- Replaced my Lowa Spotter / Vortex Tripod set up with a pair of Vortex 18x56 and Kestrel Monopod
- Upgraded from Vortex Razor HD 10x42 to Swaro NL Pure 10x42 ... This "hurt" and hope I didn't just buy into the hype with that one but we'll see
- Testing out the Jetboil Stash
- Replaced my puffy and mid-weight fleece with a Kuiu Kenai Ultra jacket
- Replaced my Exo 3500 Pack with a Kuiu 4000 Pro LT pack - saved 2 pounds and love the adjustability and simplicity of the Kuiu - also not of fan of Exo the company
- Replaced my Salomon 4D boots with Crispi Thor II. Really liking the stiffer sole and light weight of the Thor IIs.
- Replaced my aqua tabs for the BFree
- Replaced my old Vortex 1000 range finder with the Leopold Rx4 Draw
- Tested several other bio harnesses, but stuck with my Mystery Ranch. I can fit the range finder in one side pocket and wind checker in the other. On the bottom mounted my Glock 20 one it's side using the ACG pistol harness to the molle strips on the bottom of the harness. Really tight, compact system. I have a used green new-style sitka binocular harness for anyone interested.
- Testing a move from a OR Helium Bivy to a Tarptent Aeon li tent - same weight. I've run the OR Helium Bivy for years and love it's ease of use and small foot print - can't tell you how many deer beds I've slept in. We'll see if the tent lasts ...
- Switched from my old Prime Logic to a Bowtech Solution SD ... Love the deadlock cam system for tuning.
- Stiffened up my arrows to 250 spine and moved from 475 grain to 615 and 20+% FOC. Building a 650+ grain arrow for elk. Really geeked up on arrow builds - bare shaft tuning, nock tuning, etc.
- Shifting from Sitka camouflage to solid colors. Switched pants to Black Diamond Alpine Light and Alpine Pants (check them out). Moving to cheap brown and green sun hoodies from amazon and testing the 97 fleece tops from Kuiu. If the fleece tops work - it's a 10 oz. savings over Sitka Heavy Weight.
- sleep system (enlightened quilt, thermrest pad) have been solid for years.
Current overnight pack weight with this new gear is around 24 lbs including 3L of water and 1 day/night food. Needed for arthritic knees and hip replacement last fall and foot fusion 2 years ago ...