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Our Verdict
Legendary Whitetails no longer makes the Anchorage Parka.
The Legendary Whitetails Anchorage Parka is a popular jacket for a reasonable price. The Anchorage Parka is stylish and kept us relatively warm, but it lacks lofty insulation for days when temperatures drop below freezing. Compared to the Marmot Montreaux or the North Face Gotham II Hooded Down Jacket, this contender did not compare. Despite not being the warmest in our fleet, we were impressed with how stylish it was. It reached just above the knee and is loaded with elegant details, like a faux fur ruff around the hood, a smooth exterior, placket snaps on the back, and pockets. The qualities of these features weren't as good as our Editors' Choice, the Canada Goose Kensington Parka, but the Legendary Whitetails Anchorage Parka was dramatically cheaper — $765 cheaper.
Our Analysis and Test Results
Unlike any other jacket we tested, the Legendary Whitetails is insulated with a woven polyester blend. It's not the warmest jacket in our fleet by any means, but it's highly stylish with a faux fur ruff around the hood, and faux leather straps on the back. There is only one color to choose from, Army Green, but from the reviews, people seem to like it!
Performance Comparison
For being one of the cheapest jackets we tested, we were impressed with this jacket's stylish look. Insulated with a woven polyester blend, this jacket reached mid-thigh. Though it's not intended for super cold temperatures or heavy winter weather, we still enjoyed wearing this jacket in the right environment.
Credit: Bevan Waite
Warmth
The Whitetails is insulated with a woven polyester blend and did a moderately decent job of keeping us warm when temperatures hit almost freezing. Despite not being overloaded with down or synthetic insulation, we were relatively impressed with how warm we stayed. It wasn't as warm as The North Face Arctic Down Parka II or The North Face Metropolis Down Parka II, but the durable, windproof exterior helped nip cold winds and snowy weather in the butt.
The hood was a good size. We thought it was almost too big, but it's adjustable (as well as detachable). There was ample room to fit a beanie underneath it, as well.
Credit: Bevan Waite
The interior of the jacket has a cozy and soft quilted lining. In cold weather, it was nice to put something on with a plush and warm interior instead of the cold nylon lining most of the jackets. The hood fits well and is moderately insulated; the faux fur around the hood isn't super full like the Canada Goose Shelburne Down Parka or the Fjallraven Nuuk Insulated Parka. Ultimately, we could feel the difference in cold windy, weather when wearing the faux fur ruff hood on the Whitetails Anchorage.
There are five exterior pockets on this jacket, but none of them have any sort of insulation. Great for storing stuff, but not so great for keeping our hands warm. Don't forget your gloves!
Credit: Bevan Waite
Unfortunately, soft, warm liners in the pockets and insulation do not exist in this model. Our hands weren't warm at all when in the pockets. We recommend gloves if you plan on staying outside for an extended period.
This jacket has tons of pockets on the exterior, which we love, but they aren't insulated or lined with any kind of soft, cozy materials.
Credit: Bevan Waite
Weather Resistance
The polyester fabric has a water-resistant coating but is not waterproof, affecting the Whitetail's score in weather resistance, earning it the lowest score in the fleet. Fortunately, the polyester material on the exterior of the jacket is more windproof than the Patagonia Fiona Down Parka and the Columbia Heavenly, but didn't hold up as well as the North Face Arrowood Triclimate Jacket. For the best of the best when it comes to wet weather, we like the Patagonia Tres.
One of the least water-resistant jackets we tested, the Anchorage Parka isn't a jacket we would recommend for wet weather.
Credit: Liz Williamson
Style
Visually, the Whitetails Anchorage is stylish and appealing. It's more form-fitting than The North Face Arctic Down Parka II, but not as much as the Canada Goose Kensington Parka. It has a completely different look than a traditional "puffy" style winter jacket like the Rab Deep Cover Parka or Marmot Montreaux. The style is almost comparable to the Kuhl Arktik Down Parka but at half the price and craftsmanship.
Shown here is one of the five stylish pockets on the exterior of the jacket. This model is a blend of a classic winter parka mixed with a little bit of an army look.
Credit: Bevan Waite
The exterior polyester material has a smooth and clean look. Complete with exposed zipper pockets on the sleeve, a faux fur ruff around the hood, and faux leather straps secured with placket snaps on the back this model has an industrial winter parka look and feel.
Faux leather straps on the back of the jacket give it an even more fashionable look. These didn't serve any purpose besides looking cute. We forsee people either loving or hating them.
Credit: Bevan Waite
Comfort
When we were putting on the jacket, the outer part of the cuffs were extremely tight, almost to the point of making the jacket uncomfortable. If this concerns you, considering buying this jacket in the store. The Whitetails insulated with down like The North Face Metropolis Down Parka II, or as long as that jacket, so we found it easier to move around in. The inside is lined with a warm, cozy, soft lining, and we enjoyed putting this jacket on with its cozy liner instead of a jacket with a cold nylon or polyester liner.
We loved how cozy the inside of this jacket is. It was so nice to put on before going outside in the cold. We noticed that the nylon or polyester lining of some jackets was cold initially before we generated enough heat to warm them up. This fuzzy lining allowed us to keep our core temperatures up when we went outside.
Credit: Bevan Waite
Features
The main feature of this jacket, though not necessarily a feature, is its low price; and, for the price, this jacket delivers a good amount of features. It has an okay water-resistant outer shell, but it's better at blocking cold winds than the Columbia Heavenly. The faux fur ruff did a better job of keeping our face warm, compared to a model that didn't have a faux fur around the hood, like the Patagonia Fiona Down Parka, but it was as lofty or soft as the real fur ruff on the Canada Goose Shelburne.
There are five exterior pockets: one on the sleeve with a zipper, two on the chest with zippers, and two on the front of the coat by the waist. There's also one that folds over with a button snap to secure it, and one on the side that has no zipper or button snap. The pockets at our waist were positioned at a weird angle that made them seem somewhat shallow despite being so big. The pockets also aren't lined with any warm, cozy nylon material.
Durability
The polyester material on the outside of the jacket held up well over the months of testing, but keep in mind that it's water-resistant, not waterproof, and it won't keep you warm or dry after an extended period in wet weather. We like The North Face Arctic Parka Down II, Patagonia Tres, the Arc'teryx Patera or the Fjallraven Nuuk Insulated Parka as something more waterproof and durable.
The polyester material on the outside of the jacket is pretty durable, and we were impressed with how it held up during the two month testing period. It wasn't as durable as the outer Gore-tex shell on The North Face Arctic Parka II, but it still did a decent job.
Credit: Bevan Waite
Best Application
The Whitetails Legendary is a solid winter jacket for someone living in cold and dry winter climates versus wet and mild ones. When paired with a warm layer underneath, it performs well in colder temperatures and bested the Columbia Heavenly and Patagonia Fiona Down Parka. If you are in the market for a seriously warm winter jacket, opt for the Marmot Montreaux.
Value
With a price tag of $129, this jacket won't break the bank. You won't see the quality and craftsmanship like the Canada Goose Kensington Down or the Shelburne Down Parka has, but for a price of $129, we don't think you will be complaining. If you are looking to save money and are interested in a jacket that's more durable and water-resistant, check out the Eddie Bauer Sun Valley Down Jacket.
Conclusion
It was far from the warmest or water-resistant jacket we tested, but the price tag is $129. With the exception of not being that water-resistant, it scored well across the board. The North Face Arctic Down Parka II is similar, and it has a durable outer waterproof shell and comfy down on the inside.
GearLab is founded on the principle of honest, objective, reviews. Our experts test thousands of products each year using thoughtful test plans that bring out key performance differences between competing products. And, to assure complete independence, we buy all the products we test ourselves. No cherry-picked units sent by manufacturers. No sponsored content. No ads. Just real, honest, side-by-side testing and comparison.
