I have worn every kind of glove you can name in a deer stand: thin ones for feel, thick ones for warmth, mittens with a flip top, even the ones with the chemical packet stuffed in the back. And for forty-six seasons I told myself gloves were just part of the deal. Then I spent last season with the Hunter Safety System Muff-Pak, and I am here to tell you a hand muff beats gloves in the stand just about every way that matters. On a 22-degree morning in the second week of December, I sat from first light until almost nine with my hands in the muff, and when a doe worked her way down the lane I had my gun up without a single fumble. That was the morning I stopped lying to myself about gloves. I had tried a pair of insulated gloves with a trigger finger cutout once, and the cutout never lined up with my finger. That morning the muff never quit.
The Muff-Pak is a fleece-lined muff that hangs around your waist or crossbody, with front and back pockets and an extender strap to get the fit right. You slide your bare hands in and out in a heartbeat, which turns out to be the whole point. Here are the ten reasons it earned its spot in my truck.
Keep your bare hands warm and ready in the stand
The Hunter Safety System Muff-Pak is the one piece of cold-weather gear I would not trade away. Check the current price on Amazon.
Amazon Check Today's Price on Amazon →Your fingers stay bare until the second you need them
With gloves, you are always making a trade: dexterity for warmth, warmth for dexterity. With the Muff-Pak, your hands are bare inside a fleece-lined pouch, so they stay warm without a single layer between your fingers and the trigger. You only pull them out when it is time to shoot, and they are still warm when you do.
No more fumbling with a glove to answer your phone
It is a small thing until you have done it: a text comes in, or the radio earpiece needs adjusting, and you are peeling off a glove with your teeth. With the Muff-Pak, your hand is out and back in before a glove would have cleared your thumb. On a cold Saturday with the college game on the radio, that adds up fast.
It keeps your hands warmer than any glove I have owned
The polar fleece lining is the real deal. It traps heat around your whole hand, not just the back of it like a glove does. I sat through a 28-degree morning in the ladder stand with my hands tucked in there, and they came out warm every time I needed them. That never happened once with gloves. The coldest sit of the year was 19 degrees on the second Saturday of December, and I stayed until nine because my hands never got stiff. I used to blow on my fingers and tuck them under my arms by seven. The fleece lining held up on a 14-degree morning in January, too, when the wind was cutting through the stand. My hands were the only warm part of me.
You can wear it crossbody or around your waist
The included extender strap lets you wear it crossbody or adjust the length for a perfect fit. In the ladder stand I wear it around my waist. In the ground blind I sling it crossbody so it rides where I need it when I am seated. One piece of gear, two setups, no fiddling.
It holds more than just your hands
The front and back pockets are not just for show. I kept hand warmers in one pocket, a snack in the other, and my hands in the middle. My rangefinder went in the back pocket on the walk in. It is like a small workbench at your waist, and it weighs only 11.2 ounces. On a late-November sit I carried a sandwich, a spare hand warmer packet, and my rangefinder, and my hands still had room. I did not have to dig through my coat once. The rangefinder stayed put on the climb up the ladder stand, which surprised me the first time.
No more cold fingers when you reach for your bow or rifle
With gloves, the cold always wins the moment you need your hands. You grip the bow, and the chill hits. With the Muff-Pak, your hands are warm right up to the instant you reach. That makes a difference on a long sit when the deer finally shows at the last minute of shooting light.
It works in the ground blind just as well as the stand
I used it in both all season. In the ladder stand it hangs at your waist. In the ground blind, crossbody, it sits right in your lap. Same warmth, same instant access, no matter where you are set up. That is more than I can say for most hunting gear.
It never gets lost in the bottom of your pack
Gloves are small, so they end up everywhere: coat pockets, pack pockets, the truck seat, the floor of the blind. The Muff-Pak is big enough that it always has a place. When it is not around your waist, it hangs on a hook in the truck or at home. You always know where it is.
It is one less thing to argue with when you are getting dressed in the dark
Getting ready at 4:30 in the morning, you do not want to fight with a liner glove and an outer glove and a hand warmer packet. The Muff-Pak goes on in one motion. Strap around the waist, hands in the fleece, done. That matters when you are trying to be quiet and quick. I tried the two-glove system once, a thin liner under a heavy insulated pair, and by the time I had both layers on in the dark I was already in a bad mood. Then I had to peel one off to check the time on my phone. With the Muff-Pak I am out the door with my coffee still hot, and my hands are warm before I reach the truck.
It is the one piece of cold-weather gear I would not trade
I have owned a lot of hunting accessories over the years. Most of them earn a spot in the truck for a season and then get replaced. The Hunter Safety System Muff-Pak is the opposite. After a full season of deer hunting and a spring turkey season, it is the first thing I pack when the weather turns cold.
What I'd Skip
If you hunt where it never gets below 40 degrees, or you only sit for an hour at a time, you may not need a hand muff. Gloves will do. And if you are the kind of hunter who needs to glass constantly with your bare hands every few minutes, the muff can feel like one more thing to manage. I would also skip it on early-season hunts when a light pair of gloves is plenty. But for cold mornings in the stand, when you have to sit still for hours, I would not go back to gloves.
The polar fleece lining is the real deal. My hands came out warm every time I needed them, and that never happened once with gloves.
Give your hands a better season this year
One full season with the Hunter Safety System Muff-Pak was all it took to convince me. Check the current price on Amazon and see if it earns a spot in your truck.
Amazon Check Today's Price on Amazon →