Upland strap vest you can load birds in

Yes i take it off… but the reason i need this type vest is I don’t hunt in sight of the truck 90% of the time, and the amount of water I carry has to be supported by a technical vest. I never leave the truck with less than 4 Nalgene bottle if multiple dogs are on the ground…. I currently have a marsupial upland bag in my shopping cart just trying to sort through some of there option, I’ve worn the tenzing upland for the last five years but it would not be my pick for larger birds as 2 pheasant fill it up
This post makes sence about the use these "tech vest type" of garments. It is the conditions you are hunting in which may dictate the need for such a contraption.
 
My last day of my season I walked 35000 steps or 16.2 miles . I had days this year I did half of that in a single walk. I don’t believe in the accuracy of those step counters and generally roll my eyes at people who quote them but that’s a lot of damn walking.
I had a couple of days a year ago that I sat down in the middle of the field and didn’t want to get up. I like to think I’m in pretty good shape but I’m still 55 and changing up a few pieces of gear has helped a ton.
 
I read through topics like this one and think I'm way under-geared when I'm in the field. I still run a more-or-less traditional hunting coat--Columbia Ptarmigan--but at 15 years it's much closer to the end than the beginning. Sooner or later it will start leaking shells out of the pockets and than I'll have to do something. Other than shells the only "gear" I routinely carry is a 4' lead and occasionally water. I've even stopped carrying my leatherman after years and years of never using it. It would be devastating and do who-knows-how-much damage to my marriage if my dogs were injured or worse in a way that some of the gear you carry would address, so I probably should carry a bit more.

But here's the semi-serious question. When you get in the truck and move from one spot to another, are you putting on and taking off the vest every time? That seems like a hassle and is one of the reasons I've never seriously considered a technical vest. As someone mentioned above, my thoughts would be different if I spent hours at a time away from the truck.
When I started hunting in Iowa over 30 + years ago, shotguns had to be in a fully closed case. It was a habit that I started and I have never looked back. When I get to the truck, I put my empty shotgun into its case, put it in the back seat of my truck and take care of my dogs. When they are cared for, I take my vest off and hang it on the clothes hangar above the rear door.
I have friends that wear their regular vests all day and don’t take them off but I couldn’t drive or sit in a truck seat with my strap vest.
Most of my hunting spots are at least several miles away so it’s not that much of a problem to put it on and take it off.
 
Here’s a picture of that vest before all put back together . Running the game bag left of center on the larger sized hip belt gets you room to run an extra bottle holder. Or you can just run it in the game bag and clip the bottle to the back of the yoke when it’s empty. The 32 ounce camelback bottle up front probably has the best taper for the pockets it comes out just a little bit easier. You can run all the extra buckle strap down the webbing while you’re attaching everything and get it out of the way. You can see I did it on the right. I’m gonna put a their small stretch pouch on my yoke that’s an inch narrower than the one that’s laying up next to it that’s going back on my hip.
 

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Chief vests seem to work well. It can be customized to your liking. Expensive. Front loading. Too warm at times? Maybe.
 
Academy has great water bottles that don't leak. I'm not sure when Final Rise changed their bottles, but the old ones were great.

I use soda bottles ranging from a big 2-iter soda bottle for huns in early September to a small 12-oz bottle
during crisp morning hunts later in the season. Soda bottles are as light as they come, plus I can drink from one while driving.

As far as a vest, I've been hunting with a pack for 30+ years. I routinely shot sporting clays wearing this pack.
The pack is behind the lab: 60-liters, and 2.2 pounds. Good for hauling most anything up to 40 pounds.
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I use soda bottles ranging from a big 2-iter soda bottle for huns in early September to a small 12-oz bottle
during crisp morning hunts later in the season. Soda bottles are as light as they come, plus I can drink from one while driving.

As far as a vest, I've been hunting with a pack for 30+ years. I routinely shot sporting clays wearing this pack.
The pack is behind the lab: 60-liters, and 2.2 pounds. Good for hauling most anything up to 40 pounds.
View attachment 7580
That’s a great idea! I’ll have to see if they will fit in my vest bottle holders. Thanks!
 
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