Hey all!
We all know that clothing worn for Whitetails ought to be as silent as possible. I'm just wondering everyone's opinion on how quiet a backpack has to be for hunting this cagey quarry. It seems like most all backpacks are made out of Cordura or something similar.
Clarification: I'm not looking for recommendations for a quiet pack (Bison Gear is probably gonna be tops for that), but am just curious how quiet you think that pack has to be.
Thanks everyone!
On all day sits I'm constantly getting in and out of my pack for something. A quiet pack is important to me.
All my packs are heavy fleece and my Day One pack is Bucksuede. My Catquiver is fleece...quiet is everything for me, especially when still hunting around.
X3.....all my packs are fleece.
I use a Badlands Monster Fanny pack. I unzip the pouch when I get on stand. It's quiet enough for me except the zippers.
Not fleece but much more durable. I have no complaints.
bretto
I agree with TRAP on long sits im in and out of my pack so I want a quit pack.
IMO if you are moving enough for your pack noise to give you up---most deer have already busted you!!even if they let you get closer!!
if I get the chance to move in --I like to slip it off----
My wife made mine for me. Heavy camo cotton flannel. Drawstring on top with a flap that fastens down by wooden barrel buttons. Sewed pockets on each side that can hold a thermos and water bottle. Have had it almost 15 years. My pack is quieter than I am.
My packs are wool. No noise when I'm on the ground or in a tree.
Thanks for the responses guys.
No part of your "kit" can be too quiet for any hunting situation.
Hopewell,
First of all- love the Wendell Berry quote.
Second of all- couldn't agree more. That's why it kind of baffles me that most of the big name pack makers out there don't do more to make packs "hunting quiet." I know it is a weight and durability issue, but I'd rather have a heavier pack and a quiet one than something "ultralight" that drives me crazy.
I seldom need a backpack for most of my hunting unless I carry in a ghillie suit. Quiet is important but not paramount under these conditions, since I immediately shed the pack upon reaching the blind. However, if doing spot and stalk, quietness would become extremely important.
I ground hunt 100% of time. Depending on time of year or area I either carry just my dawgware quiver or one of 2 different size packs. A cheap tactical looking Fieldline or a larger Camelback commander.
I get everything I need ready when I setup so how quiet they are is not an issue. I open the zippers that I access and I'm ready to hunt.
Seems im in the minority but unless the pack is made out of bubble wrap it should be quiet enough.
I personally need a pack that is as light as possible. strong as possible and preferably not camo. I set my pack down when blood trailing, and other times and i dont like having to fight to find it becasue of the camo.
The shape of the pack is also ver important. it needs to be narrow for hunting in the thick woods, nothing worse than snagging your pack on branches. also has to have compression straps so i can tighten to load to my back, again to avoid snags.
Also important to me is fast drying. I hunt in the rain and i need a material that drys very fast.
So for me a light weight, tough as nails, narrow, compressable, non camo, fast drying pack is at the top of my list. Quiet is down the list a long ways from those items.
Good news is they make packs that cover anything and everything a person is looking for. But for me its more along the lines of mountan bike packs than hunting packs.
Most packs get very loud and "crackly" around 25 degrees and it gets worse the colder it gets. Badlands, etc. are terrible for this. Something to consider if you hunt in the cold.
One time I slooowly wrinkled a regular empty sandwich bag(warm weather)to test an un-alert doe about 10 yards away and watched her flip inside out like hit with electricity. Quiet matters.
I agree with you lb hunter, I think to much is made about being totally quiet or scent free, I think it is way more important to move at the appropriate time than to be quiet. I also use a bright collected backpack so that I will not loose if I put it on the ground.
I also think that to many people give game animals supernatural powers that they do not have, if more people hunted with their eyes, moved slow and hunted the wind they would have more success than worrying if their backpack was too loud
One thing to keep in mind is entry and exit of the hunting area. If you setup somewhat close by a bedding area, any pack not made of wool or fleece can make noise by having things brush up against it. If you're walking in an area with lots of saplings/low branches, a canvas bag with a low branch scraping up against it can be heard from a long way off, if a quiet day. Remember when goosedown coats were the rage in the 1980's? You could hear guys coming long before you saw them.
There's some super nice canvas bags being made, but every time I think I want one, I think about how much noise they can make.
The quietest pack I have found is a fleece pack from day one camo.. www.dayonecamouflage.com (http://www.dayonecamouflage.com)
LB, if you have a camo pack, carry a blue or blaze orange neckerchief (sp?) in your pocket and if you shed the pack, thread the cloth thru something on the pack, or hang it on a nearby branch. I also use mine (blaze) when I am out and about during multi weapon times so I can show some orange while moving, but still be cammo'd (Colorado muzzleloader elk).
ChuckC
QuoteOriginally posted by Allen Wood:
My wife made mine for me. Heavy camo cotton flannel. Drawstring on top with a flap that fastens down by wooden barrel buttons. Sewed pockets on each side that can hold a thermos and water bottle. Have had it almost 15 years. My pack is quieter than I am.
Allen: Could you share a pic of the pack your wife made? I love home-made one of a kind gear
I use either a wool GFA Haversack, or for a larger load, I use a Filson canvas ruck sack. In the rucksack, I compartmentalize things in small cotton bags that I found at the Army Surplus store. Doing this keeps it all quiet.
I have been hunting with the same Black/Red Mountain Smith fanny pack for over 25 years. It carries all I need. I rarely us a full pack even on my elk hunts.
QuoteOriginally posted by Rob W.
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I get everything I need ready when I setup so how quiet they are is not an issue. I open the zippers that I access and I'm ready to hunt. [/QB]
X2 LOL I probably use the same cheap Fieldline :laughing:
If I'm still hunting I wear no back pack, only a fanny pack if anything.
Bison Gear Lost River in Buckseude. Very quiet and doesn't pick up the burrs like wool and is pretty rain resistant. Love it! :thumbsup: