Northern BC Backpack Trip Gear Review

[Magnum_Willys]

Son and I got to try out a lot of gear on our  10 day backpack moose hunt in Northern B.C.  under extreme varied weather conditions – from below zero wind chill and snow to 70 degrees packing meat uphill.   Thoughts on some of it:

Kuiu Ultra 3000 packs: Pro: Very nice, light and takes hardly a minute to load meat between pack and frame.  Worked great we are both big fans.   Con: We should have taken 6000 bags – 3000 little small.  And zipper pulls are tied cords – all come loose.  Need to replace those with something like the Icon uses.

Kuiu XL Meat Bags:  Very Handy, throw meat in and strap to pack.  Waterproof but meat cooled down well in them.  Getting more of these.

Havalon Knife: If you have one you know – sharp is nice.  Did break blades a lot.  Take all your extras.  I went through 8 blades just doing part of two moose.   My new go-to knife.

Kennetrek Mountain Boots: I’ve run these for three years, Son just got his and liked them a lot.

Firstlite Merino Baselayers / shorts:  Worked great, replacing our under armour with these.

Sitka Dewpoint Packable Raingear: Liked these.  Very light so can wear in the warm rain without heating up too much.  Noisy like most raingear.  Wore just over merino  baselayer  for moderate temps.

Kuiu Yukon Raingear Coat/Pants:  Son wore these most of the time just over baselayer.  Noisy but he liked them.  Durable and heavy.  Too heavy for me to pack, to noisy for me to wear but son likes them as his main outerwear.  Too heavy to wear over Sitka 90% pants/jacket unless it was really cold.

Kuiu Gaiters: Nice and durable but noisy.  Looking for something quieter.

Sitka Kelvin Lite Jacket:  Son liked his, during cold windy days wished he had the Kelvin instead of Kelvin lite for sitting behind spotting scope.  The lite is more versatile though, he slept in his.

Kuiu Superdown Zip T: At only 7 ounces it was my main insulation layer – throw it under Sitka 90% if dry or under Dewpoint raingear if wet.  Wish it was full zip though. 

Sitka 90 Pants / Jacket:  We both liked these as travel and camp gear, leave the jeans at home.  They also worked well in the dry up to 70 degrees, burr free.  New design for 2014, more comfortable but didn’t shed water much – if you kneel or sit on damp ground you are wet.  Breathed well though.  Good complement with the Dewpoint Raingear.   Not sure if they are any better than plain old fleece but liked all the pockets.

Vortex Viper HD Binoculars: We replaced old Nikon Monarch.  These were the lightest HD’s I could find.  Turned out to be very sharp, great Binocs.  Son took his Monarchs but we never used them.   For $600 a good buy compared to Swaro/Leica options.

Swarovski HD 20-50 Wide-Angle 60mm Spotter:  Finally broke down and bought a good spotting scope.   Like the wide angle a lot.  Price was $900 cheaper than their standard 80mm scope.  Compared head to head with a Leupold 20-40 and frankly couldn’t see much difference.  Got the angle head and like that.  Spent many hours a day behind it.  Compared it to the Vortex Viper HD and it was both sharper and the wide-angle eyepiece made viewing much easier on the eyes.  Wish it had neoprene case like the vortex.   Most of our spotting was 2-4 miles out and nothing is crystal clear in heat, fog, mist, poor light at those ranges.   Could easily see moose antler size at 5 miles but wanted still clearer picture.  Maybe the Kowa 80/90mm would be better ?

Sawyer Water Filter: Wow we should have each brought one.  Lived out of seep springs with caribou and grizzly tracks in them for water and this little unit kept us healthy.  Bag wore out after a week, we plumbed in-line with our water bladder but it didn’t flow very well.  We didn’t bring back-flush pump which was a mistake.  Going to take a spare next time. 

Downmat 7 UL Sleeping Air Mattress:  We both liked these down filled mattresses.  Pumped up in a minute with a bag we also used for storage.  We got the xtra wide xtra long ones that weighed 28 ounces.  Smoothed out rocks under our tent and great insulation.  ( R value 5.9 )

Montbell Down Hugger 0 Degree Spiral Stretch Sleeping Bag:  Was looking for a roomy light bag and this fit the ticket.  3 pounds.  Got it long so boots could go in the bottom.  Like it a lot but it was very warm for the barely freezing nites we saw.  The rating I think is realistic.  Found I really didn’t need that much room.  Probably would look to a standard 15 degree mummy if son takes this one.  He packed his 10# Cabelas full size -20 degree synthetic outfitter bag – loved it but will be going lighter next time. 

Under Armour Base Layers: We’ve liked these in the past but they sweated a lot and just didn’t  dry quick enough for unheated tent camping.  Switching to Merino. 

Rivers West Jackets/Pants: Like these because they are 100% waterproof and insulated but son just sweated too much in them and they take too long to dry out in unheated tent.  Saving these for stationary hunts /  camps with stoves.

Brunton Solar Charger / Battery : Was nice way to keep our iphones charged for camera use.  Died though on day 5. ?  Good unit it while it worked. 

Wish we had: Packing loads of moose meat uphill in the rain and wind is tough.  You sweat then chill when you stop.  There is no way to stay dry if you sweat a lot.  Son wished he had just tried full wool – wet but warm.   

[jackelope]

Nice write up. Thanks for the reviews.

[WA1232]

Great reviews. The Ultra packs were good meat haulers? Good to hear! My main worry with such a light pack.

Sounds like a great trip. Good for you guys.

[Magnum_Willys]

The Ultra packs were good meat haulers? Good to hear! My main worry with such a light pack.

Yea, we thought we would have to use some extra straps to hold meat on but just the four included straps buttoned it right up.  We had 80-90# loads. 

[kentrek]

Great review/reviews

I forgot my extra straps for the ultra but there coming with me the next 6 weeks...and all of shed season... handi lil things

Here is two bone in elk shoulders and horns...luv this pack 

[Skyvalhunter]

Very nice write up and reviews. With the equipment purchased for this adventure must have been a spendy one. Not saying it will never be used for other trips but up front cost is $$$$

[Magnum_Willys]

Very nice write up and reviews. With the equipment purchased for this adventure must have been a spendy one. Not saying it will never be used for other trips but up front cost is $$$$

Yea no kiddin ! We've been running Wally world fleece and Rivers West and wool for 10 years and figured it was time to try some state-of-the-art gear.  All told it was a fun exercise but wool and fleece is still tough to beat.  We did experience a wide range of wet temperature extremes and were glad we had gear to handle it.  That was part of the fun.

[MtnMuley]

Thanks for the write up.  We share a lot of the same thoughts.

[TylerMulie]

Just curious do you have anything to compare the Kuiu Ultra to?

I've been thinking about getting a Kuiu Ultra, I have a Mystery Ranch longbow but it is just so heavy.

How did it carry meat or heavy wieght?

Thanks,

[Magnum_Willys]

Just curious do you have anything to compare the Kuiu Ultra to?

I've been thinking about getting a Kuiu Ultra, I have a Mystery Ranch longbow but it is just so heavy.

How did it carry meat or heavy wieght?

Thanks,

See above.  Works great. Works like exo but lighter. 

[Utah]

Thanks for the write up. Looks like fun. 

Not sure what you paid for your Monarchs.  Mine after rebate are half the price of the Vortex.  Do you feel The Vortex are worth double the price?

[Magnum_Willys]

Thanks for the write up. Looks like fun. 

Not sure what you paid for your Monarchs.  Mine after rebate are half the price of the Vortex.  Do you feel The Vortex are worth double the price?

Nope.    I had 12 power monarchs and got 10 power vortex - mistake I like the 12's better.   My buddies 12 power Cabelas uro's are much sharper than 10 power vortex or 12 power monarchs.  My vision is not very good so I use my binos constantly which is why I went with the lightest good ones I could find.  The vortex fits the bill there.  If I wasn't constantly glassing while still hunting with them I would go with a heavier pair like the euro's. 

The monarch 12 powers are great value.

[Utah]

Thanks,


I have the 8x42 Monarchs but am going to try the 10x42. 

[Eli346]

You can also lay down fir boughs, just the tips, as you don't want to lay on the branches under your tent. I've done this for a long time and it seems to make a nice pad for a base and the insulation value is there too. I just make sure I use a bunch of different trees so I'm not killing the trees when I trim them. I'm not sure if it matters much but that's just me.

[coldsteel3d]

I used the Exped Downmat 9 when I hunted the Jarbidge in Nevada and other than the space and weight it took up in the pack I would have to say it is probably the most comfortable night sleep available in the backcountry. I think I slept better on it than my mattress at home!