eddie Bauer BC Downlight rated to -25 f (Eddie Bauer invented the goosedown jacket).She said it was perfect. I have the same jacket and that's the jacket I wear everyday in Los Angeles.I didn't bring it because I didn't think the shell would be tough enough for the Chicago hawk, but it was.People everywhere were wearing Canada Goose jackets and Montclers.They are fashion statements in Chicago where there is also a Canada Goose store.There are no Canada Goose stores in Los Angeles where it doesn't get colder than 38 to 39. It can get down to 25 in Palmdale Lancaster, Los Angeles county and down to 10-11in Big Bear and Lake Arrowhead.There is a Montcler and Arc'teryx store. In Beverly Hills, all you see is Montclers.If you live Minnesota, Wisconsin, Chicago, Grand Rapids, New England, get the Expedition.If you live anywhere else, the Arc'teryx Camosun and the Eddie Bauer BC Downlight will do, both you can buy on Amazon.

I purchased this parka in advance of a trip to Northern Greenland (above 75ºN Latitude) in late winter/early spring. Temperatures were a balmy -5ºF (-20ºC) without windchill, down to -20ºF (-29ºC) with wind added in; nothing penetrated this coat. The hood alone is amazing: With the hood down I could feel the cold very easily even with a balaclava on, but just pulling the hood forward instantly cut off any chilling and the down had my nugget toasty within a minute. With light base and midlayers I was cooking with only moderate activity, and could stand around outside for hours without feeling any cold under the parka.Pockets are capacious and well distributed for hand warming and stashing kit, and the jacket has a very useful 2-way zipper (nice when you're riding in a vehicle) and waist adjustments. The fur ruff is not removable on this model.One thing worth noting is that the smaller parkas seem to run a bit on the large side. At 5'9", 155lbs, athletic build, I swim in a small, even with a light down midlayer and the waist adjustments cinched pretty tightly. Sleeve length was about right: a friend with similar build proportionally but around 6'2" found the sleeves on a small parka a bit short, and so sized up with similair results in terms of bulk. Either way this is less a fashion item than a functional, working parka - if you want a Canada Goose parka for wearing around town as a fashion statement go for one of their less-well-insulated, more tapered designs, which will still keep you warm enough in civilization without the extra bulk. If you want a parka that will keep you warm for hours standing around on a glacier above the arctic circle, this will definitely do the job.