DIY elk hunting- how to get started

[The Night Stalker]

Here is what on my check off list right now
Kifaru pack/ longhunter guide
zfoam thermarest under neo air
thermarest neo air
kifaru 4man tipi
Kifaru small stove
helle knife
ACS CX
jet boil stove
fly rod, flys, etc./tenkara or collapsible spinning
2 lighters/fire starter wet match          /
flashlight/fenix pd30/extra batteries
head lamb/petzl/ extra 3 AAA batteries
batteries/ 6 extra lithium
GPS
map cut map down
kaitadyn water system
gatorade powder for water/ hot chocolate
camera
extra string/ shelf material/   kept at  truck
spectra rope and  bear/bag for food
game bags/ alaskan bags
plastic bags
water bag 4liter
tyvek sheet
portable water bottle with filter
Mountain house foods
Day 1 with power bars
day 2  "        "            "
day 3
day 4
day 5
day 6
day 7
day 8
day 9
rain gear/ small pack
extra socks/
ascent sitka pants x2
sitka transverse shirt x2
sitka 90% jacket
sitka kelvin jacket
sitka core bottoms
sitka beanie
face mask cold gear
sitka gloves
Crocs for camp
small detergent
calls
fuel X2 cannister
western mountaineering badger down bag
throat lozengers
diamox
chapstick
hunter wipes 5x8 and large 10x15
toiletries
tooth brush& paste
decoy/ heads up decoy
small wire grate for cooking fish
liquid suture and epi pen/ lidocaine with suture in the truck

[Autumnarcher]

Great list Stalker. Just curious, what does you load weigh? Also, the zfoam pad under the neo air-I've seen pics of guys withthe zfoam pads strapped to their pack-looked kind of cumnbersome to me, but I'm curious aboutthe setup. Is it more for protection of your air mattress< or another insulation layer? Im using a piece of tyvek under my Ar Core pad. Works ok, pad wants to slide around on it a bit.

We're gonna use theparatipi this year, and I plan on getting a sawtooth next year. I like the para, but its a little tight with 2 and the stove set up in it. For one its perfect.

Great list, gives me some ideas for my load out.
Right now with 4 days food I'm sitting at 50#, and thats with my sidearm. I'll see how it goes the first run out from base camp, and pare it down if need be. Im using the AG2, which is very similar to the longhunter. Love the cargo chair.

[BradLantz]

Autumnarcher    there is an adventure doing it like that isn't there?

Sometimes we maybe make it all more complicated than it is. I'm 42, I'm not a stranger to elk hunting or camping rough and I certainly like a comfortable camp more than a not so comfortable one but I also like the simplicity of a light bivy type camp.

Hunting from the truck can be great too .... don't like the area you've hunted for 3 days? Drive 150 miles and hunt somewhere totally different! Western states are millions of acres big, adventures await all you gotta do is GO!

[Autumnarcher]

Mike Mittens book One Mans Wilderness- if you can read that and not instantly want to pile your gear in the truck, you might wantto check to see if you still have a pulse. I love that book.
I've talked to a lot of not so hard core hunting friends,tellingthem about our trip. They look at me like Im nuts. They like the soound of elk hunting, but backpacks, etc and its a whole different story.

Lifes short- sometimes shorterthan we expect. Get up and go for it. worst case, you dont like it and you can head for the truck.

Huntin elk stirs a fire inside me like nnothing else Ive ever done. I thnk t he only thing that comes close to the adrenaline rush of a rutting bull elk at close range was when I was a rookie firefighter kickin my first door and going in a rockin house fire. But honestly, I much prefer a bugle over a nozzle. Those days are behind me, so its elk huntin for me.

[twitchstick]

Every year I add more stuff to my hunting set up for my hunting trips. It makes it nice once you have a good setup that can be used for years. You done your home work and it sounds like your ready. I just wished you could teach me how to get that many days off for a hunt,that's a dream hunt in it's self to me.

[Overspined]

I agree with the wilderness weather.  One trip we spike camped with a little tent and it rained all day every day,  and almost froze every night. The hunting was tough, and we ended up hiking out every night to sleep in the van. Unusual weather but we would have froze to death had we not made the decision to get out. We didn't pack clothing for the cold, WET nights. It was some freak weather pattern lasting a week.

[The Night Stalker]

Matt, that is why I have the kifaru 4man. If I had to do it over again, I might buy the sawtooth. There is nothing like starting a fire in the tipi, stripping down and drying your clothes out or taking a sponge bath. Last year, why my comrades were complaining of the cold, I was in my tipi in my underwear. They threatened to pee down my stovepipe.
John, the reason for the zpad this year is because I had pine needles come through my tyvek last year on several occasions. A little protection with the neo air. Again, research would tell you if it might be easier to go with a agnes pad. I think the neo air is 9oz and the zpad adds additional weight. Its kind of security thing for me.
John, I also seen a post on another forum where you were interested in goats. Going ultralight and having pack goats is where I am heading in the future. I am 47 now and ready to go hunting tomorrow. I get up every morning before work and go to the gyn to train. I wish it would already get here, I need a break. I would rather be climbing and calling. If I am going to do this when I am in my 50's, the goats would be nice. I broke my elbow on May 22nd, its healed and I am back on coarse. I think it helped me more than it hurt. I was thinking despartion for a while. I was finally able to pull my bow back and hold it last week. Last year, I carried 62lbs up the mountain for 9 days. Hopefully, I will be in the mid 50's. Its about time to start packing and weighing my pack. I train with a 40lb vest and do mostly walking up a 15% grade or run. I also do the mountain athlete program. I also added the decoy this year. I think its worth the added weight. One of these years, a elk is going to make the mistake and get to close.

[Autumnarcher]

I love the lead up to departure day. I had to run my mom back home today, and it just so happens she lives about 15 minutes from Cabelas.
Now I really dont need any more gear, but I had to pick a few fuel cannisters for my Snow Peak Giga stove, and a new lense pen.

I almost bought a zfold pad, but decided against it, for now anyway. Then I really came close to a major screw up. I was curious about the EuroGlass binos Cabelas claims are as good as " a major European Bino maker". So I checked them out, and side by side compared them with a pair of Swaro 10x42's. Oh my! First let me say it wasnt even close. But those Swaro's.....oh my are those nice. Truly the finest there is.
I contemplated getting a Cabelas card and buying them right there, but the little voice in my head won out. Good thingI did, I casually mentioned my temptation to the wife over dinner.
Fire shot from her eyes, and THAT LOOK told me I probably made a good choice. For now. I tried to explain the benefits of a $2000 pr of glasses over the $800 pr, to no avail. It just didnt work.

But I know what pr I want now, and just have to put an action plan into place to get them.

Got home, set up the base camp tent and woodstove, checked everything over, repacked it and ready to go. Just need to gather base camp gear,finish some arrows and sharpen heads, and to one final layout of gear. its almost go time.

[randy grider]

Excellent Thread....., Excellent!

[Flingblade]

Ok, I am going to make this happen.  I do have a couple questions that I don't think have been addressed.  For the camping part; are you carrying water in or finding streams and using water purification?  Are you digging a latrine or just answering natures call wherever you are?  When you quarter out the elk in the field are you leaving the ribcage behind?  What else is left?  And lastly; if you kill your elk on day 2 but your son doesn't kill his until day 22 how are you taking care of the meat until then?  Do you find a local butcher that can cold store the quarters for you?  I have alot of research to do but I appreciate all of the tips and info shared here!

[Autumnarcher]

Fling, we each have a 100oz water bladder in our packs, and I have both a katadyn pump filter, and aqua pura purification drops. We refill from streams, ponds or lakes when we get by one. I opted forthe large bladders, as sometimes you get somewhere where water is a good hike away.
Stopping to top off your water regualrly is a good practice. Ive let myself run out before and its no fun. Happened one evening, and had to pack out an elk a partner killed at night, with no water. That was no fun. I think I drank a gallon when we got back to camp. I also have a larger dual bladder gravity feed filter system for camp. Fill it , hang it and you have an additional couple gallons of clean water available.

As for the latrine, a shallow hole out behind the base camp tent, and on bivy excursions, you hope you can find a smooth log :} I always bury my paperwork.

On a side note, I buy a few refill packs of unscented baby wipes, and dry them out and putthem in zip lock baggies. You can use them dry for your tush, or wet them to wash up with. easier to pack than a roll of TP, and face it, soft enoughfor a babys behind.

As far as the carcass- each state is a little different as far as what meat you have to bring out. Best to check the regs,I believe in CO you can leave tehrib meat, but dont quote me on that one. I'll have to check again myself.  If e get one this year, I want to slow roast some ribs by the fire Fred Bear style.

Good question about meat care. If we get one early, Ihave a meat processor lined up where I can take it and have it frozen not too far from our area.

Any other questions you come up with fire away.

[Autumnarcher]

A few other random thoughts-

Buy unscented baby wipes, dry 'em out and store em in a baggie. Good for use as TP, and you can wetthem to wash up with.

A couple large contractor sized garbage bags in your pack have many uses- pack cover, rain poncho, a place to lay meat on to keep clean while cutting elk up. You cna also put your meat in it and soak in a cold creek to keep it cool while packing out your elk.

Hunt cooler benches on north facing slopes with dark timber, or good cover in hot weather. Colder weather hit the benches on the south facing slopes.

wallows with relatively clean or clear water arent being used, Find the muddy nasty ones.

Never drink sraight from a stream or spring. Giardia will ruin your trip, and you'll need a lot of TP.

Thunderstorms take on a whole new perspective when you're actually in it, ratherthan below it.

If you're with a partner, slip a few rocks in his pack while hes napping. He'll complain how heavy his pack is getting as the day wears on, and you'l get agood laugh. did this to a partner one yr, I thin khe dumped 10# of rocks at the end of the day.

[toby]

Great thread, just a couple thoughts. It may have already been mentioned, but learn how to call. Elknut has some great training stuff for calling, there is nothing as thrilling as calling a bull elk into you or your parnter's lap. And, learn how to bugle, I've hunted for 12 years and have called far more bulls in to a bugle than a cow call. Elk have a language, it pays huge benefits to learn it. My second suggestion is to scout using Google Earth, it can save miles of walking and can show some excellent honey holes that will hold elk.

[elk nailer]

John, Great thread!
When doing your research don't be afraid to call the wildlige biologist for the area you are hunting. If you ask the right questions, like are there any catle grazing in the area that you wish to hunt, is there any logging going on, are there any sheep in the area. Has there been any fires lately. Is there a water supply available.Things like that.

[Whip]

Originally posted by Autumnarcher:

Thunderstorms take on a whole new perspective when you're actually in it, ratherthan below it.
 

Boy is that the truth!!              Makes you feel so alive! Scary as all heck, but what a memory!

I used to carry a garbage bag in my pack like you suggested to lay meat on.  It really is a huge help in keeping meat clean during quartering if you have a place to lay it.  The only problem with the garbage bags is that they are so slippery that the quarters can slide off if you are on a hillside.  (And since very little of the west is on the level there is a good chance of that!)

What I use now is a very light weight piece of nylon from an old tent.  I cut it in half to minimize weight and always have it in my pack right along with the game bags.  The meat seems to stay put better on the nylon than it did on the garbage bags, and it is also large enough to function as a small emergency shelter if I need it.

Bees and flies can be a problem when field dressing, and they drive me crazy.  The best thing I have found to fight them off is white vinegar.  I carry a small bottle of vinegar in my pack, and a small spray bottle (empty)  When I start field dressing, I mix 1/2 vinegar and 1/2 water into the spray bottle and spray the meat as I go.  I also spray the game bags once I fill them.  This year I am also going to pre-soak the game bags in vinegar before I leave.  It really works to keep the little nasties away from my prize!

[Pete McMiller]

I carry a bottle of Liquid Game Bag in my pack.  Doesn't smell or have a taste that I can decern but sure keeps the bees and flies off the meat.  

Oh, thunderstorms in the mountains, FANTASTIC.  I spent an afternoon in a treestand one year and every 20 minutes a storm would come thru.  Cloud to cloud lightening all around.  One of those memeories that I'll never forget.

[randy grider]

I have only been on 2 meatless elk hunts, so maybe there is something I do not know, But why would anyone consider packing out the meat in quarters? is it required by law?  I'm thinking bone out the meat, and leave those useless,heavy, bones on the mountain where you killed the elk. If i'm wrong, enlighten me.

[elk ninja]

I'll say it again.  Loads of good useful info in this thread!  

And again.... DO IT.  Don't wait.  One of my favorite quotes from a true conservationist is "Don't wait until you retire to go hunting and fishing. Don't even wait for your annual vacation. Go at every opportunity. Things that appear urgent at the moment may, in the long run, turn out to be far less so." -Ted Trueblood

@ Randy Grinder... you'll have to check the state's regulations where you want to hunt.  In Idaho we have to keep evidence of sex attatched to the carcass... leaving it attatched to a boned out quarter is fine.  Boning out an elk is easy and it will cool the meat faster as the bones tend to hold the heat quite well.  However, transporting a boned quarter is a bit trickier than a bone in quarter, so it's a bit of give and take either way.

As for the aforementioned baby wipes, I have ended up making my own and they seem to work well.  I use the blue contractor towels from home depot or lowes, and mix in some rubbing alcohol, fall scent (because it is more pleasant to wash up with a light fall scent than bull elk urine...)and some unscented liquid aloe.  soak the entire roll (which you can cut in half with a hack saw by the way), and store it in ziplocks.  

I always take tylenol PM.  Really helps you sleep with aches and pains that inevitably come with the high country.

A silver space blanket takes up virtually no room or weight and can make the difference between a long, long cold night (and possible survival, but I won't get too dramatic) and a tolerable night after you shoot that bull of a lifetime at twilight...

Keep a journal.  Can't say enough what a believer in journals I am.  I re-read my field notes every year and remember what I have forgotten (which is usually a lot).  At the very least, grab a golf pencil and jot notes on the back of a map or a small ring notebook.  You'll thank me in 20 years when you are sitting by the fire, remembering everything.

You can skimp on some things, but please don't skimp on socks.  Get top shelf wool socks like smartwool.  You can get by with cotton pants, but you WILL blister like the sun if you wear cotton socks.  

Hunt the wind, hunt the wind, hunt the wind.  Enough said.  But also hunt where the elk are...

Surveyor's tape.  I have begin using the small roll of TP in my backpack.  Still highly visable, but it degrades much faster.  I do still have some tape in case it is raining or snowing (last year was the first year in 10 that it didn't rain or snow on me the whole hunt).  

Finally, read David Petersen's (or check out this "guttless" video:   http://elk101.com/webisodes/gutless-video/  ... if that into doesn't get you excited, time to pick up knitting...) articles on how to dress an elk without gutting it.  Much worth your time!  

You can never learn too much.  Do your homework!  Enjoy every minute of it!

[Talondale]

Just wanted to add one nice resource I found for remote scouting. Traildamage.com is an 4x4 site that has a lot of reports on 4x4 trails in various states out west and they have some good reports on conditions of roads and difficulty rating and sometimes lots of pictures of the area.  This can be very useful info if going into a new area that you will be accessing using a 4x4 trail.

[FOXXNTROUT]

I was just thinking about elk hunting. This is a great thread.