I have a vortex spotting scope .... absolutely no complaints. At the Harrisburg show last year I looked at a fairly new brand called Tract. They had some really good stuff at the show. I bought a pair of their Binoculars (8x42) and have been very, very pleased. The brand is definitely worth a look.They are direct to consumer so their pricing is quite competitive.
https://www.tractoptics.com/
Here's some other brands worth considering:
https://www.tractoptics.com/
https://www.meopta.com/en/
Also .... a good source for info - http://opticsthoughts.com/
I recently purchased a spotting scope and would like to put a quality tripod under it. The scope I bought is a Vortex Viper 20-60x80HD. The scope weighs 63 ozs. so it's close to 4 lbs. Any recommendations will be welcome as this is new territory for me ..... Thanks!
In addition to Rob's comment on Scent Blocker, I noticed this morning that MidwayUSA is also having a big sale on many items including some good names in Hunting clothes. Look under the Big Game Seasonal Blowout heading: https://www.midwayusa.com/
It's a great time of the year to update or add to hunting and fishing gear. I find myself looking for deals on Trail cams, hunting clothes, etc.I see Cabelas has some good deals going. Anybody finding any good deals yet ?
Hunted just outside of Plains ..... stayed in Paradise which is just down the road. Saw a ton of Elk but couldn't connect on a legal bull. Shot a decent 9 pt. whitetail buck on Thanksgiving morning. Beautiful country
Best of luck and enjoy. I took my first ever hunting trip this yr. to Montana with a friend who had gone before ..... It still has a grip on me. Think I'll be taking other trips.