I am looking for a late fall pant. Something that is good for freezing temps at night with a slight warm up in the day. I liked the KUIU guide but maybe something just a bit warmer. Want solid colors though. Any suggestions?
Sitka Timberlines are a good choice, but if you have an affinity for Kuiu, the Attacks have a pretty broad range of functionality due to their material, and the hip vents. Sitka's aversion to hip vents makes no sense to me.
You can easily layer with something like the different weight merino LJ's and use any pant....kind of a best of both worlds scenario getting the performance of the outer layer and merino at the same time.
I might even choose this system over Wool pants in the snow....though wool in the snow is hard to beat. The thing about heavy wool pants is they get even heavier when wet.
I personally think the Guide pants would be perfect. They are warm and quite water repellent. Use base layers to fine tune warmth for any particular day. If you must have solid colors, I have no idea. I would probably look away from hunting clothing companies and see what else is out there in the performance line. I would be thinking of a fleece-lined softshell.
I go back and forth between Sitka Timberline, Kryptek Dalibor and Kryptek Cadog. Krypteks are quieter but I like the rubber snaps and the neoprene knees/seat of the Timberline. I have previously tried Under Armour and multiple cheaper brands. Settled on these three and am very happy.
I think the Catalyst would be the closest from First Lite but it's definitely not on the same level with the Kuiu Guide, maybe the Chinook. I wouldn't even put the Sitka Timberline on par with the Kuiu Guide its a much thinner material and doesn't breathe as well which makes it warmer.
If the Kuiu Guide isn't warm enough I think your best option is probably adding base layers as needed. I haven't seen too many performance hiking or hunting pants much thicker unless you went to a heavy wool pant.
late fall here generally means snow (and cold), if there is much snow/cold I haven't found anything that comes close to the performance of Filson whipcord pants; the whipcord is a very tight weave that sheds wind/moisture, but still breathes well- much lighter too than heavy wool wool pants. I simply adjust my bottom base layer according to temps- of course I've only had 25+ years of experience with them both as a game warden and big game hunter
Sitka Dakota pants are definitely worth a look. Recently picked up a pair and looking forward to using them on a couple of later hunts this fall. Seem like they will be plenty warm and enough stretch to not be too restricted. The thigh pockets seem a bit weird at first and I’m not sure they will vent as well as the vents on the Kuiu attacks/guides but definitely better than nothing. Dakota Pant | SITKA Gear
Id also look at different long johns, if you already have the Kuiu Guide pants. Any of the expedition weight long johns would add a lot of heat for those really cold days.
I use Kuiu Attacks and Guides through out fall and winter. Ill wear the Attacks 90% of the days with a light to mid weight longjohn underneath. Then Ill switch to the Guides on those really cold days or when I won't be super active, like calling coyotes in February.
What type of hunting are you doing? If I'm active I find I don't need to much on my legs.
Do you have the catalyst pants? Just curious as to why they're not on the same level? Unless your a tester you couldn't have work them last year through the late season to compare to the guides