I went bow hunting last night here in Central Wisconsin. With wind chill it was somewhere around -15 to -20. I layered up with 6 layers on top and bottom. I froze, I barely made it 2 hours. Has anyone had any luck staying warm with a certain system layering? Otherwise what is the best way to stay warm on stand?
Heater Body Suit I layered for years and froze I got this sleeping bag with legs And it works great. It will not be the answer for a jump up snap shot but most bow hunting is not that and it dose take up room in the stand. Last week it was 23 and I had my 40 deg.setup on and the HBS warm as toast.
I've considered an old sleeping bag up to my armpits, throw a couple hand/foot warmers inside, and see if that worked.
6 layers seems excessive. More is not always better. Most I've gone is 4, base, mid and outer, with the 4th being a wind break inside of the outer layer. Add toe warmers, and hand warmers, facemask that covers my nose and cheeks. Pretty much the only skin you will see is around my eyes. The layers have to be sized right though, get to tight and they don't work right because they lose the air space they need to keep you warm. I am thinking of investing in a heater suit, I do the same concept during rifle season in my box blind with a sleeping bag up past my waist. That way I don't need extra layers on my lower body.
In those temps, for me anyways, I would be looking into a heater body suit. I tend to run colder than most. Heck, I need good bases, a fanatic hoody, shacket, and then the Fanatic bibs/jacket just to survive teens here
Being where I'm from, I'd be in a ground blind with a heater. I was when I was in Canada last month. As Remmett said, layering with the right sizes is key. You need small gaps between layers for you body to warm up the air in between the layers. Snow suits work well too. Just don't end up looking like Ralphie's little brother from A Christmas Story.
My layers are, cabelas polar power dry base layers, long johns, sweater, wool lined hoody, scent lok early jacket, and full season jacket. bottom, is base layer, long john, 2 pairs of sweatpants, and 2 scent lok layers. Cant afford a heater suit this year. I heard fleece is a great option after the base layer. I don't truly have outerwear other than my all season scentlok jacket.
Depending on what material your base layer is, that may be your problem. I will hunt till temps are a little warmer than you described, but still down in the single digits. I also use 6 layers as below. Under Armour Compression Thin Silk Thin wool sweater Fleece Jacket Thin Colombia heat retention jacket Scentlok savanah coveralls While 6 layers sounds like a lot, I am very mobile in that set up
Yeah if it's too tight you might just as well have one layer on. I used to not be able to take cold, granted my temps aren't what you have. Same as you'd probably melt during our summer. I've managed to stay out in temps lower than previous years by doing a few key things. Stop the wind with a shell layer or you might as well stay home. Conduction from that cold metal stand is a fast way to beat me, I use boot blankets and have some friends who take a piece of carpet to lay on their stand for the same purpose. The amount of heat you can gain from a good vest without hindering your ability to draw is awesome. Grandma always said wear a hat, cover your noodle good. I also put the sticking hot hands on the inside of my legs, over the kidneys and on the back of my neck. I'll use a wicking layer, and insulation layer or two and the shell. Also eat something hearty before going out and bring something to keep the fire going. I still get cold sometimes, but not chase me out of the stand cold.
My fall hunting clothes and the HBS. That thing is great. I hated my old warm weather stuff because it was horrible to shoot with it all on.
Has anybody ever seen the heater body suits go on sale? I've heard great things about them but man they are not cheap! I'm guessing that the price is what it is since you pretty much can only purchase them from their website.
When you got to your blind were you pretty sweated up? If you end up overheating to the stand and sweat that'll really ruin your hunt quickly. Especially with the Wisconsin temps.
I was comfortable on the walk, wasn't sweating. I am going to pull out a layer that was somewhat tight, and replace it with a thick fleece. I am hunting Sunday again, will try a little different system of layering and see how that works.
I went out last weekend and it was 0 degrees, and I stayed warm throughout the evening hunt with this setup: Base Layers: Two sets of Merino Wool long underwear (Top and Bottom) Merino Wool Socks Mid Layers: Fleece Long sleeve T Sitka Kelvin Lite Vest Lost Camo Hoodie Sitka Mountain or Timberline pants Outer Layers: Danner Pronghorn 1600s Fleece Pants (Almost like sweats) Sitka Jetstream Jacket Sitka Gloves Sitka Beanie White Camo Stocking hat Hand warmers in pockets and boots. My face got cold, but that is expected as I didn't have anything covering it. Has Anyone ever shot a deer while using a body heater suit? I just cant see that working out, especially on late season deer that have been pressured...
I've drawn back on a few just never released the arrow. Have killed some with a gun using my body suit tho. They are amazing! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Last year i used 1) UA 4.0 (Top & Bottom) 2) UA Fleece base layer (Top & Bottom) 3) UA Late season (Top & Bottom) with muck artic boots and wool socks and that got me threw the 0 degree temp sit i shot my deer with, dont know what the wind chill was that day. i like it because i dont feel like puffy marshmallow while not being tight on the layers and still have good motion. this year i will be adding first light mid weight to go between 2 and 3 to add a little better
