Hunting gear

You also have to define what you mean for "success" Those of you out hunting the biggest, baddest, oldest, and wisest animals will need every advantage you can get. I look for the dumb ones that I can hunt while wearing high visibility gear and not sitting very still

:) I was once chasing a flock of turkeys while wearing full out high visibility running gear because they were standing in my front yard when I came back from a run during spring turkey season. I went inside to grab my shotgun and they were just taking their time leaving. For the record turkeys can run pretty quickly but I did manage to run them down (ok I managed to loop in front of them) and got one. It was not the wisest of the flock.

I'm improving the herd genetics :)
 
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In addition to things already said, a comfortable place to set, if you can be comfortable you can stay longer. Also the hot hand/feet things are good, a thermal wrap thing for you back is a wonderful thing in the cold.
 
cold

Depending on where you are in VA, it could be dang cold in deer season. Somewhere at elevation in the Blue Ridge could be well below freezing, with significant wind to boot.

One of my favorite hunting apparel items are USGI wool pants, from the Korean war era, usually labeled Trouser, field , wool, M1951. There is also a shirt to match, but I do not have any of those. The pants are easier to find in the small and med sizes, not a lot of L and XL. Mine have worn like iron for decades, extremely rugged and usually found very cheap. Check on ebay, and an Army surplus joint may have a few pairs still too. If you can get them large enough to wear a pair of poly-fleece pants beneath when needed, you will have a very warm set up. for the bottom half of your clothing.

Another item I like is the wool commando sweater (not the acrylic version). I bought mine at a second hand goods store. The only drawback is that it does not unzip to cool off when exerting. I also like a zipped polyfleece hoodie, you can get something like that about anyplace that sells outdoor clothing.

I get a lot of use out of a USGI parka shell, usually labeled; Parka, extreme cold weather.....but I just use the shell, there is a liner made for it, but I do not need it as far south as I live. The shell is big enough it can go over any jacket I might wear, or I can wear it alone with the hoodie or commando sweater beneath.

I wear felt lined shoe pacs, rubber bottoms, leather uppers ....Sorels,..... in cold weather, the kind like folks wore in the 1960-70's. Sorel still makes'em, and there is nothing warmer. But they are expensive. When temps are above freezing, say 40 degrees , I wear either insulated or uninsulated rubber boots, some times I buy them at Walmart...but they generally only last a season, at about $35.00 a pair for the uninsulated versions, a bit more for the insulated ones.

Avoid cotton clothes for any type of cool weather outdoor wear. I heard one search and rescue trainer call cotton "death cloth". Jeans would be about the worst example of trousers to wear for warmth in cold/wet weather as an example.
 
A lot of people do not have reasonable attire to sit in the woods in the bitter cold and still be able to move.
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After thinking about this for a bit, I do believe that you are right, Sir.

People nearly always filter a problem through their own experiences ...... to those of us that basically grew up outdoors, or for those that have spent a good portion of their working adult life outside ...... having those clothes and dressing in them appropriately for the anticipated weather is second nature ..... and then I look at my own teenage son, who insists on wearing basketball shorts and a t-shirt, even in the winter in a full blown blizzard ...... he's got warm clothes ..... just believes he won't need them- he'll only be outside for a few minutes........
 
Yeh - you wouldn't believe the clothing some people are wearing in the middle of winter when you show up in a tow truck. They are rather happy to get inside and wait. Of course then they crank the heater up to high and those of us dressed to be able to cope with the weather (at least for awhile) get to hop into a truck that is then WAY to hot.

We have, as a whole, taken for granted our climate control systems and many of us do not dress for the extreme weather we may be travelling in. It ends up with many people not having the proper attire.

I'm sure the people down south look at those of us in Michigan and the like and go "what idiot lives in those climates" For the record those of us in Michigan look at the Minnesota temperatures and say much the same thing in the winter.
 
I'm sure the people down south look at those of us in Michigan and the like and go "what idiot lives in those climates" For the record those of us in Michigan look at the Minnesota temperatures and say much the same thing in the winter.
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I'm in eastern Nebraska, but grew up in the much dryer west end of the state....... and I look at the people that live in the deep South and East and wonder how they don't drown in the summer, just breathing...... in the cold, you can always add layers ...... when it's hot and dry, you can always drink water and sweat ...... when it's hot and so humid that sweat doesn't evaporate much ...... what then? Estivate?
 
An orange poncho is something I always carry. Keeping dry comes first.
Good rubber boots with boot liners and wool socks.
The rest you can buy at Goodwill.
 
In all the posts I have read about this subject Buzzcook is the one that hit the nail on the head, rubber doesnt need to be waterproofed and in todays footwear world they make some great comfortable rubber boots for both warm and cold weather!
 
in todays footwear world they make some great comfortable rubber boots for both warm and cold weather!
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I've never seen rubber boots that were comfortable to walk in ..... and if you walk very far, especially if you are carrying anything, your feet will perspire enough that they become damp....... and then cold when you sit down....... "Water-Proof" does not breathe..... if it does not breathe, it'll keep your own sweat inside.

Wet feet are the first step to misery. They don't even have to be cold....... warm wet feet will prune up and the skin split, too.
 
A good compass might keep you from taking the long way back to camp. I always carry a reliable fire starter and a map as well.
 
A good compass might keep you from taking the long way back to camp. I always carry a reliable fire starter and a map as well.
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I have used a compass to find my stand in the dark: the stand is on the other side of a heavily wooded creek, and there's one easy place through/across it, and it's 1/2 mile across an empty field from where one can park...... I found that if I follow a bearing taken in daylight from a landmark on the edge of the field where I park, I can hit that crossing on the creek pretty reliably in the dark.
 
Hey Jimbob, Try putting some reflector pins in a few trees, they light the way when hit with a flashlight and very unnoticeable in daylight
 
For cold I really prefer wool. It is a bit pricey but well worth it.

Next I also like using down vest and jackets for windy conditions. Down stops the wind like nothing else, provides a real nice additional layer of warmth and it stuffs real nice into small little places.
 
I should've clarified this before, but my outer layer for fall/winter deer season is typically either my warm or cold weather rain gear.
I've got the same cold weather gear that I purchased before my oldest was born and it's still going strong.
He'll turn 23 in June.
Still using some of the heavy weight sweats.
Still using the same blaze orange pack vest and the same Filson blaze orange wool cap with flip down ear/neck flap and oiled canvas bill.

My boys are right, I'm an old phart and I look the part. ;)
 
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After you get your clothing in order, don't forget the toilet paper and a handy pack shovel to cover the evidence.

If you sit a lot, the cold creeps in. first the feet, so get some good socks. I like wool socks over a cotton sock. then the hands go. Good gloves are next on the agenda. Keep your hands and feet warm and the other parts will be mostly OK.

Down here it is usually a wet cold or a dry cold. Each requires a different approach. I can stay warm in a dry cold, but a wet cold is a whole nuther ball game.

Sometimes we get by with just wearing a blaze orange tee shirt. No joke.

BUT, you are gonna be in a much cooler climate.
 
As a young man, I used the military stuff, but in the late 70s, I discovered Merino Wool underwear and Gore Tex. Still hunting requires warmth and I suffered stand hunting until I got a set of Browning XPO. Last year, I hunted an open field at 25 degrees with a 15mph wind for over 6 hours. Only thing cold was my uncovered nose. Price, in the absence of value, is not a consideration.
 
I've never seen rubber boots that were comfortable to walk in ..... and if you walk very far, especially if you are carrying anything, your feet will perspire enough that they become damp....... and then cold when you sit down....... "Water-Proof" does not breathe..... if it does not breathe, it'll keep your own sweat inside.
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Jimbob, that's why you need boot liners and socks. They help your feet breath and wick away moisture. Liners also help with fit which makes walking easier,
 
Interesting. The word "hunting" conjures up a whole lot of different scenarios...legitimately.
We live in different parts of the country.
For maybe 15 or 20 years of my life,our "spot" involved parking the truck at 10,320 feet altitude,usually after dark,driving up after work.
Then putting on a heavy pack frame and following a ridge for about 3/4 of a steep mile to the junction of two creeks.
Whispering,no fires,just the Svea stove.Mountaineering tent and a good bag.Everything we needed,we carried in.
Depending on the which season we bought our tags for,it would be Oct/Nov.
Northern Colorado weather above 9000 feet can be interesting.
Boots? I used the RedWings that are pretty much the White Name Tag Army (Korea till about early VN) black combat boot,but with Vibram lug soles.Pretty good boots.Heavy packs and rocky slopes,the leather gets shredded and the lugs wear down to nubs in about 3 to 4 years.
Light Danners are easier on the knees.
Merino sox,for sure.

My lower half outfit evolved to layering GI polypro,covered by black nylon jogging pants.NOT thewaterproof ones,but wind shell pants. Over that,I had a pair of heavy,dense old German or Belgium army wool pants,but I had them cut off and hemmed just below the knee.Easier walking,but kept my butt and thighs warm. If the situation called for them,I have gaiters.I don't like wearing them.
Added the rivet on buttons for Carhart suspenders to the wool pants.
Love the Canadian Surplus leather palm trigger mittens with wool liners.Seldom used the liners,fingerless wool gloves instead.

Parka..Cabelas sells some nice ,soft,quiet breathable GoreTex type mountain parkas. Love mine. Get it big!. A polypro long underwear top,a couple of GI field jacket liners...(The arctic parka or Desert Storm digicam parkas had a nice liner!A little longer.) I'mtalking about the stuff that's like a poncho liner.
Very light,does not hold water. A fluffy down vest in reserve if it gets cold.
And a Ragg wool balcava.

2007 myself and two brothers backpacked into the Flattops Wilderness,Colorado.
We walked in on a muddy pack trail. Camp was dry dirt and pine needles.
A storm hit that night.Intense snow,lightning,thunder.
We woke up to this

https://thefiringline.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=103275&d=1476719890

We lived on what we packed in for a week. Pretty well,actually.
Once again,"Dressing to go hunting" can mean any number of things
 
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