Late September Montana Archery Elk Hunt Gear List Help

[406Hunt]

So I am looking for some suggestion or more importantly some blatant flaws in my gear list that I am not seeing.
I will be hunting most weekends in Montana for archery elk leading up to a 10 day trip I have planed in SW Montana at the end of sept. For the most part I will be basing from my truck, but I have the gear/option to spike camp out of there if I end up seeing some action. For the most part my budget has been had for the year but like I said, if you are seeing any gaping holes please let me know.

Clothing-
Merino Boxers
Darn Tough Socks (2)
Smart Wool Base Layer Pants and Long Sleeve
FL Llano T
FL Kiln 3/4 Zip
FL North Branch Jacker
Prana Stretch Zion Pants
Smart Wool Beanie
North Face Gloves
Patagonia Packable Puffy
Kenetrek MTN EXT Boots
Kenetrek Gaiters (May or may not bring pending on day)

Pack-
MR Pintler
MR Bino Harness
MR Semi Auto Holster
Water Bladder

Glass-
Leupold rx Range Finder
Vortex 8x42 Viper HD
Vortex Diamondback Spotter 65mm
Cheapo Tripod (DPP or something like that. Heavy but it works)

In the Pack-
Basic First Aid Kit
550 Para Cord
Oh Shit Kit (Fire starter paste, 2 lighters wrapped with electrical tape, extra head lamp, compass, foil, emergency blanket, few pieces hard candy)
TheremaRest Glassing Pad
Montem Trekking Poles

Kill Kit-
Havalon
Allen Synthetic Game Bags
Contractor Bag
Zip Ties

In the Lid-
Buck Fixed blade knife
Garmin Oregon 450? W/ 2018 ONX Chip (+extra Batteries)
Headlamp
MTN Ops Stiks
Snaks

Bow-
Prime Centergy (Set up with g5 quiver, qad rest, ect.)
Easton Axis Arrows
Dead Meat Broadheads
(Judos- Shooting grouse is just too fun to resist)

Heat-
Bear Spray
Glock 29

Calls-
Rocky Mtn- Reeds, Diaphragm and Tube

Camp-
NorthFace 2-Peson tent
Big Agnes Bag and Pad combo
Small Tarp
35 L Dry Bag to stuff in

Extra Things I have that I may or May not Bring-
Amazon Portable Charger
Katadyn Hiker Pro Filter

Again if you read through this thank you and any suggestions are highly appreciated.

 

[Brendan]

Rain Gear? Backup heavier puffy / insulating layers if the weather goes south. I've had everything from 70's heat and sun, to 20's with wind and rain and 20" of snow on the ground.

I don't consider water purification optional - bring something, even if it's tablets, steripen, etc.

I always carry an Inreach for safety even with a GPS.

Bow repair kit - individual allen wrenches, serving thread, d-loop thread, super glue / duct tape if not in your med kit.

Where I hunted in SW MT - Spotter and Tripod were worthless. Haven't used them in 4 years.

Also - there are hundreds of threads like this, might be good to do a search and read through some of them.

 

[406Hunt]

Rain Gear is def something I will put on the list.

And I appreciate the feedback. I do have a basic bow repair kit ill throw in.

And the spotter and tripod- Damn. I live and hunt primarily in NW Montana. I was hoping to actually put some glass to work.

 

[2ski]

Go with what you're comfortable with for starting fires, but the tube of firepaste I have is pretty heavy. And I think cotton balls and vaseline burns way longer. I would bring some of those as well and some other way to start a fire. And dont hedge your bets on just lighters. Take some waterproof matches too. Two different ways to start a fire.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

[Brendan]

And the spotter and tripod- Damn. I live and hunt primarily in NW Montana. I was hoping to actually put some glass to work.

All depends on where and how you hunt. For me, SW MT, archery elk during the rut, it was all calling, all in the timber. No real place to glass from that I wasn't fine with binos. I brought one with me the first two days, and then left it in the truck after that. Even did the same in Wyoming which was more open.

Bring it with you - but my guess is you won't be lugging it around with you every day.

 

[S.Clancy]

Item oz
Shelter 16
Sleeping bag 32
sleeping pad 16
Pillows sleeve 6.5
Headlamp+batteries 2.96
Multi-tool 3.52
Tenacious Tape 1
Matches/Lighter 1
First Aid kit 6.88
Paracord 2.12
Toothbrush/Floss 3
Water Filter/Bags 3.38
Pot/Fuel/Stove 22.9
Spoon 0.36
Pants Worn
SS Shirt Worn
Rain Gear 24.62
Lightweight Wool 10.62
Hooded Jacket 7.66
Pullover 12.4
Hat/gloves 3.52
2 Pair Socks 5.72
Binoculars 30.86
Kindle 5.9
Cell Phone 4.98
Chair 24.86
Bow+Quiver 94.8
3 Extra Arrows 3
3 Extra Broadheads 0.63
Allen Wrenches 2
Rangefinder 5.78
Cow Calls/Bugle 1
Wind Detector 2
Releases(2) 6.06
Outdoor Edge 4
Meat bags 3.14
Pack 82
Sub-Total oz 453.17
Sub-Total lbs 28.323125

This is the exact list I bring.

 

[camelcluch]

I would definitely add rain gear and like lose the soft shell. Maybe change our puffy for something a bit heavier. Be prepared for cold and wet.

 

[406Hunt]

The North Branch and puffy are a pretty formidable combo when it gets cold and wet, granted the North branch is heavy.
I am going to invest in some rain pants though. Probably a jacket too. I feel as if mine will be enough but neither have hoods.
I have a decent NorthFace rain jacket that does pretty great for mild showers when I'm hiking. Maybe ill sub that for warmer days when I won't need the north branch.

 

[Brendan]

I know you live out there, but under no circumstances would I be caught going on an Elk hunt in Montana without a hard rain shell at my disposal, especially after last year... Even the year before in Wyoming I got 33 degrees and freezing rain for parts of the time.

The North Branch is still a soft shell and is not waterproof, I had one myself and sold it. A hard shell and a puffy is going to be much more flexible - blocks the wind better, will keep you dry when it gets real rainy or snowy, and probably together with the puffy both weigh as much as the North Branch does on it's own.

Soft shells have their place, but not at the expense of a real hard shell IMO.

 

[camelcluch]

A softshell is not a rain coat. I would stick to proven rain gear. Kuiu, FL, Stika and Marmot are all solid choices. I used to carry a soft shell and stopped a few years ago because the hard shell and puffy was a better combination.

 

[MylesH]

Don't forget your tag haha

 

[jmez]

I agree with the rain jacket comments above. I know a lot of guys leave it out but it only takes one time when you really need it to make it a worthwhile expense.