KUIU First Impressions - Part 2
Because KUIU is so new and I know a lot of people are looking for information on it, I figured I'd post my feedback on the KUIU clothes I have after having hunted in it for two weekends. I wore my KUIU clothes on two weekends of back to back turkey hunts here in Arizona. The first weekend was the opener of the second split season while helping out Jay on his turkey hunt. The weather that weekend was COLD! The lows was in the low teens, and the high didn't get much above freezing. The second weekend was the opener of the archery over the counter turkey hunt and the temperatures were much more mild, ranging from the low 40's in the morning to the mid to upper 70's in the afternoons.
On the first weekend, I wore my 185 bottoms, Attack Pants, 185 top, 250 top, and Guide vest all day both days. When sitting I added my Sitka Jetstream jacket. On my head I alternated between my KUIU Guide beanie, Merino beanie, and my TKO Max-1 ball cap. I also used the KUIU neck gaiter as a face mask for camouflage and to keep the wind off my face. I was slightly chilled a couple of times in the early mornings, but the temps were between 10-15 degrees. The other times of day my clothes did well to ward off the wind and keep my comfortable. The Attack pants were great to hike in and I never felt any binding and was always comfortable. Early morning I could have maybe stood to have had the 250 Merino bottoms on in place of the 185, or in addition to the 185 bottoms, but overall I was good and I would have probably ended up stripping them off while hiking around mid-day. The Guide beanie was very wind resistant, almost being wind proof. It kept my head and ears warm during the chilly, windy day.
The second weekend I wore everything except the 185 bottoms and the beanie(s). It was much warmer the second weekend. It wasn't until the temps reached about 60-65 that I felt like I had to take off the 250 top. The Merino tops impressed me in the 'warmer' temps of the afternoon while hiking around. The temps topped out at 77 on the first day of the second weekend. After hiking for a bit I'd stop and the sweat on my back would quickly evaporate off. One nice thing about the KUIU clothes was I didn't really notice them that much, meaning I wasn't having issues with being uncomfortable or any other issues with the clothes. The Attack pants never left my legs feeling sweaty or clammy feeling while hiking in the afternoons. I felt like the material wicked the sweat away from my legs very well. A nice thing about the Merino base layers is even after wearing them all weekend and sweating while hiking they didn't stink by the end of the weekend.
While turkey hunting isn't near the same as hunting sheep up in Alaska, it is fairly similar to elk hunting, although possibly not as active. I have no doubts my KUIU clothes will serve me well on my upcoming elk hunt this September. Is it as good or better than Sitka? Hmm, I honestly haven't worn my Sitka since January, so it is hard for me to do a side by side comparison. I think they are both great pieces of gear and both brands will be utilized by me in future hunts. I was glad to have gotten to try out my KUIU clothes in such a wide range of temperatures and will be looking forward to wearing it for my upcoming fall hunts.
On the first weekend, I wore my 185 bottoms, Attack Pants, 185 top, 250 top, and Guide vest all day both days. When sitting I added my Sitka Jetstream jacket. On my head I alternated between my KUIU Guide beanie, Merino beanie, and my TKO Max-1 ball cap. I also used the KUIU neck gaiter as a face mask for camouflage and to keep the wind off my face. I was slightly chilled a couple of times in the early mornings, but the temps were between 10-15 degrees. The other times of day my clothes did well to ward off the wind and keep my comfortable. The Attack pants were great to hike in and I never felt any binding and was always comfortable. Early morning I could have maybe stood to have had the 250 Merino bottoms on in place of the 185, or in addition to the 185 bottoms, but overall I was good and I would have probably ended up stripping them off while hiking around mid-day. The Guide beanie was very wind resistant, almost being wind proof. It kept my head and ears warm during the chilly, windy day.
The second weekend I wore everything except the 185 bottoms and the beanie(s). It was much warmer the second weekend. It wasn't until the temps reached about 60-65 that I felt like I had to take off the 250 top. The Merino tops impressed me in the 'warmer' temps of the afternoon while hiking around. The temps topped out at 77 on the first day of the second weekend. After hiking for a bit I'd stop and the sweat on my back would quickly evaporate off. One nice thing about the KUIU clothes was I didn't really notice them that much, meaning I wasn't having issues with being uncomfortable or any other issues with the clothes. The Attack pants never left my legs feeling sweaty or clammy feeling while hiking in the afternoons. I felt like the material wicked the sweat away from my legs very well. A nice thing about the Merino base layers is even after wearing them all weekend and sweating while hiking they didn't stink by the end of the weekend.
While turkey hunting isn't near the same as hunting sheep up in Alaska, it is fairly similar to elk hunting, although possibly not as active. I have no doubts my KUIU clothes will serve me well on my upcoming elk hunt this September. Is it as good or better than Sitka? Hmm, I honestly haven't worn my Sitka since January, so it is hard for me to do a side by side comparison. I think they are both great pieces of gear and both brands will be utilized by me in future hunts. I was glad to have gotten to try out my KUIU clothes in such a wide range of temperatures and will be looking forward to wearing it for my upcoming fall hunts.
Yeah.
ReplyDeleteGreat review on the KUIU gear! I completely agree with your assessment of the durability and comfort of their products. I am excited to see how their other products perform in the field. Thanks for sharing your first impressions! If you're interested in more gear reviews, I recently wrote a comprehensive turkey hunting gear review on my blog, feel free to check it out. Keep up the great work!
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