Ultralight wilderness elk packing list?
Elk
For those that go the ultra light, long range, wilderness elk hunt route, what do you take in by brand, size, price? Sleeping bag? pad? tent? emergency gear? cloths? stove? utensils? Food? water treatment? I normally hunt from a base camp with a canvas tent, coolers, cots etc. and heading out each day. Looking to go lighter/further on foot, yet with more comfort than my 1980s army ranger gear (poncho hooch, poncho liner, iodine tabs, jungle fatigues, 1 MRE/day) I plan to keep the jungle boots and large ALICE....
Your going to get a ton of ideas on everything you asked about in your post. Are you planning on going solo or with someone? How many days out at a time? Where and time of year. If there's a chance of snow one thing you don't want is jungle boots. If you get snow and you got jungle boots you are going to have trouble. Wet, cold, frost bite feet and it could be your last time going a backcountry hunt. So I would recommend different boots for sure.
So I'll start with what I use for cooking. I use a 10.00 ebay stove that works great for me even at 11k. Here is a link to that stove It's $8.59 with the shipping.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ultralight-Backpacking-Gas-Butane-Propane-Canister-Outdoor-Camp-Stove-Burner-/381274741127?hash=item58c5bed987:g:ydYAAOSwZd1VZXj8
Here's a pot that works great with that stove. You can put your stove, 100 gram fuel canister and a few other things inside of it when packing. Link
http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Olicamp-XTS-1L-Hard-Anodized-Aluminum-Pot-Heat-Transfer-System-Backpacking-/321709413594?hash=item4ae76014da:m:mK0VygxKYbZLo3-25IJrPXQ
Here's the spork I use and a link. It a long handle spork to get down into your mountain house meals without having to put your hand down into the bag and get food all over your hand.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/TOAKS-Titanium-Long-Handle-Spork-with-Polished-Bowl-SLV-14-/301765638733?hash=item4642a23a4d:g:Q6sAAOSwQjNW-L-~
Well here's to start. Touch more after you answer the questions above.
Ed
What is your budget?
the words ultra light = more $$$
Dont skimp on anything you buy or you will regret it. Theres a reason that stuff is more expensive and you wont have to replace it every couple of years. Prepare yourself for anything from 20-80 degrees. Weather changes fast and in wilderness areas there usually isn't any way to check the weather.
One thing that will help you save on weight is a water filtration system - I use the Katadyn Hiker Pro. Not sure what state you are going to but in Colorado I have found it pretty easy to find water to filter but I always bring a day and a half or two days worth of water just in case.
As far as rain gear look at any light packable rain gear except the rubber type stuff. Its guaranteed to rip in the first couple days.
You can find most of the things you would need on Camofire for 40% off or more.
Another thing I would add is make sure you know how to use all of your gear before you go. The last thing you want to do is try to figure things out in the dark or when you need it most.
OK here's my tent. It's a Mountainsmith Shelter LT. Weighs in at 2 lbs. It's a 2 person that has 54 feet of inside space.. You can set it up with trekking poles, tie it to a above tree or just cut 2 sticks.. Here's a link and watch the video. You can find these for under 100 bucks. I got mine 2years ago for 89 bucks.
Ed
x2 on Mountainsmith. I added the link below to the tent I use. Its a little heavier than Teeton's but I would highly recommend any of their products.
Michael, Look up Aron Snyder on YOUTUBE. He has a lot of information that I have found very helpful. Scott
Check out Pistolpete's blog elkprep365 and you'll get some good ideas as to what he's found to work. I also like Andrew Skurka's blog and the blog Bedrock and Paradox for ultralight and proven ideas.
Start with good gore tex boots not just waterproof. Lots of good boots for about 150.00. Water tablets with powdered drink mixes and I use a jet boil stove and freeze dried foods. Boiling the water for cooking requires no filtering. Good rain jacket.
Don't forget really good headlamp and spare batteries.
Tent - Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2 - 2#
Sleeping bag - North Face goose down 20 degree.
Sleeping pad - Thermarest; but upgrading to a NEO?
Stove - MSR Pocket Rocket (boiling water only basically)
Cooking pot - aluminum but upgrading to titanium. Pack the isobutane stove cylinder in it (stove too).
Utensils - plastic, extendable fork & spoon. Use a pocket knife if a knife is needed.
Water Filter - Katydin Hiker model
Pack - need to upgrade to one big enough for 3-4 days of gear & food, but also compressible to do double duty as a day pack. Now I use a Kelty Tioga external frame pack and a Badlands Superday pack.... Too heavy!
Raingear - Cabelas Ultra Pack Space Raingear. Absolutely the lightest & most compact raingear available. Works well and can always have it with you. Downside - may rip fairly easily. I repaired mine using duct tape on the inside! Regardless, would buy them again.
Food - mostly freeze dried for main meals. I pack bags of nuts (almonds, cashews, pistaccios, peanuts, dark chocolate M&M's, etc. as well as some energy/granola bars. Have brought coffee bags (like tea bags), but don't use them every day. I'm also trolling here for other ideas!
Remember - less costs more! Watch the ounces and the pounds take care of themselves!
Thats a start! Good luck with your plans....
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When you want to go as light as possible you really need to evaluate every piece of gear in your pack on a "will use vs might use basis. I think ultra light is more about only taking what you absolutely need rather then having specific ultralight gear items. For instance, you might have weather from 20-80 degrees and 5 days of sun or 5 days of rain/snow. If you take gear for each of those options you will be heavy. For example, last year for an 8 day hunt I took one extra wool base layer a puffy and rain gear. All the other clothes I had I wore on the pack in. Did I have clothing to be comfortable in every situation? No, but what I had worked and it made my pack lighter.
Saving ounces isn't always the best idea; watch/listen to the Gritty Bowmen podcast with Brian Call and Aron Snyder 'What's in your Backpack?' [episode 10 I think]
First thing to get is the Kuiu Ultra 6,000
X2Curvebow but add kuiu clothing and Icon pack!!!!
It is episode 10. I'm watching it right now. Scott
I'm a coffee guy in the morning and used Starbucks Via instant for awhile. But it wasn't the same. I found a plastic mug-french press deal that weighs almost nothing and makes great coffee in the tent by adding boiling water. Jetboil also makes a french press option but I've not tried it.
My 2 cents if that 5 pounds more makes for a MUCH more pleasant experience. I went from 1.0 to 1.5 pounds of food a day, well worth it. I also upgraded my sleeping pad, we worth 1/2#
If you do not sleep and eat good you will not do nearly as well if you are pushing it - so the more weight there is actually better for long distance/physical elk hunts.
Hilerberg akto 1 tent for me.
I like to pack a book to read in the tent after dark, but that's just me. Something with like Hardy Boys, Huck Finn or Where the Red Fern Grows Gets the nod.
I hate alice packs(former Marine here). Get yourself something decent that can carry a load if necessary. Did I say I hated alice packs. Like others have said, jungle boots aren't a good option either. Depends on where you go, but all the elk country we hunt is pretty wet and you would be miserable in those places. You don't have to spend a lot of money to get passable waterproof boots but make sure you try them on and break them in.
MRE's are ok and i occasionally carry but for the price in the civilian market(last one i bought was $10), even mountain house is a better option. If you are still paying $2.00 each like we did, then not a bad option if you field strip them. There are a lot of other options for dehydrated food than mountain house if you don't like it.
I have a lot of the stuff that other guys do. We, as a group, opted for the tipi. I carry the tent, My brother the stove and our other hunting partner the pole and stakes(he has heavier gear so we take it easy on him.) Just a little over 2 lbs each.
I do carry a small canister stove, but we can cook on the ti wood stove.
Cheaper 25 degree cabelas bag, but it is light. My pad isn't that light but it is comfortable. Tyvek for ground cloth, small emergency tarp to cover packs and equipment as we don't have room inside with 3.
I pack all my food for each day in a gallon ziplock. Includes snacks, brkfast, lunch, and a dehydrated dinner and some ramen noodles.
Carbon fiber trekking poles for hikes in and out.
I have a Kuiu Icon 5200, and most stuff fits inside, except for the pad. I never plan to be out more than 3 days, at least at this point.
I do have a set of cabelas space rain rain gear that has rarely been used, and most of my clothing is Kuiu at this point. although I sprinkle in other stuff as well.
Teeton, what's your opinion of that tent? I'm sure you like it, but if there was one thing you could change about it, what would it be? That's a pretty amazing deal...
Tony
Freshta, It's a nice tarp tent. It's big, easy to setup, lite..It pulls tight to the ground, but can set it so you can vent it. As you know it has no floor but I use my foot print from one of my other tents. I've never stayed in it with someone else only myself, so it has lot of room.. Never had it in a snow storm, but I think it would do well. With guide outs it's quite in wind. The only thing I may do is make a tyvek floor that's cut more like the shape of the inside.
Ed
wt you a good bag and Pack, then go minimalist from there.
Figure 1.50 PER DAY For food
then evaluate on a might need v will need basis.
Its amaxing how much you think you need vs you really need.
My basics, which are all solid and very functional, not necessarily the lightest. Some will get upgraded in time, some won't.
Pack: Mystery Ranch Metcalf
Tent: Big Agnes Seedhouse 2 OR Golite SL5
Pad: Big Agnes Insulated Air Core
Bag: Marmot Sawtooth 15 degree down
Boots: Lowa Ranger
Stove: Snow Peak GigaPower (butane cannister style) w/ titanium cup
Filter: Katadyn Hiker Pro
Trekking Poles: Leki from Sierra Trading Post
Food: Mountain House and other standard backpacking fare. I dehydrate my own if I have the time and inclination.
I also think a flask of whiskey is pretty much a necessity, along with a book. Maybe a can of Copenhagen too (I go off the wagon for a week every year).
Jaquomo, I've used the Jet Boil French press and it's a POS, unless you like a lot of grinds in your coffee.
For all of you guys that have had to eat an MRE, I am so sorry. I think Back Packer's Pantry meals are better than Mt House, but they're about $1 more (worth it in my opinion). "Pack it Gourmet" has the best meals, but they require some actual "cooking" not just dumping boiling water in a pouch and stuffing it in your mouth 15 minutes later. Trail mix, nuts and jerky is good to bring for snacks. In 2012 I did a 70 mile through hike and ate 2-3 cliff bars a day for 5 days and I don't think I could bring myself to eat another one.
I'm personally a big fan of the Mountain House meals, to me they taste great after a long day of hunting. And I'm super lazy when it comes to cooking so dumping boiling water in a pouch is about all the effort I care to put into dinner at the end of the day.
Here's my packing list but it's all-inclusive not necessarily "lightweight," I just pick and choose depending on what our plans our for that particular trip.
Good to know, Ben h. With any of the French presses you need to use a coarser grind coffee. I grind my own before each trip, mix in a few vanilla beans for extra flavor, and take it in a Ziploc inside the mug. Sure is nice to have a mug of "real" coffee on chilly mornings.
Dirty D, No disrespect, but my guts just cant do more than a few days of Mt. House. I think they're made with farts and I get "soft serve" like crazy with them when eaten repeatedly, day after day. Some of them are pretty tasty though. Everybody's different I guess.
The "pack-it gourmet" I mentioned above does take considerably more time to prepare and some "cooking", but it's more like mac and cheese cooking, and not turkey dinner cooking, but the food quality is much improved in my opinion.
If you truly want to go ultra-weight the first thing to do is get a good scale to weigh your gear. Obviously start with the heaviest items that will drop weight the most and go from there.
Not all my gear is ultralight, yet. It takes $$$ to go UL and I upgrade a couple items every year.
Lowa Tibet boots
Kuiu Ultra 6000 pack
Alpine bivy or Mountainsmith LT or REI Half Dome
silnylon 10x10 tarp
Marmot Helium bag
REI Stratus mattress
Pocket Rocket
Titanium quart pot and lid w/ grippers
REI insulated lightweight mug w/ leakproof lid
Mountain House/PB and bacon toast sandwiches/oatmeal/granola and powdered milk, soft tortillas and tuna or chicken pouches, Gatorade mix, Snickers and other powerbars, trail mix w/ nuts and dried fruit and M&Ms and raisins, instant Folgers coffee bags
Sawyer Squeeze water filter and pouches
First Lite Stormfront top and pants-Uncompaghre puffy-Chama hoody-merino ss and ls tops and boxer briefs
Smartwool sox and liners
Sitka Timberline pants
Kuiu Guide pants-Kenai hoody-Peloton 240 hoody-145 merino 1/4 zip top-zip off merino bottoms-Northstar gloves
green wool army surplus glove liners
Gore-Tex ball cap, Gore-tex boonie hat, merino and fleece beanies
Cabela's XPG trekking poles
small square of closed cell foam sleeping mat material for kneeling in tent etc. and sitting while glassing eating etc.
cheap game bags-replaceable blade knife-electrical tape/zippie/license-50 feet 550 cord-first aid/emergency repair kit-toiletries-TP and lighter-no scent wipes either wet or dried out for longer trips-no scent sunscreen/bug dope
Garmin Etrex 20 w/ chip-maps w/ wypts marked
Galaxy S5 and Kodiak power source good for 2 full charges
Not all things go on every trip... depends on area, duration and 10 day weather outlook
Have fun and definitely take the guys advice here and get as good a pair of boots as you can and break them in before heading out.
Good luck,
Tim
My Hunt Gear/ Pack In List - Pack/ Bow, Arrows & Release - Clothes (Worn In and Packed) - Binoculars - Minor Bow Repair Kit - Camera (light tripod) - Gum, Jolly Ranchers, etc. - Copenhagen (MUST) - PackWater Tote for Filtering/ Cooking - MRE’s (Mountain House) - Instant Coffee (Via) - Waterproof Dry Bag (storage for gear you don't want wet) - Sleeping Bag - Tooth Brush/ Paste - Tarp Lightweight - Trash Bags for Trash/ Covers for Food - Chapstick - Fire Starters - Cotton Balls/ Vaseline, Trioxane Tablets, etc. - Emergency Blanket - Bic Lighters (x2) - Katadyn Hiker Pro Water Filter/ Pump - Water Bladder - Wet Wipes/ Toilet Paper = Para Cord (100ft) - Bandages/ Gauze/ Ointment - Ibuprofen/ Antihistamine - Ayr (for nose moisturizer) - GPS - Headlamp - Extra Batteries (lithium - lighter/ last longer) - Rainsuit (Doubles as a pillow) - Extra Socks - Mole Skin for Blisters - Duct Tape (Small Roll) - Calls/ Bugle Tubes - Knives (skinner/ caper) - Game bags - Black pepper - Tags/ license - Wyoming Saw - Windicator - MSR Pocket Rocket Stove - Fuel Canister - Kettle for Cooking - Collapsable Cup for Coffee
Chocolate soft serve ice cream will never be looked at the same after ben h's post.
God Bless men
