How many trips to pack out mature bull elk?

[Outdoors]

Hunting 3 miles back in wilderness that only allows hiking. Will hike inbound in one trip with 70 pounds inside my pack.

If I get an elk down and bone out the quarters and have half the cape and skull plate with the horns, how many trips are needed outbound if need to keep the load at 70 pounds? One trip for camp. One trip for horns and cape? 3 for the meat?

 

[foundation]

Nobody said there would be a math test today, but my guess would be at least 4 or 5 with your camp. Even boning one out my last pack out took 3 round trips for all the meat and cape/rack.

Anymore I think I will make a extra trip and not pack such a heavy load since my kness are feeling the miles.

 

[BIGJOHNT]

You didn't say if it was a spike or big bull ? But I would say you have five trips. Are you deboning or packing out quarters ?

 

[mmwb]

It depends on both the size of the animal and how much you want to risk injury. The average elk I've killed boned out to about 220-225 lbs of meat. That is three heavy trips. A big bull will probably provide another 25-50 lbs of meat. The cape/antlers/skull plate will really vary in weight depending on the size of the animal and rack. I would guess over 50 lbs. If you lighten your camp you might get it out in four trips, otherwise five. The steepness of the country will be a key factor. It's going downhill with the weight that will be the challenge and when you would stand to injure yourself.

Remember, just because you can pack 120 lbs over hill and dale, doesn't mean its a good idea. Better more trips with lighter loads then injuring feet, knees, hips or back... I regret being tough to the point of stupidity when I was in my 20s and early 30s. There's a lot of good areas I don't hunt elk because I know that without help or horses I'm not going to pull it off.

 

[TOPGUN]

5 or 6 trips for the exact reason stated by mmwb!

 

[c3]

It's at least 5 trips for the critter alone. You can't do 3 miles with 80-100 lbs each time to get it out in 4. Then you have to add the 6th to get all your gear out.

My bull in 2010 had 260 lbs of packaged meat, plus the mud soaked cape and head. We did it in 5 trips all together with 3 of us and it was only a half mile, but straight uphill.

Cheers,
Pete

 

[WapitiBob]

>Hunting 3 miles back in wilderness
>that only allows hiking. Will
>hike inbound in one trip
>with 70 pounds inside my
>pack.
>
>If I get an elk down
>and bone out the quarters
>and have half the cape
>and skull plate with the
>horns, how many trips are
>needed outbound if need to
>keep the load at 70
>pounds? One trip for camp.
>One trip for horns and
>cape? 3 for the meat?
>

I'll be the discenter here and agree with you.
The horns and cape will be a bich. That hide will be heavy and want to slip and slide all over.

Boned out, 3 pack outs is easily doable and won't be too bad. All loads will be 70+ pounds but those 3 meat loads won't touch 100# each even on a good day.

 

[HorseCreek]

You need to consider the weapon you are using. If archery it's most likely gonna be hot! Three miles in alone is pretty risky and irresponsible IMHO. If you still plan on hunting that far in try to find a local with horses. I'd be happy to help if you are in utah.
Good luck!


Traditional >>>------->

 

[wuffie]

>You need to consider the weapon
>you are using. If archery
>it's most likely gonna be
>hot! Three miles in alone
>is pretty risky and irresponsible
>IMHO. If you still plan
>on hunting that far in
>try to find a local
>with horses. I'd be happy
>to help if you are
>in utah.
>Good luck!
>
>
>Traditional >>>------->


Pretty nice offer there HorseCreek! ;-)

 

[WYGoatchaser]

as many as it takes

 

[dreaminbouthuntin]

3. One for camp, one for Antlers and cape, one for deboned meat.

 

[Gator]

4-5 for the Meat, one for the camp.

"I have found if you go the extra mile it's Never crowded".
>[Font][Font color = "green"]Life member of
>the MM green signature club.[font/]

 

[BrowningRage]

If you can recruit help, do it. Otherwise you're looking at 5 trips I'd say- just like you posted originally. Even if you can do the 3 miles in one hour, you're looking at:

Packing, trip out, unload, trip in, and repeat- 5 times. I'd guess that'd be at least a 12 hour job. And that's after you've got the elk deboned and all that. Without help of any kind, it's a two day job.

For your sake- I hope you are burdened with such a job this fall. Good luck

"Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!" 2 Ne. 28: 24

 

[Outdoors]

Thanks for the feedback.

I am in a non-commercial zone of a National Forest and mechanical devices are not legal for transport. I will plan on 5 trips and if takes fewer then all the better. I will get the deboned meat our first then the cape/horns and then the tent/gear.

Good luck everyone on your upcoming hunts!

 

[lang]

You need better friends. Teenage boys work great, usually in good shape, and they still think packing is fun.

 

[Bossbrott]

>You need better friends. Teenage
>boys work great, usually in
>good shape, and they still
>think packing is fun.


x2.

 

[ShowThemToMe]

>3. One for camp, one for
>Antlers and cape, one for
>deboned meat.

You're a Wasteful Person Ain't you Paul Bunyon?


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These Dusty Roads ain't streets of gold but I'm happy right where I'm at!
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[TOPGUN]

LAST EDITED ON Aug-03-12 AT 07:52PM (MST)[p]I'd like to meet the guy that can backpack an entire deboned bull in one trip because he would quickly become my best friend!!!

 

[rmanwill]

I agree with five trips. One for camp and weapon, one for cape and horns & three for the meat. The last couple years our alk hunting group has tagged between 9-11 elk per season. These were mature five pointers (not trophey heard bulls, but great bulls) spikes and a few large mature cows.

Only a couple were recovered with a rhino and the rest were all quartered, deboned and packed out. We have 5-8 freighter frames/Cabela outfitter frames that are on the mountian with us at all time. If the elk is more then a few hundred yard off the road, the hunter that bagged the elk quarters and debones the elk while the rest of the group finishes their morning hunt or can group up and enter the location on the Garmin Rhino GPS and at least three or more hunter come to the kill spot with pack frames. We load one hind quarter per frame, both fronts on another frame and have all the deboned meat placed in a meat bag weattach to each frame and either pack it out in the bag or strap it to a fourth frame (lighter load).

Nice to have a group of willing hunting partners to hunt with that know how to break an animal down, pitch in and help and willing to strap on a pack on for a few hundred yard to a couple miles. My favorite eleven day hunt of the year, even with it being the most physical.

 

[NickM]

As many as it takes, that is right. Sounds like something to be prepared for but nothing to worry about. Just have everything you need, which with a 70 lb pack (wow, that is a lot, you bringing the kitchen sink with you) you should have everything you need! When the "problem" arises and you have a bull down, rejoice in the success and get to work!


Good luck and take care!

 

[Pines_N_Tines]

LAST EDITED ON Aug-08-12 AT 04:28PM (MST)[p]I've never deboned one but I had my brother with me and shot a bull slightly less than a mile from our four wheelers. I shot right before dark. We had got up that morning to hunt at 4:30 am. By the time the bull was quartered, and the back straps, loin, and neck meat prepared it was 11:30 at night. For our first trip out I packed a hind quarter and had my bro take a front quarter. Second trip I took the other hind and he took the other front. Third trip was a beast. He took the meat and I took the cape/anters. So six trips for a non-deboned mature bull. I'm sure you could shave off at least one trip if you deboned. It'll be work but it's highly rewarding. The final load made it to the wheelers at 3:00 am and we had a long ride to the camp trailer. By the time we got back to the camp trailer and put the meat in the coolers, we'd been up 25 hours but it was one awesome experience and a great time spent with my brother.

Best of luck to you.

 

[TheKnack]

3-4 depending on what shape your in and your size...(Then one back later to pick up your camp). Always pack the heaviest load first.
Best,
Jerry

 

[baltz526]

Camp is 3 miles from truck, You kill the elk 2 miles from camp so each trip to truck with meat may be 5 miles each way. If your a beast with a pack you might get one trip per day. Most elk i have packed out on pack frames are 4 to 7 trips. The 7 trip bull was 325lb of boned out meat once it was cut back at my shop. Average is 5 trips but i haul every scrap of meat liver and heart.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------support your local guzzlers. OHA life member,lapine oregon

 

[WillardHunter]

Outdoors,
I have packed out a few elk from 3 1/2 miles in. The first was my trophy Elk in 2009. I was running a marathon two days after I shot my bull. I completely boned out the elk, it took me three trips to pack out the meat with the pack at 100#. One to pack out scull. Left the cap. Total pack out 4.

The other time was a cow shot within 400 yards of my trophy. I was not in as good of shape, but I had a lot of help. As a hunting group we have four Cabela's framed elk packs.. We left the bone in. Four of us took a quarter each, one took the back straps, loins and ribs... so total pack out 5.

 

[shooter21]

Alot will depend on the size of the bull and how much weight you can handle but solo id say 2 trips if its boned and you saw the antlers off .cape and head are close to a load by them self .if you do kill and bone it out put all the bones in a bag just to see how much it weighs when its all said and done you be thanking your self .

 

[12gauge]

Check out elk101.com, look for their "gutless field dressing" video. Take your own notes as you watch the video. Watching it gave me an idea of what to pack out first and so forth. Main thing is getting and keeping the meat cool.

Best of luck to you out there!

 

[Outdoors]

Appreciate all the great info.

I picked up a 4" butcher's hook to help hold the meat away from the bone when slicing. My hands have cramped in past trying to hold things and pull when butchering in the field. Should speed up things a bit.

I will bone the meat out. I am just packing out half the cape along with the horns/skull plate so that will reduce the pack weight a tad bit.

I may have a buddy lined up as a pack mule. He is a city slicker but likes to get out and fish so has camped several times in tents over the years. He is not keen on Mountain House meals, though, and is thinking steak. Would be worth it, of course. Now, if he learns to cow call I may be set.