I hunt a Wildlife Management Area here in LA. that is very much unlike the rest of the state, very steep, rugged river brakes. If I used one, Wildlife and Fisheries in their wisdom allows A.T.V.s access on the normally closed foot trails to retrieve game, yet will not allow cutting up a deer and packing it out. Again, ruling out an A.T.V. I would appreciate suggestions on getting a whole field-dressed deer out of the area I've described.
The power of friends! :D
Although the terrain you have described sounds far worse than what I have to deal with around here I have found a jet sled makes dragging a deer much easier. Add a friend and life just got even easier.
Might try one of those deer sleds. Just google "deer sled" and you will have several different options to look at.
Bisch
It's the same situation here in SC. The best option is to have a couple of young, able-bodied fellows at the ready. Outside of that, I've used nothing more than a rope to drag many out.
I once tried to use a kid's snow sled. It worked great on flat ground, but not so much on steep hills. Going up, it would want to slide back down and the lack of friction made it a constant battle. Going down hill, well, you better hang on. A 200 lb load in a slick sled can go amazing fast on pine needles.
A friend has a fancy one wheeled cart, but using it is definitely a two person affair. Four is better. His does have a brake on it and a big wheel, so it rolls over logs and such pretty well. It is huge, though. We never tried it on really steep terrain. It would be difficult on some of the steep stuff around here.
I'm looking at getting a Game Sled. It's got some built in handles and looks to be a pretty tough material.
I had one of the warren and sweat one -wheeled devils.
The shoulder strap was a tad short, kinked my neck something awful and I had to do a 1/2 curl to hold it up by the handles to travel and couldn't rest on my shoulders.
It was precarious at best and a bitter fued on steep hills...forget side hills.
I bought a NonTypical 2 wheeled cart. It's collapsable. The wheels are splayed out (/\\) to allow for sidehilling. It telescopes down to a small package with the wheels tucked into the middle and has back pack straps.
It's not light, but I tend to gut my deer, drape it over a log and then hoof back to the truck to change out of hunting duds and put on ugly street clothes to go back and hump out the deer with the cart.
Depending on how FAR back you go, that might not work. I've also assembled the rig, put my stand, bow and gear in it and lashed it all down and threw a piece of camo netting on it and taken everything in with me...then just covered up the stand aaway from my stand and threw the netting over it where I coudl still watch for the odd interloper to try a "carpe dium" (?)(sieze the day)
I learned from others that you do NOT want a 2 wheeler with straight up and down wheels... :eek:
I have been using one of the Cabelas two wheel game carts with good results. Only issue using it on extremely wet, soft ground as the tires/wheels are the hard bicycle type tire. A dual wheel kit is an option and available with original purchase. I pull it uphill and go downhill behind it, holding the weight back. Steeps grades (up or down) are easier with a strong friend! Do a search as there are several brands and some good deals to be had. Good luck! Mike
I was thinking about the same thing Jim. I just don't see anything but a couple of friends and a sled working.
Just pack them out on your back. That's how we do it with our red deer ect on the front hock make a vertical cut down to the hoof that should give you a pocket to work with nxt take the deers back leg and push it through the slit you have made on the front leg grab the rear leg and push it right past there knee joint. Then you have a pack to carry out make sure to put your hands on the deers rear legs help with the balance a little and is a good place to hang your bow. The head I usually cut off and leave it because it will swing around and donk you on the head. It's not hard thought if you want the head just pick it and thread the antler through the hole you cut for the rear leg to go onto. The bigger the deer the better they are more comfortable. Hope this helps.
If you're close to Jackson/Bienville I'd be glad to give you a hand toting one out. I'm always eager to make new hunting buddies. I have an ATV as well, so unless you're just opposed to using one, we could use it too. Heck, I bought it for the sole purpose of retrieving deer and hogs on Jackson/Bienville.
If you have a navigable stream below your hunting ground you could canoe it out.
I put the four hooves together, grab them with my right hand, lift, and carry it out.
:bigsmyl:
Ok I actually did that with one of my early deer, a doe fawn.
I use a converted two wheel dolly / cart with the wide pneumatic tires. I added a snap in place platform that fits at more of an angle than the original one and I can use it for hauling "stuff" as well as a deer. This one has built in "stairs rails" along the back so going over logs is really not all that difficult.
or
I have an old "deer sleigh'er", which is a sheet of heavy gauge plastic sheet that the deer gets kashed to and provides a sclicker drag surface.
ChuckC
Thanks for all the replies and for the offers of help. Richard, I have carried out a pronghorn in relatively flat country in Montana using exactly that method but he probably weighed 75 lbs. field dressed. I am not allowed to remove the head and since the distance here could easily be 1 to 1 1/2 miles with the easy part utilizing a mostly dry drainage with blow-downs to be crawled over/under it looks like calling friends is the way. Makes me wish I had been nicer to people, the small number of people I can think to call may well turn me down if I tell them what they would be getting into.
I bet you could find some teenage boys that would love to be on call for just such an event. I'd call the local scout troop or the 4h club and see if you could make a contact. Offer them a nice steak dinner, or to take them hunting or fishing.
Thanks Looper,I know a couple of prospects like you describe. They may not want to go hunting again after the experience but they would certainly earn a killer steak dinner!
I've got a couple of young guys on standby, too. I got one kid to commit, after I asked if he knew any tough, strong young men that weren't afraid of the dark and were up to helping retrieve a deer or two this fall. How could he say no?
Google neetkart. It will handle elk and is built stout...and has brakes.
Ameristep non-typ aluminum. 20# on your back- easy and stable.
This is what I use.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsmiTkSdPT8
I seem to remember a tree stand, Tree Lounge, that had a wheel kit. You could hunt your stand, and if you got lucky, use it to Carry your deer out with. It also had an attachment to add a standing platform for archers.
FR
It is amazing what you can do with a pelican plastic sled, the one that look like a snowmobile skimer, we use it for moose, caridou etc... You say that you can't take the head off, can you take the antlers off??
I have four herniated disks so I bought the cableas two wheel cart and rely on others to take out my deer. I feel bad about it but I want to keep hunting.
David, I should have mentioned earlier that the only deer I would shoot here is a big buck so taking off the antlers no. The area falls away sharply from the point where I park then continues down more gradually to the Mississippi River 2 1/2 miles to the south, 1/2 mile beyond the W.M.A. boundary. The problem for me with a sled is not having used one, I don't know how you overcome it wanting to slide back with a heavy deer in it on all the steep uphill portions while packing out.
I biked mine out. Found a pic from my days in VA. Wish knew hoe to post it. My bike brought out deer, stand and my pack, and I rode the down hill portions
Pick up one of these at the local Wally
(http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii47/bel007/41DIi59ChwL__SL500_AA300_.jpg)
Cheap, works well, easy to replace, and a multitasker when the snow flys. ;)
I can tell you for sure that you don't want to use one of those sleds on steep hills. They are great on pretty level ground, though.
As soon as you loose the arrow and make contact with the deer, call up your buddies and tell them you need help tracking a deer you shot.
Take a coffee break if your thermos is with you.
When they arrive and help you locate the deer they'll help pull it out.
If I had a friend that needed help locating a deer I'd be there as soon as I could just so they'd possibly help me likewise.
:thumbsup:
Where in Louisiana are you? I'll be in Denham Springs for a week around Christmas. Take me hunting with you and I'll help drag one out :) .
You have several choices, all of which require lifting weight uphill. I'd figure how to incorporate a good cart into the equation. Here's my Versa Cart in action two weeks ago. It was used to tote stuff in a long ways and stuff out a long ways. There are two 4-piece, 16 foot ladders, two Lone Wolf Alpha's and day pack with all the necessary accessories stored neatly and quietly on the cart.
I put up two stands in this location, leaving the cart near the stand locations if needed. This is not the buck I killed from one of those stands but one my son-in-law killed. It happens to be the only photo we took of a deer in the cart.
(http://i544.photobucket.com/albums/hh338/spikeknife/PA200007.jpg)
(http://i544.photobucket.com/albums/hh338/spikeknife/P1010045.jpg)
(http://i544.photobucket.com/albums/hh338/spikeknife/P1010046.jpg)
This is the buck I killed. We were in South Carolina.
(http://i544.photobucket.com/albums/hh338/spikeknife/P1010074.jpg)
Indiana, in it's infinate wisdom, says you have to check deer in whole. No motorized vehicles allowed on public hunting areas. That's why I bought a wheeled cart
Hey Brian I used one of the Wally sleds, only problem is after the shot I had to go back to the cabin to pick it up. Figured I didn't need it after you left.
I use a body bag that I got from work. You can get nylon military body bags from Colemans Military surplus.com deer fit in nicely and don't get dirt in the cavity and best of all it wont hang up on brush and slides over the ground with ease, and they have nice handles as well.They roll up and will fit in or under a pack easily.And you can put it in the trunk of your SUV and no blood gets on the carpet...LOL