Just wondering how everybody goes about their elk hunting day! Im goin to hunt bivy style( i'll have a base camp by a lake that i can return to and resupply food, and take a dip, but other than that im carrying my life on my back), i will have a bear tag and a either sex elk tag! Goin in 9mi on a hunch that there will be elk in the area that im hunting, but a man never knows! Im more than able to move and relocate also! I plan on glassing in the am, stalking mornings, sitting waterholes and wallows during the day, and putting elk to bed at night, what does everyone else do :deadhorse:
I spend about 13hrs a day in the woods when hunting.
In my experience you can over hunt elk-ie hunting hard when they are not even there. Spend the effort finding them first...
I hope the hunch works out. I have walked in pretty deep thinking deep had to equal elk only to find the habitat was not to their liking.
Joshua
I hunt all day except for naps. before light I'm in the woods listening for elk and walk out in the dark. Going in 9 miles you better have a way to get one out. That is a long ways to pack an elk. A mile is a long way to pack an elk. Its gets hard to go back again.
QuoteOriginally posted by Sixby:
Going in 9 miles you better have a way to get one out. That is a long ways to pack an elk. A mile is a long way to pack an elk. Its gets hard to go back again.
EXCELLENT POINT and very true. We typically hike in 4-5 mi with a pack horse. Even then, heading out and back again is tough. You didn't mention if you would be alone or with a/some buddy(ies). Certainly would be a shame to get a nice one (all of them are nice) down then end up ruining more than half the meat due to spoilage.
9 miles in means in and out 18 miles. That's a HECK of a trip for 1 day in CO. Then 18 miles the next day. And so on till you MAY get to feeling like "To heck with it. I ain't walking back in there again."
I would suggest going 3 - 5 miles. There are plenty of places that far off the beaten path that few people go. Base camp there then hunt in toward your planned place. Just my opinion based on a few year's experience.
OR ... go to your place and let that be your farthest point. Hunt back toward the truck.
I agree with the need to have a plan on how you would get one out. 9 mi. is a LONG way to pack an elk. I can't even imagine doing it without horses. Packing an elk is not something to figure out when the time comes.
Check around for local outfitters or mule packers that have horses or mules they will bring in to pack out your kill.
The area im going into has produced in the past for a group of local hunters who have never seen another boot track in there! There is a network of small creeks that they use to cache the load by putting a plastic covering over the gamebags of deboned meat, it helps cool the meat as they are packing the rest out! I will be with another guy, but wont be hunting together all the time, we will be meeting back at basecamp every 3 days to resupply and to talk strategy!
It actually will end up being more than 9mi depending upon where its measured from!
4 of us packed in a wilderness area 2 years ago. It was 6 miles in a straight line by gps to the truck and we figured about 8 miles walking. I would never kill an elk that far back without horses to pack it out. We decided we wouldn't do it with 4 of us.
Lots of the walk is trail, we will only be 3-4mi off it!
Mnbearbaiter you must be one bad mamajammer. I would not even concider that with out at least one horse to carry out the meat.
Mnbb, I want to try to say this with complete respect because maybe you really are up to the task. But I would bet that 95% of people that have packed elk would never attempt what you are planning without horses to back them up. Have you packed elk before and how far? 9 miles, even if much of it is on a trail, is very very tough for even the strongest and most experienced.
If you have the experience to know what you are up against and know that you can do it, I tip my hat to you. But far stronger men than I have failed at what you are talking about and sadly elk meat has gone to waste. It takes more than just a strong desire. I'd sure like to hear from some people that have actually done it for a better perspective.
The guys i know who hunted in there arent even in that great of shape i think and they got their elk out without losing nary an ounce of meat! They did have cooler weather though so i may rethink a bit! Steve, if thats a complement thank you, i think im in above average shape for a 29yr old but i work hard at it! Im on the whole Athlete/Hunter bandwagon!!!
A 29 year old athlete is a great start. Given cool weather and maybe you can do it. For most people one elk is probably at least 4 loads. M)be five with cape and antlers. You said you may not see your buddy for three days at a time. So that means min. of being ready to carry a loaded pack for 36 miles total. And also hike back in another 36 miles. That is going to take more than a couple of days, and if the weather (which you can't predict) doesn't work in your favor you will likely lose meat. Bees and flies can be a seroius problem in addition to warm temps.
My advice? Talk to as many people as you can that have lots of experience in dealing with downed elk and take their advice to heart. You owe it to any animal you hope to kill.
And I sure wish I was 29 and in great shape!
No Whip, never packed out an elk! I did pack a moose out of the BWCA(Boundary Waters Canoe Area), in northeast MN in'07 on a once in a lifetime hunt! It was a muzzleloader hunt, but the weather was horrible, and we were over 10mi in the B'dub(thats what we call it)! Oh sure, alot of paddling in a canoe, but also alot of portaging as well! I bet i covered 15-20mi myself humping back and forth down portages as well as getting the meat down to the shoreline after the kill! Took us 2 days to get all the meat out and into a meat locker, then we went back in to break camp down and get it out! That hunt was in late sept, and we werent worried about meat spoilage really! I truly take to heart your opinions, and i am currently looking at another area thats closer with alot of saddles, water and dark timber(maybe ill save the "Hunch" for a last resort! My partner and i have already made an oath to sacrifice hunting days to get the meat out in a timely fashion, but we will need to be smart about it as well!
I go with "D all the above". I will set tree stands,I will spot and stalk,I will call,I will bivy in,I still hunt alot and will hunt even before work if thats what it takes. I like to have alot of options. If I have my way (time) I like to hike into remote country and cover country until I find sign then stick with the herd. I hunt the frindges of the herd by ambushing,still hunting at frist and then dogging the herd or calling if rut in swing. I also put stands and ground blinds in funnels, water holes and ambush spots next to feeding areas for day hunts. Most shoots I get for some reason is when still hunting. I just try to adapt to the situation and pray for some luck.
The summer is not over; the fires are not done yet; and then there is the chance of a freezing night changing feeding habits; so - you still have some toe tapping to do.
I know - I am waiting and tapping my toes too.
I packed an elk out for a bowhunter that said it was his 39th elk with a bow. He said he walks for 45 minutes; then sits for 45. He finds places where he can see - and hear elk; and reads a book and glasses the hillsides. Worked for him!
I like to find trails and hunt them; find elk and stalk them; bugle them in..... but carry one out ? I have pack animals for that.
My son shot an elk last year- an older cow elk; that produced over 400 pounds of meat.
Each quarter will normally weigh about 70 pounds; plus the backstraps; the hide and antlers; and then the neck meat and boned out meat.
Often here the last day of the hunt can be 90 degrees.
HYDRATE !!
Its just fun no matter how you do it. Just be safe, have the ticker in shape and enjoy!!
Your crazy, I'm impressed. I had to haul one about a mile and a half and that was hard. I can't imagine wanting to undertake a 9 mile jaunt with a elk on my back. I would probably eat 10lb of elk every mile to lighten my load. Personally, I suggest hunting with your friend. Not only can he help carry but in my experience it's nice to have someone calling 50-70 yards behind you so you can get close. Unless he is a jackass, and even then I would let Dick Cheney hunt with me if I had a 9 mile carryout. Good luck
Josh
We have already made the agreement that we would sacrifice hunting days to pack the other guys meat out! This plan may sound a little off the wall to many, me included, but its well thought out to maximize efficiency and still have respect for the game!
If your'e going to backpack an elk out of the mountains from 9 miles back you had better shoot him at least 4 days before you have to head home and pray the temps are cool or you will have wasted a lot of meat.
Good luck
John
29 is a good age for packing elk. It will make you both older and wiser. I have never heard of anyone trying to do such a feat in the mountains in the Northwest, especially if you are liable to be making the trip alone.
Hunches are like shortcuts! We have found elk in exactly the places we thought they would not be, and missed them in places they should have been. If you have info on the area from people experienced in the area, that is good. If you are just doing it because it is off the beaten path, there may be good reason for that. Master the elk call!
If you are capable of carrying a 150# pack up and down hill for 9 miles you are in great shape. In Idaho one of my nephews, then in his early 30's, bet me he could carry 200# of elk 5 miles back to camp. He made it less than a mile in several hours.
A normal person carrying a normally heavy pack in the mountains will average between 1 and 2 miles per hour. If you pile on 150 - 200# of elk, you won't move that fast.
More than once I have seen good men with heavy elk loads on foot do things that required someone to pack out both them and their meat. If you are alone with a heavy pack and blow out an ankle or knee or fall and do damage to your torso, you are in big trouble.
If something gives out on your pack, you will have to improvise or lose some meat.
Have some mules or horses available.
I would start looking and contact them now for someone with horses that you could hire if you down an elk. So you pack in, hunt, down the elk, quarter, debone, cloth bag & hang meat, hike out were there is cell phone reception, call horseman & give GPS location, & wait for help. Plus I would not go on a trip into the back country alone. Good Luck & be safe.
"We have already made the agreement that we would sacrifice hunting days to pack the other guys meat out!"
It's great to have that understanding ahead of time. In our camp it is understood and never needs saying. Either everyone that is able helps pack out or 1) you don't get a share of the meat and 2) You won't get invited back. It's all for one and one for all. Many days have been lost either finding an animal or packing them out and no one ever complains because the next time it could be your elk that everyone has had to stop everything for.
Good luck on your quest and please let us know how it went when you get back.
I wont say that i have intimate knowledge of the area im hunting, but have probably looked at maps and google earth to know it well enough! I have held nothing back getting ready for this hunt, its what ive always wanted to do! Im currently 195lbs and 6'1", 11% bodyfat! I shoot daily, and always train, not to mention working a const job 50hrs/wk! Best shape of my life, but good shape on the flat isnt the same as good shape up in the mtns, and i know that and believe it to be true! We plan to take 1 1/2 days to help get acclimated before we pack in! The guys who we know that tipped us off, used a leapfrog method after a kill(it involves locating water via GPS, and caching the meat load there, waterproofing it, submerging it, and them goin to get another load and so forth! Is this a wise way to get an animal out? They recommended getting quarters hung and covered, hang overnight, and debone and pack out in the am, good advice?
You may do it, but I bet you never do it again.
Since you are on the hunter/athlete bandwagon you probably know who Cameron Hanes is. Cameron isn't packing elk on his back that far. He has a packer lined up.
You don't have to go 9 miles to kill an elk. You are probably walking right past a lot of country that holds elk.
With all honest and due respect from me as well. . . I have not heard anyone mention that it is 9 miles IN THE MOUNTAINS. 10,000 feet most likely. Let alone a flatlander. . . Have you ever tried to climb out of a dark timber valley- even without any wt. on your back?
I was a collegiate athlete from Michigan. Trained very hard for months. I went out with ideals at the age of 27. That was 22 years ago and I sure learned quick. Two days of pounding headaches, burning thighs, and I was back in about 2 miles while never harvesting an elk. Man that was a learning curve. . . a wonderful experience but actually glad I did not get an elk.
Good luck. Keep us posted
Dan in KS