{"id":139116,"date":"2021-08-02T11:40:45","date_gmt":"2021-08-02T15:40:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/?p=139116"},"modified":"2025-12-12T05:04:40","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T11:04:40","slug":"hunt365-important-equipment-december-archery-deer-2-of-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/hunt365-important-equipment-december-archery-deer-2-of-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Important Equipment to Pack: December Archery Deer Hunt in Idaho Part 2 of 3"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

An avid rifle hunter switches teams, flinging arrows in the late season. Read about his steep learning curve and follow him on this adventure!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month, I shared a story about choosing a bow and getting it set up for a late December deer hunt in Idaho. If you missed it, take a peek here<\/a>: This time, I’ll go over some important equipment\/clothing to pack for a hunt in the high desert hills of the West. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Important
Between all of the equipment\/clothing packing, remember to exercise your skills with the bow!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Logistics<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Before I get too far into the items that one should have while hunting, I want to describe how exactly I will be going about this hunt. I’ve hunted off of horseback, four-wheelers, a pack and my feet, etc… each method is more or less a consequence of the environment where the game is. In December in Idaho, the snow is typically piled up in the high country which forces the deer down into the rolling hills of the high desert. This is good for us because the deer are more concentrated in one area, allowing the hunter to walk less and glass more in order to see the most deer. Typically, we drive to a high point on a ridge with a good vantage point and begin combing the hills around us with binoculars and spotting scopes. Once we find the targeted deer, the walking begins. Typically, these walks are under 1 mile long in one direction. If the stalk fails, it’s back to the home base – the truck. If needed, we repeat this spot and stalk process until success is found.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Important
Here’s a bit of foreshadowing. The way that we hunt this late season is by spotting and stalking, with the pickup being our main mode of transportation between spotting locations.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Equipment<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

There are a lot of cool gadgets that make life on the hill more pleasant. Some may even save a person’s life in certain scenarios. I like to limit the gear that I carry in my pack to the necessities while hauling around the quality of life improving items in the truck\/wheeler. We’ll start off with the most important part of a western hunter’s kit: glass. <\/p>\n\n\n\n