What to pack and what not

[sniper14]

I am starting to hunt were I move around a lot and I always seem to pack way to much crap. If you were hunting for a full day what are a list of "must have" items to put in your pack. Trying to get an idea of what I truly need.

 

[jimmedup]

babywipes!good knife,sharpener, rope,gps and compass, flashlight,batterys,water,food, fire starter, game bags, lite weight rain gear, also space blanket..depends on what time of the year you are hunting..you could add more for rifle.

 

[npaden]

LAST EDITED ON Jan-15-11 AT 03:42PM (MST)[p]Pretty good list there.

I also have a few zip ties and some electrical tape thrown in. Also about 25' of parachute cord and 25' of 3/8" rope and am going to start carrying a small pulley as well. A leatherman is always in there in addition to my regular hunting knife.

I have one of those mini first aid packs in there as well.

I have a list somewhere, I'll have to double check it.

 

[HalfAce]

If your hunting with a rifle, take some kind of cleaning device like a boresnake! Was hunting elk in some steep terrain on day more then a couple miles from the truck, slipped and the rifle went straight into the dirt and packed the bore up. I always carry a boresnake now.

 

[desertpointbrian]

knife,knife sharpener,rope,water,granola bars or jerky,lighter,cottonballs(they make a great fire starter), small first aid kit.binoculars and a poncho or garbage bag that is all i pack on a short trip

 

[sniper14]

Thanks for the advise. Keep it coming. Do you guys make a list or do you always have your packs packed and ready

 

[kingfish]

LAST EDITED ON Jan-16-11 AT 05:09PM (MST)[p]LAST EDITED ON Jan-16-11 AT 05:07?PM (MST)

For day hunts I carry my eberlestock back pack with bino's shooting stick ,spotting scope, rifle, rangefinder, ammo, food, water, knives, plastic bags, change of socks, flashlight, lighters, first aid kit. It all totals about 16 pounds. I try to make it lighter all the time. My pack is packed and ready to go one week after my last hunt....It's ready now. ALMOST FORGOT the most important thing......TP.

 

[ElkSniper]

LAST EDITED ON Jan-16-11 AT 08:44PM (MST)[p]1. TP
2. small survival kit
3. Extra knife
4. knife sharpener
5. flashlight
6. GPS
7. Rope
8. latex gloves
9. Saw
10. extra rounds
11. Water
12. Jerky


Mainly depends where Im hunting. These are the main things I pack in my pack.

ElkSniper
ME-----------------------------------------------------------------------------ELK

 

[Hardway]

Halface, if you put a piece of electrical tape over the end of your barrel you can leave the bore snake at home.

"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

 

[wackemstackem]

Then take another piece and wrap it around your barrel just in case you miss you can recover your muzzle.

 

[tailchasers]

I'm gonna borrow them 2 ideas about the tape.

 

[rutnbuck]

If you hunt with Preditor check your pack for Rocks. Before you go!!! A fresh killed goat to keep the bears out of camp!!
Rutnbuck

 

[pookiebar]

1 extra knife
2 parchute cord
3 3/8 rope
4 fire starting kit - matches, lint/cotton balls, lighter (mathces act as dry tinder if things are wet) Put all this in a zip lock bag, then wrapp a bunch of TP around it, and put that in a zip lock too.
5 granola bars and jerky
6 hard candy
7 head lamp
8 space blanket
9 dry socks
10 electric tape
11 my tag!!

The pack I use is a Mule Camelbak, they are log and narrow, and my water is in the bladder.

 

[flyingbrass]

Space blanket is a waste of time from what I heard. My neighbor was lost on a moose hunt with 2 others and they said they threw the space blanker in the bushes, they don't work for crap.
That is what he said anyway.
flyingbrass
cold dead hands
NRA Life Member

 

[npaden]

I used a space blanket as a clean staging area on my elk hunts this year. They are fairly fragile, but worked okay. Never used one for an actual blanket though.

Seeing that picture reminds me of something else I keep in my bag, heavy duty plastic garbage bags for loose meat. Also the Alaskan game bags are WAY better than some of the other meat bags I've used.

 

[tailchasers]

Using colored trash bags for meat storage should be done with caution. Most all colored trash bags have anti microbial odorants and other antimicrobial compounds in them. This can taint meat. I recommend using clear plastic trash bags which do not contain antimicrobials.

 

[Sniper1]

LAST EDITED ON Jan-19-11 AT 10:10AM (MST)[p]LAST EDITED ON Jan-19-11 AT 10:09?AM (MST)

Knife
Few bottles of water
granola bars and seeds
a sandwich or two
game bags
extra bow release
550 cord
spotting scope and tripod
lighter
Head lamp
small thing of baby wipes

That about does it for me. For a day hunt i make it real easy and light. I dont pack anything that i figure i wont use. I take only what i will need to get an animal out of there and that is it nothing more nothing less. I tend to put some miles on while im out in some steep nasty country so the lighter the better for me.

 

[beavis14]

water, binos, five extra rounds, tp, marking tape, havalon knife,water baloons for muzzle if it rains, rope, condoms( never know ?) just kidding.......maybe. small saw for pelvic

 

[mmwb]

In lieu of game bags, I use king sized pillow cases. They are sturdy, breath well and can be slipped into a garbage bag inside you pack.

 

[Ryry]

LAST EDITED ON Jan-21-11 AT 05:35PM (MST)[p]A good bonesaw
tag
knife
water
rhino w gps
rope
headlamp
extra batteries
2 glow sticks
fire starter
flagging tape
black tape
binos
gloves
socks
ammo
small first aid kit
snacks and sandwhich
emergency blanket
chapstik
tp
beanie
rangefinder

 

[sdhunter]

Going to resurface this one. Being a newbie to CO. Wondering if anyone has some good tips for packs/what to bring/what not to bring to save weight. Will be doing unit 68 in November. Colorado is a little different than South Dakota. We plan on camping in a otter ice fishing tent, and housing out of that/topper of the truck etc.

Thanks!

 

[Focoelkman]

Space blanket is a waste of time from what I heard. My neighbor was lost on a moose hunt with 2 others and they said they threw the space blanker in the bushes, they don't work for crap.
That is what he said anyway.
flyingbrass
cold dead hands
NRA Life Member

Your neighbor is a piece of garbage throwing **** away like that hunting?
Wtf

 

[Bwht4x4]

This isn't an item for your pack, but the one thing I bring and leave in the truck on every hunt is a second backpack. If your first pack breaks a strap or buckle it could be the end of the hunt or forces a run into town. I broke a pack once packing out a buck...strap at the shoulder. As I got to the truck the other one broke!!

 

[sb2017]

In my opinion what you need may vary depending on your situation. When I hunt around home I actually leave the backpack in my truck. I carry my rifle, put a water bottle in my vest pocket, and wear a knife on my belt. The times that I have gotten something while doing this I just gut the animal, cover it with branches and come back with an empty pack. I don't necessarily think that would be a wise thing to do if you're hunting unfamiliar areas, though.

It's pretty amazing how much easier it is to cover more ground when you're not wearing a backpack.

 

[CFMuley]

Knife, snacks, water, paracord, lighter. Maybe a couple other odds and ends, but not much. I want my pack to be as light as possible. I was hunting with my cousin a few years ago and he kept complaining how heavy his pack was. When we got home he emptied it and have enough in there to keep a small army going for a couple weeks.

 

[HIcountryman]

I was shed hunting a new area several years ago and about 5 miles in when I decided it was time to turn around if I wanted to get back to car at dark. I found an old large nontypical deer antler right then, so I decided to stay. With only a small tarp and a space blanket , I built a little lean-to and slept for a couple hours before the wind grew to blowing 40 to 50 mph! It was late spring at about 8500 ft elevation. I thought space blanket woked well.
I would duct tape 2 Of them together to make a bag. i carry a space bag now. In an emergency it works as advertised.

You should test all your gear before needing it to see HOW it works.

 

[jims]

I have a scale that I use. Made a list of all my clothes and gear. Starting with my heaviest items I upgraded to lighter and less bulky items. I’m not getting any younger and this shed a lot of weight off my back.

 

[Soccerdude]

Day trips my pack looks like this.
Elberstock for now.
1/2 roll of TP
LIGHTER X2
25' paracord.
5 cheap game bags.
Skinning knife.
Little pocket knife
Knife sharpener-plastic little one.
Water
Snacks. Jerky, bars, apple. Trail mix.
Tag.
Weapon of choice.
Depending on hunt tripod and spotter or big binos.

On my chest 10x 42 binos, range finder, wind checker, mouth calls.

Try to be as light as possible. Most day trips I am not going past 5 miles from truck.