Is camo necessary?

[Fella]

Hey just wondering how many experienced hunters wear camo? I can see it giving you an edge, but is it really that necessary? I was under the impression that most game rely on smell and hearing rather than sight, but correct me if I'm wrong?

[Foxton Gundogs]

Hunted for years without it in fact back in the day NO ONE wore it or went out in the woods without Red or Blaze Orange, the standard dress was a red or orange cap and red plad jacket. Got as many then as now.

[The Dawg]

Yes. Especially for road hunting. Its cool. :D

[tomahawk]

Not needed. There are more important things a hunter needs to focus on rather then camo or not,like scent, wind, noise etc etc etc.

[killman]

Nothin wrong with lookin good while you hunt...

[Weatherby Fan]

Well I wear fleece camo mostly because its quiet and warm but I think having your figure broken up helps a bit if your stationary but if your moving I don't think it matters,they have amazing eyesight.
All I ever used to wear was wool pants and shirts and I never had any trouble getting a deer,I just found the wool is very heavy when wet and it takes to long to dry out,fleece give it a shake and your on your way.
I don't think it's neccesary,watching your wind is much more important.
WF

Save your money and put it towards a good set of binoculars.

[Fella]

Ha, so it IS a vanity thing!

[BromBones]

Not at all.

[Stresd]

Fashion Fad. Only camo I own is a couple of HBC hats.:mrgreen:

[~T-BONE~]

keeps u hidden from other hunters

[longstonec]

If deer dont pay attention to my orange elmer fudd hat...

[Movingdirt]

Not needed. There are more important things a hunter needs to focus on rather then camo or not,like scent, wind, noise etc etc etc.


Shot a big bull moose last week. The dog was barking all day, we were talking all day, chopping wood, rattling and banging around camp, farting, cooking, and fire smoke blowing all day. Moose walked out 50 yards from camp downwind of us.

We were all wearing camo and we got him.

Camo rocks.

[ianwuzhere]

i think its necessary-almost every animal is camo to its environment-gotta be something there...

[tomahawk]

Shot a big bull moose last week. The dog was barking all day, we were talking all day, chopping wood, rattling and banging around camp, farting, cooking, and fire smoke blowing all day. Moose walked out 50 yards from camp downwind of us.

We were all wearing camo and we got him.

Camo rocks.

Hahahahaha, not including the dumb ones like that one you got!!

[wos]

I say it gives you an advantage Ive shot plenty of game in a red vest but the tables really started to turn when I started to ware camo. Perhaps its just a confidence thing but but I have bean much more successful since I started wearing it. A number of times I have had game come so close to me if I could have moved I could have reached out and touched the animal. If deer and moose are so color blind how come wolves cougars and bears aren't red or orange? It just makes sense to try and blend in with your surroundings.

[Allen50]

camo works good even while road hunting, lol lol yea you got to look good hunting, but i have wearen camo all the time and had the buck i got with my bow wakt right up to me shoot it at about 30 feet right between the front legs, he went about 70 feet and so much blood on the snow looked like someone dumped a bucked there, also had two hunters walk with in 10 feet of me not knowing i was there, so yeaa if you wear it proper it works,,, i will use it all the time,, and mine is water proof, works good,,, thats how it works for me,,,,,

[todbartell]

digital camo is necessary

[pnbrock]

i only wear my cammo when i shop at wholesale sports.

[dagreatwhitehunter]

pretty sure the majority agree. you don't need it .however i agree with t-bone. works great for hiding from other hunters.

[huntwriter]

Depends. If you're a bowhunter then good camouflage is necessary. If you're a riffle hunter then not so much.

[Gateholio]

Camo is not necessary, but it looks good in intraweb pictures. And it's all about being cool on the intraweb....

[Cookie-kid]

sounds odd but: when I was timber cruising, my partner & I used to have to be cautious not to get shot, during season, while working our blocks. Not because we were too quiet or possibly coming up on a plantation, but from hunters who thought it'd be funny to "wing one past" someone in a red visi-vest & orange hard hat. So i'd second, camo to hide from other hunters. I bet it also helps the bow hunters who could use that few feet closure to their target to ensure a clean shot.

[Fella]

Thanks for the replies!

[lunatic]

It may not be necessary but it helps. When calling animals such as elk in close, it helps to blend in with your surroundings. Camo works best (when used properly) at breaking up the outline of the human form. If a game animal sees what looks to be a human, they become wary. Wearing camo and standing in front of bushes etc that help to break up the human outline makes it a lot harder for the animals to recognize there is a human standing there. As has been previously mentioned though, none of this does any good without taking advantage of the wind direction.

[sdurango41]

I use it as it does break up your profile. Plus most of the good camo out there is waterproof and warm. I have some for all types of weather. It is quiet and if you believe it of not some comes with scent lock. I think that is to hide the 6 beers and 2 scotch from the night before :)
On two occasions this year I have been sneaking down an old road and had deer walk out 20 yards in front of me. On both occasions I stopped and didn't move. Each time they stopped and stared at me knowing that something was not quite right. On both occasions they stared for a minute or two and then just fed along the road in front of me. Was it because I stood motionless and had camo to break up my profile or was it because I didn't move an inch???

[igojuone]

I use it as it does break up your profile. Plus most of the good camo out there is waterproof and warm. I have some for all types of weather. It is quiet and if you believe it of not some comes with scent lock. I think that is to hide the 6 beers and 2 scotch from the night before :)
On two occasions this year I have been sneaking down an old road and had deer walk out 20 yards in front of me. On both occasions I stopped and didn't move. Each time they stopped and stared at me knowing that something was not quite right. On both occasions they stared for a minute or two and then just fed along the road in front of me. Was it because I stood motionless and had camo to break up my profile or was it because I didn't move an inch???

It's because you didn't move an inch, I've and I'm sure others, have done the same while wearing no camo. I wear it mostly to avoid not hunters but the odd hiker or tree hugger that crosses my path. Had a women the other day look dead at me while asking her dog "what's there boy".

[emerson]

I use it as it does break up your profile. Plus most of the good camo out there is waterproof and warm. It is quiet.

These are the reasons I use some camo stuff, usually a jacket, unless its quite cold and rainy and then bibs too.

[Bistchen]

I guess if you are sitting in a stand or turkey hunting, its important. But for everything else, sound and wind are more important than anything else.

[4pointer91]

I personally don't think it's required, staying downwind and reducing movement is beneficial along with wearing clothing that is quiet when rubbed (either against itself or against branches). Having said that I wear a camo jacket and wool pants to blend in with the area around me. Sure like those "Gillie" suits though...gotta get me one someday!

[The Dude]

I wear a full set-up made by Flag Hag out of Abbotsford.
Stops me getting hit by trucks in the alpine.

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj313/Heliox18/SDC13104.jpg

[835]

Hell ya its important!
How the hell do you think we shoot far more game then the old timers did back then in their Denim Jeans and Mac jackets and Stanfeild shirts!

No it isnt important, what is thoughis the good weatherproof stuff out their is either noisy ( hiker stuff) or cammo.
the 2 most important things in Still hunting is Wind in your face and keep your eyes up to see them before they see you.
I have never wore Hunter orange but Cammo is not nessisary

[BernDawg]

I read an interesting article a few years ago wherein the guy surmised that the prey we hunt is colour blind and he ran a series of black and white pictures to show the differences between the B&W view and the colour view. The B&W pics were first and in one of the pics he was damned near invisible against a tree background, upon scrolling down to the colour pics you find out he was wearing a multi coloured, flowerd motif, Hawiian shirt! The woodland BDU's didn't fair nearly as well. Of course that assumes that they're colour blind.

When it comes to the big cats I can state for a fact that Cougars, Leapords and Tigers all react to safety orange in an alarming manner. We used to live in Winnipeg and frequented the zoo fairly often during one trip we were walking past the leapords when they all jumped up and ran down to the fence directly across from us. We weren't carrying any red meat but did have our < 1yr old daughter in a jogger with us. Thinking it must be the baby (they're colour blind right?) my wife walked away with her and they alll remained staring at the jogger, guess what? Safety orange canvass. I then waked back and forth across the front of the enclosure with a small pack of leapords following my every move. On our next visit I brought my hunting vest with me to confirm my suspicions and lo 'n' behold the reaction was the same for the Leapords, Cougars and Tigers they all came to the fence and followed the vest back and forth until we left. I didn't notice any reaction from the small cats like Lynx or Bobcat or the tiny Urals feral cat but it was definite when it came to the big 3.
All this now begs the question, has anyone had a similar response in the bush?

[kootenayslam]

Camo has one purpose....womens lingerie, two great things combined.....but in the woods i'd say it's a waste of $, i'd rather buy clothes i can use all year outside of hunting that aren't camo, more neutral colours....

[bugler]

When bowhunting I think good camo helps me remain unseen at really close ranges. Could live without it, many other items more important, but I believe it helps, especially covering the face.

[barry1974w]

No, but I still own a closet full of it, and wear it when I hunt.

[swampthing]

I own a ton of it and love it but but no, you dont need it. Look in the hunting mags. The "hunter" is in the latest and greatest [like me] but the guide is in jeans and a wool sweater. The advantage of much of the camo is the advanced fabrics you get with it. You can buy these fabrics in mountain stores in earthtone colours but you will probably pay more.

[REMINGTON JIM]

Not needed. There are more important things a hunter needs to focus on rather then camo or not,like scent, wind, noise etc etc etc.

I agree ! Right on Tomahawk !

[stinney]

As you can see there is no right answer. However it is worthwhile mentioning the game you hunt and style that you hunt. For getting close and personal to prey I can see it giving you an advantage. Keeping in mind the other components that will increase your success rate (paying attention to wind, noise, scent reduction, etc). Distance shooting it wont hurt you to wear camo but it may not increase your odds either so preferential. In terms of game from my understanding predator animals are more likely to respond to colours so wearing similar to your enviornment would help. Grazing animals see grayscale so it doesnt matter how bright or what you wear but they will notice if a big blob is walking towards them so make sure that the patterns are broken up. So really wear what you want!

[fireguy]

I don't own any but will in the future, the ASAT camo seems to fit the bill as it breaks up your pattern very nicely and that is what camo should do. Most camo doesn't break up your pattern near enough and you become a blob walking through the bush. ASAT doesn't look new and fancy but there are guys that swear by it.
Is it needed, probably not, but if it helps, why not.

[buzz720]

Not really necessary for the average hunter, but I would make sure that you wear something blaze orange. But Camo is perfectly acceptable for tuxes.

[Allen50]

It's because you didn't move an inch, I've and I'm sure others, have done the same while wearing no camo. I wear it mostly to avoid not hunters but the odd hiker or tree hugger that crosses my path. Had a women the other day look dead at me while asking her dog "what's there boy".

you know your not aload to hunt in the parks in town,,lol lol .where do you hunt that woman and dogs walking by see you, hiker and tree huggers,, hummm intresting, and what you hunting for,, that you see all these people walking by,, just woundering,,,,

[Fella]

you know your not aload to hunt in the parks in town,,lol lol .where do you hunt that woman and dogs walking by see you, hiker and tree huggers,, hummm intresting, and what you hunting for,, that you see all these people walking by,, just woundering,,,,

You wouldn't believe the amount of people (Including myself...) who seem to like to wander aimlessly around the bush up behind the ranges where I live.