• Help Support TNDeer:

Hunting The Cold and North Wind?

backyardtndeer said:
Used to be I could handle it, and the cold didn't really bother me, even with stiff north winds. Think the meds I was on for blood pressure really made a difference and it only got worse handling the cold as the problems with my heart progressed and as they increased dosages. I can still tolerate 20 if the wind chill isn't terrible, but if the wind chill is bad I just can't handle it like I used to.
Click to expand...
I'm there with you!
 
After living in north east Illinois and north west Indiana for 44 years I've found that it doesn't get cold here in south central Kentucky. So with Tennessee being farther south it can't possibly be cold down there. I have all sorts of cold weather gear that I don't get to wear. Have wool and it will keep you warm when wet. Have other high tech insulated garments that work great but wear loose fitting layers. Also get outer layer of clothing labeled wind block or wind blocking capability. Loved to kill big bucks in January when other hunters have quit for the year. Easy to pattern and kill but you have to be able to take the weather. Here are a few January bucks. First pic far right IL bow. Second from right IN bow. Second pic middle buck is IL bow. My last winter there 2013/2014 we had a total of 121 inches of snow. Don't miss the bitter cold but sure do miss the snow.

IMG_0201.webp
IMG_0199.webp
 
Never had a problem getting cold and have hunted in some extreme environments like MN & SD during winter. Good merino base layer is a must. As I've gotten older the weight of clothing bothers me and I've converted to the lighter weight technical gear & most of it is Kuiu. Warmth without weight is where it's at for me now. Had the grandsons come over this week & get whatever they wanted out of the hunting closet that I no longer wear. Key to keeping feet warm is a larger size of boots than you normally wear. Bet 90% of folks order the same size insulated boots as tennis shoes they wear, which is a mistake.
 
tellico4x4 said:
Never had a problem getting cold and have hunted in some extreme environments like MN & SD during winter. Good merino base layer is a must. As I've gotten older the weight of clothing bothers me and I've converted to the lighter weight technical gear & most of it is Kuiu. Warmth without weight is where it's at for me now. Had the grandsons come over this week & get whatever they wanted out of the hunting closet that I no longer wear. Key to keeping feet warm is a larger size of boots than you normally wear. Bet 90% of folks order the same size insulated boots as tennis shoes they wear, which is a mistake.
Click to expand...
Agree. Loose fitting socks and boots. Don't want to restrict blood flow to extremities
 
Even though I despise weather extremes on either end, if prime rutting action is going on, I'll sit in just about anything but heavy rain. On those blustery cold days, I'll just strap plenty of warm clothes (usually a good insulated coverall) to my pack and put em on in the stand.

But yeah, I hear you. I hate cold and windy days regardless.
 
I'm also cold natured so it doesn't take much to send a chill through me. I also made the decision to invest in the Sitka fanatic line. I have hunted with it now multiple times under 20* and twice I sat daylight to dark in single digits. I would have never been able to without the fanatic gear…now with that being said I'm gonna make an extremely controversial statement here…I think north wind cold fronts are WAY OVERESTIMATED as key pieces of the puzzle when trying to kill a big buck in the south, in fact I'll go as far to say i almost think it's a waste of time hunting that first 24 hour window when they hit. I'll take the 48-72 hour window on the backside of the front every time.
 
tree_ghost said:
I'm also cold natured so it doesn't take much to send a chill through me. I also made the decision to invest in the Sitka fanatic line. I have hunted with it now multiple times under 20* and twice I sat daylight to dark in single digits. I would have never been able to without the fanatic gear…now with that being said I'm gonna make an extremely controversial statement here…I think north wind cold fronts are WAY OVERESTIMATED as key pieces of the puzzle when trying to kill a big buck in the south, in fact I'll go as far to say i almost think it's a waste of time hunting that first 24 hour window when they hit. I'll take the 48-72 hour window on the backside of the front every time.
Click to expand...
I much prefer the day after a front goes through, once the winds have settled and the temps really sunk as low as they're going to get. Basically, the first calm, cold morning after a frontal system passes through
 
tree_ghost said:
I'm also cold natured so it doesn't take much to send a chill through me. I also made the decision to invest in the Sitka fanatic line. I have hunted with it now multiple times under 20* and twice I sat daylight to dark in single digits. I would have never been able to without the fanatic gear…now with that being said I'm gonna make an extremely controversial statement here…I think north wind cold fronts are WAY OVERESTIMATED as key pieces of the puzzle when trying to kill a big buck in the south, in fact I'll go as far to say i almost think it's a waste of time hunting that first 24 hour window when they hit. I'll take the 48-72 hour window on the backside of the front every time.
Click to expand...


I agree.
 
Like some others that have posted I tend to get cold pretty easy. One of the biggest things that has helped me is taking 2 or 3 change of socks on a cold hunt. After a couple hours of sitting and my feet start to get cold I'll change them out. Most of the time I'll find my feet sweating a little and the change of socks helps a ton. I don't have the Sitka or First Lite stuff that people really like. I do have a good set of banded bibs and jacket that are well insulated and they help pretty good.

Coldest I can remember hunting was temps in the negatives and north wind blowing 20mph. It was miserable. I even had a heater that day in a box blind but it only did so much. It was late juvi in January and I was ready to go and the kid wanted to stay one more hour lol.
 
I can take the cold but if it's cold and windy I've got to still hunt . The wind is just hard to dress for. I've hunted in - 9° wind chill before in Giles Co once . But as I've got older and my desire had got weaker I'm not hunting when it's miserable...I'm just not ! 😏 I'll leave that up to you younger dudes that women call crazy ...yes I've been called crazy a many of times 😉
 
mcbuck58 said:
After living in north east Illinois and north west Indiana for 44 years I've found that it doesn't get cold here in south central Kentucky. So with Tennessee being farther south it can't possibly be cold down there. I have all sorts of cold weather gear that I don't get to wear. Have wool and it will keep you warm when wet. Have other high tech insulated garments that work great but wear loose fitting layers. Also get outer layer of clothing labeled wind block or wind blocking capability. Loved to kill big bucks in January when other hunters have quit for the year. Easy to pattern and kill but you have to be able to take the weather. Here are a few January bucks. First pic far right IL bow. Second from right IN bow. Second pic middle buck is IL bow. My last winter there 2013/2014 we had a total of 121 inches of snow. Don't miss the bitter cold but sure do miss the snow.

View attachment 247582View attachment 247583
Click to expand...
Super nice bucks brother !
 

Latest posts

Back
Top