What to Wear for Early Season Bowhunting: A Layering Guide for Comfort and Concealment 

By Ryan Fair

There have been plenty of September evenings when I have questioned my decision to go deer hunting about halfway to the stand. It might be 82 degrees, the humidity is hanging in the air, mosquitoes are eating me alive and I still have a tree to climb. By the time I get settled, it feels more like I just finished mowing the yard than slipped into a whitetail setup. 

That’s the reality of early season bow hunting. 

We wait all summer for it, then complain because summer is still hanging around when opening day finally gets here. I wouldn’t trade those first sits for anything, but I have learned that early season hunting apparel can make a big difference. The trick isn’t piling on hunting clothes. It is wearing as little as you can get away with while still staying concealed and comfortable. 

Don’t Dress for the Stand at the Truck 

This is probably the biggest lesson I have learned with early season bowhunting. I used to get dressed at the truck for the temperature I expected after sunset. That usually meant I was comfortable for about five minutes. Then I would start walking. A half mile later my shirt would be soaked, especially if I was carrying a stand, sticks or a pack. Once you sweat through everything on the way in, there isn’t much you can do about it. 

Now I dress for the walk. During really warm hunts, that means starting with one lightweight shirt and a pair of lightweight pants. Muddy’s DV8 Ambush Lightweight Long Sleeve Shirt makes sense for that kind of weather. I like long sleeves even when it is hot because I would rather have some skin covered when I am brushing against weeds, climbing trees and dealing with bugs. 

Muddy’s TRX Performance Lightweight Sun Hoodie is another option for the same kind of hunts. The point isn’t really whether you prefer a crew neck, long sleeve or hood. What matters is keeping that first layer light enough that you aren’t cooking before you get there.

 

Heavy Pants Will Make You Miserable 

I think hunters underestimate how much heat a heavy pair of pants can hold. Walk through waist-high grass on a muggy September evening wearing pants better suited for November and you will figure it out pretty fast. Early in the season, I want pants that let me move. I am stepping over logs, climbing into stands, bending down to attach a safety line and sometimes crawling through brush trying to stay out of sight. 

Muddy’s TRX Lightweight Pant fits into that early-season hunting clothing system without adding a bunch of unnecessary weight. That’s really what I am looking for this time of year. Give me enough protection for the woods without making the walk to the stand feel worse than it already does. That mobility matters even more once you are hunting. A bowhunter needs to be able to turn, stand, bend and draw without feeling like his clothes are fighting him. 

Sweat Matters More Than People Admit 

We can talk about scent control clothing all we want, but I still start with the wind. I don’t trust any shirt, spray or detergent enough to hunt a mature buck with the wind blowing toward him. At the same time, I don’t see any reason to make things worse by showing up at the stand soaked in sweat. That’s why my scent-control routine during the early season is pretty basic. 

I keep my hunting clothes clean and, in a tote, when I’m not hunting. I don’t wear them around unless I’m hunting. I try not to stop for gas wearing my camo. Most importantly, I slow down on the walk in. That last one took me a while to learn. 

Getting to the stand five minutes earlier isn’t worth arriving drenched. If I have a long walk, I leave earlier and take my time. Sometimes I even carry my hunting shirt in and change when I get close. There isn’t anything fancy about it. I am simply trying to put less human odor into the woods. 

Put the Extra Layer in Your Pack 

One of the strange parts about early bow season is that 75 degrees can feel hot walking in and downright chilly a couple hours later. Once I have been sitting still, the sun drops behind the trees and a little breeze starts blowing, I am usually glad I packed something else. This is where hunting layers start to matter. 

Instead of wearing everything to the stand, I carry a lightweight layer such as Muddy’s TRX Lightweight Quarter Zip in my pack. If I need it, it’s there. If I don’t, I never have to put it on. I would rather carry one extra piece of clothing than sweat through it during the walk. 

As September starts giving way to October, that system becomes even more useful. Some evenings are still hot. Others finally have that fall feel we have been waiting on all summer. Being able to add or remove one-layer handles most of those swings without completely changing what I wear. 

Keep Rain Gear Close 

I don’t automatically bail on an early-season hunt because there is a chance of rain. A light shower can actually make for a comfortable and action-packed evening after several days of heat. What I don’t want is to get soaked and spend two hours sitting in wet clothes. 

A lightweight rain jacket and pants are easy enough to keep in the truck or pack when the forecast looks questionable. Muddy’s TRX Lightweight Rain Jacket and Rain Pant give hunters an option without jumping straight into bulky cold-weather rain gear. I won’t carry rain gear every September evening, but when I need it, I want it close. 

Camo Still Has a Job 

The early-season woods don’t look anything like the woods we hunt in November. Leaves are thick. Everything is green. Crop fields are still standing in a lot of places, and there is plenty of natural cover around us. That makes camo work well, but I think hunters sometimes put too much faith in the pattern and not enough in their own movement. 

I have had deer close enough that I could hear them breathing. At that distance, suddenly turning your head or reaching for your bow matters a whole lot more than having the perfect pattern. I want camo that breaks up my outline, but then I try to let the cover around my stand do the rest. 

Keep the Whole System Simple 

My early-season setup has gotten smaller over the years. A lightweight shirt, lightweight pants, a quarter zip or similar layer in the pack, and rain gear when the forecast calls for it. That’s about it. Good early season hunting apparel shouldn’t be something you spend the entire hunt thinking about. If I am thinking about my clothes while I’m sitting in a tree, something is probably wrong. 

I want to make the walk without overheating, stay comfortable once I settle in and have enough hunting layers along to deal with whatever happens around sunset. Because when a buck finally steps into bow range, I have enough other things to worry about. 

Whether I wore the right shirt shouldn’t be one of them.