So an elk falls. .. the elk101 video does a nice job explaining the gutless process. But I still have questions.
Do you need some sorry of come along? How often does the animal get stuck wedged in some trees?
Do you debone? Some guys allude to that. In Alaska, it is required to leave most of the meat on the bones. So that is what i am used to.
Once back at the truck, then what? Do you hang it while going for other loads? I'd it usually cold enough for that? Would anyone steal the meat while your gone?
Do you spray with citric acid? That is common in Alaska.
it's not likely that someone would steal your meat but stranger things have happened right so out of sight can't hurt.
No come-alongs in elk packs! Just take about 50 feet of paracord to keep elk from sliding downhill while you are working on it and you'll be fine. it's not at all common for elk to get wedged between trees. I've seen it happen twice and that's out of many many dead elk. Even then you can deal with it.
The citric acid can't hurt. Keeps insects off and from laying eggs. But instead I like the TAGBags for game bags which do the same thing.
X2 Mule Power...paracord is a life saver!
Hang bagged quarters somewhere that gets little sunshine during the day...and they will be fine up to 3 days.
Best of Luck, Jeff
The most lightweight, cheap, and compact way I know to bag your meat and keep flies, bees, dirt, etc. off it.
Been doing this for 15 Seasons now, it works great.
Best of Luck, Jeff
Saw the hooves off with about a foot above the ankle, leaving the tendon insertions from the hocks attached to bone for ease of hanging. You'll save yourself 4-5 lbs/trip doing this. A Gerber saw is a great light-weight way to do this.
For my skinny ass, the hams are each one trip. Each shoulder goes out with a backstrap and tenderloin. A 5th trip is the neck meat. The 6th trip is my gear and the head. Many guys do it in less trips, but that's my method.
If you can't get it out in one day, there are multiple threads on back country meat preservation. I don't use citric acid because I don't think it's necessary in most circumstances.
Once the meat is cooled down in the shade, you can put it in contractor bags and submerge it in a cold creek with the top propped/tied up to keep water out.
After hanging all night, it can be put in plastic and stuffed in your sleeping bag.
Once back to camp, you don't need dry ice. A quartered bull elk will almost fit in one 168 qt cooler. You can bone out one to two shoulders which saves a ton of room and it'll fit. One ice block drained daily and you're good to go. You can also prop the meat up on two ice blocks with plastic between. I've kept meat like this for 1.5 weeks. It's usually how I age my meat.
Lastly, a 5x7 or 8x10 tarp to do this all on is a nice way to keep it all clean, is light wt/cheap, and doubles as emergency shelter and tent failure solution/rain cover.
Ever any issues with tears/runs?
Quarters skin over quite nicely inside the mesh as well.
And Bill...thanks for the "Deliverance" reference...they would have to catch me first. Ned Beatty was hosed from the start!
Best of Luck, Jeff
WRT packing deboned meat Kifaru makes a hanging meat bag that is the cats rear... my pack is essentially a frame with pockets, pod and and a cargo panel. The meat bag lives in my kill kit and when needed keeps everything up high, the panel secures it all real well. But the hanging bag works with nearly any bag and will keep the meat in one place up high where you want it, seam sealed it keeps the meat and juice contained too. Garbage bags may keep things clean, but they will be at the bottom of your pack more often than not by the time you get back to camp and isn't much heavier than a contractor bag. The hanging bag does dbl duty as a pack bag in some cases when you need it.
I debone 9 times out of ten and a properly sized synthetic bag like the Caribou or TAGS are my choice. AK bags (or, um, pantyhose... heheheh) stretch like crazy with unsupported meat. They work fine with bone in quarters, etc. where the bone can support the weight, but stretch and flys can lay eggs right through them with unsupported blobs of meat.
"ba-ding ding-ding ding-ding ding-ding...." gotta love that banjo....
Good questions Temps are a wild guess !If night time temps dont drop meat will spoil asap even when boned .
Moving a bull that has wedeged himself in deadfalls is a chore sometimes it cant be done.
stealing meat would be critters bears in my area i never see hunters
when back at the truck i have a small gen and a frezzer box meat is stored there.
I did this bull by myself, [ its not easy rolling a bull over by yourself] I put the quarters in tree branches and left my sweaty Tshirt over night. Came back the next day and packed it out, drove 2hrs home
I use Caribou Gear bags as I have found them more durable than Tags but either are good. Elk are big animals and hold heat. I don't let one sit overnight unless I cant find it. I have broken a few down by head lamp late into the night/early morning.
I bone the meat off every species I harvest from antelope to Buff.....
It seems to have a lot less gamey taste if I get the meat off the bone ASAP
Plus it is certainly less wasted weight to contend with getting the animal off the mountain.
Simply a personal preference for me.
Good luck, Robb
Good Luck!
So, more often than not I will bone out. Way easier to pack out and manage, and to cool off meat. You can gat a tasty cow elk out with your gear in 2 trips.
This is the Colorado law on how much meat (page 17 in the Big Game brochure)you need to pack out:
"Its is against the law to:
Fail to reasonably dress, care for and prepare edible wildlife meat for human consumption. At a minimum, the four quarters, tenderloins and backstraps are edible meat."
That is a lot less than Alaska's rules especially with the bone in areas.
"...That is a lot less than Alaska's rules especially with the bone in areas."
That is definitely true. I've done two Alaskan moose hunts. Keeping the legs on the bone was required. But the guys I went with went much further than required. They wanted as much meat as possible. So they made the minimum number of cuts.
The moose cuts were: - liver and heart - back leg - back leg - front leg - front leg - left ribs - right ribs - brisket - spine from hips to loin - spine from loin to neck - spine with neck meat - skull plate with antlers
We literally took everything except the head, hide, stomach/intestine, and lungs.
So we carried each of these bone-in pieces about 1.5 miles down to the river. Then, we floated them out about 20 miles on rafts.
The meat was very tasty. And with the minimum number of cuts, the amount of meat lost due to drying was minimized.
