Winter hunting pants - HELP!
 

Hey there,

Please point me in the right direction for a balance between cost and quality for some winter hunting pants in the snow. They need to be waterproof, warm, breathable maybe, and be the silent material. I understand that the first reactions are kuiu etc and $400. But are there any other ones people have had good experiences with that dont break the bank?

Ideally i would like to be able to crouch or sit temporarly in the snow if needed occassionally. And my current pairs are either noisy rainproof material or get soaked or both.

Thank you!

You get what you pay for...that saying..

I find lined Dickies/Carharts bibs work just fine if not in the heavy water/rain.
But I do have waterproof gear that yes you pay much more for.

Good luck!

winter pants
 

I have 2 pairs of Big Bills wool pants, they work well.

Hard to beat a good quality pair of ski bib pants.Some quality ones are not too noisy and you might even be able to find such in a second hand store. I have tried a great variety of products over the years and settled on the above.Be sure to get a loose fitting one so you can layer accordingly.

SKRE Canada is having a huge sale now. Check them out. I just got my Kodiak pants for a late season hunts and they are awesome. They do have a really good cold weather gear too.

I bought kings snow camo last year. It is very nice

I’ve been through this before. I have a hard time with pants/bibs, especially the waterproof/breathable thing. If that is truly what you are after you will be happy if you spend the money on them.

I have found that layers are best, and it completely depends on your hunting style. If I’m hiking in and then going to sit, I am layered rather light for the walk in, then stand/sit until I am cooled down, then once I start feeling like I might get chilled I will put on bibs and a bigger jacket if needed. If travelling light and moving, anything warmer than -25 I later appropriately and it works quite well.

Not sure if that helps at all, but seems to work for me.

I have several sets of higher end brands like Kuiu and Arcteryx but I still tend to prefer my CF issue, pre-GoreTex wind pants. Inexpensive and easily found at an Army Surplus shop. They looked like regular combat pants in OD but were a heavier material and had a looser cut. They are great kit over a set of fleece in the cold. Not waterproof but wash them in Tech Wash then spray them with Scotch Guard for some extra water repellency. The current CF issue GoreTex versions may also be available but they are heavy, do not breathe, and shred easily.

Many years ago, I bought the cheap set (Remington maybe ?) that Walmart had on sale. If the hike in is tough, I'll pull the jacket off because the pants are quite warm. If it's a walk two steps then glass, I can stay fully dressed & not be too sweaty by the time I sit on a log for a bit.

If I was buying today, JoeS ?? on here is often selling Army Surplus priced very reasonably which might really fill your needs. Best of luck!

Second that. They are warm and quiet.

Wool pants!! in my opinion there is absolutely nothing better. They are warm, they breath and cut wind. Like one salesman said to a friend.. with wool pants, even when you are cold and wet, you are warm and dry!!

DR

It all comes down to the fact that waterproof and quite very rarely come together, especially if you add durable to the equation. Even the high end clothing designed for hunting isn’t exactly that quite when waterproofing is factored in.

I never tried any of the CF stuff (except for a couple of long johns I have, gifted by a buddy who served many years ago), but I believe raised by wolves.

At the end of the day, in my experience and my friends’ experience, the cheaper stuff will almost always wear out significantly faster and will never perform the same as more expensive stuff. I have Arcteryx clothing some of which is 15+ years old, including a sweater and jacket that I wear daily in spring and fall and both look like new except for a couple of burn holes from camp fire and whatnot; things I don’t wear often can probably be sold as new with no tags on ebay or something and no one will be able to tell the difference. Friends who bought equivalent performance but cheaper clothing threw theirs to the garbage long, loooong time ago. One particular example, I bought an Arcteryx rain jacket almost at the exact same time my friend bought his, whatever the brand was. I paid twice as much. Both were Goretex and very similar otherwise (you could see mine was better made, but we didn’t really pay too much attention at the time). Long story short, mine had never let me down and I was always dry wearing it, it still looks like new after about 10 years of use; his kept him dry for less than two years and he would be wet if in the rain all day (ie extended period of time) from the beginning. Same with rain pants and my other friend. I bought, again, Arcteryx (lol, not a commercial for Arcteryx, but I am loyal to that brand for a reason) and he bought Patagonia for about half the price. His were not Gotetex, but whatever other proprietary thing. The pants he bought were perfect and he could wade in them for some time when properly tacked around and whatever, just as I could in mine. But then they completely crapped out after two or so years and being (properly) stored for the winter. Same thing with his matching jacket he bought at the same time, which lasted a bit longer. My pants are still like new. I want to say last year, but I think it was actually two years ago, when I spent over 12 hours in the rain hunting elk (it sucked and I didn’t find any that day) wearing these very jacket and pants and I was completely dry when I got home. When you look closer and pay attention, you can see that pretty much everything is different - material, stitching, overall “craftsmanship”, etc - and makes things like Arcteryx virtually bomb proof, it likely won’t get ripped when you catch a stick poking out and will simply last.

To the latter point, on the aforementioned jacket (not the rain one), the zipper broke about 4 years ago when I happened to be in Vancouver. I dropped it off at the Arcteryx store there and they shipped it back fixed to my home in Alberta a couple of weeks later (no charges). They called me before doing anything because they didn't have zippers the same colour anymore and I spent about 20 minutes on the phone with the lady discussing the colour options, lol. At the end, she suggested what she thought looked good by looking at my jacket and the collection of zippers in front of her, to which I said sure thing (she seemed to care more than I did) and it turned out better than it was before (zipper she chose is the colour of the greyish logo).

I also never paid full price for this type of clothing, but found/waited till I can find something I wanted on sale or clearance (people say it doesn’t happen, but it does).

So in regards to “breaking the bank”, I don’t think it does, even if you pay full price. Sure, you pay quite a bit upfront for this type of “specialized” clothing and equipment, but at the very least break even in the long run and likely win some or quite a bit, while at the same time being comfortable and unlikely run into inconvenience of shopping again, possibly often, etc. That is, of course, if you buy what you actually needed in the first place.

Lastly, in regards to sitting and walking, I don’t believe you will find anything that is suitable for both: you’ll either be called sitting or too hot walking. I simply layer up, depending on what I plan to do, which is never sitting, but some standing in one spot can be involved (call it planning to hunt according to the weather conditions sort of thing and if I start getting called, I simply move on). I also don’t have any specific hunting clothes, just cheap stuff or something (like pants) that isn’t any longer suitable for work, for example. A couple of weeks ago, I bought my first Icebreaker long johns that I stumbled upon being 50% off. Will see if they can replace a couple of layers of “regular” long johns I usually wear. Was also debating this year to buy some dedicated hunting pants, like Sitka or something else, but either miss sales and clearances or cannot justify spending the money, lol. It’s funny because I know for a fact, given my experience with other things, that I will likely never have to buy hunting pants again if I buy a pair of Sitka (unless I outgrow them in width or want something else or different), for example, but still can’t pull the trigger, lol. I am not much of a camo fan either and it is usually camo that I see on clearance.

Not sure if any of this stuff helps, but here it is, haha. Probably more in regards to breaking the bank than anything. To sum up this point, I believe the balance between cost and quality is going with high end stuff due to durability, comfort, and other factors mentioned above. I truly believe a guy cannot win there and there is a reason different outfits charge differently for their products. The other point, there has to be some sacrifice one way or the other in terms of moving and being hot and sitting and being cold because one often leads to the other, as in being comfortable sitting, then getting a bit hot walking and getting very cold on your next sit because of it. Even with wool: most of my underlayment is made of wool of wool blend and it can still get a bit chilli faster after breaking a bit of sweat, which should be avoided at all costs, imo. I’d rather be a little cold and dry than (temporarily) warm but sweating.

100% Wool is the best.

I just wear these and layers underneath as temp indicates. Poly underwear, light layer first, then heavy and if real cold throw a pair of sweats on.

https://www.cabelas.ca/product/13966...coversuit-pant

Another vote for wool, I'm never cold even when wet. I tried just about everything, and always come back to wool.

Thank you for the all input. This gives me some more items to look at. Thank you!

Hunging style is a mix of stalking and sitting. Not walking miles and miles, but enough that something bulky and heavy will be a problem.

Wool!

I spent the money on the fancy gear but before that it was wool pants all the way. My first pair were dad's that he wore while pipelining with a checker pattern.

For hunting and wanting to sit in the snow a bit, carry a seat pad or cushion. helps keep you drier and provides a bit of insulation for the butt while sitting on anything cold.

I've had my eye on the Yukon gear reversible bib from Canadian tire for a while.
It looks like the best of both words as its mossy oak and now camo. I have the jacket and its great

Check these guys out. I will be getting a pair of the 18oz pants for this fall.

I have a thin pair of first lite pants that I bought a few years ago that have been awesome for hunting. The obsidian foundry. As the weather gets colder I just layered under them with wool under layers. Incredible to see the temps that I have been out in them and staying warm.

https://www.gostwear.com/advanced_se...996e8e3b3820dc

My best purchase believe it or not, was a a onezie coverall in wool, and in snow camo.

Got it from Can tire some years ago and I love it !!!

I wear a simple pair of long john's, a second 'polar' long john on top on that, then a CHEAP fleece sweat pant and then CHEAP (season ending Sale price) white/black camo insulated pants I got at Walmart.

And if it's super cold, I'll just add another WOOL layer on over the long johns and fleece sweats before sliding into the insulated camo pants.

Great place to buy clothes... REPEAT BOUTIQUE.

You'll never see me wearing any of the high tech, high dollar stuff.

My vote would be for the First Lite Catalyst Soft Shell pant, or something similar from another brand. First Lite also has the Catalyst Soft Shell Bib and Catalyst Foundry Pant. When I started to look for clothing to hunt with I needed something I could use to for archery but also use still hunting during November. I needed something quiet but also something that would stay decently dry if I didn’t go home between hunts and was instead truck camping at -10. I have had these pants for years and they have held up through mountains hunts and canoe hunts. With a bit of layering they have been quite versatile. My only complaint is i need some zippers to make it easier to take layers off. That’s where the Catalyst Foundry pant comes in. That will likely be my next pant. Also they aren’t wind proof if you’re needing something like that. I don’t have the Catalyst jacket but I’m guessing it’s a good piece.

Between my wife and I we have a few First Lite pieces, she usually wears one warmer set than what I’m wearing. They are dedicated to hunting meaning that we don’t wear it for anything else. We have a bunch of insulation layers of whatever other brands and they get used for many activities and my rain jacket is just a grey Salomon. I think the hunting gear gets used 10-25 days a year and it could last me a decade. I don’t think it’s better than any of the other mid to higher priced brands out there, it’s just what I started with and I have been happy.

For my elk hunting here in Montana at 7000’+ end of November, I wear kings camo preacher pant and Filson wool pants. Haven’t got cold except for my hands and toes wearing that combo.

Your correct if they are not water prof your wasting your money on hunting pants if your going out for a few days or a week .

What I bought years ago and still use them today are the green gortex army pants . They are not heavy and you can wear more clothing under them for colder days. I have kneeled down in wet soggy muskeg calling moose and they never let water threw .They have a lot of pockets .
I have gone up a size this last winter so they do not fit me . If your a size 34 you can have them for $80 .
Edmonton

Your correct if they are not water prof your wasting your money on hunting pants if your going out for a few days or a week .

What I bought years ago and still use them today are the green gortex army pants . They are not heavy and you can wear more clothing under them for colder days. I have kneeled down in wet soggy muskeg calling moose and they never let water threw .They have a lot of pockets .
I have gone up 2 sizes this last winter so they do not fit me . If your a size 34 you can have them for $80 .
Edmonton

Many years ago, I took some 'blackout' drapery lining, and sewed together a pant and jacket. I padded the knees and butt, and did an elastic waist, which I had to later add suspenders. I now look forward every year to wearing whites. Waterproof, because the fabric has a rubberized coating, which also stops a cold wind. Great for dropping into the snow. Most game are puzzled at what they are seeing, and want to have a better look. Breathability is not that great, so no hill climbs, but the pros have it.

For costs though, A painters suite over your regular layers should work fine.

That is what they call layering?? Lots of them. :) We used to do that but found all those layers to be a burden.

I wear a heavy set of long johns and a Gore-Tex hunting pant over that, then I climb into either my one piece insulated coveralls or my insulated bibs, when I go out. I found that is all I need to stay nice and warm, if it's really cold, -20 or so, I like to add a sweater and down vest on top.