Late Season Cold Weather Jacket

[Bow man]

I would recommend this one quiet and warm
 http://stjoeriverbows.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=11&zenid=168ea68a458b2591cfd9316f1deb8a66

[Onions]

Dayone fleece Parka, with thinsulate and windliner. Very warm jacket. I have Dayone wool pants, with windliner, and I believe the fleece jacket is warmer.
6 degrees here yesterday morning. I wore a Simms polartec powerdry for a base layer, Sitka Core medium weight, and Sitka Fanatic hoody, with Celcius vest. Put the parka on once I reached my stand. Sat comfortable 4 hours.  
Comfortable the whole time, and I am one who gets cold easily.

chris <><

[pdk25]

Was lucky today in that we had 20-25 mph wind along with 20 degrees temps, so noise wasn't an issue.  Was hunting on the ground, and felt my fanatic was too light in color against the oak leaf floor.  Went with a first lite chama, then first light Labrado, Kuiu Kenai, then the Kifaru puffy with Kryptek camo.  Was warm enough because I could put two handwarmes in the chest pockets of the kenai.  That jacket is an awesome piece  for layering.

[Jerry Gille]

For me a "one size fits all" approach doesn't work.  I've spent the last few years buying Sitka products a little at a time.  I have the stratus pants, bibs and jacket.  I have the fanatic bibs and jacket and I have the traverse cold weather hoody.  I am completely sold on the warmth of all of these products especially the fanatic system.

I do not like the noise of either jacket.  I agree completely with what has been said about the difficulty in drawing when it is calm out - especially in thin winter air.  I also don't like the way the outer layer grabs to tree bark like Velcro - I hate that!

With that said - the system is the warmest thing I've worn bowhunting in 30 years.  Last night it was minus 1 with a 10mph wind when I left the house.  I hunted for 3 hours and never came close to getting cold.  But, the wind died down and had anything gotten close (say 10 yds or under) I think I would have had issues drawing with the noise from the jacket.  All the ice on the stand under my boots didn't help either!

So this is what I have been doing.  I have a pretty high tolerance for cold temps which is 10 or 15 degrees with the stratus and under 10 or so with the fanatic line.  If the wind is not blowing at all I wear the bibs under an old swandri wool coat.  The bibs and the wool coat keep me very warm and I can draw silently.  If the wind is blowing good then I ditch the wool for the Sitka jackets.

That is the way I do it.  Your mileage may vary.  For me, the Sitka products are the real deal for staying warm.  I plan to continue to add more of their offerings to my line.  But I stay away from the jackets when there is no wind.

I might get the stratus line out for say 25 degree temps and 25 mph winds but really anything above 20 degrees with light wind I just wear wool, flannel or whatever is quiet.

[Huntrdfk]

Thanks guys. As I said earlier, I have the Predator heavyweight fleece pants and jacket, they are very warm and pretty quiet, but the arms are too short for my liking. I tried on the Fanatic jacket last week, and while the fit was ok I could still hear the clothes when I simulated a draw.  That being said I agree with Jerry and Dan as to how difficult it is to draw on close range animals when it is deathly quiet.

David

[Three Arrows]

I wear wool. I wear mostly Filson wool but I also have King of the Mountain and Gray Wolf Woolens.

[Hud]

I believe layering is the key to most situations. Base, medium or heavy layer under a down jacket in dry cold, or wool in wet and camo over it when necessary. I was amazed at the price on some of the new hi-tech camo.  Everyone has a different preference or need.

[Mark Colangelo]

It was -23 degrees windchill Saturday morning in Nebraska. I wore first lite merino layers under first lite's North Branch soft shell jacket. Also had First Lite uncompahgre vest over the top. Sat on a stump for 4 hours in comfort! I have a grand worth of First Lite gear and I wont wear anything else. I am officially a camo snob, never thought it would be this way lol

[Mark Normand]

Originally posted by Jerry Gille:
For me a "one size fits all" approach doesn't work.  I've spent the last few years buying Sitka products a little at a time.  I have the stratus pants, bibs and jacket.  I have the fanatic bibs and jacket and I have the traverse cold weather hoody.  I am completely sold on the warmth of all of these products especially the fanatic system.

I do not like the noise of either jacket.  I agree completely with what has been said about the difficulty in drawing when it is calm out - especially in thin winter air.  I also don't like the way the outer layer grabs to tree bark like Velcro - I hate that!

With that said - the system is the warmest thing I've worn bowhunting in 30 years.  Last night it was minus 1 with a 10mph wind when I left the house.  I hunted for 3 hours and never came close to getting cold.  But, the wind died down and had anything gotten close (say 10 yds or under) I think I would have had issues drawing with the noise from the jacket.  All the ice on the stand under my boots didn't help either!

So this is what I have been doing.  I have a pretty high tolerance for cold temps which is 10 or 15 degrees with the stratus and under 10 or so with the fanatic line.  If the wind is not blowing at all I wear the bibs under an old swandri wool coat.  The bibs and the wool coat keep me very warm and I can draw silently.  If the wind is blowing good then I ditch the wool for the Sitka jackets.

That is the way I do it.  Your mileage may vary.  For me, the Sitka products are the real deal for staying warm.  I plan to continue to add more of their offerings to my line.  But I stay away from the jackets when there is no wind.

I might get the stratus line out for say 25 degree temps and 25 mph winds but really anything above 20 degrees with light wind I just wear wool, flannel or whatever is quiet.

That's interesting Jerry. Lately I got the Sitka fever and scooped up some nice used zipT's, Celcius jacket, and yesterday the Fanatic Forest (prior yr) came in. I had a new $$ Stratus jacket that I tried out couple of weeks ago, but I returned it for a full refund. Seemed like way too much money for a kinda lightweight jacket.  

I'll be trying the jackets out if we ever get a winter going down here. We're just coming off an 80deg Christmas jeez. I really wanted that Fanatic kangaroo pouch front pocket. I love the way all the jackets are cut, just perfect for bowhunters. For a long time I had an original Hidden Wolf wool jacket with comfortmax and wind barrier. It was absolutely quiet in all weather, so I'll be checking this Sitka for same.

[Cootling]

The Sitka Celsius is not windproof, but it is absolutely silent.  I'm wearing one over a merino top and under a Windstopper pullover: very comfortable at air temps well below zero, and neither the deer nor I can hear me move.

[Tedd]

Got my eye on that down kuiu outer layer. I think I have most of the other pcs.

[Mark Normand]

I got to try my Sitka Fanatic Forest jacket out this weekend, it was about 28 with a 10mph north wind. I wore it over base layers along with a light Sitka Dakota vest, then the Fanatic. It sure was nice and comfy. Very satisfied.

The jacket and ZipT both have thumbholes that allow the sleeves and liners to pull almost to your knuckles and cover the top of hand. Finger gloves are optional at that point. I really like this feature too.

[Sawpilot 75]

Sitka finatic berber fleece or cabelas Berber. I have worn both from Alberta to home here in Ohio. They cut wind and are stealth quiet. I tried the KOM and was not impressed.

[Orion]

I've started on the route that Jerry G has taken.  I have a lot of wool and wear KOM for most cold weather.  I have an Autumnwood wool coat that is a more heavily felted wool that blocks the wind better, and that has been my ultra cold, windy day outerwear. But even it doesn't block a stiff wind, and a really cold, windy day can be downright unpleasant.

Just picked up a Sitka Gear Incinerator coat a couple weeks ago.  It is rainproof, windproof and insulated.  A bit bulkier than the Fanatic. Not bulkier than my wool outerwear, and not as quiet as my wool, but I can live with that.  Haven't hunted with it, but have been spending a lot of time outside with it, and it's been very cold and windy around here.  I'm impressed. Wind simply does not get through it and it's as warm as all get out.

My plan is to continue wearing wool when it's not windy or bitterly cold, but I'll switch to the Sitka Gear if I have to go out in a strong wind.  The elevated II fabric/pattern does make some noise, but not a lot, and I can cut that in half just by moving/drawing slowly.  In my neck of the woods this fall, the wind often didn't die toward the end of the day.  Under those conditions, the garment doesn't make enough noise for a deer to pick up, IMO. Too, when it's below freezing, deer make a crunching noise as they walk in leaves or snow, which reduces their ability to pick up clothing noise under dead calm conditions.  Doesn't eliminate it, but gives one a chance, I think.

Looking forward to giving it a thorough test next fall.

[larry f]

I currently have the gray wolf woolens insulated bibs,you will not get cold with these on. They are dead quiet as the temps drop the woods become a different kind of quiet. I tried the first lite sanctuary jacket which I thought was going to be my answer for lite weight warmth. The body of the jacket is quiet but the inside of the sleeves are too noisy to draw on a deer so I sent mine back. I would go with the wolfskin lined jacket but I have never tried the Sitka's warmest jacket