Planning an elk hunt and am looking for some recommendations for a god backpack. We'll be at about 11,000ft for a week long hunt. It's not a pack in hunt or wilderness hunt. We will be staying in cabins and hunting throughout the day from there.
Thanks, Mike
I used a Badlands Diablo when I was out there hunting Elk. It worked well. Most likely to small to pack out meat.
I'd recommend looking at one that is capable of hauling enough load to at least handle your first load of meat but is still small enough to hunt efficiently with. There's nothing worse than having to make a 2 or 3 mile trip back to the rig (or cabin)just to get your pack frame and go back in to get your first load of meat.
I typically hunt with a partner and we each use packs like this. If we kill an elk we bone it out on the spot and put it in game bags. We each take out a hind quarter on the trip out and we're half way done. We keep external frame packs in the truck and take them in to get the last load.
I use a Badlands 2200 (old one when they were still made in the USA) and have hauled out 7 elk with it. There are lots of other good options (Mystery Ranch, Kifaru, Eberlestock, Kuiu)and I'm sure others will chime in, the Badlands just happens to be what I have and it's still going strong.
Good luck and post some pics of your hunt!
I would recommend checking out the Horn Hunter Full Curl pack. They are great packs with a lot of versatility. Excellent pack, American made, and reasonably priced.
I got a great deal on a North Face Terra 60 and loved it for my last elk hunt.
(http://jdspics.webs.com/photos/2011-Elk-Hunt-Pics/2011Ellk-02.jpg)
If its NOT a pack in or wilderness hunt. Just get yourself a nice sized day pack. I use 2 depending on if I'm staying out the entire day or heading back and forth to camp. Badlands super day pack is a good choice. If you plan to pack out meat though you'll need to get yourself a good frame pack
Bullpac
Bison Gear makes a variety of quality packs right here in the good ole USA and besides that Angelo is a sponsor here! I personally used the Lemhi model last year and was very pleased with it. Good luck with your search there's a ton of options out there!
Steve
I used a Badlands Superday pack on my one and only elk hunt. It was very comfy and worked well. I cannot attest to how it would have worked to haul out any meat or cape. :(
Ray
I agree with Matty, do not need much for your set up. Just make sure it is comfortable and you can shoot with it. My preference is kifaru packs.
kifaru packs,expensive but very well built
Eberlestock X2 is not too big but allows you to take out a good load on the first trip out.
I really like my Eberlestock X2 pack for exactly the kind of trip you describe. Easy to carry all that I need during the day, including game bags and meat processing gear, plenty of water, etc. And it can handle a load of meat on the first trip out if you do get lucky. I learned the hard way on my first elk how important that capability is.
If you have hundreds more to drop on a really nice pack there are certainly better ones out there. I was just looking at the Stone Glacier packs and they look fantastic. But for the money, the X2 is a perfect day pack for western hunting.
I probably have an opinion that doesn't match most of the above. I would leave the backpack at camp and carry a day pack. You can load 30-40 pounds of meat in it if you get lucky. Then bring out the frame the next trip. I can recommend most any Kelty frame, and I also have a Freighter. Keep this in mind- you can easily load upwards of 100 pounds on either of these frames, but I wouldn't want to carry over 75 pounds unless it was a short haul. You don't need a huge frame. Comfort is the key. You can get a good Kelty frame for under $50 on ****. Some of the guys on this post probably haul 10 elk a year and can justify the big dollar backs. I've hauled perhaps 10 over 20 years and might be an amatuer- Kelty external frames are great!
I have a Badlands 2200 and I like it a lot. It's fairly light and you can fit more meat in it on a pack out than you will want to carry.
Lots of backback options, the altitude could be a bigger issue for you. Good luck.
A BIGGER turkey vest for hunting and a cabelas alaskan pack fram for hauling meat.
I will third the Ebelstock X2, I have been using one for 3 years now and it is comfortable, not too big, you can shoot with it on if needed.
Has the capability to carry a large hydration bladder (very important) and you can carry a boned out Elk quarter fairly comfortably.
I upgraded/upsized from badlands hypervent to badlands 2200 last year, only meat I packed out with it was a grouse:) But it has a small canvas meat rack that tucks away in the bottom of the bag and the cloth is blaze orange which is cool, if your hunting with rifle toters around you can pull it out for visibility also, it is extremely comfortable.
My son and I both use the Eberlestock 2. It is just the right size...a little too big if you don't kill anything and a little too small when you do! :thumbsup:
I used a Badlands Superday once. All I can say is, I am very thankful I didn't have to go to far. Right now I have a sitka flash32 that does ok, the cabelas frame makes the next 2 trips. Whatever you get get a pack with a frame of some sort. 2200 to 3000 cid.
Something that has a bladder full of water, you will need it
thanks for all the great info so far
:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Would use nothing but a frame pack. Mine so old don't think they make anymore
Would use nothing but a frame pack. Mine so old don't think they make anymore
I have a BL 2200 and it is buy far the best ive tried in 17seasons hunting elk. This pack has an internal aluminum frame and is just plain tuff. I dont think Badlands are made as good aS THEY WERE 10 YRS AGO but what is.
I use an old freighter frame for hauling meat, but hunt out every day with the "Elk Hunter" day pack from Bison Gear. You will still be able to haul up to 80 pounds of meat with the day pack if you choose. Mike
(http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff289/MittenM/hero/9-23-2006-14.jpg)
No Mike, you can haul 80 pounds in the day pack. A mear mortal can haul maybe 50 pounds and still get up on his feet. LOL
Mike
I love my Eberlestock dragonfly j107. It works great as a day pack or multiday pack and will haul a load out in comfort. I have used it to even haul pop-up blinds and duck decoys but is still great as a daypack.
Ebaerlestock! Just pick one and you will be very happy with it Mike :)
I've used external freighter frames for meat hauling for about 40 years and a Bison Gear day pack.
Both Jason and I have new Kifaru Longhunter packs coming that we will use this year on our Alaska Moose hunt. That way we will only be flying in one pack each instead of two and the weight is about the same as our old freighter frames.
John has used the Kifaru packs for years and swears by them.
Mike
(http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h477/njloco/IMG_1589.jpg)
The Kifaru tent, poles and stakes, and the pack next to the entrance, the wood stove which is not in the picture all weigh about 11lbs.
Which means I can carry more food!
Good luck
P.S. Sorry, the 3700 cu inch pack itself weighs 2.9 lbs, the way it set up in the picture it's about 4lbs. and has about 6000 cu inches.
Wingnut Mike, Yes I still struggle with finding a quiet hunting daypack that can be used to freight your camp or game meat. Most of the stuff seems to noisy. Another thing I would like to see more developments in is a quiet daypack that is water proof and breathable. I cary camera and video gear, and struggle to keep things dry during a 2 to 3 week hunt. Mike
I vote the badlands 2200. Compression straps get it down to a small enough size, yet it will fold out and pack meat, at least the first load, if not every load.Weighs about 4 pounds.
The pack you carry depends on what you plan on doing with it. You said you're staying in a cabin - does the provider of the cabin pack the animal out for you, or will you pack it on your own.
If you don't have to worry about packing meat, you can choose a much smaller pack. For me, I prefer a daypack I picked up at Cabela's a couple years ago. It has a large padded waist belt (extremely important on any pack you'll be hiking long in), a padded back panel that helps keep your back cool, has three various sized zippered pockets that carry things like knives, flashlights, game bags, extra clothes, a garbage bag (has a multitude of back country uses), rain jacket, and has a water bladder - also extremely important. There is also an expandable open-topped pouch to haul large items, and some external lash points. There are two exterior "water bottle" pouches that work great for that purpose, or carrying a folding saw, scope, or other items you may use often. I keep my GPS on a belt pouch so it is readily available to mark waypoints should I want to easily return to a spot. The features that are important to me is that it rides low enough on my back to stay out of the way when I duck under limbs, and is narrow enough to not brush against every twig I pass by. Empty, it is fairly small, yet has capacity to do an overnight should I desire.
The only thing I don't like about the pack is that it is fairly heavy. I haven't weighed it, but think the empty pack weighs 3 - 5 pounds. Every pound on your back wears you down. The first couple days of a hunt I have about every conceivable need in my pack, by the last day I'm down to about a water bottle and a candy bar - get tired of hauling the weight around!
I have an X2 and a BL 2200. The X2 gets used twice as much because the 2200 doesn't fit me as well but I like and recommend both of them. X2 is flat out awesome but the water is on the side making it hard to balance throughout the day. The 2200 is a little heavy for a day pack in my opinion but holds a lot of stuff. both will pack a quarter and carry everything you need for a day pack. I strongly recommend that you pick some packs that meet your needs and then try every one of them on, with weight in them, and walk around the store for a while and really think about how you will pack your stuff. Each of them fit differently, some have louder material than others, they all have differing pocket amounts and designs and accessibility, and zippers vary. get in shape.
Not trying to hijack, but I have been looking into the hornhunter mainbeam XL. I haven't been able to get my hands on one yet. I wonder if this pack would suit you. Curious to hear if anyone has used this pack, what they thought. I have read a lot of good reviews.
There have been some good ones at fair prices on the classifieds, several brands....not a bad place to shop!
thanks again fella's!! lots of GREAT info
:thumbsup:
Hornhunter mainbeam XL :thumbsup:
I have a Horn Hunter day pack and the Eberlestock X2. My fellow elk hunting buddies only use their fanny Parks until an animal is down. They then call me and I usually carry the bulk of the first load out in my day pack. We then go out with frame packs to get the balance of the meat or hire a horse/mule train. All 3 of us are now 50+ so we try to avoid carrying weight as long as possible...
This fall I used an Arc Teryx Khasmin 38. What I really liked about it was that is was very narrow. My hunting partner had a nice wool pack but with the attachments it was wider than he was. The wide pack was always hanging him up as we went through tough terrain. The only thing I will change is to sew some fleece to the top. I only noticed noise when I ducked under a branch and poped up scrapping the nylon on the branch.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Yolp_l9YQ8
I use the horn hunter day pack and it does everything I want include carry my arrows on my side in a quiver so that there is nothing on my bow. I go the pack from RMSGear a sponsor here and Tom took the time when I went in to help me fit it and get the quiver moved to the right spot for hunting.
I have been hunting out of the same North Face pack for 20 years. I have lost track of how much meat it has carried out. I have shot over a dozen animals with it on. The deer I shot last Sunday was with it on my back. Fit,size,shape,comfort,and durability are what matters. Mine is blue not camo. The only thing I would change is to make the fabric less noisy. Make sure you can make the shot with the pack on your back.
MAP
I have used the Horn Hunter Mainbeam the past three seasons. I have no problem shooting with it on, and I have killed two elk while wearing the pack. You will not have to purchase a pack frame for packing meat, which is why this is what I would recommend.
I am a small guy, 5'5". The Mainbeam XL is too long for me and sits too low on my hip. If you are looking at the Horn Hunter packs I would take that in to consideration.
From all of the great reviews on the Eberlestock packs on here I gave one a try. I thought it was great, but I still choose to hunt with the Mainbeam.
I have done quite a few 2-4 day trips with my Horn Hunter Mainbeam. I could do plenty more days, but I am going to get the Full Curl system for future pack trips.
The biggest reason I like the Mainbeam is because of how comfortable it is for packing meat. In the past a trip to camp was always required to get the pack frame. The Mainbeam is so comfortable I have not touched a pack frame since I got it. Now that I have used a system like this I will never again carry a pack that will not allow me to take a load of meat out. But that is just my preference.
I have a rack, front quarter, and back straps on the Horn Hunter Mainbeam. I would not have wanted to take anymore, though the pack could have easily handled it.
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Consider the Badlands Ox. It gets little attention, probably because it is a little heavy. But I use it for mule deer day hunts and week long pack hunts for elk. It's superversatile, comfy, and you are always prepared to pack out that first heavy load!
I hate hunting with a pack on, so I use a cabelas frame pack to haul in camp, and then use a big cabelas fanny pack to hunt with. It fits under the cheap green bag on the shelf with the basic version. The frame pack can haul meat if needed.
I cannot tell you anything that has not been said here. Many use two packs and I have done that as well. Last several years I have used only one.
I have the badlands ox. Very versitilale and comfortable. The issue with it isnthatnit is loud. The new tenzing is a thought to replace it.
Important factors. Shoot wearing whatever you get. Ensure it is comfortable with heavy cloths and light cloths. Load it down test it out.
I use my Eberlestock Dragonfly to pack in up to four days. I use it as a day pack after camp is set up. Great to haul your meat in also with the expandable mesh section.