Whether you are attempting to punch an unfilled buck tag, or are in search of a doe for the freezer, the latter days of archery season can be among the most promising times to be afield. However, this is not to say that the late season is without its own unique challenges. As fall turns to winter, temperatures often plummet across much of the country, testing even the most dedicated of hunters’ resolve.
As the mercury continues to fall, hunters are often left scrambling for any way to keep the bitter cold at bay. While much has improved in the world of winter wear, and thermal base layers, sometimes even this is not enough to prevent the chill of winter from putting an early end to one’s hunt. When extreme temperatures take hold, hunters need an ace in the hole.
Check out the following list of heat hacks to keep you warm in the late season.
Use Hand Warmers Everywhere
If you have spent any length of time hunting during the late season, you are likely quite familiar with the use of disposable hand warmers. These pocket-size hand warmers activate when coming into contact with air, and provide hours of soothing heat. However, disposable hand warmers don’t have to be limited to just your hands. You can toss them down in your boots to keep your toes warm, or use the adhesive-backed warmers to stick to your back or kidney region of your base layers to keep you warm under all your heavy layers. They work great when placed inside your gloves (backhand) to keep your hands warm as well, even when you can’t tuck them down in your pockets. The options are wide open. Just stick them any place you want to keep warm.
Wear Heated Apparel
There’s a number of heated apparel options on the market as companies continue to meet the demand from hunters wanting better options for staying warm in the late season. Scentlok added their new Reactor Heated Vest Plus to the mix this year. It’s a heated vest that is powered by your standard USB power charger, providing hours of heat where you need it most.
Hunter Safety System even has their popular hand muff in a heated version these days. Their Heated Muff-Pak, works with a USB power charger to keep your hands warm, toasty, and ready for action.
Companies like the Hot Hands product mentioned above are now even offering apparel that is compatible with their Hot Hands product. These products are designed with special pockets that hold a set of disposable hand warmers in place for the duration of your hunt. This supplies you with ample heat, both when and where you need it.
DIY Hand Warmers
If you can’t find any Hot Hands at the local store, or need to make something in a pinch, you can make your own DIY hand warmers. All you need are ziplock bags, water, and ice-melt pellets (calcium carbonate). You simply fill a snack-size bag with one-half cup of ice-melt pellets and add one-half cup of water. Make sure you seal it tightly! Then place the bag inside of another ziplock bag for extra spill protection. The chemical reaction of the water and calcium carbonate will produce heat for several hours.
You can also make DIY reusable hand warmers from the goods you likely already have in your home. See how it’s done in the video below…
Specialty Insulated Insoles
Even with all the determination in the world, it can be difficult to stay on stand when you have not felt your feet for the better part of an hour. While you can largely circumvent this issue with the use of disposable foot warmers, this warming effect can be magnified with the purchase of specialty insulated insoles. Much like the insulation in your boot, these insoles work as a barrier to keep the cold out and natural body heat in.
Insoles of this type can be purchased through nearly any outdoor retailer, and come in a number of sizes. Insulated insoles also tend to be rather economically priced, making them cheap insurance against the bitter cold of late season hunting.
Thermacell Pulls Double Duty to Provide Heat
If you find yourself in a pinch, don’t forget the Thermacell repeller you used back in the warm weather months to fight mosquitoes, makes a great little personal sized hand warmer to get you by in an emergency. It heats up nice, quick and easy, to get your fingers warmed back up and functioning again.
Keep Your Seat Dry
One of the biggest hurdles to staying warm in the late season is staying dry. Once you’re wet, getting cold is pretty much inevitable. You can only ride it out so long before the bone-chilling cold sets in. Your feet are likely the first thing to take on water, but most hunters never consider keeping their butt dry while spending long hours in the stand.
Keep a plastic trash bag tucked down in your pack to use when you get to a treestand or blind with a soaking wet seat. Don’t turn your britches into a sponge! Use the plastic to put a barrier between you and the wet cushion, ground, or other wet foundation you’re sitting on.
Better yet, pack a foam cushion with you. These insulating cushions will keep you warm and dry. Keep your butt dry and you’ll stay warmer, longer.
Use a Dryer to Warm Up Hunting Apparel
A lot of hunters leave their hunting clothes hanging outside to keep them as stink-free as possible. However, in the late season, putting on ice-cold garments and apparel can lead to a miserable experience in the treestand or blind. Take some time before you head out to throw your clothes, gloves and hat in the dryer for a quick warm up. The difference it makes in helping you stay warm will surprise you.
Stay Hydrated
This one sounds simple, and you’d think it was just for hunting hot weather. However, people who don’t drink the sufficient amount of water a day will typically feel the cold more acutely than the hunter that’s drinking 8 glasses of water a day. Your body can better handle the effects of the cold when it’s properly hydrated, so keep a bottle in your pack, even in winter, to sip on throughout your hunt. Other good liquids are herbal tea or cider to help with hydration. And despite what you might think, coffee should be limited, unless it’s decaf. Yep, caffeine is dehydrating – and that leads to being cold, quicker.
Keep Your Hood Up
A hoodie is likely one of the greatest garments you can have on your body when the temperatures drop. The hood on a hoodie or jacket is likely one of the most overlooked options for helping you stay warm. The hood traps heat in your head, neck, and back area, helping you fight the chill. It’s like having a scarf and beanie, and then some, all in one package. Learn to use your hood! You’ll stay warmer.
The Fanatic Hoody from Sitka Gear is a great hoodie with a built-in face mask in the hood, as well as flip-over mittens built in to the sleeves. It’s the perfect piece to keep you warm when you find yourself lacking in the essentials.
Stand Up Instead of Sitting
Keeping your blood flowing is half the battle when it comes to staying warm in the stand. You can do this buy standing rather than sitting for long hours in the treestand. The seated position is restricting. Your bent waist, belt and tight britches will often keep from adequate flow. Stand up. Wiggle your toes, and make subtle movements in the stand to keep your blood flowing and keep your body warmer.
Heat Your Blind
When all else fails, jump in a blind and warm things up with a heater. A blind is excellent for blocking the wind. However, you still have to contend with the cold, damp air, which is largely inescapable during this time of year. The use of a portable heater is often the perfect way to cut this chill, and hunt far more comfortably.
Portable heaters come in several sizes and configurations, allowing hunters to choose what best suits their needs. The majority of portable heaters are propane fueled, and put off a significant amount of heat, and are especially useful in a box blind, which retains much of the heat that is generated. While a propane heater does produce a certain amount of scent, much of this scent rises quickly, due to being less dense than the surrounding cold air.
Conclusion
As when hunting during any point throughout season, perseverance is key. Success simply cannot be found, when taking refuge in the warmth of your home, and staying on stand is perhaps the single biggest factor of importance when attempting to punch your tag. By exercising the above-mentioned tactics, you will be better equipped to weather the frigid conditions that late-season hunting holds in store.
