Wear synthetics around a cedar fire or while welding and you'll see where wool is better. Don't get me wrong, I wear quite a few synthetics. Haven't put my woolies (wool union suit long underwear) on it close to ten years. I wear synthetic long johns, and in the winter I wear insulated nylon faller's pants. They block the wind when snowmobiling, the snow slides off them, and they are tough. They are also noisy as heck. For an upper layer I wear a wool shirt, wool Filson mackinaw, and a down snowmobile coat. And a Filson wool packers hat, the wide brim keeps snow from going down your neck. When deer and elk hunting I wear surplus wool pants. There are quite a few good brands of wool pants out there, but they are spendy and I can get the surplus ones cheap. I wore various synthetic and poly coats and shirts for years, but went back to wool. Never found a truly waterproof material that wasn't noisy and the others dry much faster but otherwise are not superior to wool and they all are susceptible to flame or heat. Touch one against a snowmobile muffler on the trail and you are going to be spending the rest of the day with a hand sized hole in your shirt.

I've guided a lot of guys with a thousand dollars worth of clothing on. Most of them bragged the stuff up when they got there, but a lot of it wouldn't last a weeks worth of hard hunting and they threw it away rather than take it home. And a heck of a lot of that synthetic "quiet, waterproof" stuff was soaked to the skin while my Filson might have gained five pounds, but it hadn't soaked through to my shirt yet.

Spot on bearcat2. I was going to mention how much better wool is around fires. I've got some funny stories about guys melting expensive synthetic gear. Its hard not to cozy up to a nice fire when the weather is wet and nasty.

Adding dry snow to the equation makes wool much more attractive. Besides the value as an insulating layer it can serve dual purpose as an outer layer. If I’m in the woods and there is more than 6” of snow my wool pants are on. After a day snowshoeing or tromping through the white stuff the back of calves will be caked with snow/ice. I wouldn’t know it if I didn’t see it because I am always toasting warm under those conditions. I don’t know of a synthetic base layer that can do that.

Wool breathes quite well so my experience does not line up with yours. After a long day in the field and hike back to the truck I usually just wear my base layer in the truck because I’m warmer that way, especially if I have a cotton shirt over it. The sweat evaporates, I’m warm and wool saves the day again. Even if wool stays damp, I’m warm.

I trap 45 miles of saltwater coastline in my open skiff and everyday I’m out there I’m wearing wool and rain gear. I wear merino wool long Johns as a base layer, a wool pullover from Barney’s chalet and a Woolrich jacket. On the colder days I double up my long Johns and on the rainy days I wear hellys or guy cotton bibs with a mustang float coat.

That wardrobe has consistently gotten me thru the elements during the winter. You couldn’t pay me to try and wear kuiu. I unfortunately bought into the Sitka gear ploy 6 years ago when I thought I needed it to be successful. It’s didnt last me two seasons hunting mountain goats/black tails. Wool and Hellys kept me on the mountain longer and that’s why I switched

I'm glad you mentioned the noise factor. Very important. When I'm sitting against a tree, there isn't much worse than a noisy jacket.

I've actually lost two moose to the Stka down coats. Both were with bowhunters in the rut. I was calling the bulls in and when they got close they heard the hunters coat scrape against the brush when they started to raise their bow. Its really annoying.

Fires? What are those?
Good luck getting a fire going where I operate.

I've had the same experience calling elk for bowhunters in Sitka gear. The KUIU waterproof stuff is just as noisy, but I've only had hunters wear it during rifle season and can't actually recall missing an opportunity due to it. Their absorbent (non-waterproof) stuff is I believe much quieter than Sitka gear. I like the design of the regular Sitka gear, it looks like it fits good, but it is loud, expensive, and not particularly tough.

And the really annoying thing is 8 out of 10 hunters will blame you or bad luck, not their expensive gear.

I've had people buy me Kuiu and Sitka, it didn't last long, the waterproof stuff is noisy, and it is definitely not good around fires. Keep some duck tape handy if you buy some. Good quality rubber is the way to go for rain, I use synthetic and wool layers under it. I think a lot of hunters buy it for one or two week fly in hunts because it's light, and weight is an issue. Why any other hunters buy it, I couldn't comprehend.

Interesting stuff.

Imagine the frustration of having to use duct tape on Kuiu's $500 (USD) coat. Yikes.


Warmth is what I'm looking for, not rain protection.


Good info so far.

I have a full set of Kuiu but conditions in Nevada are way different then Alaska. I wear it for elk and deer hunts here plus the occasional chucker hunt. Some of it is very noisy wool is too heavy and blue jeans can get wet. Biggest thing I hear from folks who wear it is freedom of movement when hiking and climbing. Its a layering system and is made to be used that way

I am a fan of fleece, and poly base layers. If it's dry and cold, down is great, but here, fleece tends to be the outer layers, most of the time.

I have 1 down vest. I think I'll carry it in, & then put it on under a coat. Based on some of the info on this thread, I think I should be using the down vest more. I got it from my grandpa years ago. I don't see much down on the market, nor do I see people around here wearing it much, but it's probably underrated.

Down is fantastic dry. It is very bulky (puffy) but usually compresses well and is lightweight. All too many down clothes have much to light duty of shell that rips easily (probably to take advantage of the featherlight nature of down) and wet it ain't much good. But the way you are describing using it, unless it is so bulky as to get in the way of you shouldering your gun or drawing your bow you should be good. And it is warm.

Late to the party but I will second what has been said about a lot of so called expensive stuff. My post secondary education is in Outdoor Adventure Leadership. A lot of the gear used for the activities we love is high tech with super good warmth to weight ratios. That said, when carrying all your gear with you on multi day adventures, be it climbing, backpacking, canoeing, kayaking, etc, you can bet your butt you will want the high tech superlight stuff. Makes life far more enjoyable.

But it comes at a second price to the actual cost of the item. Keeping the stuff in good shape is tough. Not destroying it is tough, and when you do its hard to repair. Hunting is different. As said, simply pushing through brush will demolish a lot of the high end stuff.

When it comes to hunting the scale must slide somewhat towards durability. All the Kuiu, Sitka, etc gear is nice and performs on par with lower grade stuff, but insulation is loft. Dead air space. Not very sexy, but true. High power down has the best warmth to weight ratio know. But if being super light weight doesn't matter as much, whats the point in paying extra for it? And lets not get started on the "waterproof and breathable" farce. that is another rant entirely.

I do a lot of winter camping, snowshoe expeditions pulling toboggans, using axes and saws, fire, and wall tents. We still manage to keep things lightweight through other means, but all the materials are traditional. Cotton anoraks, fur, cotton canvas tents, wool, and fleece, leather mukluks and mitts, and metal (titanium) woodstoves. The reason is that winter camping is hard work, and we don't want to be buying gear every year. Lots of expensive Arc'teryx jackets have become half melted piles of goo because someone got too close to the wood stove! The idea is, we want to be able to live comfortably out of a tent at any temperature and traditional gear is really the only clothing that allows us to do that.

A lot of similarities with winter camping the way we do it. That's not to say that high tech ear has no place. For example, when snowshoeing and pulling a toboggan at 30 below, you might only be wearing a thin fleece. Stopping for a lunch break means throwing on a down and nylon packable puffy jacket. But it goes away as soon as you start pulling, chopping wood, etc again. That way it can last for years, and you don't feel it on the sleigh. Not the place for a heavy snowmobile coat!

For normal everyday wear, and especially trapping, I generally wear blue jeans, or Helly Hansen rain pants with polar weight fleece long johns, a fleece upper and a Carhartt coat. Works for my daily life, work, and even hunting and trapping with a few modifications. The reason is this combination wears like iron. I am a huge fan of fleece. When worn as a mid layer, it stays in good shape for ever. Warm enough when damp, and won't break the bank like some wool products. (Icebreaker merino? You mean bankbreaker??) And is durable enough to be worn as an outer layer if needed. heck I have several fleece sweaters been worn hard and are 16 years old.

I always say a carpenter doesn't have just one tool, neither should someone have only one outfit. Especially if you want to enjoy and optimize every activity. I have different gear (with some overlap) for kayaking, hiking, hunting, trapping, winter camping, snowmobiling. Heck, i even have different waterfowl gear from my bowhunting gear and if i did a backcountry, multi day hunt I would choose a different combination again.

But I can assure you, unless it was marked down AND already on the sale rack, and even then... the tags on my clothing will not say Kuiu or Sitka.

Mainly because I am not rich, nor good looking enough to have my picture in the Cabela's catalog...

Agreed. AK Viking and I operate in the same type of climate.
This points out that this isn't necessarily a one size fits all issue. I wouldn't be caught dead (or maybe I would) relying on wool and/or cotton (Carhartt, etc.) in the places I spend most of my time in.
If you limit your activities to arid and consistently cold areas then you do have more options for what will work.

Yeah, cotton rarely seems like a good idea waggler.

For you guys that like the helly hansen over poly base layers, what product line or model do you prefer? Specifically for cold damp/wet hunting in the brush where a durable quieter fabric is desired. Thanks

Kuiu’s claim to fame is lightweight packability. If that’s what yer after, they got it. Think Sheep Hunting(I know right). For warmth I would go with a Musk Ox coat... stay out of the cockleburrs.