Question for Backpack Hunters

[markathome]

Hey Guys and Girls - Sooo.... I've been scouring the interwebs and google earth and I've hatched a pretty good mountain deer trip for the early season. I'm heading in to scout in August - as soon as my broken toe heals. My question is, I've been using my Serratus 80 L - which works fine for loads up to 60-80lbs.

I've hiked into the Bugaboos with camping gear, double climbing rack and double ropes plus ten days worth of food, pack was pushing 80lbs and performed pretty well - especially when I swapped the plastic waist clip with a car seat belt locker.

So if I am lucky enough to harvest a nice alpine buck, I'm concerned the pack won't be able to pack out the meat and my gear - for two reasons: maxing the load the pack is designed for and for capacity. I think if I'm geared up and loaded with quarters and a rack, I don't know if the pack can carry it all.

What are you guys using (price point is important - I'm not buying a Sitka Pack without stealing from my kids college fund)? Do I really need another pack? Are external frame packs going to make that much of a difference when going over 100lbs?

Cheers Mark

[Moe.JKU]

I just use the cheap camp trails elk tracker bad but it has held up with moose quarters so i'm happy. One day ill upgrade to a stone glacier as I like theirs the best out of all the 1k packs

[island_dmax]

You will have to do multiple trips regardless. There is no way you can carry a whole deer and your gear in one trip.

[smallfry14]

I use a Tatonka Lastenkraxe external frame pack. I haven't put very heavy loads in it personally, just a couple deer quarters at a time, but it seems pretty tough to me. I know lots of other guys have packed some heavy loads with the same pack though and it is at a pretty good price point.

[smallfry14]

You will have to do multiple trips regardless. There is no way you can carry a whole deer and your gear in one trip.

Is that a challenge? ;)

[allan]

Experiment with your pack first, put 80lb of sand in your bag ( that's about what we get with a deboned deer) lash or tie the rest of your gear to where ever fits. Hopefully your not packing it up hill when you shoot your deer and need to get out. If you can do that don't spend the money on another pack.

We use heavy duty prospector plastic sample bags to put our deer into. The bags don't leak, garbage bags are a no no as they can be treated to prevent odor. Typically 4 bags per deboned deer. We could do it with two bags but it's harder to to get the meat into the mouths of our 40 L day packs and it packs closer to the back that way.
A bit of rope to take with you to help tie stuff in Will also help.

I have watched my budy tie two small ( not deboned) moose quarters to his badlands 2200. And stagger 1 km thru the bush with it to get to the road before dark. He was too cheap to buy a bigger pack Frame on that trip and he is scared of the dark. Pack weight was close to 140lbs we estimate. I had a MR6500 for the pack out and it was a bit more comfortable.

[Ron.C]

You will have to do multiple trips regardless. There is no way you can carry a whole deer and your gear in one trip.
I have to disagree. Really depends on how much gear you go in with, the distance, terrain, and if you bone out your animal.

To the original poster, I currently use a Cabela's Alaskan frame with a 70l tatonka bag. No, not a high end rig but has worked well for me for the cost.

[Wentrot]

You will have to do multiple trips regardless. There is no way you can carry a whole deer and your gear in one trip.

Blasphemy at its finest

[Backwoods]

See what gear you can get rid to make your pack lighter right off the top, may take few trips to get it out, last time I hauled one out was with my badlands 2200, worked great but first trip I emptied all my gear to haul the most of the meat out, second trip was going to get the rest of meat and gear. I initially went in light, brought the essentials, Pristine ventures TAG game bags are worth every penny, sure beat cheese cloth game bags, the deboned meat doesn't bunch up in the bottom of the bag or your pack, they help stack the meat which distributed the weight so much better, also suppose to help better with blow flys and contamination! Also I use a larger pack for longer trip, kuiu ultra 6000, which I find smaller pack, now this year I'm wanting to treat myself to the Barneys, Frontier Gear of Alaska Yukon Pack, with the Freighter Frame.
-Backwoods

[spatsizi moose]

I use an old steel frame pack, they work wonders. I have 50ft of old hockey laces wrapped up and around it to use for tying things on. Sometimes Ill use the old bags that came with it but most of the time ill just tie stuff straight onto the frame.

[RackStar]

If price is a issue camp trails moose pack. And I got a good tip off of one of pg66 vids. Get some electriction twine and then you can tie your pack to your frame over the meat.

[Kopper]

Going solo? I think if you have a weeks worth of gear plus a mature mulie you will certainly be stretching the capabilities of the pack. More so space limitations. Even deboned you're looking at ~100lbs~ of meat off a large buck, depending how detailed you get when cutting. Tents and sleeping stuff ain't dense so you'll more than likely be strapping those to the outside of the pack as well as the head and cape just to save room internally. It's a doable pack trip but not ideal. Just my 2 cents.

For the record both my father and I use a 70l Tatonka lastenkraxe (sp?) on goat/sheep trips. It's a fairly cheap pack but it performs above its price range IMO. Last year I stuffed all the meat off my large bodied billy, cape and head, a quarter from my brothers billy (all deboned), as well as typical day trip gear/clothes into my pack. Over 100lbs no question and all the poor 70l would take. Hopefully that gives you a reference....I've read that those packs are hard to find now? Fishers and Surplus Herpies in Vernon carry them, or atleast did 5 or so years ago. Those Stone Glacier packs are soooo sexy but damn expensive.

[BCbillies]

I used a Serratus Superguide pack for my first 10 years of mountain hunting. Packed some good weights (mainly goats) but killed my back in the process . . . I don't think the pack fit me well to begin with. The pack held up really well over the years including packing 158 lbs for a considerable distance. The best way to appreciate a higher end pack is to use your current pack on a few trips. I've used the Kifaru for 10 years now.

[wos]

A friend and a game cart will make life easer.

[squamishhunter]

Separate the meat your keeping from the hide. Wrap said meat in the hide and tie a rope to it and drag behind you.

[markathome]

Umm Squamishhunter - have you actually tried that? Where I hunt, not practical.

Thanks for all the input guys, I typically hunt with a partner and we share the load. I think I'll keep my pack and spend the $ on better optics...

[knothead]

I have a MR that I am trying out for the first time this year, expensive pack I know but I purchased mine for nearly half price by keeping my eyes open and buying used on this site and GNuts over the past year.

[markathome]

Hey Knothead - what's a MR? I'm fired up on buying used, I rarely buy new gear (boots and optics).

What about a gun scabbard? Anyone using one? Worth the weight/convenience? It's one of those items I'd like to try before buying - hard to do.

[.264winmag]

Umm Squamishhunter - have you actually tried that? Where I hunt, not practical.

Thanks for all the input guys, I typically hunt with a partner and we share the load. I think I'll keep my pack and spend the $ on better optics...
Debone meat and trim off any shmag, save weight and $ on new pack. Good glass is key;)

[todbartell]

Hey Knothead - what's a MR? I'm fired up on buying used, I rarely buy new gear (boots and optics).

MR = Mystery Ranch

[ishootbambi]

How on gods green earth are you guys getting 80-100 pounds of meat off a deer? If it's coming out on my back I trim anything that ain't going in my mouth? No silver skin, cartilage, ligaments, fat, snot and anything else. Even a mega 400 pound live weight buck trimmed down comes out to around 50. Heck a bighorn or mountain goat has way more muscle mass than a deer of comparable live weight...and they came in around 70. I think you boys are carrying a lot of inedible tissue.

As as for packing it in one trip...yes you can. I carried my pack with a trip in at 60 pounds. I ate some of the food, but most of it came out. I added 70 pounds of goat meat plus a life sized cape and head. I didn't weight the whole thing when I got home but I estimated 70 for meat, 30 for cape and head and my original pack that must have been around 55 after I ate some. I figure it was 155 anyway coming out. It came out in one trip as there was no way I was climbing that mountain again at the end. I used an Eberlestock. It's construction makes it too heavy in my opinion. Too many unnecessary pockets and straps....but that rugged construction never had me doubting for a second that it might blow apart.

[~T-BONE~]

Here is 155lbs of boned out defatted mule deer w/cape less the gear. (weighed on certified scale) . It's doable with totonka!

http://i1328.photobucket.com/albums/w522/deertbone/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps6emwgcv6.jpeg (http://s1328.photobucket.com/user/deertbone/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps6emwgcv6.jpeg.html)

[Cat catcher]

I have never seen a tatonka with black on it is that a new one?how many liter? Do they make different sizes?

[BCbillies]

As as for packing it in one trip...yes you can. I carried my pack with a trip in at 60 pounds. I ate some of the food, but most of it came out. I added 70 pounds of goat meat plus a life sized cape and head. I didn't weight the whole thing when I got home but I estimated 70 for meat, 30 for cape and head and my original pack that must have been around 55 after I ate some. I figure it was 155 anyway coming out. It came out in one trip as there was no way I was climbing that mountain again at the end. I used an Eberlestock. It's construction makes it too heavy in my opinion. Too many unnecessary pockets and straps....but that rugged construction never had me doubting for a second that it might blow apart.

x2. I've never done two trips on goat hunt to retrieve the animal and this has been on hunts where more than one tag is cut. No how and no way I will have it in me both mentally or physically to head back up and into the hell hole a day later for a second retrieval trip. If I can't pack the deboned meat, cape and horn plus gear in one trip then I'm not in shape to be out there. I'm typically in the 110 to 130 lb range coming out.

[smallfry14]

I have never seen a tatonka with black on it is that a new one?how many liter? Do they make different sizes?
Pretty sure that's the older model actually that has the black. There is another bag available for the lastenkraxe frame though which is 100L I think instead of 70L. The 100L bag is twice the price though.