Wearing Blue

[muzzleloader48]

A lot of times the boys and I wil take the ATV's and head to an area we want to hunt. I can't tell you how many times the deer or elk stop and just watch as we go by. You can pull up ahead, get off your ATV, get your long gun out, cap it and walk back 100 yds. or so and most times they are still there just curious about what went by. Now when I say back track, I mean undercover of the trees and moving as slow as a snail. Many times that paid off.
Several times we'd find a nice log to rest and have a snack and we'd be talking and just relaxing. All of a sudden there's an elk standing behind you just staring at us! At least twice that paid off with some great elk meat.

 

[user 23626]

They're making rocket science out of it again. I agree with you Pete. I've worn jeans with a blue work shirt. Still got my game.

I am concerned more with the light reflecting from my face and hands. I wear a face mask and gloves while calling in sunlight. I wear faded Carhart bibs in fall and cover them with cheap Tyvek white in winter. The rocket science thing: I agree that steel is steel and there are many ways to take care of it. However redundancy is the privilege of old age evidenced by the presence of gray hairs on most of the responders to this post. Talking at length about a simple subject is not a bad thing. We are communicating about something we all have interest in and being entertained while learning. I LIKE turning on my computer every morning and reading comments from users ( my wife says it is my facebook, which I'm not on ). So I, for one, don't mind reading 100 different lubes used or preservatives each of us like best. I'll state again variety is why I chose this forum and to learn about BP hunting sports. Out Here

 

[RonRC]

I used to wear BDU's from the late 1960's, not so much for camouflage, but because of comfort and general usefulness. The problem with old military clothing is that it shrinks on the hanger. None of it fits anymore!

 

[Sonny Rich]

You're right Big John regarding old pictures of hunters. Take the legendary bowhunter FRED BEAR for example. Breaking-up your human body mass was something the ol' timers figured-out long before designer camo clothing came along. They simply wore a plaid top and solid-color pants. Chuck Adams also wore this simple but effective color combination. Since many real old photos were in black & white, it's hard to say how common or popular the color blue was.

I actually have a hole Elmer Fudd suit.Pants,Jacket and Hat,i live just below Sequoia Park,i keep it in my truck for winter trips up there, Let me tell you always have a wool coat,it saved my brother in laws life after a pilot he was with hit the side of a mountain,he was building a hanger for the pilot in return for Elk spotting in Alaska,the pilot died in his arms and everything he had was in the plane and the plane burned,it would have been better i guess if he had stayed put,but he remembered seeing a cabin about ten miles back and tried to get there with 3rd degree burns,he made five miles and collapsed,he could hear choppers above him in a forested area,they could not see him. Snow everywhere wet would he managed to scrape up some punky wood,only thing he had was a bic lighter in his wool jacket pocket,he started pulling hairs from that wool coat and managed to get enough to start punky wood and got a smokey fire going,the choppers saw the smoke and found him the next morning and got him to a hospital in which he left becuase he had no insurance and could not afford a hospital stay and his nerve ending were burnt so he feeled no pain,he got home to Idaho and did not tell my sister anything,she went to pick him up and they assisted him into the airport ,when she saw that she dang near fainted and sat on the floor.He would not see a doctor,UNTIL about three days later when the nerves started growing back,his legs and arms looked like fried bacon he had 105 temp and they rushed him to the hospital in which they gave him somekind of acid bath,i heard him scream all the way in California!! He is a very religous general contractor in Idaho,tv show i survived wanted to do a story on him,hunting magazines wanted to do articles on him he refused them all in memory of the pilot. he did give a testimoney at his local church.I have gone hunting with him and he usually just wears clothing that matches the area he is in. I think i will keep my Elmer Fudd wool suit! Just a note most pilots in Alaska don't have insurance becuase it's to exspensive,this pilot had none,may have changed by now but something to think about. As soon as he healed up enough to go hunting he was up in Idaho somewhere with a green horse,the horse stumbled down an embankment with him on it,horse and rider not hurt,but you can bet my sister put her hoof down on hunting for awhile!! My view of the Sierras on a good winter!!

 

[Hanshi]

I started wearing camo only 20 (+ or -) years ago. I usually wore my old Army field jacket but also had a brown canvas (wing shooters) jacket I would wear often. I still wear that canvas hunting coat a lot even to this day. The field jacket got lost somewhere along the way. And about the same time I found the value of a face mask. At first I wore a ski mask but later came across a camo mask. For decades I put up with a cold nose and face. That's the reason I embraced the mask; not to hide or blend in but to keep my frigging face warm. I don't think camo is very important for hunting success but neither does it lessen the chance for success.

 

[Winter Hawk]

"Chuck Adams had a book out in which he poo-pooed camo." ??? Cover says different ???

View attachment 1184
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Different book, came out way before that. It was hardback, with a light blue cover. The photos in it showed him in blue jeans and buffalo plaid shirt. He said that this was all you needed, as long as it broke up your outline.

My copy walked away and I haven't seen another since. I don't even remember the name of it.

~WH~

 

[Marty1]

I am concerned more with the light reflecting from my face and hands. I wear a face mask and gloves while calling in sunlight. I wear faded Carhart bibs in fall and cover them with cheap Tyvek white in winter. The rocket science thing: I agree that steel is steel and there are many ways to take care of it. However redundancy is the privilege of old age evidenced by the presence of gray hairs on most of the responders to this post. Talking at length about a simple subject is not a bad thing. We are communicating about something we all have interest in and being entertained while learning. I LIKE turning on my computer every morning and reading comments from users ( my wife says it is my facebook, which I'm not on ). So I, for one, don't mind reading 100 different lubes used or preservatives each of us like best. I'll state again variety is why I chose this forum and to learn about BP hunting sports. Out Here

You guys bring up good related subject matter. Early in my bowhunting years I was sitting in military camo along the edge of an apple orchard. Another bowhunter happen to pass by at 30 yards and came up to me and said: " You're well concealed except for your face... it sticks out like a sore thumb". Thereafter I wore camo face paint while bowhunting. Human flesh tone is not found in nature, and apparently just didn't blend-in with my natural surrounding.

 

[RonRC]

Modern Hunting garb:

 

[30coupe]

Most of the camo stuff I have was purchased because it was cheap. Many of the farm and home type stores where I tend to buy clothes will have the camo stuff at half price at the end of the season. For instance, a while back I bought a Carhartt hooded arctic jacket at the end of the season for 1/2 the price of the black or Carhartt brown ones hanging a few feet away. Same jacket, different color. The bibs in my avatar are insulated, camo, and cost $5 at a garage sale. I've killed many deer wearing that ugly wool sweater. It's not camo, but it's warm and multi-colored, so the deer never seem to complain. The hat was free from Menard's several years ago. My favorite camo jacket is a black and brown wool plaid one I picked up at Goodwill years ago for $10.

When you are on a retirement budget, and you have a wife who is che...uh...frugal, you soon learn that you don't need the latest, greatest, most expensive camo to kill stuff.

My beard used to be camo, but now it looks more like a whitetail's backside, lol! I've killed deer with and without a camo balaclava. The only difference was the ambient temperature. When it's cold, I wear the balaclava.

The best deer hunting camo I have found is not moving. Wear something warm enough and comfortable enough that you can be still most of the time. Deer may or may not see colors, but they darn sure see motion!

 

[30coupe]

You guys bring up good related subject matter. Early in my bowhunting years I was sitting in military camo along the edge of an apple orchard. Another bowhunter happen to pass by at 30 yards and came up to me and said: " You're well concealed except for your face... it sticks out like a sore thumb". Thereafter I wore camo face paint while bowhunting. Human flesh tone is not found in nature, and apparently just didn't blend-in with my natural surrounding.

I've noticed that the blaze orange stuff stands out too...for humans. Blaze orange is not all that common in nature either. To a human, I'm sure my white beard stands out pretty dramatically. Deer don't seem much bothered by it. I've had deer look me over, bob their heads, even stomp sometimes, then go on about their business as long as I stayed still. Move, and you are toast...paint or no paint.

 

[Smoketown]

You guys bring up good related subject matter. Early in my bowhunting years I was sitting in military camo along the edge of an apple orchard. Another bowhunter happen to pass by at 30 yards and came up to me and said: " You're well concealed except for your face... it sticks out like a sore thumb". Thereafter I wore camo face paint while bowhunting. Human flesh tone is not found in nature, and apparently just didn't blend-in with my natural surrounding.

It's not the color ... It's the GLARE due to skin oil.

Ask any member of an airborne search and rescue team what they see when flying over the bush.

Unless they are in deep shade, the response will be, search parties and hopefully, the victim.

Cheers,
Smoketown

 

[Buck Conner1]

Damn Ron, you guys have really upscaled your garb there in Golden. Do those rags catch on the undergrowth
??? I bet your popular in 5 Points looking like this. :cheers:

 

[Marty1]

.... I've had deer look me over, bob their heads, even stomp sometimes, then go on about their business as long as I stayed still. Move, and you are toast...paint or no paint.

Been in that situation many times with deer. In fact, I had that very experience this past December on a muzzleloader hunt ( couldn't get the shot off ). Movement is no doubt an obstacle to getting a shot off... but therein lies the BIG difference between a bow and a firearm in the hands of a hunter on the ground. The bowhunter has his/her hands full trying to precisely time the "draw-down" (i.e., body movement) on a deer within 10-25 yards. A firearm hunter may only need to make a hand movement whereas the bowhunter involves shoulder movement.

 

[Marty1]

It's not the color ... It's the GLARE due to skin oil.

Ask any member of an airborne search and rescue team what they see when flying over the bush.

Unless they are in deep shade, the response will be, search parties and hopefully, the victim.

Cheers,
Smoketown

Surplus Military and most commercial hunter face creams on the market dry to a matt finish... thereby eliminating the " GLARE".

 

[muzzleloader48]

The best use for camo is human concealment from your enemy!

I am concerned more with the light reflecting from my face and hands. I wear a face mask and gloves while calling in sunlight. I wear faded Carhart bibs in fall and cover them with cheap Tyvek white in winter. The rocket science thing: I agree that steel is steel and there are many ways to take care of it. However redundancy is the privilege of old age evidenced by the presence of gray hairs on most of the responders to this post. Talking at length about a simple subject is not a bad thing. We are communicating about something we all have interest in and being entertained while learning. I LIKE turning on my computer every morning and reading comments from users ( my wife says it is my facebook, which I'm not on ). So I, for one, don't mind reading 100 different lubes used or preservatives each of us like best. I'll state again variety is why I chose this forum and to learn about BP hunting sports. Out Here

Yes I understand all of that. However, at the age of 71, I have found that when older guys get together, all of a sudden much of fact turns to extended story telling and fact turns to fiction. When I read about someone taking 2 or 3 days to clean a rifle....well you get my drift. There's and old adage that works well..."KISS". Even at 71, redundancy just erks the hell out of me.

 

[Smoketown]

Here are pics of "the grinning idiot" (if you're old enough to remember that phrase in print) Chuck Adams in something other than camo.

https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf...BAgJEAE&biw=1680&bih=907#imgrc=hWD0bR-K_vCRdM

 

[Buck Conner1]

What's interesting about some of these writers are the game they are shown holding (grinning) with - wasn't their taken game. Have several friends that are outfitters here in the west that have had some of these characters (writers) show up for the picture taking and never pulled a trigger. Have been told this by several outfitters in WY, MT and UT, now I take what these writers say with a good dose of sale.

It's all about sellings their articles, magazines and books - the mighty buck $$$. Some of these guys would show up for book signings at Cabelas once in a while, when asked questions about their articles some of them got real fuzzy on their replies. Man that raises questions about how true is this guy.....

 

[Buck Conner1]

Yes I understand all of that. However, at the age of 71, I have found that when older guys get together, all of a sudden much of fact turns to extended story telling and fact turns to fiction. When I read about someone taking 2 or 3 days to clean a rifle....well you get my drift. There's and old adage that works well..."KISS". Even at 71, redundancy just erks the hell out of me.

You hit that nail on the head muzzleloader48, I'm 80 this month and have to agree. Some of the friends I use to run around with; racing, hiking, hunting, etc. will start telling about what they did and you know it didn't happen that way you were there. What do you do - call them out or just let it go?

When younger I would tell them they were full of crap, now its not worth the battle, it won't change anything in their mind. Now I try to remember the good times, help guys out with my limited knowledge and get some good naps. :coffee:

 

[exMember]

They don't care what you're wearing. These buckskin pants alsp havent been washed in 2 years.

 

[user 23626]

You hit that nail on the head muzzleloader48, I'm 80 this month and have to agree. Some of the friends I use to run around with; racing, hiking, hunting, etc. will start telling about what they did and you know it didn't happen that way you were there. What do you do - call them out or just let it go?

When younger I would tell them they were full of crap, now its not worth the battle, it won't change anything in their mind. Now I try to remember the good times, help guys out with my limited knowledge and get some good naps. :coffee:


View attachment 1238

Good fortune has befallen you and 48 because it sounds like you are of the small percentile not guilty of the above mentioned. At 74+ I'm reminded by my friends often enough I've already told them about that to the point I start by saying " I might have already told you this" and they say "yes" or politely suffer through it again. My life has been eventful enough there is no need for embellishment. I have patience with my peers as old age is a privilege not given to many. Out