Moose Hunting/Backpack

[chinook907]

I've had the camptrails pack that guyzer mentions for ~25 years & it works well for packing meat, very light and inexpensive.  The Barneys packs are nice but neither.  The camptrails has a shelf which helps keep the quaters from sliding down too far.  Real big quarters are hard to get in the pack but you can strap them (in a meat bag) over the top of the bag, directly to the frame.  Make sure you're fit, good rule of thumb is to limit yourself to moose 1 mile or less from the strip, river, etc.  The amount of misery can vary depending on the size of the animal and how firm the ground is.

[KSdan]

I would not use a backpack. . . I would use a belt holster. . . you know- one of those that hold a satellite phone so you can call a helicopter for assistance.  

[Mike Orton]

I've done a fair amount of research into this question....

What kind of shape are you in and how are your knees?

My opinion you'll need two packs.  One is a day pack or fanny to hunt out of and a second full frame pack to haul with.  Internal frame packs are not strong enough to carry the kind of weight you're considering.  Moose are big critters.  Go look at a horse, cut it into six pieces and carry each piece around for a couple of miles.  Then put it down, walk back those couple of miles without the load and do the whole thing again.  Now do the circuit four more times.  Two best options I could recommend is the Bullpack from Idaho and the Barney's pack frame from Alaska.  Far and away the best option is the Barney's pack, due to the strength of the frame and the suspension.  Barney's also offers a number of pack bags made of Kevlar, which is just about bomb-proof as a pack bag material.
 

 
Barring that advise above, I've got a Badlands 4500 that I'll make you a good deal on....

[Hornseeker]

Well...if they are all like Mike...you have NOTHING to worry about...Hell..I wouldn't even bring a pack if I had 3 Mike Mittens going along! (I dont know Mike, but I did see a pic Gene had that showed Mike carrying two nice whitetail bucks whole on his back!!)  :0)

I cant wait to hear your story... wish I was going with!

[jrchambers]

the pack is all part of the experience, if you have three guys willing i would go a mile a hand.  ive done moose packs while i was 12 that you guys are frowning at. as long as you are not alone just make sure you can cary the pack, three trips with lighter loads can actualy be better than two with all you can cary.  same for your partners.  the haul out should be a happy time,  no more clearance beef, for a while anyway.

[Lost Arra]

There are internal frame packs quite capable of hauling out the heavy meat loads you could get with a moose. You just have to get the right pack.

I promise you that a Kifaru pack will carry as much weight as you can physically handle.

 http://www.kifaru.net/haulfame.HTM

[dragon rider]

Canadabowyer is absolutely right, or, as my drill sergeant said one day after a course of training on how to attack a machine gun emplacement - "Stay low and let some 18 year old John Wayne take care of it."

[Carbon Caster]

I have only packed one moose and one bear out on a pack frame, but I also packed "ALL" the bear bait I used at the bait station where I killed the bear in with the same frame.  I have a Freighter Frame and Moose Pack that was mentioned previously.  The trips were all over half a mile and up hill a bit and through some THICK stuff at that on the pack outs.  I would have a freighter frame or some other frame type pack frame at "camp" and have a quality day pack (I use a Bison Gear) on while you are hunting.  I learned the hard way to not overload yourself.  Take smaller loads and do more trips.  On the moose that I and a buddy packed out, we took it out in 2 trips!!!!!!  We should have done 3 trips, but I didn't want to go back in there (LONG WAY THROUGH A FRESHLY LOGGED NASTY AREA) to make one more trip.  I decided I would take all the boned out meat AND a front quarter on my pack for the last trip.  I am a big guy and although I don't have the best knees anymore, I can still carry A LOT OF WEIGHT!!!  Even then, half way out over 1/4 of a mile, I was whipped!!!  Me and my buddy traded packs at that point and we proceeded to make the rest of the trip out.  BTW - After carrying that STUPID heavy pack, one Moose quarter seemed like child's play.  I have moose hunted further than 1 mile away from where I could get my vehicle before, but I will NOT do it again, unless I have a contact with a quad to help me out.  1 mile is my new by myself pack out limit.  Even then, be prepared for an ALL NIGHER if you shoot one in the evening or late afternoon.

The best place to shoot a moose is in the bed of your pick up truck!!!!!

[Steve O]

I would have been on at least a half dozen DIY backpack moose hunts if I hadn't already shot one and remind myself what an incredible PITA it is going to be to pack out a moose on my back.

I'm not afraid of working hard, but I think MANY people do not realize how BIG a moose is.  If you are going to Alaska, you are going to have to shoot a MATURE moose as a Non-Resident; don't go look at a horse, go look at a Belgian or Clydesdale to see what you are going to have to pack.  Also keep in mind many of the NR areas now require you to pack out the bones in the quarters along with the ribs.  That is a lot of weight.  One normal guy does not pick up a bone in mature moose hind quarter...Mike Mitten maybe, but he is a giant of a man with more drive and willpower than any 3 men I have ever met.  Nothing about processing a moose is easy...the leather portion of their hide is as thick as your thumb is wide.

I had the luxury of horses to pack out my moose and I made a VERY INTELLIGENT mental note to NOT ever do this without that luxury   :D    With that said, I am currently researching a DIY trip for moose before that opportunity is taken away by the wolves and outfitters...

Here are a couple pictures, but I doubt they can convey the scope of work required to take care of and backpack out an Alaskan moose.

Packs I would choose for that job would be any Mystery Ranch based on the NICE frame, Kifaru Longhunter, Wilderness Wanderer, or Barneys.   DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT try to be cheap on your pack.  You will be sorry!

When looking at the photos, keep in mind these are  BIG horses!  That wrangler in the photo with the head was 6'5".  

 


 


 


 

[bill langer]

I have packed out 2 moose the old fashioned way. First moose was 1 mile-one way 3.5 guys took 4 hours.
Second moose was 2 miles-one way(1 mile by canoe) 3 guys took 6 hours.
We used external frame backs with shelves and bungee cords.
The most important things are a great work ethic, will power(when the cramps set in) and to be in the absolute best shape you can be in. Everything else will fall into place.
P.S. Did pack a third moose with a log skidder, cost the heart and 50 bucks. Still took an hour though!

[Jerry Wald]

I agree with Steve O. This is my favourite way to pack'em

   

 

Jer Bear

[Herdbull]

I packed out both of these moose myself. The first one was 13 miles from camp...so I moved camp to a new location and was left with a two mile pack distance. It took 8 trips to move boned out meat hhorns and cape. The second moose was nine miles from original drop, but had moved camp previously so my pack out was 3 miles from new landing strip. Moose are where you find them, and drop camp hunts can be feast or famine...I usually found famine and had to go find the moose. Ha! I use a freighter frame with all gear including a Bison Gear Elk hunter pack lashed on. The Elk Hunter is not advertised much but give Angelo a call. ... I don't hunt with out it.

   
 
Mike

[Herdbull]

[Herdbull]

[Whip]

Hey Mike, I always thought you had shot a bunch of big deer.  Those things on your wall look like midgets!    

They sure do give a guy perspective on how BIG those moose are!

[akdd]

The Barney packs are pricey but they are real popular with the guides who make a living using them. I don't think that he has his web site is up and running yet. Barneys Sports Chalet (907)561-5242

[Carbon Caster]

MR. Mitten,

Do you want to come Pack, I mean hunt moose with me this year???  LOL!!!!  After those HUGE Alaskan MEESE, ours here in Alberta would seem like babies.  You could probably have thrown the bull calf I shot 2 years ago over your shoulder and carried it 2 miles in one trip.  I had the luxury of having a buddy, a quad, and a BIG plastic sled to bring this little guy out in.  I gutted it and then, I backed my Bronco II up to it and pulled it up some quad ramps into the back of the hatch by a rope pulling from the front seat.  My buddy was pushing and lifting from the back.  I sure got some funny looks driving home with an ENTIRE moose minus his guts INSIDE a Bronco II driving thru a city of 1,000,000 people.  LOL!!!!  I wish I would have taken a picture of it in the truck.  Here it is in the field where I loaded it.  I am the ugly guy WITHOUT the beard.
 

Could you put two of these over your shoulder???  I have a Jeep Wrangler to hunt out of this year, so I don't think I will be hauling home a whole moose, even if it is a calf.  LOL!!!

[Herdbull]

That is some good eating you got there. Ha!
  A lot of folks talk about the final scene in Primal Dreams which was just done to make a point of measuring success against your effort, but staying with a moose until all the meat is out will really test what you’re made of….. And “apart of the remote Alaskan experience!” If you are close, then the freighter frame works good for quarters, I’ve never done it that way. I always have to bone them out. Plus, if you are flown in, the extra weight of the bones may need to come off to accommodate more cargo from a small plane like a super cub.

Whip- I know what you mean, both of those buck on the far wall are over 20 inches wide inside and score over 160 gross. Ha! But it’s all in the camera angle. Mike

[Carbon Caster]

Originally posted by Herdbull:
That is some good eating you got there. Ha!
  Mike

You can't even imagine how good that little bull calf was!!!  I will NEVER pass up a chance to kill a Moose calf EVER.  Of course, I wouldn't pass up a chance to shoot an old shoe leather Bull like the one you have hanging on the wall either.

[Herdbull]

Iron Bull- I hope the resize worked. Thanks, Mike