I am going to try to list every single thin in my pack and on my person. It may get a bit tedious and boring so if it’s not your thing I certainly understand. I’m gonna list brand/model where I can. But that is obviously my personal liking, your preferences may differ. I’m open to suggestions for upgrades on most items as well.
I am not going to weigh every single item (too tedious even for me) but will try to include pics of every item. I will also include a total weight of my pack and some bigger items.
This is the basic list of stuff I’ve used the last 4-5 years on several mountain hunts, so I feel that it is pretty refined and proven at least in my mind.
—Jim
Bowtech Solution SS (comfort mods) 28” 68lbs. Hamskea Trinity rest, tight spot quiver (short “tree stand” model, bee stinger counter slide hex stabilizer, Option Archery Canyon Pounder 3/1 pin sight, Specialty Archery verifier peep, Gas strings/cables.
Day Six HD 350 arrows with their Centeic in/outsert system. Sevr titanium 2.0 heads.
Also I feel that a sting cover is a requirement for this kind of hunt. I like the Kuiu, simple and light weight, but provides decent protection.
—Jim
Swarovski NL 10x42, Sig Kilo 1600 BDX range finder, wind checker, predator call. In front zipper I carry a wrench for the verifier peep, extra lens, q-tip cleaners for verifier peep, and a spare range finder battery.
I generally don’t carry a spotter/tripod on these trips, I simply can’t handle the extra weight, and guide usually has one.
—Jim
Not shown here are gaiters, which are imperative IMO. I really like Kuiu Kutana gaiters. Not shown here because I gave them to my guide when I left the last hunt.
—Jim
—Jim
Belt is Stone Glacier. Also great for travel, can wear it right through security at airports.
—Jim
Kuiu Attack pants, Kuiu 125 merino short sleeve, Kuiu merino 145 long sleeve with hood, Crispi hiking socks. And my daily wear boxer/brief are Deluth.
Everything from here on is in my pack.
—Jim
The small black pouch is a Stone Glacier rain fly for the pack. It was simply too small with the bow on the pack. Virtually unusable, will defiantly be upgrading that. My fault for not trying it out a little more throughly before heading out. The green pad is just a cheap pad from Amazon, nice for sitting on or kneeling at the tent door etc. cheap, light, useful.
—Jim
In the lid a couple misc things. Sun glasses, old man reading glasses (yeah, it sucks), one pair hand warmers just in case. Inreach mini.
—jim
—Jim
I take a variety of drink mixes. Some hot cocoa mix. Some wilderness athlete hydrate and recover, emergen-c, tang, and sometimes some other varieties. We used no filters in this trip, straight from the mountain.
Few 5hr energy for those long hard days. And a variety of energy gels, specifically GU and Honey Stinger.
—Jim
—Jim
The important one here is the roll of Leuko tape, best stuff for taping feet for blister hands down. I usually start with some in my heels before we take the first step.
—Jim
Extra release (very important), Zebra head lamp, Zebra hand held light (not sure the exact model on either), extra batteries, Havalon and blades, lighter, short flagging tape (use TP for most tracking, but this piece is more for marking the down animal or something like that), the small gray case is foldable reading glasses, extra wind checker, some small game heads/broadheads/fieldpoints/nocks, lens wipes, some metal twisty tie thingies (nite Ize is the brand I think), small cell phone tripod and holder with Bluetooth remote.
—Jim
Pad is Thermarest Xtherm, the inflatable pillow is sea to summit. Both very good IMO.
The compression bag is a Kifaru, its size medium I think. I love the compression, bur have some reservation as the top is still just a little bit open (doesn’t seal) About the worst thing that can happen is a wet bag…
—Jim
—Jim
Sleeping pad?
Looking to upgrade mine for my goat hunt .
Not sure I used any of this stuff at all except the beenie. But wouldn’t leave any of it behind either.
—Jim
I would consider leaving the vest out and replacing it with a light weight sweater option. Possibly Kuiu Pelton 230 or something.
—Jim
I keep the jacket in the Kifaru pouch for quick access and some water repellently. The pants I generally keep in the dry bag with the rest of my clothes.
—Jim
—Jim
Extra socks, this particular ones are darn tough heavy weight hikers (black ones) the other 2 are Kuiu one pair light hiker, the other the heavier model. I only wore the light Kuiu and the Crispis I hiked i with for the full 13 days.
2 extra pairs of under wear. Swapped one mid trip and kept one in reserve.
—Jim
That is pretty much ever single item I took. My guide usually has a jet boil and carries one fuel canister and I carry one. On my recent sheep hunt my guide also carried a 3 man dome tent, and we shared it. Helps me with weight and he is a good tent mate. I believe this year we used a Marmot Tungsten UL3. It was OK but not great.
—Jim
They were all basically the same with some variety of bars and flavors etc. I took a few small snacks including gels and drink mixes with me. This was actually way more than I needed on this trip and dumped a lot about 1/2 way though.
—Jim
Only thing I know I forgot was chap stick. And when I got my hunting watch out the battery was dead, so left that at home too. Neither a major loss to me…
—Jim
Pack (fully loaded with gear) 29.5, Food 1.5 /day, 6 breakfast - 3lbs (total), Bow 7.25, Water 4.5, Bino rig 3.5
69-70 pounds total (including bino harness and depending on specific food stuff) plus what I’m wearing. That is pretty much all the weight I can handle for more than one day. I could suck up a bit more to pack a sheep out, but would have to dump a bunch of food if we killed first few days. And it would be pretty slow going ;)
That is pretty much literally everything I took to a T, I don’t know what I would take additional or leave out other than the couple things I noted above. It all works pretty well for me, but all suggestions, constructive criticism, and questions are welcome.
—Jim
Like is said I split the tent with my partner.
I will never be hunting the mountains without a guide (a function of my Oklahoma residency) and really feel zero need for a spotting scope. I’m not gonna kid myself that I’m gonna find a stone sheep at 5 miles through it. And I’m not the guy making the call on a legal ram, which I often think can be the most important use for a spotter. And of course I can use the guides if needed. It’s a trade off, I have to make some concessions to keep the weight down, and spotter just don’t make the cut for me…
—Jim
So probably pushing my initial pack weight more in the 72-73 pound range.
—Jim
Do you carry a first aid kit of any type?
—Jim
do you take any type of emergency shelter or cover?
Thanks again for the gear breakdown and sharing your adventures with us!
I like to have my pack fully organized and loaded (minus food and water) and put it all in a big duffle ready to go. I’ll put my boots and clothes I’m planning to wear on hike in in there too (light gray bag has clothes in it). The rolling duffle is a Sitka Nomad.
With this system when I get to camp, I pull out my pack, load food/water, get bow ready/checked, get dressed and ready to go. Don’t have to worry about leaving anything out as I know it’s all packed and ready when I arrive.
—Jim
