One item lacking from my kit is a windshirt. The leader for my trip into the African bush also insists that all clothing items are a variant of tradition "safari" colors (earthy greens, khakis, tans). All other colors, including blacks, are not allowed.

With that in mind, I have been looking for a good windshirt in "earthy" colors. However, I have had considerable amounts of trouble finding any. I did run across a windshirt that Propper suppliers for the military and it is currently on sale:
Propper windshirt

Does anyone have experience with this garment? Also, does anyone have any suggestions that could fulfill my color criteria? (I'm a size Medium as well)

Edited by TWard on 02/16/2011 19:02:42 MST.

patagonia houdini in alpha green

+1 on the Patagonia Houdini, think the same green is still on sale.

I had experience with Propper garments and, while OK, not in the same league as Patagonia quality-wise.

That was my first choice, but I can't for the life of me find it in a size medium anywhere

The patagonia houdini in the alpha green would have been my first choice as well, but I only see it in XL...

You should also check out the Montane Featherlite Wind Smock that comes in olive and burnt orange. No hood though...

There's also the Piragis Windshirt. I've thought about getting one of these, but I lean more towards non-earth tones. No weight listed on that page, but in the paper catalog I originally saw it in it was listed as 5 oz. Let us know if you try it out!

Not the lightest choice, but the Wild Things EPIC Hooded Windshirt (they also do a hoodless, half-zip version) might be worth considering, depending on the general conditions you expect. EPIC polyester is not as breathable as some windshirt materials but it is tremendously tough and very weather resistant, making it a very versatile choice as a general jacket too. My XL version weighs 332g, partly because of the very heavy zips they chose to use, and is a subdued light brown listed as "Coyote".

There's a good review over on BackpackGearTest.

Availability may be an issue, as the Wild Things site currently has a place holder explaining that the civilian range is being radically changed and coming soon, but retailers such as Bradley Alpinist have them listed.

Edited by bigjackbrass on 02/17/2011 06:22:10 MST.

How about the Pagagonia Nine Trails Jacket? Looks like it weighs just under 5 ounces and is considered a wind shirt. It has a light DWR finish to the fabric as well. I've heard it's like a hoodless, more breathable houdini but I have no firsthand experience.

Most of the offered colors are bright but Patagonia appears to offer it in a "fog" color, like a really light gray.

this is blackish, but the translucent factor of it may earn you a pass...

http://www.zpacks.com/accessories/cloudcape.shtml

I would definitely prefer having a hood and some breathability. I noticed the Montane Lite-speed which looks like a hooded version of the featherlite wind smock. From a few pictures and comments it seems the graphite/black is more of a brown so I may go with that.

The Wild things windshirt looks like it could also is promising. I did see the decline in breathability with Epic being the fabric, but I could also potentially leave behind a rain shell (since the possibility of rain is essentially nil).

Thanks guys for the input.