Forum Replies Created
-
AuthorPosts
-
in reply to: Cold Weather Gloves #53750
Been thinking about writing this for some time, but didn’t have the right prompts, and needed to get the right way to present it.
Saturday my fingers and toes were too cold, and had to leave the stand, and still hunt (which I’m not good at). Sunday I sat for 4 hours, and wasn’t cold at all. Same gloves, same sneakers and socks. What did I do different?
The big picture: Your heart is the furnace pumping hot fluid (blood) to the extremities. The most important extremity is your head. This was programmed by millions of cave men, so you can’t change it.
Gory details: On Sunday I left the dirty old hat at home, and wore a hood. If the heat is used to keep the head warm there is no heat left for the hands/feet. If the neck isn’t insulated the heat never gets to the head. On the top half I wore 2 base layers (duofold), a fleece pullover (turtleneck with a zipper to cool off), a fleece vest, and a nylon parka (camo). Two base layers add a lot of insulation, without a lot of weight/restriction. The vest is one I modified over the years to eliminate the BUTT DRAFT (aka plumber’s leak). I added a extra layer of fleece to the back of the vest, and a flap at the the bottom which I tuck into the seat of my pants. The butt flap is 3 layers of fleece and a layer of waterproof nylon. That is to keep the butt warm and dry when I’m sitting on a wet log or cold rock. I also wore long johns (duofold), and snow pants. Same kind of snow pants Arwen wears sledding, they work. Thus the blood didn’t get cooled on the way to the extremities. I also take a closed cell foam pad (covered in waterproof nylon) to sit on. If you sit on that fleece you compress it, and all of the insulation is no good as there is no air space (might as well be bare a$$ed), and a rock can soak up a LOT of heat. In my sneakers I like to have a 1/4 inch insole of closed cell foam because no matter how many socks you wear as soon as you stand on them all the air goes out, and there is no insulation value. Ice fishermen take out a piece of plywood to stand on so they are not standing on the ice. When it snows I wear snowmobile boots. Rubber bottoms, and nylon uppers with a felt liner. The rubber/nylon keeps them dry, and the felt liner keeps them warm, with a 1/4″ insole of closed cell foam. Obviously, anything that restricts blood flow (like tight shoes/gloves) is a killer.
in reply to: Feeling Weird #53702Nice to know that I’m not the only one that hasn’t tagged a deer yet. I have 2 weekends left (and nursing s cold right now), then it is the shotgun season. I CAN bow hunt during the shotgun season, but there are too many crazies out there. Bad enough that there are bird hunters out there during the archery season. Sitting at my stand I often hear BANGBANGBANGBANGBANG. Which is a semi auto with a 5 shot clip, and I’m willing to bet he didn’t even get tail feathers.
in reply to: How many bucks? #53680License comes with 2 tags for antlered deer, and a lottery for one antlerless tag. I didn’t enter the lottery, be lucky to get one. That is in Mass. States here are close enough so you can get license in more than one state, thus get more deer. Don’t know the cost of out of state licenses.
in reply to: creeks and streams #53670TROUT UNLIMITED.
in reply to: A.M or P.M. ground blind or still hunting #48813We have to remember that the objective here is to have fun, suffering is not fun.
Left the stand early last night, and did some scouting as I was freezing my important parts. Might have seen something if I had stayed on stand, but would have been too stiff to do anything about it. 🙁 Should have practiced wearing 5 layers last August. Drawing the bow is a lot different with all that fabric. Not enough room in my jacket for enough layers to keep warm. Off to wallmart to get more toe warmers, did you know that they expire? Last years do NOT work.:evil:
in reply to: Finally—back in the fold #48149Welcome back!!!
I’ll be thinking of you while I freeze my A$$ off in the woods tomorrow.
in reply to: What ya got goin? #45897LOVE IT when R2 gets snow before I do :lol::lol: :lol::lol:
in reply to: Scary Close #43521Lucky we don’t allow long range rifles (only the lowly .22, and shotguns), and are blessed with hills, lots of hills. Makes me feel safer. While the shotgun season for deer starts in Dec, the small game season started 2 days before the archery deer season. So while I’m sitting in the bushes, trying not to shiver, and wondering how I’m going to get my legs to work when it gets too dark… I’m listening to BANG….BANG…. then BANGBANGBANGBANGBANG. Which is a semi-auto shotgun with a 5 shot clip. Can you imaging what would be left of some bird after being hit 5 times with a 12 gauge. When I was growing up there was a saying “One shot, one deer. Two shots maybe one deer. Three shots no deer.” And keep in mind most of the rifles were bolt action.
I also remember that we all watched Art, not because he was reckless. He fell down a lot, and nobody wanted to be in front of him when he fell down, while carrying a gun.
in reply to: The Hammock Seat #42466Was the “rainwater” yellow?
in reply to: Traditional Snowshoes for Hunting #41251ONLY 170???
I can’t get the scale to go that high if I jump on it!!
in reply to: Sloooow Start, but Great Evening #41213It got worse.
While we were at church 2 people asked me if I got a deer yet, and Mushroom Bill (remember Bill) sent me a text to say he saw a deer in the road on the way to the grocery store. I’m avoiding everyone that asks if I got a deer yet.
As I was going out, I ran into farmer Jim, he was hauling firewood in from his 500 acre managed woodlot. Remember those two big scrapes I saw last night? Well one was even bigger and full of hoof prints, smelled of urine, and had a pile of shit on the side. Well, Farmer Jim was hauling firewood about 5 feet away from it, and he ran right over the other one I saw.
Since farmer Jim was working near the NORTH, hay field, I went for the SOUTH hay field (cornfield is to the west, and if I went up there I would probably find a gut pile that would put me way beyond grumpy). Nothing exciting, except for several hours of craning a stiff neck, to see the squirrels, chipmunks, blue jays, and chickadees. Then a good half hour to get my cold, cramped legs to work.
I did see more scrapes. I’ve found that if you walk around the edge of the hay fields, every time there is a “overhanging branch” four or five feet off the ground, there is a scrape under it. Right now I’m concluding that all of this is nocturnal. I should see more when there is less moon at night.
Audrey said that when I finally do see a deer I’ll be so hyped up I’ll s**t my pants. That’s OK, already have a spare diaper in my hunting bag. Just not too sure how accurate I’ll be shooting with a load in my pants.
in reply to: Traditional Snowshoes for Hunting #40911Have used both (but we called them bear paw, not Green Mt. here in New England) We have 3 pair of the Alum ones now, they work better if your inseam is in the mid 20s, rather than the mid 30s. At one time I had hand me down from my parents, and grand parents (actually we took them away from Mom when she hit 80). Really don’t think the alum ones are big enough for 18″ of powder, need the Michigan.
in reply to: Eye Glasses for Archery? #40742Been thinking about this…
Think I never had the problem ’cause I was wearing glasses before I learned how to shoot a bow.
Don’t wear bifocals. Too dangerous working on a roof, or climbing a MT. Don’t like 2 pair of glasses, but I’m still alive. Besides, Dr. Dave (my boss) won’t give me bifocals.
in reply to: Neat Dialogue #40718Killed cable couple weeks ago. NONE of us has missed it, and I save $$. Youtube for all three of us now (more fun than looney tunes). Fred Bear, Byron Ferguson, and Peter Fiduccia are our favs. Obviously we are getting social deficit, here because we have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. Didn’t even know those shows existed….:oops:
-
AuthorPosts
