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Cold weather saddle hunting question

T

TAILG8R

New Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2019
Messages
4
Location
Meigs County, O-H-I-O
Ok all you veteran saddle hunters, as a first year saddle hunter,, please explain to me how you address cold weather clothing in conjunction with the saddle. I am in southeast Ohio along the river and we are finally seeing some colder temps along with heavy frost.
I went out last night knowing it was going to around 35 deg around dark. Lower body is not an issue. The upper body is what puzzles me. I wore a long sleeve cotton tee, a thin jacket liner and a kryptek hoodie.
Here's my question - Does all upper body clothing need to be tucked in the waist belt of the saddle? I kept feeling cool air on my chest. The bridge was holding my hoodie out in an exaggerated triangle.
Any advise will be appreciated as I will be hunting on National Saddle Day on the 9th and it looks to be pretty cold.
Thx
 
A. get bib pants to stop the mid section draft.
B. yes tuck in or put the saddle on after. I dress light for the hike, take time to cool if hot before climbing and reajust all at the base of tree. ialso try not to walk in fast so i dont get hot.
C. heatedjacket.
D. hand muff so light weight gloves can be worn without freezing hands. tuck this down through the bridge once hooked in.
T
 
Not a pro by any means but the past two days here in IL we have been in the 20-35 and I agree with the above. I do use Arctic Shield boot blankets on hunts at 30 and below. And I always have hot hands packets available. Normally start heating them when I get dressed at the bottom of the tree so by the time I climb get settled and cool off they are warm before I am cold. I did just order a set of the heated insoles and am excited for them to arrive.

-Chuck
 
I agree with both replies, except for the bibs, I can't stand straps on my shoulders when bow hunting.
Thinking about sacrificing an oversized hoodie for a trial run. Make a cut up each side of the front porch to allow the bridge to clear, then add Velcro to bring it back together at the waist below the bridge.
 
Tom Karrow said:
A. get bib pants to stop the mid section draft.
B. yes tuck in or put the saddle on after. I dress light for the hike, take time to cool if hot before climbing and reajust all at the base of tree. ialso try not to walk in fast so i dont get hot.
C. heatedjacket.
D. hand muff so light weight gloves can be worn without freezing hands. tuck this down through the bridge once hooked in.
T
Click to expand...


Completely agree with everything Tom said, with one minor tweak: There's kind of two phases for me: The walk-in and climb, because if I over-dress I'm gonna get sweaty, and the climb is some work, so I stay pretty minimalist in that first phase.

Phase two: Once I'm up at height and my core temp starts coming down my outer layer goes on, and I just tuck it in under the saddle, you may have to stand on your platform/perch and lean into the tree to do this, you're still strapped in, but you need a little slack to get everything tucked in. For my pants, unfortunately I have to wear in everything I'll end up in.

I feel you, I live in SE Connecticut close to the Atlantic, and it gets hella cold up here after about Halloween, that being said, good quality layering and sweat management has kept me comfortable down into the negative temps.
 
TAILG8R said:
I agree with both replies, except for the bibs, I can't stand straps on my shoulders when bow hunting.
Thinking about sacrificing an oversized hoodie for a trial run. Make a cut up each side of the front porch to allow the bridge to clear, then add Velcro to bring it back together at the waist below the bridge.
Click to expand...

I would suggest using a button instead of the velcro, we both know how alert these Southeast Ohio deer can be. One tug on that on a calm morning and your not seeing a thing all day. Good luck, would like to see pictures of the finished product.


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I wear a lite merino shirt and filson wool pants in. Sometimes with a medium merino baselayer pant. Once at height and cooled off, I change shirt to a heavier merino shirt. Add bids, add fleece pull over, add heavy vest with hot hand pockets built in over the kidneys, add coat, and either add FL merino hat or their winter balaclava. Most of my layers are midwayusa.com since they are the only ones that make big and tall winter hunting clothes.


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I run a high tether, that allows to put on a jacket as I get cooled down after climbing up. Can even zip it up halfway, that's usually sufficient.

Ditching the cotton as previously mentioned is a good idea.
 
I put my saddle on first then a goose down vest then a camo pullover. I am climbing SRT/RADS so my tether stays fixed to my bridge all during the hunt and I use no linemans belt . My vest and pullover just hang down over the saddle and just rides up a bit around the bridge and tether. I did wear some long john pants under my hunting pants once and the saddle goes over these as normal. Hot during the walk in with long johns.
 
I wear a parka with two zippers from GameHide. I can zip it up normally with the top zipper, but I can UN-zip it up with the bottom zipper to access my whole waist array, aka saddle, while my chest stays warm. Used to do it with my treestand harness, it works great either way. I would tuck everything else into either my pants, or just use a nice pair of insulated bibs to keep your layers contained.
 
D.AKINS said:
I don’t have a saddle yet, but wanted to ask if saddle size should be considered when it comes to wearing cold weather gear?
Click to expand...

That's a great question, I wondered the same thing. I'm 6' 190 and use a size L Tethrd Mantis. It fits me well with ultra light warm weather clothing and works fine with bibs and every layer I own underneath. I thought it would make a big difference but from my experience it doesn't.
 
D.AKINS said:
I don’t have a saddle yet, but wanted to ask if saddle size should be considered when it comes to wearing cold weather gear?
Click to expand...
This is interesting because from what I am experiencing so far (newb), I think I may end up with 2 different sized saddles before it's all said and done. One for early season and one for late to accommodate the extra bulk in layers. idk.
 
Agree with everything really. Merino wool base is a, dare I say, game changer? If you’re using cotton. Dress light for the walk. Dress at the base of the tree before you climb.

One thing I’ll add is I wear alpaca wool socks which are proving to be worth it.
 
Last edited:
I gotta check put allpaca socks. My toes are the first to go. I usually dont plan all day sits any more.


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I almost always wear my boot blankets when it gets down into the 20’s. My feet get cold fast. I am planning on donning the boot blankets once settled in. I usually wear layers and bibs with a jacket. I am also considering some wool base layers to try and reduce bulk.
 
Alright I’m from New England where it gets and stays hella cold. Never heard of a boot blanket. Please elaborate and show a pic if available. I’m intrigued!
 
D.AKINS said:
I almost always wear my boot blankets when it gets down into the 20’s. My feet get cold fast. I am planning on donning the boot blankets once settled in. I usually wear layers and bibs with a jacket. I am also considering some wool base layers to try and reduce bulk.
Click to expand...

Have you tried boot blankets on a platform yet? I’m also curious on the sizing, just not sure if they would fit over my arctic pro muck boots or if I should just wear hiking shoes and dawn boot blankets in the tree.

Also, curious how you’re planning to reduce bulk with wool layers. Aside from base layers, wool is generally bulkier and heavier than high end synthetic options.


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