Rain gear thoughts

[6lbSledge]

I’m trying something new for rain gear this year. I grew up backpacking and camping in WNC in mountains similar to NGA and I learned to hate rain gear in weather warmer than about 50-55 degrees- i.e. a large chunk of hunting season. It’s so humid and everything is wet and doesn’t dry out and you sweat as much as the wet vegetation and raindrops get you. Also rain gear is expensive and wears out quickly or is heavy.

I’m trying a poncho this year- sil-nylon, 0.6 pounds, $25, and takes the place of my rain jacket and pack cover, can be made into a shelter or ground cloth, and when worn allows much more airflow than any gortex jacket I’ve ever owned. Also I plan to have it replace the emergency blanket that I use for laying out quarters when butchering to keep the meat clean while I bag it. Thoughts? Any of you think this is a good idea, bad? What do you prefer early season hunting?

 

[chrislibby88]

Try it. I have nice rain gear, but I have the same problem as you, I’m almost as wet form perspiration inside as the rain outside especially when it’s warm.

 

[jbogg]

It stands to reason the poncho should be much more breathable. I’ve got the same issue with standard rain gear. If you are hiking any distance at all up a mountain during early bow season only to have to quickly put on rain gear it’s a lost cause. Going to be drenched no matter what. Either of your own making, or mother nature’s.

 

[Professor]

It stands to reason the poncho should be much more breathable. I’ve got the same issue with standard rain gear. If you are hiking any distance at all up a mountain during early bow season only to have to quickly put on rain gear it’s a lost cause. Going to be drenched no matter what. Either of your own making, or mother nature’s.

Right. Better to wear clothing designed to dry rapidly that wear any rain gear.

 

[Railroader]

This is the conclusion I have arrived at after 22 years working in a railyard...

If it's cold out, high quality Gore Tex, and if you are moving around, you will still get wet eventually.

If it's warm out, the quick dry clothing is the winner.

A final thought, I will NEVER wear cotton underwear again under any circumstances. Nylon athletic type boxer briefs are the way to avoid "catchin' a case" of the Swamp Crotch.

If you can sit out a storm, a nice poncho is good as any, and useful for other things, too.

 

[splatek]

In early season the rain just washes your scent away, right? I don’t melt so early season no gear. Later season, well that Just sucks.

 

[jbogg]

I had a teachable moment for myself last season. It was still early bow season on September 23rd and I was hunting pretty high at about 3600 feet. I was wearing my normal early-season gear, and did not have any sort of jacket except for some very lightweight rain gear. Later in the afternoon the clouds rolled in and the wind picked up, and it felt like the temperature dropped by 15 degrees in a matter of minutes. I sat there shivering for the last 2 1/2 hours of that hunt. It was the most cold I was on any hunt last year. From now on a lightweight packable puffy will remain in the bottom of my pack regardless of the time of year. The mountains make their own weather.

 

[tree cutter 08]

If it's warm I don't worry about it. If it's cold and wet I'm gona sit at the house.

 

[trad bow]

Done got to old to hunt in the rain warm or cold. I keep a poncho in my pack for those where did that come from rain. Raining or a good chance of it then I’ll just stay inside and tie flies.

 

[KentuckyHeadhunter]

I only carry rain gear if I think I'll need it. I enjoy hunting nasty cold and rainy days on public land. Nobody is out there and you are dead silent. I have the Stone Glacier M7 jacket for the nasty stuff and a cheap set for just rain. Plus I always carry a tarp that would double as a meat tarp, emergency shelter, etc.

 

[northgeorgiasportsman]

If it's cold enough, I've got a goretex rain suit I'll wear. Any of y'all that pack ponchos ever tried to shoot a bow in one?

 

[NCHillbilly]

If it's raining hard enough to need rain gear, I have learned through half a century of stubborness and ignorance, that I should be holed up at home, like the deer and bears are. I love to hunt on misty, drizzly days, but if it's pouring, I never see anything. I have killed exactly one (1) deer and zero (0) bears in my life when it was pouring rain. The one (1) deer I killed in pouring rain was also the only deer I have ever actually seen in pouring rain in half a century of hunting.

 

[6lbSledge]

I’m with a lot of you in that I don’t plan to hunt in the rain, but sometimes a thunderstorm pops up and you have to hunker down for 30 minutes or so as the weatherman don’t know )&!@ in the mountains particularly. I like hunting when the woods are wet better than when it’s crunchy, but like y’all, I see very little animal activity in active rain. I don’t think I’d ever shoot a bow in a rain jacket or a poncho. When it’s warm I just get wet and wear clothes accordingly and typically bring a change. When it’s a bit chilly but you’re still exercising, getting wet can be a problem and sitting out a rain under a poncho or tarp can be very beneficial. I hunt by myself and live an hour and a half to two hours from my bear hunting spots. Most of my spots I plan on hunting an afternoon, camping, hunting a morning, and coming home. A poncho replaces my meat tarp, which I do find very helpful, while also providing a breathable rain protection for me and my gear. I typically hunt with a longbow and keeping feathers dry is also a consideration. GoreTex or similar rain gear is the thing I’m doing away with. Don’t see a reason for it for what I do, it’s heavy, expensive, and wears out quickly in my experience.

 

[Killer Kyle]

Much like jbogg, I learned the hard way once when bow hunting the big mountain with FMBear.
It was warm, and we sweated bucketloads on the climb up. Mid September. The thunder and rain rolled in, and I got soaked. FMBear and I had split up, and were hunting separately. The wind howled and I was drenched, and when FMBear came to meet up, he found me wrapped in a survival blanket and shivering uncontrollably. On the absolute verge of hypothermia.

I just about will never wear a rain jacket while on the move unless it is winter and I'm covering big miles looking for pigs. But I do carry a very light weight one just in case a thunder boomer decides to roll in and sit on top of me.

 

[Professor]

I carry a USGI chemical containment suit. It is very light and will keep me dry in a heavy downpour as long as I hunker down. It is hard to avoid rain in the mountains in December. If it is going to rain hard early I will wait to go in. Otherwise, I go in and try to be set up when the heavier rain hits me. I have killed most of my bucks in a rain. If it is heavy they will hide under some cedars or some similar cover. But, they will be on the move again as soon as it slacks up.

 

[KentuckyHeadhunter]

Right before it starts or right after if stops is the ultimate time. I wanna be there and be prepared. Biggest buck I ever saw while hunting stepped out into the mist right after a heavy downpour. I missed him twice. There was a persimmon tree 20 yds in front of me and he was at about 100 yds. My scope saw "through" that persimmon and I killed that tree TWICE. I was a newbie back then. I lost sleep for 2 days thinking about it. I didn't have rain gear then but I had a pole barn to escape to.

 

[6lbSledge]

I work from home and one day it had been raining hard for 18 hours and was going to break at noon. I took an hour off work and got in a stand as the rain tapered off, shot a nice doe (piedmont) as soon as the rain stopped. Deer were everywhere feeding in that hour or so after the storms stopped.

 

[6lbSledge]

Right before it starts or right after if stops is the ultimate time. I wanna be there and be prepared. Biggest buck I ever saw while hunting stepped out into the mist right after a heavy downpour. I missed him twice. There was a persimmon tree 20 yds in front of me and he was at about 100 yds. My scope saw "through" that persimmon and I killed that tree TWICE. I was a newbie back then. I lost sleep for 2 days thinking about it. I didn't have rain gear then but I had a pole barn to escape to.

Painful to read! I’ve been there. The buck that happened to me with my hunting buddy/business partner shot 4 days later. We have the rack in our shop. 160 or so inch 12 pointer. Beautiful deer. The buck walked up on me to 25 yds while I was checking a game camera on the ground at 11am after my hunt. Was able to get my rifle up but hit a privet stem and the bullet deflected completely. I then missed a follow up shot at 70 that put a hole through its ear. At the time neither one of us had killed a big buck. I definitely lost some sleep and was sure we would never see it again. At least there I was wrong!