Western Hunt Camo

[ChrisD]

Go on rokslide for optics advice. They're pretty low on both vortex and Leopold. Maven is pretty well rated in that price range.

I’ll check that forum out, thanks. I’m looking around the $500.00 range. I have plenty of time to do some research. The Vortex and Leupolds were both in stock at Cabelas, so that was an easy comparison.

 

[outrider58]

No doubt, BTDT.

Roger that. I know you ain't no dummy.

Best of luck. I'm super jelly Chris..

 

[SummitCnty]

...unless they're sponsored by a clothing company. Then they wear it on TV.

100% accurate lol

 

[reubj]

All you need to know

https://youtu.be/eswHCKYWh5g

 

[dagmars]

When the game warden walks into camp he won't say "who's in charge here" He'll walk up to the guy wearing the wool bibs and Carhart's to say "let me see your outfitters license" With that said to quote Marisa Tomei "after you blast off the deer's head, do you think bucky will be saying that guy had nice pants".

 

[Bluemoon]

I have been elk hunting western states for 40 years. I just wear whatever camo I wear at home. You will need a camo face cover though. As far as binoculars I would suggest at least a 10 power with at least a 40mm objective lense. A good shooting / walking stick is a must. Busting your butt on an icy slope is no fun. Just ask me. I wish you the best of luck. Elk hunting is a lifetime experience. My days of elk hunting are over due to my health but I will still go and be chief cook and lie teller.

 

[Derwood]

Obviously part of this question is about looking cool. No shame in that!

Sitka and Kuiu both make good gear that lasts a long time and comes in "western" type patterns. I've been wearing my Sitka (model v1 I guess?) stuff since I got it in 2014 and still love it. I also love my Kuiu rain gear and base layers. You will pay a premium to look cool. But if you really want to look the part, re-watch The Revenant or Jeremiah Johnson for some inspiration. Fur never goes out of style!

FWIW...I've found western deer species (black tail and mule) to be way less skittish than white tail. Of course, I've never actually hunted out there, but I have spent a lot of time in the woods in WY, CO, CA, OR, ND and NM and have always been amazed at how close I could get to the deer before they got upset. Good luck and please post pictures!

 

[ChrisD]

Resurrecting the thread here. In the middle of a marathon drive back from Idaho. In the middle of South Dakota while typing from the back seat of cousin’s crew cab. Left my house 2AM 10/25. Arrived in Elkins, WV @ 7:30. Transferred my gear into the trailer we drug out there. Got on the road at 9AM. We drove until 4:30 PM Thursday 10/26, and stopped at a motel in Casper Wyoming. The roads were getting bad. We went from 70 degrees when we left, Friday morning in Wyoming it was 6 degrees. We drove through that storm that hit the northern states. Left the motel in WY, and drove to Orofino, ID. That was a 12 hour ride and stayed the night there. Met the guide and drove another 2 hours to the camp Saturday morning.

Hunted Sunday 10/29 through Thursday. Our group of four killed 3 elk, the fourth got shot but didn’t connect. The area we hunted gets a lot of pressure. The guide is the only outfitter licensed in that area, but it”s open to public hunting. We hunted a mix of state land and timber company property. We did not kill any big bulls, the largest being a 4x4 by my cousin. I killed a spike bull, and my cousin’s son in law killed a spike bull.
His father, (the one that didn’t connect) killed a whitetail buck. Don’t have pictures of the other spike nor the buck.
We drove from Orofino, ID to Missoula, MT last night. Been on the road since 8am from there, driving overnight tonight and going straight through to WV. Should be back in Elkins tomorrow late afternoon. Hope to be back at my house Sunday mid day.
Saw elk everyday we hunted. We were 2x1 with guides. They typical have a 30-40 percent success on bulls in that area, so with a 75 percent, I guess we did ok. We all had a shot opportunity on a bull. This was my first elk kill on my second western hunt.
Took lots of pictures along the way, saw a lot of different game. I’ll post up some of that when I get home and squared away.

 

[madmantrapper]

Happy for your success. I am sure you folks had a great time.

 

[Bullfrog]

Resurrecting the thread here. In the middle of a marathon drive back from Idaho. In the middle of South Dakota while typing from the back seat of cousin’s crew cab. Left my house 2AM 10/25. Arrived in Elkins, WV @ 7:30. Transferred my gear into the trailer we drug out there. Got on the road at 9AM. We drove until 4:30 PM Thursday 10/26, and stopped at a motel j in n Casper Wyoming. The roads were getting bad. We went from 70 degrees when we left, Friday morning in Wyoming it was 6 degrees. We drove through that storm that hit the northern states. Left the motel in WY, and drove to Orocino, ID. That was a 12 hour ride and stayed the night there. Met the guide and drove another 2 hours to the camp Saturday morning.

Hunted Sunday 10/29 through Thursday. Our group of four killed 3 elk, the fourth got shot but didn’t connect. The area we hunted gets a lot of pressure. The guide is the only outfitter licensed in that area, but it”s open to public hunting. We hunted a mix of state land and timber company property. We did not kill any big bulls, the largest being a 4x4 by my cousin. I killed a spike bull, and my cousin’s son in law killed a spike bull.
His father, (the one that didn’t connect) killed a whitetail buck. Don’t have pictures of the other spike nor the buck.
We drove from Orocino, ID to Missoula, MT last night. Been on the road since 8am from there, driving overnight tonight and going straight through to WV. Should be back in Elkins tomorrow late afternoon. Hope to be back at my house Sunday mid day.
Saw elk everyday we hunted. We were 2x1 with guides. They typical have a 30-40 percent success on bulls in that area, so with a 75 percent, I guess we did ok. We all had a shot opportunity on a bull. This was my first elk kill on my second western hunt.
Took lots of pictures along the way, saw a lot of different game. I’ll post up some of that when I get home and squared away.
View attachment 438910

You even got him to smile for the camera.

Congrats, sounds like a great trip.

 

[SummitCnty]

Excellent! Congrats.

 

[RobSky]

Congrats, thanks for sharing!
Anyone tell you, you like a young Walrus.

 

[RRomig]

Congrats on a great trip

 

[outrider58]

Nice going Chris! Plenty of meat to go around and the best part of deer season still ahead of you. Congrats!

 

[ChrisD]

Thanks! In Ohio at the moment, about 4 1/2 hours to go. Been in the vehicle for about 34 hours now. Taking turns driving.
We saw elk each day, whitetail deer, 5 of which were bucks. I had a deer tag that I didn’t use. Saw one stud buck, couldn’t get on him before he disappeared into the timber. Also watched a 10 point for about 20 minutes through the binoculars. He was decent, but not a super great buck. Saw two moose in a clear cut, and a bunch of snowshoe hare.
On the drive out there we saw mule deer, whitetail deer, pronghorn antelope (lots of them), and a buffalo. Pictures from the drive, in no particular order and are from Wyoming and Montana.

 

[Derwood]

Thanks for sharing! I was one state over in that weather last week and did a similar drive; got home on Sunday. It's a loooong way to go but well worth it! I'm glad you came home safely with a truck full of meat!

 

[ChrisD]

Finally had a few minutes to look through pictures I took on this trip. Most don’t do the actual view justice.

 

[ChrisD]

Some pictures are from Wyoming (first two), some from Montana (middle three), and some from the area we were hunting in Idaho (last two).
The timber companies out there do massive clear cuts! Hundreds of acres each. We had fog most every morning, sometimes it was in the low areas, some mornings in the higher areas. I snapped one picture as we were above the fog.

 

[Slackdaddy]

Some pictures are from Wyoming (first two), some from Montana (middle three), and some from the area we were hunting in Idaho (last two).
The timber companies out there do massive clear cuts! Hundreds of acres each. We had fog most every morning, sometimes it was in the low areas, some mornings in the higher areas. I snapped one picture as we were above the fog.
View attachment 439685 View attachment 439684 View attachment 439683 View attachment 439682 View attachment 439681 View attachment 439680 View attachment 439679

Thanks for posting up the pictures,,
I am already planning spring summer scouting trips, and will be putting in for a cow tag again.
It's nice having my kids living out there,, makes a good home base and I would never attempt this without them living there and being involved.

 

[Fate]

Glad you had success. Orofino is a bit more than an hour from my place. Your plaid camo looked like a local!