The Ultimate Gear For The Foul Weather Whitetail Hunter

With calorie-depleted bucks flocking to food sources as snowy weather sets in, the time to strike is now. To help you face Mother Nature’s worst during the final days of season, we’ve put the industry’s best cold-weather deer gear right here.

CLOTHING

BROWNING

We know it’s the late season, but Browning’s Soft Shell Vest is magic for layering and works well when you get a mild winter day. The vest is windproof and water resistant, and it’s cloaked in Browning’s OVIX camo pattern. The extra collar with beard guard is a nice touch of wintertime sweetness, and the pair of side pockets are an excellent addition. A full-length front zipper makes for quick and easy on/off when you’re on-stand. (browning.com)

HEATER BODY SUIT

Available in Mossy Oak Break Up Country, Predator Fall Gray, Realtree Edge and black, the Heater Body Suit is the ultimate cold-weather hunt garment. A head-to-toe suit that wraps the body like a sleeping bag, this garment allows the hunter to slip inside this bag-style suit and stay warm no matter how nasty Mother Nature gets. When you can stay warm and comfortable, you can embrace the bitter cold and stay on-stand longer. When the moment of truth arrives, you can quickly slip down the 3M Thinsulate Insulation suit and execute the shot. (heaterbodysuit.com)

KUIU

New from the minds at KUIU, this dynamic duo is a cold-weather hunt gear win. Designed to be church-mouse quiet and allow for maximum maneuverability, these whitetail-minded creations are as good as they get. The jacket weighs only two pounds, and the SnythaCell Foam Coating, 3DeFX+ Insulation, and 100 percent polyester knit lining make the jacket a late-season must-have. The Proximity Pant features the same build, but it has suspenders and a high bib-like back that allows the jacket to come over the pants for maximum heat retention. Both garments are rated for cold to frigid conditions, are water resistant, and have Slivadur Anti-Odor Technology. (kuiu.com)

FORLOH

If you lose heat in the torso area, you’ll head for the truck long before your target buck wanders within range. Forloh knows this, and its answer to keep you in the woods is their Deep Space Base Layers. The top features Trizar, a NASA Certified Space Technology woven into every fiber of the garment to capture body heat and distribute that heat back to your body. Another hat-tipper is the Polygiene Odor Crunch + Stays Fresh feature, which provides complete odor protection. Add the Deep Space Base Layer Bottom to complete the system, and you have excellent base layers for chasing cold-weather bucks. (forloh.com)

PNUMA

Pnuma rates its Waypoint as an all-season jacket. We like it for those December and January days when a quality base layer and a comfortable, quiet and streamlined jacket will keep you warm to your core. The Waypoint showcases DWR protection to make it extra water resistant, and YKK stitch- and tape-sealed zippers help keep you warm and dry. The mechanical stretch fabric moves with the body, keeping you maneuverable and deadly. Inside the jacket is PnumaGrid fleece, a tried-and-true fabric that retains heat. (pnumaoutdoors.com)

NOMAD

Nomad knows whitetails, and its Harvester NXT Jacket/Pant combo solidifies that. An excellent combo effective during the mid- and late seasons, the duo was engineered to be quiet, warm, comfortable and durable. The jacket features four-way Stretch Windproof Bonded Sherpa-lined Fabric and zippered Sherpa-lined hand warmer pockets. The pants sport zippered leg openings that allow easy on/off over rubber boots and are wind/water resistant. Like the jacket, the Harvester NXT Pant is filled with a soft, high-pile interior for increased comfort and warmth. (nomadoutdoors.com)

UNDER ARMOUR

Under Armour has been wowing us with athletic-fitting hunting apparel that promises incredible warmth and longevity for years. For 2023, the Stormproof ColdGear Infrared Deep Freeze Jacket is the company’s cold-weather stopper. This jacket is waterproof, and it has a warm fleece interior containing UA Scent Control. This jacket allows you to dominate the late-season deer woods. ColdGear Infrared lining puts the soft, thermo-conductive lining to work to fully insulate and trap warmth inside. The jacket features a scuba neck hood, bungee adjust, zip hand pockets and a chest pocket. (underarmour.com)

ACCESSORIES

LACROSSE

With men’s and women’s sizes available, the Alpha Evolution is the next big thing in Lacrosse’s innovative rubber boot line. Engineered to enhance in-the-woods performance, the Alpha Evolution provides warmth, traction, durability and maximum comfort. A fantastic touch of class and attention to cold-weather detail is the Primaloft Aerogel Toe Cap. Used by NASA to insulate space suits, Aerogel doesn’t add weight, but it boosts insulation. Of course, Alpha construction means hand-laid premium natural rubber over insulating neoprene for increased longevity, durability and waterproof protection. (lacrossefootwear.com)

DRYSHOD

We got a chance to field test these boots and will note that they feel more like a pair of comfortable athletic kicks than rubber boots. Completely waterproof and self-insulating, DryShod’s Evalusion stands 16 inches tall and features a roll-down calf pipe. The four-way stretch air mesh lining allows these rubber boots to have plenty of ventalation. The 5mm Densoprene foam insulated booties keep the cold and wet out, and the heel kick tab is sizeable and makes the boots easy to get on and off. (dryshodusa.com)

CRISPI

If your late-season whitetail plan involves covering lots of country looking for the buck of a lifetime on foot, Crispi’s Wild Rock Plus GTX is a top-tier go-to. Crispi’s heaviest boot in terms of insulation, the Wild Rock Plus GTX sports 800 grams of Gore Duratherm XL Kelvin insulation around the boot. The remarkable tread pattern will keep you upright and moving in rocky, snow-covered terrain. We also applaud the 10-inch-tall ABSS Ankle Support System and 3 Flex Rating. The Wild Rock Plus GTX boots weigh 2 pounds each and come in many sizes. (crispius.com)

HUNT MONKEY

Hunt Monkey knows gloves, and an excellent late-season go-to is their Heater gloves. Sits in the stand and blind during the late season are hard on the hands, and it seems no matter how many hand warmers you use, the digits still tend to get icy. Hunt Monkey knows this and added Polar Fleece and Sherpa Fleece lining to these gloves. This lining hugs the hands like your favorite winter blanket and keeps heat trapped inside. The lining blocks the wind, and the flip-top mitten design means you can shoot with the gloves on your hands with some practice to develop a solid fit and feel. (huntmonkeygloves.com)

EASTON

A feet-per-second booster, Easton’s Sonic 6.0 now comes in a Match Grade +/-.001-inch option for bowhunters seeking spot-on precision. Easton’s Acu-Carbon process ensures maximum weight and spine consistency, and the 6.0 Match Grade comes in many spine options to ensure there is a Sonic 6.0 for every archer. Easton’s Sonic 6.0 Match Grade shafts come fletched with two-inch factory-helical Blazer vanes and pre-installed, color-coded-by-spine nocks. (eastonarchery.com)

SEVR

The SEVR name is now tried-and-true. Models like the Titanium 1.5, 2.0 and Robusto have forever sealed their place in broadhead lore. For 2023, SEVR sweetens the pot with a broadhead that fills a gap between the 1.5 and 2.0. Make way for the Titanium 1.75 broadhead. Optimized for penetration and cut diameter, the 1.75 will work when fired from all of today’s vertical and crossbows — it has no speed limit rating. It is assembled with a machined, one-piece titanium ferrule and a precision-ground tip. The patented Lock-and-Pivot non-barbed blades lock open on impact and pivot around the bone as the broadhead carves its impressive wound channel. Practice Mode means the insertion of an included set screw locks the blades in place, so you can practice with the same broadheads you hunt with. (sevrbroadheads.com)

OZONICS

We love the HR500 from Ozonics and feel compelled to recommend adding an accessory to this top-end ozone unit. Enter the HR500 Remote. Designed for use with the HR500, the remote temporarily increases your ozone output to the next level for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, the unit returns to its standard setting. A fast and efficient way to boost your ozone output if you spy a big buck working into a questionable wind, the remote comes with a carabiner and optional elastic strap to be worn on your wrist or jacket. (ozonicshunting.com)

HORNADY

For those of you chasing bucks during late muzzleloader seasons, check out Hornady’s Bore Driver ELD-X muzzleloader projectile. Designed to be quick and easy to load, the Bore Driver ELD-X is one of the hardest hitting and accurate muzzleloader projectiles on the market. The polymer base ensures maximum energy transfer and accuracy, and the polymer tip promises a quick, ethical kill. If you’re in need of an accurate muzzleloader projectile, you have to try the Bore Driver ELD-X. (hornady.com)

SIG SAUER

Once you use a quality range-finding binocular, returning to a standalone handheld unit is hard. Ideal for every deer hunter, the Canyon is Sig’s shiny new penny. The powerful rangefinder provides right-now yardage data of 4,000 yards on reflective surfaces and 1,500 yards on non-reflective targets (think deer). Shooters can take full advantage of eight onboard ballistic groups in either MRAD or MOA, and you can’t beat Sig’s proprietary Archery Mode. The bright red OLED display is easy to read in any lighting condition, and the SpectraCoat anti-reflective lens coatings ensure maximum light transmission and optical clarity. (sigsauer.com)

MOULTRIE

Maybe your season ends this month and you want to get much-needed nutrition to the herd, or maybe you’re just looking for a healthy way to feed deer. Regardless, Moultrie’s Deer Feeder Gravity 325 is a great option. Holding up to 325 pounds of supplemental feed, this gravity-style feeder ensures healthy, regulated deer feeding. The feeder’s domed lid protects the supplements inside and sheds water, and Moultrie offers buyers a 1-year warranty. (moultriefeeders.com)

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