Cold weather weakness.

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Ghost Hunter
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby Ghost Hunter » Tue Jul 02, 2019 12:53 pm

I almost feel like I shouldn't be in this thread. But, here I am. I start getting cold when it dips down in 20's. We do see teen's. But it is far apart. Fleece and some hand warmers do me good.


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Dpierce72
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby Dpierce72 » Tue Jul 02, 2019 12:58 pm

Same here, Ghost.

While I'm embarrassed to type this, I hunted one day last season at 24 and thought I was gonna freeze to death before I got back to the truck that night. My toes are the worst. I'm not a glove guy (aside from jerseys) because I keep them in pockets w/hot hands. But disassembling my set w/Jersey gloves was not a great move.

I went straight to my pro shop and bought boot blankets and a remote controlled thermal sole insert. Who knows, but next year if it gets that cold I'll be ready.
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vermonthunter16
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby vermonthunter16 » Tue Jul 02, 2019 12:59 pm

My hands and feet mostly, but I am a pretty skinny fella, so I try my hardest to keep my core warm too, which usually helps with hands and feet. For my hands, I will also put hand warmers into the wrist portion of my gloves where the most blood flow is, keeping the blood warm seems to help my fingers.
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby 365all_out » Tue Jul 02, 2019 2:56 pm

Like Dewey says - heater body suit fixed my hand and feet issue!!

Way cheaper in the long run especially when your trying to find a new way of warmth every yr!
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Dewey
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby Dewey » Tue Jul 02, 2019 5:41 pm

burkhart wrote:
Dewey wrote:Since I bought a HBS and IWOM I don’t have any more cold weather weaknesses while on stand. When packing up once out of the suits my hands are probably the worst when well below zero but I can manage it sticking them back in a muff with an electric handwarmer pack for a minute or so.

Below zero is actually my favorite time to hunt. I dress very lightly walking to and from stand to avoid getting sweated up. Once on stand I get in my HBS or IWOM and hunt nice and cozy as long as I want. The worst part is the moment you get out and hit the cold. :o I tend to walk pretty fast on the way out to stay warm.

Do U switch back to stands inthe late season or are u rocking the saddle somehow

I use my LW Alpha or Sit & Climb when it gets below zero. Haven’t figured out a good way to use the suits with a saddle yet without making modifications. I’m fine with using a stand in real cold temps. The bigger platform is much better for moving with the suits on.
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby UofLbowhunter » Tue Jul 02, 2019 7:14 pm

wolverinebuckman wrote:Toes, without a doubt. Then fingers. I have yet to find a solution. Hoping Kentucky late season is a little more forgiving than Michigan's :pray:



You will have some cold weather streaks but not like up michigan. Last 2 years though we dipped down to teens for a couple of weeks but for the most part its in the 30’s or 20’s mostly!!
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megavites
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby megavites » Tue Jul 02, 2019 11:57 pm

being pre-diabetic...my feet are the worst. I've tried sock liners and wool outer in 800g boots, Mickey mouse boots, padding on the stand, etc.
Currently I use Artic boot shields over my 800g boots with a large hand warmer thrown in each. This keeps me on stand in the low 20's. May have to try heated inserts for lower temps if I plan to sit more than 4hrs.
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wolverinebuckman
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby wolverinebuckman » Wed Jul 03, 2019 12:31 am

UofLbowhunter wrote:
wolverinebuckman wrote:Toes, without a doubt. Then fingers. I have yet to find a solution. Hoping Kentucky late season is a little more forgiving than Michigan's :pray:



You will have some cold weather streaks but not like up michigan. Last 2 years though we dipped down to teens for a couple of weeks but for the most part its in the 30’s or 20’s mostly!!


That is GREAT news! Man, I'm loving this state more and more everyday :D
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DaveT1963
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby DaveT1963 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 1:18 am

feet and hands getting cold is due to the body's natural mechanism to slow down circulation to keep vital organs warm. Get your head and kidney/liver/heart warm and it will help a lot. I use hand warmers in all these locations under my wool when it gets really cold - then as mentioned above, use hand warmers in your boots and hand warmer to help. If you hunt on a stand, cover it with a towel/fleece - the extra insulation will help cut the natural conductivity/transfer of clod from metal (aluminum) - Ice breaker boots with a hand warmer are also great.
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby Acer18 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 7:39 am

Hands go into a muff, I hate wearing bulky gloves... in fact I wear the same under armor thin gloves all season. If it’s bitter cold I will pack in my Micky mouse boots. I am looking to order “boot blankets” to cover my muck boots instead of lugging the 8lb set of mickeys around.. Of course if I could just tag out early it wouldn’t be a problem right? :pray:
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 9:53 am

A few years ago I almost cut off the end of a finger. Now when the temps get even remotely cold that sucker strarts throbbing to the point of draining a lot of fun out of my hunt. Only good news is it doesn't get cold here very often. Tempted to just have a doctor cut the end of it off.
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby Dan T » Wed Jul 03, 2019 10:29 am

Stand hunting with a bow in northern Maine can be a humbling task on a good day let alone dealing with our seasonal weather extremes. It’s typically in the 20’s by mid October and just gets worse until the season ends late November. Last year we had snow cover where I live from mid October on.
My hands, ears and feet have typically never been a problem. I tend to run hot and can work /hunt with out gloves in subzero temps, if dry. When wet all bets are off. That being said I prefer a thin pair of wool gloves and heavier wool socks. The mugs thing I do is prep my mind and condition my body. Ever notice how when it’s 40 in the fall you get a chill, but in the spring it gets you down to a T-shirt? It’s all your body and mind comparing it to the past few months of weeks. When the weather outside starts to cool off, I do most of my outdoor work and activities dressed cold on purpose. I’ll work outside in 30 with a T-shirt and shorts for as long as I can, I continue this routine through the season. When it comes time to hunt more thermally comfortable with less. When o walk to my stand or tracking on foot I want to be dressed so that I’m cold standing still and comfortable on the move, maybe even a little chill. If stand hunting I hang my stand the throw on my one piece (Cabelas stabs hunter extreme suit). If tracking, I keep a light blanket and a pair of dry socks in my pack I’m case I decide to post up for a while. It works for me on the harshest of conditions. Kind of like I tell my friends when they visit me and they complain it’s cold In my cabin in the winter, “ go outside for a few minutes then come back in, it will feel nice inside” works every time.
Conditioning you body and mind is key.
Wet combined with wind and your on your own. The quest I ever had it was hunting two years ago I’m 20+ mph winds with on and off snow on -16 degree temps without windchill. That day I had on a moisture wicking base layer, wool pants and jacket, stand hunter suit over that, hand muff no gloves, wool hat, baclava and ski goggles. It was brutal but I was rewarded with a 173” 10pt. I could not have pulled that off without suffering. I won’t lie, most days I am technically comfortable, but I know what the body can handle and I condition my mind. I won’t leave if the hunting is good unless it becomes life threatening.
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby oldrank » Wed Jul 03, 2019 10:48 am

I hate getting cold. My feet go first. Anything in the low teens and below I can't sit for more than a few hours. I adjust my style as the season goes on and focus more on shorter hunts in easy to get to areas. The time change limits my hours of available light after work. I may only have 5 or 10 minutes of hiking time before it's not worth it to try n set up before dark. The cold isn't really a factor for sits that or only an hour or so.
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby muddy » Wed Jul 03, 2019 12:16 pm

Always my hands. Older model boot blankets save my feet and I wear a back support thing that has pockets in it. In those pockets I put the XL hand warmers that go 18 hours. Having 2-4 of them on my kidney areas is a freaking game changer. I have become dependent upon the XL 18 hour hand warmers in my pockets as well. I really limit my stand time in cold weather, I just dont enjoy it with a bow but if i can still hunt with a muzzleloader then im usually having fun
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Brokenarrow1980
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Re: Cold weather weakness.

Unread postby Brokenarrow1980 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 12:23 pm

I love the cold, can't feel it anymore and no sweating.
It's all fun and games till someone looses an eye..... then its just fun


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