Help with my Idaho spring bear gear list

[Professor]

I am piggy backing on CApighunter's thread. After reading his list and hearing the comments I am thinking that we may be packing too heavy. Which would be good news because the weight and bulk of our gear now is beastly. My son and I are prepping now for our first Western hunt. We are also going to Idaho for bear. We will be hunting in central eastern Idaho and the elevations will be 6000-8000 feet. We will pack our camp in 12-15 miles and then hunt in different directions for 6 days. The advise I am working from is "be prepared for anything" because spring in the Rockies is erratic. Might be 90. Might be 20 with sleet. Since I am buying all the gear for two to go west I am having to accept some budgetary realities. We are making due with the cold weather gear we have, which is decidedly eastern/deer stand clothing - i.e. very bulky and heavy. This is the entire gear list but I am posting in the clothing section because that is my primary concern. If something is unnecessary, or inadequate I need to know. Note: I realize the sleeping bags are overkill. I did not purchase them for fear of cold but instead because they were so cheap. Add chapstick, first aid kit, tp, food, and some stuff I am sure I left off and both packs are 64 lbs. Worse, they are busting at the seams because all the clothes, and even the sleeping bags and heavy coats in compression sacks take up so much room. HELP!

Our Gear:

Camp/Shared Gear
NEMO 2p Spike Tent
Folding Carbon Tent Poles
(I still have to make a footprint for the tent)
Amicus Stove and Cookset
Fuel Canister
Open Country Percolator and Top Glass (I know most would start with cutting the percolator not happening)
Sawyer Products Squeeze Water Filter

Kill Kit
Pillow Cases
zip ties
electrical tape
latex gloves
sanitary wipes
Contractor Bags
Camillus TigerSharp Folding Pocketing Clip Knife



My Son's Gear List

Pack
Mystery Ranch Selway pack (3800 ci.)
NICE Daypack Lid attached (900 ci)
ACOG Optic Sight Pouch
Condor Compact Utility Pouch

Sleep
Slumberjack Latitude 20 Sleeping Bag: 20 Degree Synthetic
Bag is in a large Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack
Klymit Static V Lightweight Sleeping Pad

Water
Condor 2.5 Liter Hydration Bladder

Lighting
ThruNite TN12 2016 XP-L Cool White EDC LED
BLACK DIAMOND Storm Headlamp
Extra AAA and 123 Batteries

Communication
Samsung S8
Baofeng UV-82

Clothing
Gen 3 Level 1 Silk Weight Base Layer
50/50 wool cotton long johns
Cotton T shirt
Walls Wool blend hunting shirt
Walls Hunting Pants
Cold Weather Gen III Fleece Zip Jacket
Oshman Down Vest
Wool Commando Sweater
Heavy 1970s Down Coat/Parka
Coat is with my large down coat in a small Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack
Swedish Surplus M90 cold weather pants
Boonie Hat
GI Wool Watch Cap
Browning Hell's Canyon Liners
NATO Surplus Cold Weather Gloves
Smartwool Light Hiker Sock x2
Browning Buck Seeker Boots (400 gr)
Belgium Military Surplus Balaclava
Surplus Contamination Liquid Protection Poncho and Pants (Rain Gear)

Rifle
Tikka Lite 270 win.
Leupold VX-2 4x12-40
Leupold Neoprene Cover
Montana Sling
PPU 270 win. Ammo
Ammo Wallet


My Gear List

Pack
Frontier Gear of Alaska Freighter Frame and Moose Bag (4500 ci)
Condor Compact Utility Pouch
Condor gadget pouch

Sleep
Slumberjack Borderland 20 Degree
Bag is in an extra large Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack
Klymit Static V Lightweight Sleeping Pad

Water
Condor 2.5 Liter Hydration Bladder

Lighting
ThruNite TN12 2016 XP-L Cool White EDC LED
BLACK DIAMOND Storm Headlamp
Extra AAA and 123 Batteries

Communication
Samsung S8
Baofeng UV-82

Clothing
Gen 3 Level 1 Silk Weight Base Layer
Wool Blend T Shirt
Wool Blend Long Sleeve Shirt
LA Police Gear Lightweight Tactical Pants
Cold Weather Gen III Fleece Zip Jacket
Oshman Down Vest
Heavy 1970s Down Coat/Parka
In the small Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack in my sons pack
Swedish Surplus M90 cold weather pants
Boonie Hat
GI Wool Watch Cap
Browning Hell's Canyon Liners
NATO Surplus Cold Weather Gloves
Smartwool Light Hiker Sock x2
Browning Buck Seeker Boots (400 gr)
NATO Military Surplus Balaclava
Surplus Contamination Liquid Protection Poncho and Pants (Rain Gear)

Rifle
Ruger Alaskan in 416 Ruger
Leupold VX-1 3x9-40
Leupold Bikini Cover
Montana Sling
Doubletap 416 Ruger 300 gr. Ammo
Ammo Wallet

 

[GregB]

Are you using horses to pack in?

 

[Professor]

LOL. Really I am laughing hard. No, we are the mules.

 

[GregB]

You might want to rethink packing in 12-15 miles. That's a long hike on foot, even more so if this is your first hunt. If your bags are already full, if you shoot something you have to pack that out, then go back and pack out camp. Even on a good trail it's gonna take a long while to cover that distance. For clothes I bring a base layer, mid layer, insulating layer and rain gear for my tops. Bring one pair of pants and if you want, a base layer for under those and a rain layer. Wearing insulated boots while hiking will make your feet sweat which i turn makes them feel cold. Plus they are a pain to dry out. I don't use insulated boots until late in the year. A pair of gaiters can come in very handy. I would also bring some purification tablets as a back up. If those older down coats get wet then they don't work. I would ditch the percolator and get some Vias. I would recommend a rangefinder. I don;t use compression sacks much anymore, they tend to leave unused space in the pack. I just stuff my bag and and other items in and make sure they fill up the entire pack, I carry a rain cover for the pack. Some sort of fire starting kit with a lighter, flint and steel and tinder. I also didn't see any optics for glassing. Also most people tend to take more food than they need.

 

[Justin Crossley]

Professor,

I think you're bringing too many clothes and I think you're hiking in too far.

Here is a link to some of our gear lists for different trips this year. Rokstaff Gear Lists 2019/20

 

[sneaky]

I wouldn't take cotton anything into the backcountry of Idaho, especially right now. It's wet, and cool right now, looks like that will continue through Memorial Day. You could easily trim 20lbs from those packs, and for the love of Pete, strap those sleeping bags on the outside to make room in your bags. Did I miss what you're gonna be eating on your list? Hopefully it isn't the weaker of the two in your party lol.

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[sneaky]

I carry a couple of SmartWater water bottles instead of a bladder. If that bladder fails you are gonna hate life. If I ruin a bottle I have another at least, and they are way lighter than the bladder.

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