Vest or fanny pack, and why...

[PA Boxcall]

What's your preference for the spring woods...a vest, a fanny pack or something else?  Are you a "more is better," or a "less is better" hunter?

What conditions factor into your choice -- temperature, distance you cover, sit and wait vs. run-n-gun, hunt only 1/2 day,  hunt all day, etc...

And if you wear a vest, are your pockets stuffed full, or mostly empty...

[Shadetree Callers]

John , I'm an all-day hunter so I take everything with me in the morning that I will need to stay in the woods as long as it may take on a given day . Therefore I prefer a vest . I used to take a backpack when I was younger but you have to take it off to sit down . When you are setting up in a hurry it is too much motion for my liking . I am a diabetic so I have to take some food and water along with me . And being a call lover , I have to carry a few with me each time . So a fanny pack won't work for me unless it's going to be a quick hunt or I know I have very little time in the woods . My friend Ed brought this up yesterday and suggested getting a camo possibles bag that you could sling over one shoulder and run and gun . Seems feasible to me and it wouldn't pull on your waist . Personally I need a big ol' cushion too so my big butt doesn't squirm too much while waiting out a Gobbler . I keep mine in my vest and not hanging on the backof me , so the vest is a necessity most times !!

[icdedturkes]

I run the Beardbuster Run N Gun Belt with an addtional beard buster pot call holder on the otherside. I love it, I only carry 2 pots, 3 strikers, a tube, trumpet and a couple a mouth yelpers..

[AlanKrow]

I go with the vest. Here in western Pa I hunt farmland, you always moving from farm to farm..
It's stuffed full with different sounding calls..(young hen to Who your daddy old hen)is it's better
I think it improving my chances!! because we done at High Noon

[firedup]

Fanny pack user here.  Several years back I developed some low back issues and the weight of the vest seemed to make it worst on a good all day (or several days) hunt.  Went to a multiple pocket fanny pack and lightened the load just a whisker and saw a world of difference. For the better.  I still carry way to much stuff and haven't missed the few items I used to carry. I can get a boxcall, 3-4 pots, a handful of strikers, license, lite, crow call / owl hoot, shells and a host of other things like TP, string, flaggin, bug repellant and so forth..PLUS a bottle of water...in the fanny pack no problems. It is not a light weight fanny pack when loaded but carrying the weight down on my hips really, really  helps. There are several nice ones out there now. I did add 2 little extra pouches tho..one for pot calls and one for another bottle of water. Works for me. Pics show me wearing pack. Low profile. Note water bottle holder in 2nd pic. Oh yeah..I turn it around and wear backwards. That way everything is rite there in front of me handy. 
 

[West Augusta]

Vest here. I hope that I don't fall in the lake cause I won't float.
I travel heavy.

[triune]

Vest for me.  I'm usually carrying stuff for my wife or son as well.

[Stoned]

I have used both over the years. But I like using an old fanny-pack made by Fieldline that was designed for turkey hunting. For a small fanny pack it is designed to carry more then enough calls, camera, and everything else I carry each morning.

[Zumer]

Vest here........

     I hate the way a fanny pack pulls down on my hips from all the weight......No seat attached is another reason for my fanny pak dislike....

     

[charlieparrish]

I used to carry  a boat cushion to sit on and try and  stay out of the water down here in the swamps...then somebody invented the turkey vest and that made carrying the cushion and other stuff a lot easier..now I wear the vest and carry a small seat with legs to get a little more comfortable on those long waits...I might even graduate to a lawn chair in the near future...maybe even hire a gun bearer to carry all that stuff.

[VGJ5]

I run the Beardbuster Run N Gun Belt with an addtional beard buster pot call holder on the otherside. I love it, I only carry 2 pots, 3 strikers, a tube, trumpet and a couple a mouth yelpers..

I started using this last spring, as well.  It is almost exactly what I envisioned, when I searched for a vest alternative to go with my backpack.  It's great for run and gun, and it has a nice little ripcord seat.  Although, I will probably miss the vest when I carry my new Ghostblind Runner over-the-shoulder (it fits in the back of most vests).