Gear Priority List

[egreen4257]

Pretty new to hunting and just inherited a bunch of stuff from my dad. My girlfriends family and I all drew elk tags for CO this season and we plan on going together. We have the rifles we need but other than that, kind of starting from scratch. I got a bunch of old hunting clothes from my dad, probably from Walmart haha. What would you all recommend to prioritize most? We have hiking gear, so boots shouldn't really be an issue either.

Side note: her dad has hunted for years and taken elk, etc and he is tagging along so we aren't going to be totally lost. More so just wondering what I should start investing in.

Thanks!

 

[Legend]

Pretty new to hunting and just inherited a bunch of stuff from my dad. My girlfriends family and I all drew elk tags for CO this season and we plan on going together. We have the rifles we need but other than that, kind of starting from scratch. I got a bunch of old hunting clothes from my dad, probably from Walmart haha. What would you all recommend to prioritize most? We have hiking gear, so boots shouldn't really be an issue either.

Side note: her dad has hunted for years and taken elk, etc and he is tagging along so we aren't going to be totally lost. More so just wondering what I should start investing in.

Thanks!

Gas money and boot leather. Seriously time in the field is what you really need.

More critters have died wearing jeans and flannel shirts that all the fancy brands combined.

Seriously don't overthink it and let gear be an excuse to miss an adventure.

Good luck

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Go backpacking, camping etc. and scout the area multiple times. You'll quickly learn what gears works for you and what doesn't. The time to get in the field was yesterday!

 

[Carrot Farmer]

Go backpacking, camping etc. and scout the area multiple times. You'll quickly learn what gears works for you and what doesn't. The time to get in the field was yesterday!

this!!!

The more experience I gain, the less fears I pack and allow me to really start to dial in my system(clothing, shelter, sleep system, food, etc)


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[TX338]

My top 3 priorities as advice to 1st time elk hunters are:
Boots - quality and broken in
Binoculars - quality
Sleeping bag - warm and comfortable

Many things beyond that can be worked around.

 

[Netherman]

"just go hunting" is probably the best advice. Other than that I'd start at a the end of a successful hunt and work backwards and make sure you've got everything you need covered. you'll figure out what you'd want to get nicer versions of as you go.

Cooler for meat
pack to carry meat (looks like you're already planning on getting a pack I'd add trekking poles and realistic expectations on how much you can carry in one trip)
game bags to put meat in (could do garbage bags if later season and can hang to cool off)
Knife to cut elk (watch some gutless videos on youtube)
Gun to shoot elk (I'm a bipod guy, but some threads on here are causing me to "reform" my opinion)
Way to find elk (could be binos or boot leather depending on the country you're in)
Place to sleep (backpacking gear, wall tent type camp, air B&B)

There's a lot of items in that list that are nicer, lighter, and betterer. But you'll need to figure out your typical hunt style, target species, location ect before anyone can recommend brand X item Z. i.e. someone might recommend some 2k 15x binos or a 4k spotting scope and you only hunt timber. Those optics are nice and top of the line, but wouldn't do you a bit of good in the timber.

If you dig around I like typing up trip reports and have gear lists and my thoughts on what I want to upgrade.

 

[LongWayAround]

Wear your hiking gear.

Boots, backpack, binoculars.

Buy ammo and go shoot.

There's probably a lifetime of reading on here.

 

[Bluumoon]

My gear/pack layout from base layers to binos

I have gotten 20-30 requests for a full gear post of what I use over the last year or two. I have not done so as certain gear brings out emotions more than which cartridge and bullets threads, and there is an element of personal preference. I also don’t solely or even generally base most of my...

rokslide.com

If you want gear that's been vetted, ie buy once cry once.

 

[406life]

My thoughts on priority and upgrading in this order:
Boots
Pack
Binos
Satellite Communicator
Outer layer
Base layer
Insulating layer

 

[rred85]

Quality optics
You’d be surprised how much of a difference they make in lower light.

 

[Jt89]

Yeah, good boots first.
If I could go back and give myself a stern talking to it would be to say: Get yourself a good set of rangefinding binos, then save up and buy a really nice, solid, reliable scope first before you buy the rifle or anything else. Everything else will fall into place but your feet and your eyes are what really make or break the hunt.

 

[IDVortex]

Go backpacking, you'll really be able to fine tune some of your gear that way. Next up, hunt with said gear. You don't need camo to kill animals. Wind is more important. Only camo I'll be wearing is for archery elk this September, only because I already wear it.

Gear id suggest;
Boots
Pack
Sleeping bag
Sleeping pad
Rain gear
Layers

 

[northernalpine]

For Colorado:

1. Clothes that will breathe and keep you warm
2. Jacket/Pants that will keep you dry
3. Boots that let you hike 10 miles a day for a week
4. Ammo to shoot weekly, from field positions
5. Good socks, because feet matter

Don’t worry about brands or color schemes, hiking gear works as well as any over-marketed hunting brand. You’ll figure out pretty quick what does/does not work for you, like several others have mentioned. Also like other have mentioned, if you’re going to purchase something critical, make it count and buy a quality item. You have the rest of your life to add what you can, when you can

This thread ain’t a bad place to start looking to see what others have found value in on a budget:
Cheap stuff that works

 

[egreen4257]

For Colorado:

1. Clothes that will breathe and keep you warm
2. Jacket/Pants that will keep you dry
3. Boots that let you hike 10 miles a day for a week
4. Ammo to shoot weekly, from field positions
5. Good socks, because feet matter

Don’t worry about brands or color schemes, hiking gear works as well as any over-marketed hunting brand. You’ll figure out pretty quick what does/does not work for you, like several others have mentioned. Also like other have mentioned, if you’re going to purchase something critical, make it count and buy a quality item. You have the rest of your life to add what you can, when you can

This thread ain’t a bad place to start looking to see what others have found value in on a budget:
Cheap stuff that works

Thanks brother!


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[csrichardson97]

Not sure what season you will be hunting.
Optics - Binos specifically. Spotter can be helpful in big country, but I only use my binos 90% of the time. (10x42)
Jacket/Pant - ex... I have the Sitka jetstream and can use it for 9-10 months out of the year. Same with their mountain pant, good for 8-9 months with the right layering
Boots - I spend as much time as I can in my hiking shoes. But a good pair of hunting boots really makes a difference when you are in the field for longer stretches. Dry feet and warm feet are important.
These were the first 2 things I invested in, and I have made do with cheaper gear for some other categories (tent/bag)

 

[StuckoYota99]

Hunting Is basically hiking and camping with a rifle. If you have your camping gear dialed in then don't worry about it. However if you haven't used your gear in bad weather then I would recommend testing it out.
you don't want to be out there in 3rd rifle season and find out your tent doesn't hold up in the winds or your boots aren't really water proof.
You don't need Sitka or first lite or swarovski.

Priority for me is
Rifle and scope
boots
Pack that can haul meat and gear
Quality knife and bone saw
binoculars take priority over spotting scope tripod for shooting and glassing
Sleep is super important
Being comfortable will keep you on the mountain longer.
If there is a budget restriction then you can split up the gear list. One person can buy the spotter and tripod. Another buys a quality pair of binoculars.

 

[isItFallYet]

Water filter system.

 

[cs1]

Keys to the backhoe…

 

[archp625]

Three items come to mind if you are backpacking in with explanations:

1) Boots - If your feet are f'd, you are f'd. Buy a pair now and get at least 50 miles on them. When you first put them on they better feel great. If they don't take them back or sell them. Most of the time they never will work out.

2) Sleeping bag - Buy once cry once. Don't buy a $150 sleep bag. If shit goes down it could save your life. I think a good place to start is a 15 degree bag.

3) Puffy jacket - Hard to hunt when you are cold. I would rather hunt in a cotton shirt and puffy then merino or synthetic this and that and no puffy. Also could save your life.

 

[199p]

100% get some good boots, get a good pack and get into it bro and good luck