Moose Hunt Gear List

Your gear can make or break your hunt, so for those of you thinking about or planning for an upcoming moose hunt, I wanted to share what I use on these types of hunts. The gear list below is based on a 10 day hunt. If you have any questions, feel free to email me shad@sashunts.com

Recommended Clothing

 I or Outfitters I work with have all personally used and recommend the following gear:

• Wool socks (I prefer merino, Darn Tough, Bridgedale, Kuiu) 6pr
• Wool liner socks (I have had great success with smartwool) 6pr
• Sealskinz gor-tex socks (Dry feet are happy feet)          1pr
• Synthetic or merino underwear (Ex Officio, Smartwool, Icebreaker)                                                       4pr
• Synthetic or merino lightweight thermal long underwear top and bottom (Icebreaker, Kuiu, First Lite, Patagonia)                   1pr
• Synthetic or merino mid-weight thermal long underwear top and bottom (Icebreaker, Smartwool, Patagonia, First Lite, Kuiu) 1pr
• Uninsulated, synthetic, soft shell pants (Kuiu Guide Pant, Fjallraven Vida Pant)                                                                2pr
• Soft shell, or fleece synthetic, or wool zippered jacket with hood

(Kuiu guide jacket, Patagonia, Mountain Hardwear)                           2

• Dri-Down or synthetic compressible puffy coat and pants (Kuiu Superdown, Feathered Friends, Patagonia)          1pr
• Rain gear (strongly recommend quality rubberized rain gear from Helly Hansen or Grunden. If you choose to use a gor-tex product, make sure it works before you are forced to rely on it for 10 days in Alaska weather. Kuiu Chugach Rain Gear performed well, but Helly Hansen and Grunden will be a better option for most of you, unless you plan on doing multiple mountain hunts)
• Hunting boots – This is the most important investment you can make, great boots that fit YOU well, will insure that when its time to make a move you are not going to be limping along with blister and sore feet ( I personally use Lathrop and Sons Mountain Hunter right now, but have had great success with Kenetrek and Lowa , just make sure it is a good quality mountain hunting boot that fits you well)
• Boot insoles spare (Do yourself a favor and invest in Lathrop and Sons Synergy Footbeds)                                     1pr
• Gaiters (OR, KUIU, Mountain Hardwear)                            1pr
• Gore-tex waist high or chest waders. (I know a lot of guys use hip waders, but my personal experience is that you end up getting wet and or having to do a lot of extra hiking to get around deep spots that you can wade across with waist or chest waders, plus you can pair these with the Simms Guide Boot or Korkers, keep in mind in Alaska you can’t use felt soles)
• Synthetic or wool gloves (I am a big fan of North Face, OR and Mtn Hardwear Gloves, or the Kuiu Gloves)          3pr
• Rubberized Atlas fisherman gauntlets uninsulated (when it is pouring rain, these gloves are a lifesaver, plus you can put them over a lightweight pair of your wool or synthetic gloves to gain some insulation and warmth)                                              1pr
• Synthetic or wool cap (totally your choice, just make sure it is good quality, I like the ones that have a windbreak material in them if its especially cold, or to put on after a tough hike)          1
• Baseball cap 1
• Belt or suspenders
• Camp shoes (Crocs are a great option for camp shoes as they are light and comfortable)

Gear

• Rifle (moose are relatively easy to put down, that said on many of these hunts you will be in big bear country so 30 caliber and larger are best. If you are considering a moose brown bear combo, .338 or .375 is a great choice.  Expect shots to be 50-300 yds)
• Ammo ( 20 rounds, choose premium bullets)
• Rifle sling
• Scope covers
• Belt or gun stock type shell holder
• If Archery Hunting – Get to where you can shoot your bow effectively in the 60-70lb range
• Arrows – try to shoot an arrow set up in the 600+ grain range, heavy arrows maintain momentum and create better penetration)
• Broadheads – on big animals I prefer a solid fixed blade broadhead, I personally shoot Radical Archery Designs and have never had a failure with them)
• Tools for in field repairs – allen wrenches, gun oil, extra serving, d-loop material, bore snake, etc, just make sure you have what you need to make sure you can get your weapon back to working in the event of a drop, slip and fall, etc.
• Binoculars – Invest in the best glass you can, good glass can make the difference in spotting and judging animals in low light or poor weather. If budget allows go with Swarovski, then Vortex or Leica.
• 
• Lens cloth
• Quality Internal frame backpack – Stone Glacier is my preference as once you invest in the frame system, you can swap out bags to set your pack up for any hunt you desire, plus their integrated load shelf means you will never have a wasted trip. Best of all, they are incredibly light and strong. I have hauled several loads over 150lbs and my pack hasn’t missed a beat.
• Rain cover for backpack
• Wind Checker – smoke in a bottle, dental floss tied to your bow or rifle, whatever works for you
• GPS – Garmin InReach – great to communicate with the outside world
• Satellite Phone – This isn’t a requirement as your guide will have one, but it’s a good insurance policy, can rent them from places like The Satellite Phone Store, Outfitter Satellite, DiscoverAK and others, or if you will be doing a fair amount of mountain hunting or international hunts, you can just purchase one) There is also a satellite sleeve that works on certain iPhones and Android devices that turns your cell phone into a satellite phone. Just google Cell Phone Satellite Sleeve.
• Water bottle or bladder (I would actually recommend you bring both, as sometimes its easier to fill a water bottle than your bladder, plus when you use water for cooking, its nice to have extra with you)
• Headlamp (Bring a high quality, 100 lumen minimum headlamp. Petzl, Black Diamond, Fenix)
• Headlamp batteries 2 spare sets (or a battery pack if rechargeable)
• Knife or multi-tool (I always carry a leather man, and then a havalon piranta with a couple of styles of blades)
• Nitrile Gloves for cleaning
• Sleeping bag (With an EN rating of -15 to +10 degree F North Face, Mountain Hardwear, Big Agnes, Feathered Friends.)
• Sleeping pad (Inflatable is the most comfortable as long as it holds air, Thermarest, Exped, Big Agnes, Klymit or Nemo)
• Waterproof stuff sack for sleeping bag
• Waterproof stuff sack(s) for clothing (can double as a pillow)
• waterproof camera or waterproof stuff sack for electronics
• spare glasses or contacts
• toiletries (baby wipes or a wash cloth to be able to clean up)
• extra medication
• ibuprophen
• super glue
• blister pads or I carry Leukotape
• paperback book or 2 (weather happens)
• Spork
• Seasonings/hot sauce (I like to have extra seasonings so I can doctor food up the way I want it, there are great little plastic travel containers available that work great. (GSI Outdoors Spice Rack)
• Starbucks via instant coffee (your outfitter will usually have coffee and such, but I still like to bring my own, toss a few in your pack and you can whip up some coffee on the mountain)
• Cooking Stove – Jetboil, MSR are solid choices for 3 season hunting, if you will be hunting in extreme cold look at the MSR Whisperlite – I have used this stove and it just works. (this isn’t a requirement, but its nice to have along for long days, or in the event you have to spend the night away from camp)

If you are interested in setting up a Moose hunt give me a call at 509-679-0225 or email me shad@sashunts.com and I will get you taken care of. Specialty Adventure Services has hunts for Alaska Yukon, Kamchatka, Canadian, Shiras and Newfoundland Moose, with prices starting at $7500.

I am not one who is always concerned about wearing camo, as I am most interested in finding the best gear for the job. So, for those of you who don’t necessarily care if you wear camo or not, here is a link to an article on Jen’s Reviews going over a number of options for technical hiking pants. Click here to read more https://www.jenreviews.com/best-hiking-pants/.

Links:

Kuiu https://www.kuiu.com/

Icebreaker – https://www.icebreaker.com

Stone Glacier Packs – https://www.stoneglacier.com/

Lathrop and Sons – https://lathropandsons.com

Darn Tough Socks – https://darntough.com/

Fjallraven – https://www.fjallraven.us/

Atlas Fishing Gloves – https://fishermansheadquarters.com/categories/apparel/gloves/

Swarovski Optik – https://www.swarovskioptik.com/hunting

Bowtech Archery – https://bowtecharchery.com/