Backpacking — What Clothes To Take?

Cal Jones, Cedar Springs, MI: “A friend and I have been backpacking for 10 years. We have lightened up most of our gear; the only thing left is clothing. What do you take for clothing? Do you wear your camo as you pack in? Or do you wear “civvies” and carry camo clothes in your pack?”

Anything you can do to lighten your pack will only save you energy for the important aspect of the trip — hunting. Generally, I wear my hunting clothes while packing in, usually shirt and pants of lightweight fleece or Cabela’s Microtex, plus a baseball-style cap. Then in my pack I carry light rain-gear, longjohns, sock hat, warm fleece jacket, one change of underwear, and one change of socks. With that I can mix and match to meet most of the conditions on a September elk hunt. You might ask:Don’t your clothes get sweaty and stinky while you’re backpacking? Sure. But if you can carry the spare clothes and scent-elimination products needed to stay scent free, you’re more of a man than I am. When backpacking, I say go as light as possible and keep the wind in your favor.

Some Whitetail Scents

D.B., Monroeville, NJ: “I have been trying rut scents and know I’m using them correctly. However, I have had success with only a couple of lures. The majority of them spook the deer I hunt. Do any lures work consistently for you during the rut?”

Without knowing which scents you have tried, I can only list scents that have worked for me. Keep in mind, however, that no scent works all the time on every deer. I firmly believe you have to catch the right deer in the right mood for scents to be effective. That said, here are some whitetail scents that have worked for me:Wildlife Research Center’s Grunt N’ Lure (especially when used in conjunction with a grunt tube and estrous doe bleat call), Special Golden Estrus, Trail’s End #307, and Excite; Robinson Outdoors’ Almost Steamin’ Synthetic Peak Rut Doe Estrus; Tink’s #69 (I’ve had better success with the gel than the liquid, although I don’t know why); and Hunter’s Specialties’ PrimeTime Dominant Buck Urine and Premium Doe Estrus. Hope this helps.

Lighter vs. Darker Camo Patterns

N.W., via e-mail: “My question pertains to camouflage. I have a ScentBlocker fleece outfit from Robinson Outdoors in Mossy Oak’s New Break-Up pattern, and it seems pretty dark to me. Is this a good western pattern, say for elk? Thanks.”

This relatively dark camo will work very well as long as you’re hunting in deep woods, such as evergreen forests, and set up in the shadows. Whenever you blind-in to call an elk, place yourself in deep shadows where you are not silhouetted against light vegetation. If you’re hunting in a lighter environment, say in aspen groves, a lighter camo pattern like Mossy Oak Brush or Advantage MAX-1 HD, both new “western” patterns unveiled at the 2005 ATA Trade Show, would probably be more effective.

Continued — click on page link below.

Advantages/Disadvantages Of An Overdraw

J.L., Idaho Falls, ID: “I am new to bowhunting and just obtained an Alpine bow about five years old with an overdraw installed. My hunting buddy says overdraws are junk. Can you tell me the advantages/disadvantages of an overdraw? Thanks.”

To say overdraws are junk is a bit off the mark. At one time they served a valuable function. When the only arrows available were relatively heavy aluminum arrows, the only way for an archer to shoot lightweight arrows — and thus gain significant arrow speed — was to attach an overdraw and then to cut several inches off his arrows. The shorter length alone reduced arrow weight, but more importantly, shortening of the arrows allowed the archer to shoot arrows of considerably lighter spine and mass weight.

With the development of superlight aluminum arrows and, perhaps more significantly, carbon arrows, the need for long overdraws has largely disappeared. Today, arrows are available in a wide range of spine and mass weights, and you can achieve high arrow speeds with full-length arrows. Thus, few bow-hunters these days use long overdraws. Rather, if they desire to lighten their arrows for greater speed, they simply switch to lighter-weight arrow shafts and lighter broadheads.

I recommend that you remove the overdraw and install a rest directly into the threaded hole in the riser. I’ve had good success with fall-away rests such as the Trophy Taker Shakey Hunter, Tro-phy Ridge Dropzone, and the Schaffer Performance Archery rests. Or you can install one of the many excellent shoot-through rests available today.

Bowhunter Fitness

Mike Richmond, Phoenix, AZ: “I am looking for a way to build strength to prepare me for shooting a bow. You ran an article a few years ago on this subject, and I cannot remember which issue it was in. I have a PSE Thunderbolt, which I used to shoot daily at about 70 pounds. But after laying off a couple of years, I cannot draw this bow, even after backing out the limb bolts four turns.”

We ran a four-part series called “Get Fit” designed to help bow-hunters prepare not only for shooting but overall better hunting. Part 1, “Mus-cle Power,” (December 2002) by Dave Cole, a physical therapist, specifically addresses building muscles for drawing a bow. Part 2, “Functional Fitness,” (Jan-Feb 2003) by Chris Andersen, and Part 3, “Build a Strong Back,” (Mar-Apr 2003) by yours truly contain good information for overall fitness. Part 4, “Prepare for Hard Hunting,” (May-June 2003) by Chris Andersen, outlines an aerobic training program for endurance.

A good program like this will help get you back into shooting. Still, your draw weight obviously is too heavy. Drop the draw weight to 50 pounds or so, and then work up to 60. That’s heavy enough for any game in North America. And by eliminating the strain of drawing and holding a heavy bow, you’ll shoot a whole lot better.

Go to the online Bowhunter Question Form and get access to download Bowhunter’s online Tuning Guide!