Early season pants for Colorado?

[wigeon]

I wear sitka mountain pants.Very pricey but worth it too me.I wore them for the first time last year on a 11 day pack in elk hunt and loved them.I also bring merino wool base layers.Another good option is KUIU I have the guide vest and just ordered the spindrift jacket,jacket is on sale for $99 right now.Good luck on your hunt

[RedShaft]

Originally posted by screamin:
After hunting in the mountains for twenty five years you could not pay me to wear another pair of wool pants. Get yourself a pair of Sitka Ascent or Mountain pants. They move with you as you climb not fight you with every step. Add a pair of merino base layer bottoms and you are set for a large temperature range.

I agree 110% and have both. IMO, the KUIU Attack pants are a much better pant not to mention cheaper.

With your experience, can you relate why you dont like the wool? thanks

[Bigriver]

I guess I`m on an island here, but I still always bring along one pair if wool pants on my elk trips. Right now I have King of the wallet bun lite pants & kuiu pants.

 They cover most if not all weather situations & take up little room. I also always bring & wear leg gaitors.

 I`m certainly not an expert like some on here, but this will be my 7th consecutive trip to Colorado, I think I have it dialed in now.

It think it does depend on where and when you hunt also. I have never camped or hunted below 9500 ft for a pack in elk hunt. 10,000 to 11500 ft is the norm.
Been caught in a few snow storms, wool came in handy. A rolled up pair of thinner wool pants takes up little room in a pack and is good insurance, for me anyway.

[ChuckC]

I don't go to 20,000 feet, but on numerous Colorado hunts up to around 8,750 and camping at 7,500, I never felt the burning need for anything other than my cotton pants up there.  It was just too hot for anything else during the day.  Sure you can get wet, but the normal air up there is dry as heck and warm or even dang hot during most days.  So far I have yet to see any issues with the cold (my opinion), and actually,  I am going the other way this year.  I bought extra light weight, uninsulated boots,  I am considering short sleeve camo tops, no felted brimmed hat, but rather a do rag.  I get too overheated up there.  Of course first thing in the morning is chilly,  but half mile up the trail I am very warm.  In the evening, when the sun goes below the horizon, you can feel the temperature drop.  Yes, it gets cool, but a decent wool vest that was in my pack always seems to do it.  On one occasion that I recall I got cold, and I put on my rain gear and solved it.  Again. .  that's just my experience.
ChuckC

[Glunt]

I wear Microtex alone or with a light pair of base layer for all of September hunting.  There is usually a day or two where wool would be the better choice, but elk hunting is generally pretty physical and staying warm is no problem.

I normally dress so that I am pretty cold as I get my breakfast and my pack ready.  That puts me at comfortable when climbing the first ridge and usually strip an upper torso layer when the sun is up and the temps rise.

More than once when I wore wool in September, I ended up hiking around in my long underwear.  Like stated earlier, we all wore jeans or surplus BDUs for many years without any issues.

If truck camping I usually have a pair of wool pants along, but not my choice when packing in.

[Geezer]

Lived here for 56 years and hunted most of that time.  Cotton + wind + wet = will kill you at higher elevations in Colorado if you don't have something else to change into - I've experienced hypothermia with wet cotton pants and won't be caught unprepared again.  For early season I use synthetic mainly - I've used Cabelas Microtex in outfitter camo for several years now and am very fond of it.  This may sound crazy to some but I wear polypro bottoms, predator camo shorts (cut from pants) and a light shirt most of the time.  Early in the morning I'll wear an Under Armour 1/4 zip pullover and when the weather changes throw on a light weight hooded wind breaker (I like the REI - Taku jackets) when the wind picks up.  I love wool but I only wear it in late October when I don't plan on walking much. If I'm hunting later in Colorado (Dec.-Jan.) I wear it exclusively whether sitting or walking.  Keep in mind that the higher you go and the closer you get to timberline you'll be entering an environment (with changing conditions [literally minutes] from wind, rain, sleet, hail, lightning, sunny-hot, calm) very similar to the mountains of Alaska.  My next purchase will be a KUIU pant - I like the looks of the fabric and cut.

[lone hunter]

Light wool for warm weather and heavy wool for cold weather plus wool layers. Only thing I will wear.

[Exit Felix]

First Lite Kanabs are very light weight and breathable.  I had never considered wearing suspenders before and absolutely loved them on the Kanabs.

I now wear suspenders with all of my hunting pants when hunting on foot, way more comfortable and functional than a belt in my opinion for keeping your pants where you want them.

[Exit Felix]

And I always wear a poly base layer underneath regardless of how hot it is to wick the moisture.

[elkbreath]

outside of them being lightweight wool, looking durable and slick, and perfectly utilitarian Felix nailed my intrigue in the first lite;

"I now wear suspenders with all of my hunting pants when hunting on foot, way more comfortable and functional than a belt in my opinion for keeping your pants where you want them."

I cant help but think that someone who thinks this much like me must have created my perfect pant...

[Bernie B.]

Last year I used fleece in Colorado and picked up about every burr on the western slope.  They were comfortable, but I spent way too much time picking stuff off of them.  

We backpack in so my quest was to find a good lightweight quality pants that would dry quickly if wet.  I hope I've found it.  I'm going next time with two pair of Cabela's "Made In The Shade" pants in Seclusion 3D.  The shell is 100% nylon and will roll up into a very small bundle.  I was concerned about having nylon as an outer shell for noise, but these seem very quiet.  I'm anxious to give them a field test.

Bernie Bjorklund

NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin