Sitka Stratus-Michigan Whitetail

[GSPMich]

I'm looking for opinions on this set up. I have built a solid system for early through mid season, basically the month of October. I am looking to upgrade my late season shell, which currently is a mish mash of items I have bought and found on sale over the last 15 years.

I currently have 3-4 different weights of merino base layers from First Lite. I use the FL Sawtooth and puffy, and for pants I have EB guide for early season then this year added Kuiu Guides for later Oct. That all seems to work very well.

I thought about buying the FL Solitude set last year, but with what I've heard about that setup and the wind I don't see it being a benefit over the old stuff I use now. The Stratus has a wind proof layer and comes in tall sizes, which I like being 6'5".

The 2 other options are FL Sanctuary and Sitka Fanatic. Fanatic not being in tall and having that shooters cut would eliminate that from my choices. I've heard great things about the Sanctuary, but I don't like the idea of lugging a heavy set of clothing around and getting fully dressed when with the Stratus I could wear the bibs in and throw on an insulation layer and jacket on at my tree and climb in and be ok.

I also considered buying the Solitude bibs with the Sanctuary jacket, as it looks like those bibs allow for a little more movement without getting worked up.

This system will be primarily for archery. I probably only hunt about 8-10 times after Nov. 15, and most of those hunts are from a blind. I also don't do a lot of all day sits, usually only if I can on the 15th for rifle opener, once in while I get an all day sit in In early Nov. for archery, about once every 2 seasons.

 

[fatlander]

The stratus isn’t warm enough for that time of year, especially in your part of the world. Once the temps get down below 35, the stratus just doesn’t cut it. By the time you put enough insulation on to stay warm, a good base layer and the fanatic would have been lighter. The fanatic is what you seek.


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[jackle1886]

Sanctuary is what I run. Was mid 20s with a wind chill at 8* this am. I'm in the UP hanging from my saddle. I have on a midweight merino base, a fleece top & bottom, abd a vest up top. I'm borderline too warm. The bibs have zippers all down the legs to vent. And they're not that heavy.

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[bowhnter7]

I agree with fatlander.
I have both the Stratus and Sanctuary set.
When it dips below 32 in the morning hunts I'll wear the Sanctuary.

The Stratus jacket is the weak point in the system in my opinion. It's pretty much just a shell but is wind proof.
It's also not cut to have several layers on under it.

 

[CREillY]

I have the Stratus and Sanctuary as well. I was sitting this weekend in MN. Temps in the 25 to 30 range and 15 mile per hour winds. I could feel the wind through the sanctuary, but wasn't cold. 10 degrees colder and I would have been pretty uncomfortable. I'm curious to try the fanatic for the wind stopping ability, but I really like the hood on the sanctuary. I have a 3/4 mile walk to my stand and it's easy to dump heat out of the sanctuary when walking so I wear it in. The sanctuary isn't that heavy.

I use the stratus mainly in October.

 

[WELLSTON_HUNTER]

i just picked up the Badlands Venture jacket this season and i'm pretty happy with it

 

[GSPMich]

Thanks for the info here to all those that chimed in, I have to ask those with the Sanctuary, how does it do in the wind?

 

[cobbc03]

I'm going to be the odd man out it looks like. Stratus is absolutely what you want, unless you wanted the fanatic. The stratus is absolutely made to layer under, hence the cut and increased size, Sitka will tell you that. It's all about layers, and if you aren't doing all day sits, you don't need to layer like the Michelin man. Wind blocker is 100% necessary for me, and that's the only thing that steered me away from the solitude.