Wingworks Upland Vests Home Blog
December 10, 2024Still bird hunting in the mountains and high desert in your 60’s and beyond?
Sore knees on long, steep descents sent me looking for a pair of Z style trekking poles that would knock down small enough to fit in my gamebag and strong enough to take a beating. Lots of articles out there describing the benefits of trekking poles like fall prevention and taking some load off the legs. To big game hunters this is old news but many to bird hunters the solution is to simply hunt flatter ground for different birds.
Now I needed a way to carry my shotgun securely while my hands were busy with the poles navigating a long descent. A friend showed me a rubber sling for not just a typical shoulder carry but a second strand over my head to lock the gun in position. No adjustment needed, the rubber gives enough to handle most (an extension for XXL is available). Unlike the poles used only for descents, I planned to use the sling most of the time until walking into a pointed bird or covey. What surprised me was how much gun carry fatigue was affecting my shooting and how much better and faster I was when using the sling. A day hunting without the sling really proved the point.
So far so good with PEAX Sissy Stix Z Trekking Poles and the Ultimate Gun Sling. We’ve also adapted the sling to leather and hardware attachments for our O/U and S/S guns in addition to semi-auto chukar guns. See links below,
