Rain gear for western Washington?

[dtripp0825]

First Lite makes better rain gear imo, I love Sitka gear but it’s just too expensive.


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[DoubleDown]

First Lite makes better rain gear imo, I love Sitka gear but it’s just too expensive.


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Do FirstLite belong to woke meateater?

 

[Jason277]

kuiu yukon, here

 

[Where's Bruce?]

I prefer Sitka too and have the Dewpoint for most hunts and the Thunderhead for heavy rains but the truth is, nothing is gonna hold up against the vegetation you are surrounded by in the coastal rainforest of the PNW. Nothing. Anyone saying KUIU, FirstLite or any other comparable company's raingear will hold up is a BSing fanboy.

 

[StuckoYota99]

100% agree. My first lite seak holds up in the rain and wind. But if you start breaking trail through wet brush you're going to get wet. Stay away from devil's club.
Grundens will keep you dry from the rain but you'll sweat yourself out.

 

[tdot]

My Yukon set has outlasted my Arcteryx Alpha and Arcteryx Leaf sets by a fairly large margin. Arcteryx was excellent about replacing all the failed pieces under the Gore Tex Warranty. But I'd rather not be paying Swarovski prices to receive Vortex quality/warranty.

 

[Z71&Gun]

Grundens or just learn to be ok with being wet.

plus one for Grundens

 

[hibernation]

But if you start breaking trail through wet brush you're going to get wet. Stay away from devil's club.

Yeah, if you're hunting in the brush and not just sitting clearcuts, it's hard to avoid getting at least damp. I focus on dependable layers underneath my rain gear more than the rain gear itself, that stuff just gets trashed in the Coast Range. I try to find the least expensive, solid color non-hunting brand jackets for my "brush" gear: usually it's a 2-layer laminated nylon piece, something on par with the marmot precip. You can almost always find some brand's version of this on clearance at the usual sites. I save the nicer 3-layer goretex pieces for places where I'm not going to be busting through salmonberry and salal, there's just no way I'm trashing a $300+ jacket like that.

Best thing I've found is a nice waterproof wide-brim hat paired with a tight collar on your rain jacket. Keeps the rain off your shoulders without having to wear your hood, I can't stand hunting with a hood up - especially for blacktail in close quarters. You really need that full situational awareness to catch them in the timber.

 

[CM04]

Yukon is tough


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[Sundance]

I have 5 different sets of raingear, all for different seasons/situations. My September high buck in the Olympics set is very different from my late November glassing gear. I will run everything from 2-layer, to 3-layer, to poly-urethane depending on the situation. I have yet to find the silver bullet that meets all needs. Interestingly enough I have as many boots for all these sets of raingear. Oh the joys of hunting the PNW.

 

[Sundance]

Axle grease - Will keep you dry and warm... and works for cooking!

Long Island off the coast in December, oh joy....

Damn near drowned in my sleep on Long Island a few years back. I was spiked out and had to sleep in my kayak under tarp it was raining so hard. That place has some serious rain down there.

 

[Howdoyoulikemenow]

Layered wool.

 

[Valumpessa]

I've been running Kuiu Chugach (1st gen) in the wet Oregon coast range for 10 years and have been very pleased. It's expensive but worth every penny in my opinion. I'm an active hunter and got tired of less quality rain gear soaking thru after and hour in driving rain.

You do need to baby them though in order to make them last... can't go ripping thru salmonberry without issue. When this set wears out, I'll likely go with new yukon pants for added durabilty and another chugach jacket.

 

[BR00D]

Nothing beats Arcteryx LEAF alpha

 

[Redwing]

Cut the booties off of an old pair of breathable waders. It's the toughest rain gear you'll find, for the low, low price of free-fifty-free. Not whisper quiet, but it's a great way to re-purpose waders when they pass the point of easy patching. You'll want gaiters because the cuff will likely ride over your boot tops. You will have to take your boots off if you want to put them on or off, and they are heavy. If I was really bright I'd cut them down to waist high, sew a waist band with an elastic drawstring, install suspender loops, and sew zippers into the side of the legs.

The Arc'Teryx LEAF Alpha stuff looks incredible, and I should try a pair someday. I wasn't aware of that gear until this thread.

 

[JoeDirt]

Ive just accepted im going to be wet.

Ive tried lots of rain gear, most work ok standing in the rain. Once you hit the brush things change, the brush will push water through the rain gear. Unless you're wearing a oversized rubber condom you're going to be wet.

If someone made some better fitted rain gear I might look into that.

I hear Swazi is good, have yet to spend a fortune on trying that brand......