Camo clothes, how important to you?

[Toby]

Just wondering how you feel about camp clothing. I use camo, but some of it has aged and faded, but I am hesitant to discard it because it is in good shape. Do we really need great camo clothes?

[baddaddy]

Faded works. As a Marine I use to take new utilities (cammies) and wash them several times to help fade them. The colors and lines were not so distinct that way.

[ElkNut1]

I did this experiment a few years ago, it seems to be pertinent to your question so here goes! (grin)

ElkNut1



2010 – No Camo Rule
Well, with Sept. over, I was in the field aprox 23 days this year out of the 32 days. I wore a pair of faded out 4 year old Sitka semi camo pants, that's the best I can describe them! I wore those because they had good wicking features & there was rain the 1st part of the season & I just stuck with them the entire time as I had all my daily calls & stuff in the cargo style pockets!

For a top I wore a grey medium light wool pull over long sleeve shirt on occasion or a green mock turtle-neck long sleeve shirt in most situations as my outer layer. I had a Sagecreek faded out camo hat & no face paint or mask at anytime during the elk hunts. I only wore camo gloves the 1st part of the mornings on the cooler days & none on non-cool days!

I washed these clothes 3 times during those 23 days & I used no cover up scents or scent-lok of any kind. We hunt the wind exclusively! (grin)

I saw zero ill effects while wearing these clothes in comparison to other years of wearing camo head to toe! As I've always stated it's ones movement during crunch time (close encounters) that gives a hunter away regardless of his choice of camo or detergents! You must play the wind religiously & not have any movements when elk are in a position to spot slightest unusual movement! By no means am I suggesting anyone not to wear camo, it's a personal choice; I'm just sharing my experiences without it!

I helped pack out all the bulls we took this year in this same clothing with no washings between a couple of them as there was no time! I would wear these types of clothes again with no problem & feel as blended in as if I belonged there!

I will now share stories of elk coming our way to our calling & how close they came without me being detected.

EXAMPLE-1
I remember on opening morning things were very slow! My Son & I Paul Jr. (bowelkdown) were in a small draw, we were on one side & could easily look over on the other side as it was only 100yds or so away! We decided to do a short setup with some light cow calling & I threw in the estrus buzz, within minutes we could hear pounding hooves coming our way, it was a calf & ma heading towards us. I was in front of my Son & he was behind me 5 yds back. The Cow & Calf stopped 17yds away from me staring the area down looking for these elk they heard, they looked right passed us both, I was crouched down not moving a hair with nothing between myself & them, after 30 seconds of looking they finally moved off in search of that group they heard. We held tight in hopes a bull was in tow but it was not to be!

EXAMPLE-2
It was around Sept 5th, we had been covering ground that morning in hopes of hearing some calling or trying to get them to respond! We came across a large East/West facing draw, after glassing it well we picked out 20+ cows & 1 spike in the group, not one branched antlered bull to be found. These elk were in the 500yd to 650yd range away. We stopped & I took a few photos of us there & you can see the outfit I'm wearing! We sat there for over an hour after the photos & not one elk could care less about our being there! Not a big thing but thought I'd share all happenings I could remember!

EXAMPLE-3
We will move to Sept. 10th, I was hunting alone this day & it was a drizzly & foggy morning! I was heading to an area we call the Elk Trail, I had been walking aprox 1/2 mile in when I heard a distant bugle, my 1st of the year, I headed that direction & was following some very fresh tracks of a few elk that were ahead of me but I could only see 50yds or so due to the heavy drizzly fog! I was pushing my way through 12' high alders & very dense wet brush with tons of downfall; I'm now aprox 1 mile in. As I try staying close to this massive rock out-cropping doing my best to follow these tracks I come next to a 20' evergreen to my right & 8' high brush in front of me with small openings, I'm getting fairly wet as I touch this crap as I push my way through, all of a sudden an elk jumps up aprox 25 yds away & starts running away from me, I give a quick nervous/popping grunt with my voice & he stops at 38yds broadside but behind enough brush to cover his vitals, I'm now looking through these evergreen branches & the brush is concealing parts of him, I know he wants to see something so before he gets too nervous I give a voice groan/grunt that lasted about 3/4 second & draw, as soon as I do this he steps forward 2 steps to get a better look at this bull he can hear but not see, I guess him at 40yds & shoot, hear the arrow smackkkk! As you can see this bull had no issues with my non-camo attire!

We had several more instances in the next 10 days of being close to cows & calves where we watched them, many under 100yds & no issues come to mind!

EXAMPLE-4
My Son & I go in fairly deep this day aprox 4 1/2 miles in, we hear 2 bugles in the drainage below us that answer our bugles. We move in silently cutting the distance & realize this is a couple satellites we are hearing, we get aprox 80yds away & setup. My Son is to my right 25 yds out front. I give a medium sized short bull scream with a series of chuckles & receive an instant response. I start raking a tree & thrashing dried limbs in a controlled manner & can hear one of the bulls coming through the thick brush & sparse pines & he is circling us but has a long ways to go to get around us. I see the bull coming from my right to left 60 yds out, as soon as I see him ducking his rack under some low hanging stuff I motion my son to go to his left so he can see this bull coming our way, at the same time I retreat 30 more yds back into cover & bugle & rake a bit more. At no time does the bull catch either of us moving as he is occupied with positioning, problem is he's in range now but will not get out of the thick cover. Opportunity gone, for now!

EXAMPLE-5
We return to this same area 2 days later after giving it a rest! We are now in the 4 1/2 miles & bugle from above a massive rock out-cropping into this area where we had the previous encounter & receive zero response! We thought we heard some crunching so we move down towards the bottom & setup looking to the west expecting (hoping-grin) an elk to appear, nothing happens! So I give off a squeeze on a hoochie mama & 2 cow sounds from a mouth reed & scream a short bugle as if this bull (me) is trying to keep his cows close by, I give another squeeze & 2 more cow sounds with the reed & almost immediately we hear hooves coming our way from the North East which is nearly behind us!!! As this elk comes from a very small fingered draw towards the sounds we spot him at 55yds, my Son is now behind me & to my right as he did not have time to move up as this bull came in fast. I am in the wide open ground with no cover at all & my bugle in my right hand but am on my knees sorta hunched over. The bull looks right at me or in my direction as he's searching for this small group. (good luck there buddy-grin) There is a small 8" diameter pine between the bull & I for whatever that's worth? (grin) I am poised & ready to give a nervous grunt to stop this bull as he weaves in & out of the timber to stop him if needed as I see this bull heading right towards my Son, BIG MISTAKE!!! All of a sudden I hear my Son give a loud Nervous Grunt with his voice & I see this once walking bull freeze up instantly in a small shooting lane, I look ever so slowly toward my Son & see he's at full draw. I then look at the bull with no quick movement just in time to see the arrow sink deep into his side! Once again, the lack of camo was not an issue! If on any of these encounters either of us had moved in a jerking motion it would have been game over, when movement is necessary you must do it slow & under control!

EXAMPLE -6
There were other small encounters that do not warrant typing so I will move onto Claytons hunt! On this hunt my Son & I both did calling but my Son was the main instrument that put the bull in mine & Claytons lap! On this last day of the season all 3 of us headed to one of Claytons all time favorite spots & spent the night, (no tellum creek) it was here where we would wrap up the season as it were! By daybreak it found us up on top of an elky bench with little to no sign. Clayton decides to bugle here to see if anythings around, he does so & receives instant response from several bulls; we were dumb-founded as the place looked deserted!!! I gave a couple cow sounds with a mouth reed & squeezed the ole hoocher twice & screamed a bugle as if to let the other bulls know they weren't welcome, yeah right!!! (grin) It worked fine, Paul Jr. could hear things breaking & crunching coming our way from in front of us & Clayton & I hit the ground & now Paul Jr. was now the caller as he had no choice because he was behind both of us & this elk was coming fast. Paul Jr was on the downhill side of a small knob & Clayton & I were on top, Paul Jr. went right into a light version of the Threat Level I & within 30 seconds was up to Level II. Clayton & I saw the bull coming in at 60yds out through all the burned lodgepole. Clayton was to my left about 4' away & I was behind a 5" lodgepole both of us crouched down on one knee, I had my Bugle at the ready in my left hand and a mouth reed in my mouth ready to stop this bull if needed for the shot. The bull came to Paul Jr. calling from 60yds to 50 to 40 to 30 to 23yds & stopped right out in front of us, he got nervous & I knew he was ready to bolt any second, I was only hoping Clayton did not move & try to force something as the bull would catch any movement, I'm sure Clayton was thinking the same of me! (grin) With no camo the bull never even gave me a 2nd thought! The bull a 6X6 did get nervous as he peered over the small hill where all the commotion was coming from & saw nothing! He whirled to run & with his back to us now & I bellowed a single nervous grunt & Clayton drew his recurve, the bull whirled around nearly broadside & stopped dead in his tracks to see this elk he must have missed somehow right there in front of him, Clayton released & "smack"!! There were ups & downs but what a hoot we all had that day, it was a great year with 4 bulls taken! Camo or no camo "just hunt"!!! --- I will add that many of the fabrics that camo are known for can really help deter some of the inclement weather nature can toss our way unexpectedly, that's worth serious consideration on those not so nice days!

ElkNut1

[Fridaythe13th]

Elknuts 1 Even the gray blends in the 1 pic. ha ha
I ware all camo but the elk do not and look how well they blend in. "timber goats"

[pointysticks]

i used to think it didnt matter. (it still might not)

when my brother shot his elk. we were butchering it. i had to take a "Break" so i grabbed my supplies and went to find a bush.

when i was hiking back towards the group. 4 guys, gathered around a dead elk..i got lost. i just froze. i did a 360 to get my bearings and looked in the direction i thought i would need to go. i swore up and down, i was going down the correct, faint, game trail. then i hear my brother's voice. "you having a stroke or something?"

my eyes focused, and they were right there!! about 40 feet in front of me. four guys wearing random camo..simply vanished. it was amazing. camo works on me, at least. it cant hurt with a big game animal. i think they see motion awesome.

[Lark Bunting]

It better matter! I'm spending a small fortune gathering the stuff for my son and I!

[ElkNut1]

Guys, take into consideration that elk do not see through human eyes! Elk do not recognize the human figure as a threat unless you move, camo or no camo! I've taken quite a few bulls within 30 yds & the closest 3yds away where I was caught out in the wide open. I had one occasion where 10 elk were within 10yd to 20 yards away from my son & I in a small meadow, we were caught in the open but didn't move a hair, they noticed us but payed no attention as they thought we were part of the landscape! I've taken 6-7 bulls in similar fashion caught in the open with absolutely nothing covering me, no face mask or gloves either, elk do not recognize the human figure! Just look at all the videos where elk are walking right up or within yards of an un-concealed hunter! We hunt nothing but OTC Public Lands & see this regularly! Deer on the other hand are a different story! Pick hunting clothes more for fabric that will tolerate various elements well! (grin)

ElkNut1

[Lark Bunting]

Guys, take into consideration that elk do not see through human eyes! Elk do not recognize the human figure as a threat unless you move, camo or no camo! I've taken quite a few bulls within 30 yds & the closest 3yds away where I was caught out in the wide open. I had one occasion where 10 elk were within 10yd to 20 yards away from my son & I in a small meadow, we were caught in the open but didn't move a hair, they noticed us but payed no attention as they thought we were part of the landscape! I've taken 6-7 bulls in similar fashion caught in the open with absolutely nothing covering me, no face mask or gloves either, elk do not recognize the human figure! Just look at all the videos where elk are walking right up or within yards of an un-concealed hunter! We hunt nothing but OTC Public Lands & see this regularly! Deer on the other hand are a different story! Pick hunting clothes more for fabric that will tolerate various elements well! (grin)

ElkNut1

If you had two pairs of pants/shirt/jacket of which were the exact same fabric...one was camo pattern and they other was a solid color of your choice...which would you choose?

[ElkNut1]

The point is not to be concerned with what camo you choose! I'm not saying don't wear camo, but no need to spend a 750.00 to 1000.00 on an outfit! You will do just as well with military type camo for 20.00 a full set, this is an option where budgets are very tight. Don't feel you have to max out the bank account to be camo outfitted! We've called in & taken countless elk with 20.00 camo pants & wool blend flannel checkered long sleeve shirts in years past. Not telling ones what to wear but camo is for people not elk! Yes, I like camo because camo is cool ! (grin) But I can call in & kill as many elk without it as I showed in the description above, non camo clothing had no bearing on our success. I realize as a new elk hunter it's hard to digest but as years go by with more experience in the elkwoods you'll come to see that camo has little to do with your success! Have a great hunt with your son & apply your funds where they may be needed most!

ElkNut1

[Elkduds]

I have mil surplus BDU pants in cotton fabric (woodland pattern) and cotton ripstop (tiger stripe, very disco). Cheap @ yard sales, can't hardly wreck them, easy to layer underneath, lots of pockets. For typical dry CO weather, they can't be beat. The woodland pair is 10 years old, still going strong. If I wear them to the store, people think I'm homeless and leave me alone.

[Swede]

I bow hunted years ago, before I had any camo. I don't think hunters had any thing like we have today. I buy good camo for the fit. I want fairly tight sleeves on the shirt and for it to fit close to my trunk. That said, I still wear blue jeans and a regular shirt at times. The elk don't care. As Elknut says, just don't move when the elk are looking your way. I have no doubt that a good plaid is as effective as the best camo pattern on the market, to help break up your outline a little.