My 2020 First Lite Layering System – Overview and Review

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Mar 8, 2021
Josh Kirchner of Dialed in Hunter on an elk hunt in Arizona

Anyone that has followed this blog for any stretch of time probably has picked up on the fact that I dig First Lite Clothing. The stuff has never done me wrong and I’ve been wearing it since they had like 3 things on their website. Since then, they’ve grown into something much bigger, with way more options. Back when there wasn’t a whole lot to choose from, picking what to buy was pretty easy. Now though? Things are different and there is a load of options.

Josh Kirchner from Dialed in Hunter on an elk hunt in Arizona

During the 2020 hunting season, I ran a variety of different clothing items from the company First Lite in a variety of different terrain and weather. From scalding hot deserts to blizzard like conditions in the mountains, I put the stuff through its paces. Finding out what pieces to actually purchase though can be tricky. Especially, because this stuff is pricey. You absolutely get what you pay for, but let’s face it, buying the wrong thing and having to go through the whole ordeal of sending it back and waiting even longer for what you hope to work better stinks.

In light of that, I’ve decided to put together somewhat of a guide to what I used last year. With it, hopefully it will give you a better idea of what First Lite items might work best for you and what you might not want to pull the trigger on after all.

Enjoy My First Lite Clothing Review Video Below!

Thanks for Watching!

I hope that clears up any questions you may have about different options that First Lite offers. If you do have any other questions, feel free to drop them down below or email me. I’d be happy to chat with you.

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First Lite 2020: Western Hunt Expo

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Feb 19, 2020
First Lite Booth at the Western Hunting and Conservation Expo in Salt Lake City, Utah
First Lite Gear at the Western Hunting and Conservation Expo in Salt Lake City, Utah

First Lite is a brand that I’ve followed for years. I remember when they only had 3 things. That’s quite funny to think about nowadays as they’ve grown so much through the years and evolved into a powerhouse of high quality, technologically advanced hunting clothing. They were absolutely at the top of my mind when it came to booths to visit at the Western Hunting and Conservation Expo for 2020. After hearing everything that they had to offer, I am pretty dang stoked for this year! A few key items that stuck out to me were the new and improved Uncompahgre Puffy jacket and Brooks Down vest. The original Uncompahgre is one of my all time favorite First Lite pieces and has stood the test of time. The Brooks Down Sweater from last year was so crazy light it was frightening. With that being said the warmth to weight ratio was off extremely impressive. Losing even more weight with the vest version, is gonna be next level. Check out the video below!

First Lite 2020 Lineup

Boom! There ya have it! Another video from the Hunt Expo. I’m really enjoying putting these out for everyone to see. It was so cool getting check out all of the new gear coming out as well as getting first hand knowledge about it from the company. You can expect more videos coming down the road! Keep your eyes out! Thanks for watching and don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the Youtube and Blog to stay up to date with future posts!

First Lite x Nemo Recurve 2P: In the Field Overview

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Oct 30, 2019
First Lite x Nemo Recurve in the field
First Lite x Nemo Recurve 2p shelter in the field

Hey, everyone! So, just recently I posted up my review of the, new for 2019, First Lite x Nemo Recurve 2P shelter. There is both a written version and video version that you can find HERE. I thought it might be cool to get an in the field view of this bad boy, so that is what we’re doing today. You’ll get to see what the shelter looks like when all packed up. Then I’ll show how the shelter is actually set up. From there, I point out some things that I really like about the shelter and some other things that I think could be improved. This shelter is a bomber little piece of gear that comes in just a shade under 2 pounds and has a ton of living space on the inside. It is a fantastic option for early to mid season hunting and I’ve been really liking it. If you have any questions, feel free to drop them down below.

First Lite x Nemo Recurve 2P Video Overview

After it’s all said and done, I am pretty stoked on this tent. I spent quite a bit of time in it hunting high county mule deer and had zero issues. I was a bit skeptical of the design at first. The Recurve is just different when compared to other shelters on the market. Today, I know that I can bring this tent in the field with confidence. To learn more head on over and check out the First Lite x Nemo Collection.

Nemo x First Lite Recurve 2P Tent Review

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Oct 1, 2019
Vestibule of Nemo x First Lite Recurve 2p tent

If you’ve followed my hunting journey for any amount of time, you probably know by now that I’m a big fan of First Lite clothing and Nemo Equipment. I’ve tried other stuff in the past, but these two companies have constantly impressed me and gave me confidence in the field. In tandem, they have been with me on more than a few adventures and in a multitude of different conditions. It isn’t often that two exceptional companies like this join forces. When I heard that First Lite and Nemo Equipment were going to team up on producing some high quality gear for backcountry hunting, I was ecstatic. Seeing the list of products they were releasing had me counting down the days until availability. I just knew the gear was going to be killer. An item that caught my eye immediately after looking at the specs was the Recurve 2p tent.

My 2019 Gear Highlights

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Jun 25, 2019
Josh from Dialed in Hunter using his Garmin Fenix 5x Plus on a spring bear hunt in Arizona

If you have followed my content for any amount of time, you probably already know that I am a gear junkie! I just love getting new gear and putting it to the test in the field. Anything I can do to make my system more efficient, I am usually game to check out. Plus, I just like trying out new stuff. These are a few gear highlights that I am pretty stoked on for the 2019 hunting seasons. You can expect that I will be putting together in depth reviews for each of these items in the future. They are simply too good not to. Check out the video below for the overview and I’ll include links to each item down below! Thanks for watching and let me know if you have any questions. What are some gear highlights that you are pumped on for 2019?

Josh from Dialed in Hunter using one of his gear highlights, the Garmin Fenix 5x Plus on a spring bear hunt in Arizona
Garmin Fenix 5x Plus

“Pre-Hunt Anxiety” and How to Deal With It

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May 12, 2019
Josh from Dialed in Hunter on a Spring Black Bear Hunt in Arizona

In the months leading up to a hunt you can usually find me scouring maps, spending an unhealthy amount of time on google earth, sifting through backpacking journals online, and shooting my bow each and every day, sometimes multiple times. I am a planner, and I always have been. Not knowing what is going to happen in the future, somewhat stresses me out and it’s an area that I need improvement. I try everything I can to make sure all of my ducks are in a row. If this isn’t done beforehand, it drives me crazy and I can’t think straight. Oftentimes, it will lead to me throwing in the towel, because I am left not knowing what to do with myself. It is my Pre-Hunt Anxiety. Each year that goes by it creeps up on me, and each year we throw hands at one another.

2019 January Archery Deer and Javelina Hunt(Part 2)

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Jan 19, 2019
Josh from dialed in hunter and his brother Jake with Josh's 2019 archery coues buck in arizona

Day 4

So, it began, or I should say continued. Another backpack hunt lay in front of us. This particular area has held a meaningful part in my heart for years. It is where I took my first archery deer and a place I have spent a good portion of my Dec/Jan archery deer seasons in the past. What the next few days would hold, we did not know. I did know that we would have a great time though chasing rutting bucks. On top of that, I had been seeing a herd of javelina regularly in the area. Lucky for us, Jake had a tag in his pocket.

2019 January Archery Deer and Javelina Hunt (Part 1)

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Jan 14, 2019
Josh from Dialed in Hunter Coues Deer Hunting in Arizona

January in Arizona has become a time of year that I cherish to the upmost. While everyone else around the country is reflecting on their past fall hunting seasons and warming themselves by a fire, I am usually out hiking around with a camp on my back in search of rutting bucks. The weather is beautiful, the deer are moving, and it’s just a great time to be out and about in our Arizona desert. My brother Jake and I usually take the first week or so in January to chase mule deer and coues deer with our bows. This year though, Jake drew an archery javelina tag, so that was on the menu as well. 8 days of backcountry hunting was in front of us and our arms were wide open.

Luck, Luck, and More Luck

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Dec 1, 2018
Josh from Dialed in Hunter and his brother Jake on an AZ archery elk hunt

Luck is one of those words that get thrown around in the hunting world quite a bit.  I remember being a kid, in deer camp with my Dad, and him saying something along the lines of “Just give us some luck.”  A little luck goes a long way right?  While that is true, as I got older I realized that it wasn’t absolute.  If we only relied on luck, I feel like we would never be successful out there filling tags.  Putting yourself in the position to experience that luck is what it’s all about.  By that, I mean putting in the work beforehand.  Luck does go a long way, but hard work goes farther if you ask me.

2018 Holiday Gift Guide for the Hunter in Your Life

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Nov 11, 2018
Hunting Gear for the Hunter in Your Life

2018 has been absolutely jam packed with awesome hunts!  I started off in January with archery deer season.  From there, we drifted into spring bear for a few months, which then led into fall bear, deer, and elk.  Through that time I not only made some incredible memories, but got to test out lots of gear!  With the holidays coming on fast, I thought it might be a good time to highlight some of my favorite gear items of the year.  Maybe you can convince your significant others to put some of these under the tree for you this year.  These are in no particular order.