Dall Sheep, anyone use a white suit before?

[Chris]

Just wanted to see if anyone has tried to use a white suit for sheep like I've seen a few goat hunters use? Got a sheep hunt in August and want to see if anyone has ever given it a shot.

Thanks a bunch.

 

[60x]

I ve carried whites in my pack on sheep hunts for a long time and can honestly say they flat out worked twice. The first was a 37" ram that was hanging with a small ram, and a lamb and ewe. The only way to get to him was to pass by the ewe. We got so close the lamb even came up an sniffed me. ( still the coolest thing that ever happened to me in sheep hunting)They were nervous enough to walk away but didn't spook and we took the ram at twenty some yards..

The next time was in the park and we had to cross a high valley with lots of sheep and it worked. We took a heavy broomer.

The trick with whites is to use them properly. Think like a sheep. Act like a sheep and look like a sheep. Sheep don't walk upright so neither should you. Sheep don t wear back packs so don't don your whites and put a pack on. I usually will put a white game bag over my pack. Also dirty up the whites a bit and wear the hood, again sheep don't have a human head or face so crawl on 4's and mill around with your head down. Don't walk well crawl directly at your foe.
Whites work better in areas less pressured simply cause sheep in pressured areas are catching on.
The truth is when all else fails its on more tool in the shed for getting the job done. Just know how to make the most of it..

 

[mtnclimber]

Guys i know have had a lot more success at using whites in glaciated areas not sure why that is. 60x had a lot of good things to say to add to that i would go slow, never walk directly towards them if you can help it, and try and keep your body partially hidden. Do you have tony russ's sheep hunting book? i would like to think all of us sheep hunters do . He has a really good chapter on trojan sheep, (the use of whites)

 

[jherald]

I think Tony Russ went so far as to wear a fake ewe's head. Dont do that in a ewe tag area!

 

[Chris]

I really appreciate the feedback. I guess the next question is, what is a good lightweight option for a suit? I was thinking a painters suit, but that might have that loud swishing sound like a cheap rain suit. Not looking at having this as the main option, but it never hurts to have a backup plan in case there's no other way to approach. Last sheep hunt was in the shale and dang near impossible to get in bow range.

 

[mtnclimber]

I really appreciate the feedback. I guess the next question is, what is a good lightweight option for a suit? I was thinking a painters suit, but that might have that loud swishing sound like a cheap rain suit. Not looking at having this as the main option, but it never hurts to have a backup plan in case there's no other way to approach. Last sheep hunt was in the shale and dang near impossible to get in bow range.

painters suit will be your best/cheapest option i know of. lightweight, easy to dispose, and easy to find. i wouldnt worry about the noise too much as your meant to be in plain site of the sheep. noise is only really a factor when your trying not to be seen.

 

[VernAK]

Worked fine for me as we approached from far below on the glacier......climbed upward in sight until within 250 yards and finished the job.

 

[Ray]

There are different types of suits. Some tyvek suits are meant for short term liquid exposure and these will be more noisy and hotter than a thinner painter suit. There are real thin painters suits that are nearly see through. Look for these at home stores. Then stain it with coffee or tea to get it to a lite dirty yellow color. Not too dark though, just enough to keep them from being unnaturally white. If you move slow they will not create much noise that is hearable beyond a few yards.

If you don't already have either of Tony Russ's books you should get them. They cover realworld issues specifically for bow hunting sheep.

 

[swat8888]

Yep used em. Haven't carried them recently as I didn't feel like lugging the extra 1/2lb since I haven't had an experience yet where I really needed them. Suppose if I stop carrying them long enough I'll regret it that one time. I used the tyvek, filled a 5 gallon bucket with 3 or 4 tea bags, dunked the suit in there with a weight in top over night and you get a nice yellowish sheep looking suit. As Tony Russ states just take them off before walking up to a kill and don't walk upright the length of the entire valley with them on because you aren't fooling anyone. As an FYI I've found you typically need to size up at least one size otherwise you have short arms and a hood that barely goes over your head. I would consider myself a large, but think I typically go with a 2XL suit. Been awhile so don't quote me on that, might want to pick up a few and try em out. They do make excellent decoys as well. Had more luck with that than actually wearing them.

 

[Matt W.]

.... They do make excellent decoys as well. Had more luck with that than actually wearing them.

Could you expand on this? I find the idea interesting. What was the scenario? Thanks!

 

[mtnclimber]

Could you expand on this? I find the idea interesting. What was the scenario? Thanks!

yeah i was wondering the same?

Also like swat said its good to really size up on the suits. I generally find the biggest one available because you never really know how many layers and jackets you will have on and theres nothing worse than putting a final stalk on a ram with an uncomfortably tight and restricting tyvek suit.

 

[Snyd]

Packed whites last year along with knee pads on a handgun hunt. I regret not trying them looking back on it. We got to 270yds of a ram, totally open between us and him, down hill open sidehill full of rocks. I figured not enough cover to crawl around in so I told my buddy to take him with the 270. It was the first day of 7 days left to hunt. Never saw another legal ram. I keep wondering if I could have crawled within 100yds and taken him. Oh well... maybe this year!