Folks,

I am scheduled to hunt Mule deer and White tail for 9 days in November 20006 in Alberta.

I will be hunting from November 12-20.

As I have been hunting in Texas all of my life, I am not prepared for the potential cold weather.

Looking at past weather, It could be 39F to Minus twenty.

I am hunting in WMU 522 north of Edmonton.

What do I definitely need to add to my wardrobe, coats, boots, etc.

Sprig

I hunted N.MN. for 30 years, always in Nov. My best boots were Sorrel Ice Kings, they would keep my feet warm in the worst of conditions, I wore 2 pair of good wool socks, don't even take anything made of cotton with you! I wore polypro underwear, usually 2 pair if real cold then heavy wool pants and a heavy wool shirt, I wore a Cabella's Gortex, Thinsulate fleece coat. I also used a muff with chemical heat packets inside, they are great, buy a case of them!!Heavy hat with ear flaps and leather chopper mits with some medium gloves.. Shoot straight!!

Are you going to be stand hunting or walking around?

Elkman, Thanks, Sprig

Under Armour ColdGear for a base layer - I will be up there the week or so before you hunting mulies, and will have 2-3 sets with me for sure...

My guess is that you have to have two seperate systems, One for stand hunting whitetails and another for "spot and stalk" Mulies.

Sprig

Hi Bullsprig,

I live in northern Alberta, very close to where you. I personally hunt mostly WMU 523/527/520-sometimes 522,526 for most of my big game. WMU 522 along the Peace River valley edge and farm land should produce some good whitetails & big mulies!(190+BC are getting quite common now for mulies in the Peace Country)

As for clothing, any camo- MOBU/RT HW/ a good 4-1 parka (Browing/Rocky/Remington) and insulated bibs/pants-the 4-1 are great because they are so versitile, and may be suitable for you down south with just the outer parka shell. Good-breathable-gortex/waterproof boots with 1000+ thinsulate (ROCKY's 1200-1600, Irish Setters, Lacrosse) Sorel makes a great winter boot good up to -120 deg. C- but are very bulky and not to much for support if you plan one walking alot in rough terrain (go for the Rocky's 1200 or 1600). IF for to and from the stands- they will be good. A toque or fleece neck thing with a ball cap is good head and face cover if exposed to the elements. Camo insulated mittens with flip-over ends are great. A couple pairs of a good polar fleece or polypropolene underwear is a must- ALWAYS dress in layers up here. Its light material, and keeps wicking the sweat away from your body-putting it into the next layer, keeping you dry. Heavy wool socks.

For the past 3-4 years, the first part of November has been very cold/snowy (-15 to -30 deg. C)- cold for you. Then after, the weather became a balmy +5 to 20 deg. C. CRAZY WEATHER. But i'd prepare for the worst weather.

In the past, I have guided a few fellows from Texas that came ill-prepared only in good warm boots, and had to order a few in to keep them happy in the stands- and did they love me after that! The stands were even heated with portable propane heaters. You can always dress down once the stand is warm- get it too hot, and you will get uncomfortable-especially if you run low/out on propane during the day.

I personally stand in the elements for up to 3 hours waiting for "the opportunity" at a trophy buck or elk, dressed for the conditions.

Good luck in your hunt in Alberta! Just a friendly tip, our deer up here have very large bodies that can make it hard to judge their antler size. Guys have miss judged good book deer b/c of this fact.

Mighty, Great info. I have booked my hunt with Mule Deer as my primary. What are my realistic expectations on Whitetail?

Sprig

Mighty, I am pretty good at judging Texas whitetail. Give me some pointer for judging with the big bodies.

Sprig

I also live in northern Alberta.I wear an underlayer of polypropelene,then layers of fleece,topped with a gortex shell or parka.I wear schnee pac boots and a toque as well as mitts for cold weather and gloves for warmer weather.

Check out www.ravenwear.ca a coumpany in Alberta that does a lot of buisness supplying warm hunting gear to US hunters bound for Alberta.

Tell them Robin McDonald sent you.
Robin down under

bullsprig,

I was in the same boat your in on a hunt I went on last december in Iowa when the temps fell to minus 13.

I wore military issue thermals (I believe they are thick polyprop), some cheap sweat pants, regular pants, fleece shirt, silent hide fleece bibs, Browning Goretex Hydro fleece Parka(4 in 1), a thinsulate stocking cap covered by the Browning parka hood, a pair of cotton socks covered by a pair of wool socks, a fleece neck gater(Remington from Walmart), pair of gates gloves w/ the shooting fingers, and a pair of 1200 gram thinsulate Lacrosse rubber knee boots.

That was all worn while sitting in a tree for hours in the snow and a light breeze. I stayed snug as a bug in a rug. I also took some of those little shake-up hand warmers and placed one in each pocket to hold onto while sitting. I was exposed in a ladder stand, if it had been a box blind it would have been much warmer.

I would strongly urge wearing cotton or poly liner socks before you put on your wool socks. If I put on straight wool my feet sweat badly walking in and then get cold because they're wet.

Good Luck

Reloader

Lots of guys like to bring a sleeping bag to sit in. It's a great idea, you get so sweated up walking to the stand with all your layers on. With the sleeping bag everything gets easier walking, waiting, etc. It also masks the movement of your hands while you twiddle your fingers or eat snacks. You could look at some down booties to put on your feet for inside the bag. Get a nice fleece lined hard hat liner for your head, a warm facemask. Also one of those "dickies" that go on your neck and have the longer back to go down your shirt. Have fun!!!

the chef

quote:

Originally posted by duffy4:
Check out www.ravenwear.ca a coumpany in Alberta that does a lot of buisness supplying warm hunting gear to US hunters bound for Alberta.

Tell them Robin McDonald sent you.
Robin down under

I'm with duffy4 on this. I have the Raven Wear first layer, second layer and the Anti-Freeze coat and bibs. They are pricey, but they are the best.

Mike

i use the Sweateam gore tex hunting outfit, its a great for cold weather,since i havent goen to Alska yet but the norwegian Fall and winter do need good clothes for hunting and so .

Thanks for all of your continuing input. Great ideas. Sprig

I use this ,works as advertised in northern


Wisc.http://www.heaterbodysuit.com/

The light weight moisture wicking materials that have been out for a few years work great in layers and topped with some nice Goretex bibs and parka should take care of you. Works good in Alaska. Good Luck

Although I've lived in western Canada all my life, I can't give you much useful advice. Come November, I just put on my "winter" hunting clothes and go.

The one piece of advice I can give, however, is to take care of your extremities, especially your feet. If your feet are warm, the rest of you is warm. If your feet are cold, you're miserable. Currently I wear a pair of Red Wing boots with the 1000 gm thinsulate lining. They're not invincible, but they're pretty good. Other makers offer similarily insulated boots.

After the feet come the head and the hands. Wear a toque or insulated cap that also covers the ears. Albertans, being of the manly sort, wear baseball caps year round, but when the temperature drops, the ears need protection. Save your baseball cap for the diner after the hunt. (Yes, Albertans wear their baseball caps in restaurants!).

As others have noted, Alberta weather is variable, especially in the spring and fall. In November, you can get anything from +15C to -30C. However, you can always adapt to +15 easier than -30, so that's what you have to prepare for.

Lots of good advice particularly about the synthetic layers, wool, and goretex outers, most important without a doubt are great warm (broken in) boots.

I'm from San Diego and hunt Elk and Mulies in the Mountains in Colorado. I hate getting cold but over dressing to walk in snow at altitude will make you sweat so much you'll cook then freeze if you dont have a layering system, so start light and then add outer layers when you reach the stand is a good method as well.

If you shop for a while there are plenty of bargains out there, even at the thrift stores and ebay but don't skimp on the boots.

loden or tweed is good for winterhunting, keeps you warm and good-

quote:

Originally posted by calgarychef1:
Lots of guys like to bring a sleeping bag to sit in. It's a great idea, you get so sweated up walking to the stand with all your layers on. With the sleeping bag everything gets easier walking, waiting, etc. It also masks the movement of your hands while you twiddle your fingers or eat snacks. You could look at some down booties to put on your feet for inside the bag. Get a nice fleece lined hard hat liner for your head, a warm facemask. Also one of those "dickies" that go on your neck and have the longer back to go down your shirt. Have fun!!!

the chef

When I hunt in Northern MN I use a sleeping bag. I carry it, my parka, urine bottles, etc. in a backpack. I wear a cotton shirt to the stand, then take it off and put it in a plastic bag. I then put on clean polypro, crawl into the bag, and put on the parka. I never get cold.

I think you have plenty of advice on clothing and BOOTS (the warm feet thing is very important)

Just another thought about cold weather hunting. I like to have a thermos of hot soup to have a drink of from time to time. It is actually much better than hot coffee. Tomato or mushroom soup made with hot water is my fav.

When I am stiff and loosing consentration (a bad situation when you are waiting for a big buck to come along) I have a little soup break and I'm ready to go for another couple hours. I some times have two or more good stand locations 1/2 mile or so apart. I sit in one a few hours then slowly hunt my way over to another site for a couple hours sitting. and so on.

Robin down under

Get a good pair of boot mittens from Cabelas. When you get to your stand take off your boots and put on the boot mittens with a couple hand warmers in each. Your feet will stay warm as toast!

If you have to stand hunt, here are a couple of options for you from someone who has been there, done that, and has the tee shirt.

1. Take a good sleeping bag to your stand (as has been suggested by another poster).

2. If you don't like sleeping bags, Cabelas sells down long johns. I bought a set last year, and tried them out on a hunt in Manitoba. I usually suffer with the cold, but did not while wearing them. You must take them off if you will do any walking at all.
goose down underwear

3. Get a fairly good supply of the Iron to Iron Oxide chemical handwarmers and foot warmers. The foot warmers last six to eight hours, and keep your feet toasty warm. You can walk with them in your boots. http://www.warmers.com/

4. For sox, try Merino wool.

Hope this helps.

quote:

Mighty, I am pretty good at judging Texas whitetail. Give me some pointer for judging with the big bodies.

If you're used to judging Texas whitetails, some of the deer up here are going to look smaller then they actually are. It has been said that you can add 10" to any Canadian deer on what you THINK they would score.
Canadian deer are big heavy deer and in November they are all swollen up and appear even bigger. A big heavy mulie can have a neck that dwarfs the head!
If you want a successful hunt, look for something that is heavy horned first, and then look at frame size next, then tines, fork depth etc after if you still have time. If you're worried about score only, start looking at a bunch of different pics (outfitters sites) and get a handle on judging Canadian deer.
Main thing....dont WORRY about it....just hunt and if you see something that makes you happy, take it. If you worry too much, you'll pass up deer, and often pass up BIG deer by accident....keep an open mind....

Looks like you have lots of good advice on clothing. I'm personally a Raven Wear fan and like having a big fleece neck/head warmer as well as 2 pairs of gloves in case one gets wet or damp.

The BEST cold weather gear you can buy would be "Sleeping Indian Designs" wool camo. It is very expensive, but I have found it to be worth it. It allows you to move and be comfortable in the most extreme temps. As far as boots goes, its hard to beat Schnees pacs.

you guys are great. Thanks Sprig