LAYERING CAMO AND DRESSING FOR THE OCCASION With Corey Piersol of Sitka Gear 9.70

LAYERING CAMO AND DRESSING FOR THE OCCASION With Corey Piersol of Sitka Gear 9.70

Corey Piersol and I discuss choosing the right camo for your hunt and some of the new stuff Sitka has to offer

WHAT CAMO SHOULD I WEAR TODAY? LAYERING CAMO AND DRESSING FOR THE OCCASION: WHAT CAMO SHOULD I WEAR, WHAT’S THE BEST CAMO CLOTHING FOR THIS TRIP?

We are often asking ourselves What camo should I wear ?, What’s the best camo clothing for this trip? What should I bring with me? Layering and dressing for the weather is almost an art-form in itself, let me start with this: it may sound funny but when you look good , you feel good and when you feel good, you perform good. That being said the most important thing you can do for your hunting success is to spend more time in the field and in order to do that you need to be comfortable. I have spent many years trying different ways to stay comfortable and have tried all the latest and greatest the outdoor industry could come up with and I have basically made myself a chart for layering so I know how to dress and keep myself comfortable and be able to adjust on the fly.  Now I use Sitka gear (because that’s what works for me) and this is not a sales pitch for Sitka but for the sake of examples I will be using their components you can adjust your chart accordingly . It would be nice if we could all afford all the specialized pieces and have new sets of fresh camo for each day of hunting but I do the best I can with what I got.

Glassing in Kelvin Hoody

 

Spot and Stalk Hunts                   Temp Range  70-110 deg 60-70 50-60 40-50 30-40 20-30 0-20 Rain wind Ascent Light pants x x x             Ascent Light shirt x   x             Merino base layer top   x x x x x x     Merino base layer bottom       x x x x     Mid weight base layer pant           x       Mid weight base layer Zip T       x           Heavy weight Bottom              x     Heavy Weight Top         x  x x     Mountain Pants       x x x x     Kelvin Light hoody         x x       Mountain  vest        x  x x  x     Traverse Jacket             x     Storm front jacket/pants               x                       Sitting/ tree stand hunting                    Temp Range  70-110 deg 60-70 50-60 40-50 30-40 20-30 0-20 Rain wind Ascent Light pants x x x             Ascent Light shirt x x x             Merino base layer top   x x x x x x     Merion base layer bottom     x x x x x     Mid weight base layer pant       x     x     Mid weight base layer Zip T       x     x     Heavy weight Bottom         x x x     Heavy Weight Top         x x x     Stratus Pants     x x x x x     Stratus Vest       x   x x   x Down Pour jacket               x x Celsius Jacket         x x x                           SPOT AND STALK HUNTS BEST CAMO CLOTHING

I’m going to start with the 50-60 degree range because that’s where the layering starts for me I like to use merino close to my skin its very comfortable and regulates body temp well, when I sweat I’m less stinky then when I wear a synthetic next to my skin and plus it breathes well. I also prefer merino because there is little to no “shine” a lot of synthetic cloths although very technical and perform well as a protection garment tend to reflect light that game will pick up on so when I go on a stalk I almost always strip down to my merino top. Most of the time in this temp range the LS ascent shirt stays in my pack I wear it in the early morning for that extra warmth or as an additional wind break but where it comes in the handiest is late in the day when its the hottest and I have been wearing the merino all day I switch into a fresh shirt if I need to.

40-50  Now I introduce the merino bottoms and the mid weight Zip T top, I also  have switched to mountain pants and started packing a mountain vest. While hiking around I usually lose the vest and the Zip T get to my morning glassing spots let my body cool down and most of the sweat evaporate then put them back on. However If its windy I may hike with the vest on or if the hike is light I may wear the Core Mid weight Zip T on the hike in. Again while I’m on a stalk I generate so much heat that being cold is never really and issue however let me caution you make sure to take your pack with you on a stalk and have the vest etc. in there because many times stalk go from intensive hiking and maneuvering into position to waiting hours in the cold.

30-40  this is that tricky zone because its starting to get pretty darn cold but you can still get very hot while hiking and stalking. I switch from the mid-weight Zip T to the Core Heavy Weight Zip T and I Introduce the Kelvin Light Hoody to the mix. Again I sound like a broken record but you see the pattern here strip down for times of high activity suit up for low activity

20-30 its fricken cold  I’m generally hiking in without the jacket I may wear the vest and depending how far I need to go sometimes I will still lose the vest for the hike. While stalking I typically will wear the vest just so I don’t have go back and forth too many times wasting time or cause unnecessary movement.

0-20 I shouldn’t be out here but the bucks are rutting hard and the cold has them up on their feet. I start packing around the traverse jacket with me and when I’m stationary I will keep the vest on underneath my jacket, while moving I will wear the vest and lose the jacket. I have also put on the heavy weight bottoms and top over my merinos .

For wind and rain between  50- 110 I always pack  the storm front jacket 50 degrees and colder the pants go in there too. I will also use this jacket for its wind breaking capabilities to go over whatever else I’m wearing nothing worst then getting pounded by the wind high up on a ridge top. What camo should i wear, best camo clothing

TREESTAND HUNTING OR STATIONARY AMBUSH HUNTING BEST CAMO CLOTHING

Stand hunting its pretty much the same concept when I hike into my stand in the morning I shed all the heavy stuff and put it on after I get there. One trick I learned is to bring a small wash cloth (dry) in a zip lock bag which I use to towel off any sweat then I put the sweaty towel back in my bag spray down and put my layers on best camo clothing

For the early season I just use my Ascent pants they work well for those early hunts and it saves me some money not having to own separate sets. its not till we get to the colder weather that I need the specialized whitetail gear that is designed to be quiet and to keep you comfortable while sitting for long periods.

There is far less having to layer up and layer down while you are in the stand, but you do have the ability to adjust according to your comfort level. Again in preservation of my wallet and because hunting out of a treestand in very cold weather only makes up a small portion of my hunting, see I hunt all over the country for all different species, in different terrains and climates so I need my gear to be versatile and cover me across the spectrum. So instead of having some of the really nice cold weather bibs that sitka makes I compensate with layering which sometimes is a bit restrictive and cumbersome but it does the job. What camo should i wear, best camo clothingest camo clothing

Cold morning in Montana