The newest additions to Kuiu’s women’s line provide ultimate fit and function for upland hunting and beyond.
I’ve been a fan of Kuiu Ultralight Hunting clothing since 2012, when I admired the high-tech gear my guides were wearing on an Alaska grizzly hunt and asked them what it was. As soon as I got home, I ordered Kuiu’s Attack Pants, Guide Jacket, and rain gear. I still have those original pieces, and they’ve performed beautifully and held up well on countless hunts over the years. Kuiu is best known for building lightweight, technical clothing for mountain hunters, but its product line now includes a full stack of gear for deer hunters, bird hunters, and everyone in between.
When the company came out with a women’s line a few years ago, I was impressed with the features and fit — it had obviously been designed and tested by actual, hard-core women hunters — and the fact that the quality and performance was every bit as good as the men’s gear I’d been wearing for years.
This past fall I had the opportunity to field test a couple of the latest additions to the Kuiu women’s lineup. I wore the new women’s PRO Brush Pant and the lightweight Gila Hoodie on a September dove hunt in eastern Colorado and on a couple of subsequent forays in search of grouse.
Honestly, I used to hate brush pants because most of them are hot, heavy, noisy, and uncomfortable. But the PRO Brush Pants have none of those qualities. Weighing just 19 ounces, they are lightweight, well-fitting, and comfortable. I love that they actually breathe and stretch. Yet they’re super tough, made of densely woven, tear-resistant Primeflex fabric, with reinforced panels on the lower legs, knees, and thighs for extra durability. Everything on the Colorado prairie has thorns and stickers, which the pants sloughed off easily going through numerous fencerows. Nor did they pick up burrs.
The early September days started out chilly and warmed up fast, and the PRO Brush Pants kept me comfortable throughout. They fit well and look good, but still run large enough to accommodate a light base layer underneath. The zippered, mesh-lined vents on the hip and inner thigh are a great feature—unzip them to help dump body heat when you’re hiking. The pants come with removable suspenders (which I did remove since I prefer a belt), and have two deep front pockets, two large, zippered cargo pockets, and zippered back pockets. The cuffs are reinforced and have a hook that attaches to your boot laces to keep them from riding up when you’re busting though brush.
Lightweight hoodies are the go-to layer these days for hot weather hunting and fishing, and the women’s Gila LS Hoodie paired perfectly with the brush pants during my early-season hunts. With Cool-Touch fabric technology, the Gila Hoodie provides UPF 50+ sun protection as well as anti-odor treatment, and it wicks sweat and dries quickly. Like the pants, the fit is the right mix of streamlined and roomy. Raglan sleeves allow plenty of leeway for swinging a shotgun, and the hood is made to pull over a ball cap if you need to protect your neck and ears from the sun. I’m fairly tall, so I also appreciated the longer length of the body and sleeves, which have thumbholes.
The PRO Brush Pants come in Valo camo or a solid color, ash; and in the hoodie you have a choice of Valo, Verde, or Vias camo, or solid bone.
What’s great about both of these pieces is not only will I get a lot of use out of them for bird hunting, but they’re also going to be ideal for early season big-game hunts, especially pronghorn. Oh, and the Gila Hoodie is turning out to be an excellent fishing shirt as well. I highly recommend them both. Learn more and order direct at kuiu.com.
