Yah - the people here in the high desert have no idea what cold really is. The thought of a down trenchcoat just doesn't even compute.

My wife did a winter in St John Newfoundland in grad school. She learned quickly that "this isn't Fort Collins CO anymore!".

I lived in MN for four years, I know what cold is…

Holy Mackinaw!

I have the medium duffel. $400 is a lot of money for a duffel, and they are worth it. I think I could fill it with gold bars and take it on a trip. Of course, I would need to lift it with a crane but I'm pretty sure the strap would hold. And I have one of their oiled "tin cloth" jackets. They say with their Cruiser jacket and a pair of matching tin cloth pants, one could walk through the nastiest brush feeling invincible.

That is exactly what Cruisers do for a living. For those not from timber industry country, a "Cruiser" is the guy who walks through a timber stand up for bid. His job is to calculate the board footage the stand could yield. Depending on the scale of the sale, could be $ millions at stake on his report. A skilled cruiser is worth every nickel of his nice pay level.

Thus, the name of the "cruiser" jacket...

Yup. I grew up in a logging town. We have other occupations also. We have "Hookers." ;)

I have an old Filson Cruiser from the late 40's (?). The tag says "Fil-Clothes, for the man who knows".

I also have the chaps for upland hunting and a waterfowl coat. For really cold weather I have an old Army parka with liner and fur trimmed hood.

A guy walked into the Filson store in Seattle and placed an old Cruiser on the desk, asking for repair. Every Filson item ever sold has a forever warranty, even against wear. They looked it over and noticed it was one of the first ever sold. More than 100 years old. They wanted to keep it for display and offered the gentleman $500, plus any jacket in the store. The gentleman chose to have it repaired.