Northeast treestand camo for Western elk hunt

CleanShot

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Bergen County, NJ
Hello

I'm going in my first elk hunt which is going to be in New Mexico. I wanted to see if I could use my hunting clothes I use here in the Northeast for my hunt. I'm not a big believer in camo for treestand hunting beyond just breaking up your silhouette. So pattern generally is meaningless in my opinion. Is the same true for elk hunting? Is my mossy oak break up infinity and real tree xtra fine?

Thanks!
 
Those will do just fine.

We have used regular "eastern" patterns as well as the newer western ones, and they will all work. I've had Mossy Oak BreakUp match perfectly with a moss and lichen covered rock I was leaning against, and my Dad hid in plain sight with Mossy Oak Treestand camo when he sat at the edge of a woods.
 
I'm amazed that people killed anything 100 yrs ago in red plaid, flannel shirts...

All kidding aside, you'll be fine.
 
I'm amazed that people killed anything 100 yrs ago in red plaid, flannel shirts...

All kidding aside, you'll be fine.

With all due respect this argument drives me insane. I find it to be extremely flawed. They also had less accurate rifles and no GPS and the list goes on. Sure you can be successful without but the question is more can you be more successful with the advances of today including camo patterns.
 
I have heard that Elk and Deer can spot movement better than color. I watch hunting shows all the time, and see hunters in blue jeans, which seem to stick out like a sore thumb, whereas the hunters in camo (any camo) tend to blend in better even when they are moving through the woods.
I believe your camo pattern would be more effective than if you had no camo at all. There are new camo patterns coming out all the time, and I'm sure some are more effective than others depending on the type of wooded area you are hunting in.
If you are hunting in strictly sagebrush or cedars, you would probably want a different pattern than if you were hunting in an aspen grove.
Problem there is, do you have to pack several different patterns to be effective? Best scenario would be to do that, but we all can't afford to have many different patterns. I guess what I'm trying to say is, any camo would be better than no camo, and you could always have a better camo pattern no matter where you are, there are no "one type does it all".
Use what you got, and worry more about your movement and the wind.
 
Yeah there certainly wind & movement are the most important factors. It sounds like there is no need to spend money on more camo so I'm just focus on burning money at the range practicing :).
 
The "color tone" is more important than the camo pattern. I don't care about camo but I try to wear something that's not to dark.
 
Back in the days before Sitka, Kuiu, Under Armour, etc, I always focused more on what was more user friendly in terms of movement, breathability, and water resistance. I always ended up gravitating towards companies that manufactured climbing and hiking gear as opposed to hunting gear. Then I simply tried to buy "earth" colored tones in those garments. Grays and Browns mostly. I bowhunt alot as well, and I have been extremely close to all sorts of critters in those type colors. I just have never bought into the whole camouflage deal for hunting. I think it is far more effective in a military type environment, since people depend on their eyes over their nose for detection. In my personal experiences with elk especially, getting the wind right trumps all. Next is staying still, lastly would be staying quiet. Not saying you can carry on conversations and just go tromping through the woods, but if you have ever been around elk, they can be quite noisy. I am not saying the camo is useless, but there are definitely other options.
 
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