Arizona Homeless Camp
Whitetail Deer
So this year I'm going to drive to Arizona, shortly after Christmas. I'll drop my wife off at her sister's, just north east off Scottsdale, then in a few days head south of Tucson for a couple weeks of camping and hunting javelina. In past years I hunted out from my sister's place. Last time I drove a rental down to the hunting area and was hosted by a generous Bowsiter in his luxury camper. This time, I plan to camp out of my (quite) over height canopy on a long box truck. I still hope to meet the same Bowsiter there for a few days anyway, but will spend a lot of days on my own. I have to meet some buddies in Reno for the sheep show and then it's all up in the air again.
I'm really trying to avoid more than one small to medium size cooler and then mostly just to keep a pig until I can eat it all. I'm also very familiar with living out of a back pack, but that gets old fast. So what kind of food do you extended camping guys use that doesn't require refrigeration. There was a"breakfast granola" thread somewhere that I thought I had added to favourites, but didn't. I will resort to Mountain House sometimes and Bush's brown beans from the can are a staple.
Also, if I decide to buy a Couse tag, is two dozen arrows enough?
It will most likely be pretty cool down there when you are down, Rod. Dried salami or dried German sausage is usually along on those hunts. Jerky is OK for a while but gets old pretty quick. I also like the Nature Valley biscuits with almond or coconut. Usually throw in some oranges and apples.
If the javies are around, it should not take long to skewer one. They are basically God's gift to bowhunters... After shooting a pile of them, I still have not found a really good way to eat them. Maybe a Dutch oven slow cook in the coals with a lot of red chili...
If you get a deer tag, remember that you can hunt either mule deer or Coues with it. Two dozen arrows should be a good start. Particularly if you are planning to hunt with your recurve;-)
Good luck and have fun!
Tavis, if I hunted with a recurve, I'd just sharpen both ends of it and use it as a spear. I'd kill just as much and I could find it again.
I usually make up burritos then freeze them to take along which does require a cooler. As everything is already cooked it does not matter if they thaw out before I am ready for them.
But to reheat them I place them in a zip-lock bag and place that on the dash of my truck in the sun, if I have the sun reflector in the windshield I place them between the sunshield and windshield.
Really? If you are truck/trailer/road camping there are tons of stuff. Assuming you aren’t worried about weight of course. I assume you will have some kind of stove/jetboil as you referenced mountain house. Obviously you want to keep it kinda easy/basic/clean. There is ramen, drop some of that sausage in for more of a meal. The pouches of instant mashed potatoes are good and the similar pasta stuff isn’t bad. Rice packets are pretty good. The spam singles aren’t the worst, plus tuna packets (I don’t like tuna). Plenty of other canned stuff. Sandwiches are easy. precooked bacon will last good in cool temps.
Depending on elevation and weather some stuff will be just fine without refrigeration too. I just don’t find a week in mild weather to be that big of a stretch for food. And if you are famished when you get to Reno I’ll buy you a meal to make up for my poor food recommendations! ;)
—jim
Jim, you should know that seniors never turn down free meals or forget they were offered! (this is not a trap to beat me up for disparaging your Kodiak efforts, is it!?. If so T-roy made me do it!)
I will have lots of gear for cooking, just more trying to find some things that are very good and very convenient. And I'm pretty much a carnivore.
I’ll buy you dinner before 3:30 pm then. Gotta get that early bird senior deal! ;)
—jim
Tuna, pb&j, tortillas, jerkey, canned goods, fruit veggies etc. Different pasta type meals, some dehydrated stuff. Ton of options.
If I'm staying at truck camp though, I'm eating like a king. Full dinner, lunch and breakfast is on the menu including snacks and deserts and everything else that is bad for you ;)
Get some chicken and boston butt, cut it up and put in in quart jars, season with salt and pepper, then pressure can it. A quart of chicken thighs or pork roast will feed you for two meals. Instant rice or dehydrated mashed taters for the side. Easy peasy and good stuff
If you're truck camping then it's more of a question of how much hassle you'll deal with to cook. Here are two cheap and quick options. For lunch sandwiches with cold cuts. For dinners it's really easy to make a bag of instant rice/pasta and then add a can of tuna or chicken to it.
'Also, if I decide to buy a Couse tag, is two dozen arrows enough?' One should be enough if you do it right.
Heck he’s going with his compound! One arrow for the piggie and one for the deer! So two should be sufficient:-)
I was just kinda half joking in those PMs that I sent you, about Jim’s Kodiak camping trip, Rod! ;-)
Only thing I would add, supplywise is....cherry flavored Pez.
"Heck he’s going with his compound! One arrow for the piggie and one for the deer! So two should be sufficient:-)"
Heck, my first javelina and muley buck were killed with the same arrow about 10 minutes apart. Two arrows seems like overkill! Ha!
Dot's pretzels, nothing else needed. ;-)
Two arrows?? I usually use the first two or three just to chase them out a bit to make it sporting!
I’ll probably just stop at Walmart and get several BIG bags of Doritos and a couple cases of Dr Pepper.
