What Gear Worked Well?

[Dirty D]

I switched over to Merino wool base layers this year and love them! I got some Core-4-Element ones off Camofire and have only good things to say. I especially like that they now come in camo, so midday I can hunt in my thermals and have no worries.

The main reason I like them so much is they don't stink up like many synthetics. I've got some Sitka bases, older synthetics, that are god awful to smell after a couple days, I've really quit wearing them for that reason alone. The Merino wool barely had any detectable odor after a week, I was terrified to stick my nose in for a good sniff but made myself do it and came out unscathed . What little odor was there I'm attributing to the fact that I got lazy with my daily wet-wipe baths. We can't do a whole lot when it comes to scent prevention in a back-county environment, but this scent prevention is more for my own (and my hunting buddies) peace of mind!

Anyone have anything that stood out this year?

[huntnfish645]

My son and I used the Eureka mountain pass 2 person tent this year and was very pleased with it. It rained off and on all day on one of our hunts then at dusk it just started to down pour, we were soaked by the time we got back to our spike camp. Well it rained most of the night and part of the next day and we stayed dry and comfy in this tent, spent most of the next day trying to dry our camo and boots. Another thing that is nice is the double vestibule on each end of the tent, my son had his side to put his gear in and I had mine.

[Swede]

The only really new thing I took hunting this year was the Vortex rangefinder. I have posted my thoughts on it here before, but I still find it impressive as an optic, as a rangefinder and handy to use. I like the lanyard around my neck and the clip that holds it in easy reach on the outside at the same time.

[Bullnuts]

For the second year in a row I didn't use anything new. I think I've finally reached my saturation point. 8-year old Hoyt, 4 year old Beman arrows, Muzzy 100 gr 3-blades, Badlands pack, Elknut bugle tube, Vortex binos, Nikon range finder, Rocky boots, Wigwam socks, and good old Fruit of the Loom underwear! Oh, and I also buy and wear the cheapest camo I can find, normally Walmart stuff, which works GREAT!

[>>>---WW---->]

I hear ya Bill ! Same here. Nothing new except for my ACR ResQlink PLB. Never got to use it, thank God, and hope I never do.

I consider myself very fortunate because I have just about everything I feel I need for a successful elk hunt. Same old bow and same old arrows. I can walk into Cabelas or Bass Pro and not spend a dime. Although I'll have to admit, that Cabelas store in Kansas City does have a mighty fine pork tenderloin sandwich in their resturant. LOL!

[Swede]

Getting old is the pits. Like WW and Bullnuts, I have everything I need for hunting. I offered some of my arrows to my son the other day. I know I have a lifetime supply and then some. This year I bought the rangefinder to replace the old one which quit on me, and I bought a stick of hot melt glue for my arrows. I don't know why I bought the glue. I have some and hardly ever use it anymore. Maybe I felt guilty after spending am hour at Cabelas in Post Falls and I saw nothing I felt I needed, except like WW I bought a sandwich and drink. Oh well it is still fun to look and dream of the next hunt. That never has become old.

[WapitiTalk1]

Got quite a bit of gear between last fall and the SEPT 12 archery season. It's the most gear I've gotten new or replaced in many, many years for some reason. Here are a few pieces of gear I used new this year and a few comments:

1. BA Lynx Pass 2 tent. Lower end of the product line but worked just fine. It's a bit heavy compared to other pack tents.
2. Thermarest Air Mattress. Worked great but a bit slippery under the bag. Folks have mentioned putting some silicone on the pad to prevent sliding.
3. Elknut Chuckler EL. Worked very well and is so much more compact than my old tube.
4. MSR mini-works water filter. Worked fine but was noticeably slower than my buddy's older Katydyn, especially when filling a 10 liter dromedary bag.
5. Synthetic boxers. Can't remember the manufacturer but these things worked great! Really wicked the moisture and didn't stink too badly for quite a few days. Will try some merino ones next year though as I'm seeing nothing but great comments about them.
6. Sea to Summit kitchen sink. This collapsible water enclosure worked great for washing some clothes out in the middle of our hunt. Used some concentrated soap I got from Cabelas.
7. Clothes. Used my same Russell Outdoors base and mid layers. Outstanding gear that is much less expensive than Sitka, Kuiu, etc.
8. Crocs. Loved these things to put on when we got back to camp and took the boots off.
9. S4 Gear Lockdown bino harness. Worked great but I found after a few days that I didn’t need binos (too thick) in most of the areas I hunted in ID this year.
9. Wife really spoiled me this year with this last gear. Not sure what I did to deserve this.. Got a new quad and trailer. The Polaris 400 HO (end of year sale) and Yutrax trailer to pull behind it worked incredibly well to get our gear to the trailhead (8+ miles in on closed to truck traffic roads). Unfortunately, I didn't get to pack out any meat with it. I learned that quads (my first one every) uses quite a bit of gas so we had to make one trip back to the truck to gas up. We ended up kind of base camping as the smoke in the big draw we were gonna pack in to was thick. Ended up working out well though as we were able to check out numerous areas by being so mobile (my quad and Joe's Yamaha TW).

[ferris bugler]

I bought merino base layers from Icebreaker on backcountry.com. Shirts in multiple weights and boxers. Can't tell you how psyched I am with this stuff. I'm bummed I didn't order any long underwear when I was ordering to use for upland season. Wish I had changed over years ago. Never going to wear another synthetic base layer.

I also used a Blaze AC pack from Granite Gear. It's not a hunting specific pack, but won Backpacker Magazine's light weight pack of the year in 2011. I really like the fit and comfort. It's the perfect size for my three day bivy hunts.

[stringunner]

I upgraded a ton of gear this year, basically I had a stash of cash for an out of state tag but realized I won't be able to draw it for a few more years so decided to spend a little:

1) X2 pack. Loved it. I'm 5'7" 130 lbs and this pack fit be perfectly. Made hauling meat and other gear around the woods a dream. Love this pack.
2) Bee Stinger stabilizer, great investment, definitely helped to improve my effective range at longer distances
3) Spott Hogg Hunter sight, could not be more happy with this sight, the ease of adjustment coupled with the ability to micro adjust is awesome
4) Heads Up Decoy, used it to get a cow within 13 yards of my buddy for a chip shot. Need to fine tune how to carry when not in use but it worked to bring in a slightly on edge cow
5) Scott Release, great in use, did loose the trigger (came unscrewed mid hunt) so this set me back a few days during the month (had a back up old release) but great product
6) Hunten Outdoor Trail Cams- bought two of these awesome cameras. Had them up from July 6 till the end of September, changed the batteries once during that time, great pictures both night and day (will be purchasing several more of these before next summer) They only cost $70!
7) MicroTex camo from Cabelas, bought one set to try out, it is good stuff and very comparable in fit, comfort, stability, etc. as other way high priced camo
8) Elknut Chuckler EL, great tube, 110% better in sound and volume than my old abe and son tube. Loved this!

On the list for next year, a couple more Tree Stands and 4 more game cameras....

[wideangle]

Trail camera was very useful this season (Primos 46). We archery hunt a road closed area with quite a few waterholes spread out over a considerable area. I set up a camera at a waterhole two weeks before the season and saw bear, cougar, elk, bobcat and deer on the photos. After openning day nothing came into the waterhole. However, a camera placed at a waterhole a half mile away and nearer the main access road showed a marked increased in use. These cameras are fun to use and I believe are especially helpful if you have limited time to hunt.

[MtnHunter]

My Osprey Kode 30 backpack worked surprisingly well. This thing is designed to carry skis and to be worn while skiing, so it hugged my body really well while quietly moving through brush and trees, etc. This was perfect as I could count on it not sliding around when I was in awkward positions. I was also able to carry a surprising amount of gear in it. It did have a few extras (weight wise) since it's designed for winter though. Also, I'm not sure it would be the best for carrying meat, although it could probably handle it in a desperate situation.