Pack options for deepwoods, treestand hunters

[Gdpolk]

I'm looking at a really good pack option for hunting in deep from a treestand for whitetails.  I need it to haul about 1000 cubic inches of gear, a few extra layers for warmth, lunch, water for 24 hours, a Lone Wolf Alpha stand with 3 sticks, and be able to haul a boned/quartered out animal.

Right now I'm looking at the Mystery Ranch Cabinet so that I can load the stand/sticks in tight and when packing out meat put it in bags to the right/left of the climbing sticks with the lighter/bulkier gear/clothing on the outside.  The design of this pack looks to be phenomenal for my intended use, but it's 5.7lbs empty.  A lot of other similar size backpacking packs are 3.5-4lbs so I'd like to look into possible other options that might be lighter.

What else would you recommend.  I want to be able to put my stand and meat as close to my back as possible and keep the gear on the outside of all that.

[chinook907]

I horse trade packs a lot and had a crew cab for a few years and really liked it. The cabinet sounds perfect for you. There are lighter packs and I've got a lighter one, but I would think that the material that Mystery Ranch uses would hold up better to all the metal that you'll be carrying.

[Gdpolk]

Originally posted by chinook907:
I horse trade packs a lot and had a crew cab for a few years and really liked it. The cabinet sounds perfect for you. There are lighter packs and I've got a lighter one, but I would think that the material that Mystery Ranch uses would hold up better to all the metal that you'll be carrying.

Yea, that is one advantage to a heavier built pack.  I need a good frame and suspension too though.  My stand alone is ~21-22lbs or so with the 3 sticks and thicker seat pad.  Add to that 7-15lbs of gear and clothing, depending on season/trip.  Add to that 50-70lbs of meat, hide, horns, bones that might be coming out with me put it at a 75-110lb load on the way out.  I'm in good shape but at those load weights being able to stuff the weight in tight to the body and having a great suspension system/frame is really going to be worth it's while.

[old_goat2]

Why not use a LW Hand Climber, that would significantly lower your carry weight and bulk.

[steve helstowski]

Ive been using the ebelestock F1 with the transformer. My lone wolf climber fits between and i can cinch it down so its nice and quiet. Plenty of space for everything i need..it was 8 degrees out this morning  so i packed a ton of clothes for a long walk in on public land. So far , happy withthe set up

[Tedd]

I don't think you could beat the Mystery Ranch Crew cab for carrying a lone wolf climber and enough clothing to stay warm.  Or their "hunter's" version the Cabinet is probably even better. I have had the crew cab now for about 6-8 yrs. and it has hauled a lot including boned out deer. The cabinet is the same thing but a new lighter duty frame and a much lower price tag. The Crew cab was in the $500 range a few years ago.
Tedd

[DWinVA]

I’ve used an EXO since the first year they came out. It’s great for packing my Summit or Loc-On and packing out quartered deer.

God Bless.

[Tedd]

The  belt is unhooked in the photo (I was about to take the pack off, I was looking for my trail cam)  

   

[Tedd]

Here is a photo from yesterday. With no stand just full of gear and clothing.
For pre season scouting, putting up trail cams or summer hikes I use an ALICE pack with the frame. Cheap and you can beat the heck out of it.
Tedd

   

[Gdpolk]

Originally posted by old_goat2:
Why not use a LW Hand Climber, that would significantly lower your carry weight and bulk.

I've got a Summit climber stand as well, but have been thinking about going to a Lone Wolf for my climber as well because of how flat it packs and it's a little lighter.  The Summit is MUCH more comfortable but I don't seem to have problems with my Lone Wolf hang on after upgrading the pad.  Which stand I take depends on where I am going and the goals for that hunt.  I like having options and often the climber is the best option being lighter and quicker up/down.  Sometimes a hang on is the best or even my only option to be able to hunt the tree that I want to be in.  Also by having two mobile stands it gives me a backup in case of one needing repaired (never needed that yet but I like the thought of it) AND it gives me a loaner for when friends/family wants to come up for a quick hunt.

I use my hang on for:  

• DEEP hunts where the ideal tree may not be striaght/limb free
• BIG trees - I have strap extensions that allow me to get around a couple monster trees.  One of my locations is a particular white oak that's about 100yds from a bedding area that's probably 45-50" in diameter at the bottom.  The only way up this tree is with my hang on using strap extensions.  Deer LOVE this tree and it's been very productive but there is no other suitable tree within range of it in the area.
• Crooked trees - a few of my honey hole sites are on trees that are crooked and one is forked about 10' up where I sit just above the fork.
• any time I'm going in blind to new areas (probably 1/3 of my hunts) because the hang on option is just more versatile.  If a tree is sturdy enough to hold me, my Lone Wolf Alpha can be hung in it and I can hunt it.  It's the no compromises solution for stand placement for a mobile hunter.

I use my climber when:  

• I know where I am going and what tree I am going to.
• I know the tree is straight
• I know the tree is free of limbs
• I know the tree is the right size for my climber to be able to accommodate

[Etter]

Ive used a redhead headhunter for years. Two trips to Arizona and god only knows how many miles in the appalachians for bears. I fit an entire javelina boar in it in Arizona and packed the hide and quarters of a 150 lb bear off a mtn in ga in one trip. Im not sure its made anymore but there were still some on **** last I checked. It's a great pack.

[southernarcher]

Tedd got a pic with the stand in it?

[tecum-tha]

I don't know what you consider deepwoods, but I would switch probably to a tree saddle in your situation.
Saves the weight of the stand and your harness and you only need climbing sticks. Put that sling on one of the sticks at the base.
The other option is to leave a stand in the woods well hidden in a staging area.
That is best if you go in a specific route and then from there to several different possible spots.

[Gdpolk]

Originally posted by tecum-tha:
I don't know what you consider deepwoods, but I would switch probably to a tree saddle in your situation.
Saves the weight of the stand and your harness and you only need climbing sticks. Put that sling on one of the sticks at the base.
The other option is to leave a stand in the woods well hidden in a staging area.
That is best if you go in a specific route and then from there to several different possible spots.

Deep for stand hunting is >1 mile deep.

I've tried the tree saddle thing very briefly. It wasn't for me. I just couldn't get used to swinging around.

As for leaving stands in, some of the places I hunt have regulations against that. Other areas are just so dependent on the perfect wind that I may only visit them 1-2x a year. But more often than that I just really like being mobile and going into new places and not hunting the exact same places or using the same tactics all the time.  A huge part of my draw to traditional archery is to enjoy the journey and experience of hunting. A big part of that is getting to go new places, see new things, and never knowing if the next animal I see will be a record book buck or a yearling doe. Meat is meat to me, I couldn't care less about horns except in one of the WMAs that require an intact body to be taken to the check station. In this WMA horns help to haul them out with. But the suspense of not knowing every animal in the area is quite fun and adds to the adventure for me. I get bored too quick to throw up a couple stands and just go wear them out all year long.

[Xtreme007]

I have been using the exo mountain gear pack for 3 years. I run the same setup your using. Works great and very comfortable for those long hikes in and out

[Gdpolk]

Thanks for the input guys.

[YosemiteSam]

My ultralight frame pack (osprey exos) is just under 3 lb. and I'd probably top that one out at 35 lb fully loaded.  A heavy duty pack that can take 50 lb loads on up will easily come in around 5 lb.

But a mile or two isn't far.  For those kinds of distances, you can strap on 2 packs (one in front, one on your back) or just carry your gear in one on your back and the other, for the carcass, you can carry in your extra hand (full pack on your back, bow in one hand, extra pack in the other).  If you get something, you just have to make 2 trips or one awkward trip.  I wouldn't want to do it over 3+ miles but a mile or two is over and done so fast that you can get away with a lot of crazy methods.

[Gdpolk]

Originally posted by YosemiteSam:
My ultralight frame pack (osprey exos) is just under 3 lb. and I'd probably top that one out at 35 lb fully loaded.  A heavy duty pack that can take 50 lb loads on up will easily come in around 5 lb.

But a mile or two isn't far.  For those kinds of distances, you can strap on 2 packs (one in front, one on your back) or just carry your gear in one on your back and the other, for the carcass, you can carry in your extra hand (full pack on your back, bow in one hand, extra pack in the other).  If you get something, you just have to make 2 trips or one awkward trip.  I wouldn't want to do it over 3+ miles but a mile or two is over and done so fast that you can get away with a lot of crazy methods.

I get what your saying.  The majority of my stand locations are <1 mile deep.  For this I prefer to just pack out all my junk and then come back with a second pack for meat only.

That said I have several that are 1-5 miles deep and when going out that deep makes doubling back for meat a bit tedious.

[ChiefStingingArrow]

I use two packs. One for all my safety gear and the other for all my hunting gear. I like to use two packs so that way they are both on each side of my sticks and pack in nice and close to my back.

[Kyle Lancaster]

http://www.bisongearonline.com