Adult Onset Hunting Gear Recommendations

[Irrelevant]

rain gear pants you can zip on without taking your boots off. Havalon knifes. Nice binos and a tripod to put them on. Someone in the group needs a small stove and pot for making coffee/tea/bullion

 

[jtm307]

Desitin.

 

[ErictheRed]

I'd add a good pair of wool pants and a rain proof shell jacket. You don't want to get wet when you are several miles from the truck.

 

[haiku_rodney]

I pack "essentials" for spending the night in the woods. I have never had to but I prefer to be cautious. I carry an emergency sleeping bag (the mylar type), toilet paper, fire making supplies, couple of energy bars and a headlamp.

 

[dirtclod Az.]

I'm with pabear compass! and learn how to use it. Had a garmin unit give me false reading
on the KIABAB in Az. Compass saved my #ss.

 

[MNElkNut]

I know how to use a compass and always carry one, but have never, ever used it. I use OnX all the time and love it. A compass is worthless in the dark trying to find a trail. Sure, you can find a bearing, but I think once you start navigating with OnX, you won't ever use that compass again.

Lots of good info here. Buy good boots, know how to shoot your gun/bow and 1 good set of hunting duds would be at the top of my list.

 

[dannyb278]

1. Boots, binos and quality pack that can haul out an animal.
2. Upgrade clothing as appropriate.
3. Bino harness, knives, upgrade GPS/Nav equipment, lightweight tent and bag, misc. tools.

Pretty much this. While I've been a hunter all my life, I only got into western hunting and hunting ALOT when I was in my early 30s. Boots and optics were the top priority, followed by a pack. It was only 2 years ago that I finally gave up on my Fleet Farm hunting clothing and became a trend setter with the high speed First Lite stuff.

I would add, buy a cheap rifle and be willing to pay more for the scope. Also you don't need to spend $400.00 to get good pair of boots. A pair of Danner Pronghorns makes a fine set of boots for most hunters, especially those who don't "live" in the field year around

 

[widnert]

I pack "essentials" for spending the night in the woods. I have never had to but I prefer to be cautious. I carry an emergency sleeping bag (the mylar type), toilet paper, fire making supplies, couple of energy bars and a headlamp.

^^^^ This is good advice. I run into too many folks out hunting w/o anything to help them should they get stuck out away from camp after dark and can't get back. Doesn't seem to be many that put much thought to this. Take this advice and be prepared.

 

[SFC B]

My question would be "What KIND of hunting are these guys going to do?" I have and use very different sets of equipment for different types of hunting and different gear has a different type of priority based on that. For instance, if you are hunting the Big Woods (ie the inter mountain West) the FIRST thing on the list should be assembling a good survival kit which you should never go into the woods with out. In Colorado here it is not unheard of to get 40-50 deg temperature changes in a single day and being able to keep yourself safe, warm and dry for a bit while waiting out weather or any emergency should be top priority. Just thought I would toss this out as this is the first thing I hammer home with friends from the Midwest who want to come out to hunt.