wyoming mid sept clothing
Elk
I think i need to pick up a solid mid layer... I have good merino base layers, a puffy, and a hardshell (rain coat), but i think i am missing something between base and puffy..
I was kind of thinking fleece, but thought i would ask all the experts...
Looking for suggestions!! I do not need camo, so open to ANYTHING!
thanks y'all
A mid-weight hoodie would be in my line-up
Cnelk such, any recommendations on which one?
Fleece, merino, cotton... ?!!
Thanks
I really like my UnderArmour hoodie - whatever thats made of
oh, o.k. i know what you mean.. I've been looking for a reason to buy one of those ;)
I just don't want to spend sitka money!
Fleece is fine as a midlayer! I use the same basic layering in all western states including WY. On warm days where temps can hit 80 I wear a lightweight merino base & outer camo shirt. On days where highs are 50's & lows near 30 I will add a 2nd layer like a polypropylene longsleeve over the merino wool. On days where 30 may be the high & lows from 10 or so I will add a 100% longsleeve wool shirt as a 3rd midlayer for a total of 4 layers. This pretty much takes care of my running & gunning clothing. I'll carry lightweight rain gear on days where it may be needed. I also carry a wool pullover hat in my pack if needed but it's rare. Have a couple sets of gloves too. One lightweight for the cool weather as in the a.m. but can shoot bow while wearing them. On those cold days I use 100% wool gloves, no substitution there for me, I need warm hands & fingers.
ps - I pick up my pullover polypropylene & wool pullover shirts up at 2nd hand stores for 3-4 bucks each.
ElkNut/Paul
I wear a merino tee, next Ibex Indie Hoody and them my Sitka ascent or 90% jacket depending on temps. When cold and on stand puffy.
Look, your talking about Wyoming....you need goggles and a motorcycle helmet for the wind.
SW of Rawlins and we almost always get snow a time or two in Sept. While I have a lot of fleece, the winds make it pretty useless on cold days without an outer windproof layer.
Grasshopper, I was thinking the same. Never hunted the mountains there, but antelope hunting has been 95* in the shade, not a breath of wind, to low forties, misting rain, and 30 mph winds. It's hell when you have six stakes on your pop-up and you're still holding on to it ! :-)
I think 90% of the time I'm wearing a light merino base layer and a fleece henley. If it's really cold in the a.m., I might add a fleece vest. When I stop to glass or take a break, I throw on my puffy if I need to.
Based upon where I hunted in WY this year, plan on temps in the teens at night, rain and snow almost every day for two weeks straight.
Worst consistent elk hunting weather I've experienced in 43 years of doing it. Plan accordingly.
I live in WY and you never know what mother nature will throw at you! Like stated plan accordingly.
I absolutely love my Sitka Fanatic hoody. It has a built in face/neck gator and the hands fold down so you can cover your hands when they're cold and you can pull your thumbs out. I'm not a Sitka fanboy. It's just a great piece of clothing. And it's fleece lined and very warm. I wear it over a First lite Merino base layer.
You have to plan for it all. It can be 85 degrees in the afternoons down to the one time I have proof of 16 degrees on Sept 12th at 9000'. Believe me that is bitter when all you have is fall gear in a popup tent trailer. Even worse if you were to be out on bivy or in a spike camp.
Cheers, Pete
I would go with a fleece vest or shacket. Fleece is underrated as a mid layer. Mid layer is all about versatility. I want it to work across a broad range of temps and activity levels. I bought into the puffy thing both synthetic and down when I got into gear for out west, and each certainly has its uses. But as a do all mid-layer, fleece is tough to beat if you can handle the sacrifice in packability.
"I live in WY and you never know what mother nature will throw at you! Like stated plan accordingly."
X2! I lived there for 5 years and I NEVER went anywhere at any time of the year without a down vest and jacket behind the seat of my truck.....including July. In a place like Wyoming being prepared isn't a matter of inconvenience if you get stranded, but literally life or death.
I've scraped ice and snow off my windshield in July on more than one occasion.
Pete, there were a couple nights this year when it got down to 13, and I was camped at 8200'. Snow would melt slightly during the day, then freeze hard at night, and I swear I could hear my crunching echoing across the valley when I hiked in in the dark in the mornings.
I was prepared with the right clothes and gear, and soldiered-on every day. Some other guys camped near me were not prepared. Lots of road hunting happened during the worst 5 day stretch. Have never been so glad I was camped in a hard-side trailer with a heater, instead of spiked out somewhere. One camp left their wall tent standing when they fled and it collapsed, fabric ripped.
I get a kick out of guys who talk about September elk hunting as "mild weather", LOL.
The next morning.
The next morning.
Jaquomo you must have been close to Montana cause I had the same two weeks of weather. I was staying up on the mountain. learned a lot on that trip.
I’m like Ike, that Fanatic Hoody Sitka has is supposed to be a Whitetail piece but I’ve worn it every single time I’ve been in the mountains since the day I bought it. They are supposedly coming out with a heavy merino blend Hoody for this year I think will be even better. I think it is called the Apex Hoody.
If you need to go light, your rain gear can be your wind proof layer. I have worn mine under some light wool or fleece and it kept me very warm, dry and quiet at the same time. Quality rain gear is extremely important! you don't have to buy 700.00 dollar rain gear, but it does need to be very good! As said above the weather can change in an instant up there and you can go from very nice to very dangerous in about 10 minutes. When I go to WY. I take a little of everything and always bring extra just in case.
Good Luck and God Bless!
I thought I would be able to take the fanatic hoody with me this year until I got it. It really isn't very packble at all. I'll probably take it and leave it in the vehicle so if the weather forecast is really bad I can throw it on.
I usually leave camp with a base and a mid layer on and a puffy and rain jacket in my pack. For mid layers I usually take on the trip with me 2 different weights. For the heavier mid layer this past year I used the Sitka traverse. My lighter mid layer was probably some type of waffle fleece like a Patagonia R1 although that is not exactly what I wore. I prefer a synthetic for the mid because they tend to dry faster than merino.
Yep, mid-September in Wyo is always pleasant.
Every elk I ever talked to said they will hang up just out of range unless they see you are wearing Sitka Gear.
@Jaquomo, definitely had the heater running full time till the batteries died in the popup. My buddies who were camped in their horse trailer bailed. I was prepared as always so no worries for me.
Back to the original question. I always have two fleece camo jackets in camp and most often in my pack with me when I think it might be a sit or it's cold. One I can always use to sit on when glassing or cover my legs when waiting out a storm and the other to go either over or under my rain jacket. If you can find one of the thick pile hoodies in a no name camo you can stand, it can be one of the best tools in your quiver when the weather turns.
Cheers, Pete
I wear a Core4 merino 190 or 190/250 mapped base, sometimes a Sitka Travers mid, and I always have the Sitka 90% and a cheap Sportsmans Warehouse rain jacket with me. This year I'll have a Pearl Izumi wind shirt in the pack as well. A wind shirt is a game changer.
Never cotton. Never without winter gear, at least one change. Never without wool socks, waterproof boots, hat, gloves. Never without waterproof bag or gear to put it in. Or you are dead if you get weather and you are a day or two+ out. And you can, any time, at a moments notice, get winter weather. In any of those Rocky states, not just Wyo, but Wyo is higher up on ave. than MT. CO is even higher, but further south at least.
Thanks everyone!! This was definitely eye opening!!
More stuff to buy;)
