After the kill in grizzly country

[kwyeewyk]

I see a lot of generic advice for hunting in grizz country, most of which seems to be the normal precautions you'd take whether hunting or not, and a few hunting specific suggestions, like using gutless to minimize time near the carcass, but not a lot of specific advice regarding being in grizz country for potentially several days when you're basically covered in blood and meat. I guess mostly I'm thinking of the scenario where you're in the back country with limited changes of clothes and possibly no running water for cleaning up, and maybe it takes a couple days to pack out, or you're hunting with others and staying to fill other tags.

What are people doing to stay as clean as possible processing the carcass, such as putting on designated blood clothes that you'll then store with the meat? Anybody use a tyvek suit or something similar? I have never really worn gloves, but considering CWD and other diseases, probably should be anyways, so that will help with not getting tallowy hands. I'm thinking a tyvek with booties and rubber gloves would work well, then just put them with the meat bags.

Also, anybody have experience with the Ursack Major bags? Not quite as good as a bear can but look like they'd be a lot easier to deal with. Thanks

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

I see a lot of generic advice for hunting in grizz country, most of which seems to be the normal precautions you'd take whether hunting or not, and a few hunting specific suggestions, like using gutless to minimize time near the carcass, but not a lot of specific advice regarding being in grizz country for potentially several days when you're basically covered in blood and meat. I guess mostly I'm thinking of the scenario where you're in the back country with limited changes of clothes and possibly no running water for cleaning up, and maybe it takes a couple days to pack out, or you're hunting with others and staying to fill other tags.

What are people doing to stay as clean as possible processing the carcass, such as putting on designated blood clothes that you'll then store with the meat? Anybody use a tyvek suit or something similar? I have never really worn gloves, but considering CWD and other diseases, probably should be anyways, so that will help with not getting tallowy hands. I'm thinking a tyvek with booties and rubber gloves would work well, then just put them with the meat bags.

Also, anybody have experience with the Ursack Major bags? Not quite as good as a bear can but look like they'd be a lot easier to deal with. Thanks

Honestly I don’t get that much blood on me cleaning an animal. I put my nitrile gloves in a zip lock and toss them in the food bag and then wash my hand and forearms.

Ursacks, keep bears from becoming habituated to human food they do nothing to protect you food from bears. They are a great alternative to a canister in areas that require an approved device to store food.

 

[EYJONAS!]

It sucks..... responding to the title

 

[WyoDoug]

I went fishing at North Michigan Creek Reservoir in Colorado when I used to live in that state. Woke up and the food was all over the place. Bear proof containers were not available then. I sure wish they were. If you can not move the meat right away, I recommend hanging it high and far enough away from trees or poles because bears can climb. There are articles online that show how to do that. Black bears can be as bad as grizzlies sometime. Grizzles are more aggressive generally.

 

[johnrr65]

I went fishing at North Michigan Creek Reservoir in Colorado when I used to live in that state. Woke up and the food was all over the place. Bear proof containers were not available then. I sure wish they were. If you can move the meat right away, I recommend hanging it high and far enough away from trees or poles because bears can climb. There are articles online that show how to do that. Black bears can be as bad as grizzlies sometime. Grizzles are more aggressive generally.

+1

 

[AlaskaHunter]

We try to shuttle the meat far away from the gut pile...we have had several instances with bears on gut piles the next day,
and sometimes with a big bull moose or 2-4 caribou, we return the next day to continue packing.

Other than that, we keep the meat bags downwind of our tent (we are typically above timberline).

My one hunting partner sets up a portable electric fence around our tent.
AK Fish and Game website has information about portable electric fences for bears.

 

[Bluejeep]

Try to stay as clean as you can. Move the meat away from the site as fast as you can, and try not to go back in the dark.

There are lots of places with good hunting where there are no griz, and that can make things a lot easier when coming from out of state.

 

[Gerald Martin]

I scream. At the top of my lungs.

From the second I pull the trigger until the last chunk of meat is in the freezer.

You are supposed to fold the Havalon up before you put it back into your pocket.

 

[kwyeewyk]

Honestly I don’t get that much blood on me cleaning an animal. I put my nitrile gloves in a zip lock and toss them in the food bag and then wash my hand and forearms.

Ursacks, keep bears from becoming habituated to human food they do nothing to protect you food from bears. They are a great alternative to a canister in areas that require an approved device to store food.

Seems like no matter how hard I try I always end of with at least some blood on me, usually my boots and lower pants, sometimes my lower sleeves. The last elk I field processed it was around 20 below and windy and just getting dark, and couldn't take my coat off, I was pretty bloody (we pulled the heart and liver too). It was a low density area for grizzly and had a partner and weren't far from the road, so it wasn't too big a deal, but it made me think about it being in backcountry without another change of clothes. I abandoned those clothes for the rest of the trip.

Not sure I'm following you on the sacks, if they keep bears from becoming habituated doesn't that mean they aren't getting the food?

 

[kwyeewyk]

We try to shuttle the meat far away from the gut pile...we have had several instances with bears on gut piles the next day,
and sometimes with a big bull moose or 2-4 caribou, we return the next day to continue packing.

Other than that, we keep the meat bags downwind of our tent (we are typically above timberline).

My one hunting partner sets up a portable electric fence around our tent.
AK Fish and Game website has information about portable electric fences for bears.

Do you switch clothes if they get bloody, or just manage to stay pretty clean and call it good?

 

[kwyeewyk]

I went fishing at North Michigan Creek Reservoir in Colorado when I used to live in that state. Woke up and the food was all over the place. Bear proof containers were not available then. I sure wish they were. If you can not move the meat right away, I recommend hanging it high and far enough away from trees or poles because bears can climb. There are articles online that show how to do that. Black bears can be as bad as grizzlies sometime. Grizzles are more aggressive generally.

I tend to worry more about black bears coming into to camps in areas that get a lot of use, but grizz seem to be more likely to try to claim carcasses. Not that either won't do the other.

 

[kwyeewyk]

Had someone else suggest using rain gear since it's easy to wash off, anybody do that? Not sure I want to use expensive rain gear, but not a bad idea.

 

[WyoDoug]

I tend to worry more about black bears coming into to camps in areas that get a lot of use, but grizz seem to be more likely to try to claim carcasses. Not that either won't do the other.

True. You are more likely to tangle with black bears in camp. But you still need to be prepared for both. I had a black bear run off with one of my quarters though when I had bags hanging too close to a tree. I don't think push come to shove that black bears would fight over a carcass but I am no expert on that subject. Most situations I encountered, they ran off once I came back to the area I hung my quarters up in.

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

Seems like no matter how hard I try I always end of with at least some blood on me, usually my boots and lower pants, sometimes my lower sleeves. The last elk I field processed it was around 20 below and windy and just getting dark, and couldn't take my coat off, I was pretty bloody (we pulled the heart and liver too). It was a low density area for grizzly and had a partner and weren't far from the road, so it wasn't too big a deal, but it made me think about it being in backcountry without another change of clothes. I abandoned those clothes for the rest of the trip.

Not sure I'm following you on the sacks, if they keep bears from becoming habituated doesn't that mean they aren't getting the food?

Im a super neat freak ... so YMMV.

The sack keeps the bear from eating your food not from destroying it... think PBandJ in your pocket... then getting hit by a Mack truck.

Honestly Ursacks are basically for National Parks with their Danny ocean bears, for people who really suck at bear hangs, or for someone one who has their shit together but is hunting in the maroon bells or the like where a bunch of jack asses from Cali and Texas have screwed up everything for everyone.

 

[kwyeewyk]

Im a super neat freak ... so YMMV.

The sack keeps the bear from eating your food not from destroying it... think PBandJ in your pocket... then getting hit by a Mack truck.

Honestly Ursacks are basically for National Parks with their Danny ocean bears, for people who really suck at bear hangs, or for someone one who has their shit together but is hunting in the maroon bells or the like where a bunch of jack asses from Cali and Texas have screwed up everything for everyone.

I figured that might have been what you meant. That's usually how my food ends up just from me. Seems like a lot of Wyoming the trees aren't very good for hangs, had a friend that lost most of bull around Cody a couple seasons ago cause he couldn't find a spot to hang it. When I did hair snagging, we'd carry the liquid bait in bottles inside of Pelican cases, those things are a pain in the ass to pack around.

 

[BearFoot]

With moose, I've often been bloody to the elbows. Some times gets on the shirt sleeves. When butchering, we wear rain bibs and rubber boots. Water is usually near for clean up. A week or two camping, our site gets a bit "ripe". Bears notice our awesome scent and tend to stay away. Past 40 years, had one young curious grizz in camp, before we killed anything. Poor choice on his part. Once had meat stolen in the night, hanging 100 yards from camp. Never saw the bear. Bears do like gut piles. The past several years we have placed those closer to our camp, within shooting range. The bears are mostly nocturnal. Piles are cleaned up at night most often, and we never see the bear. Bears are like dogs, opportunists looking for easy food. They find gut piles, and less often go for hanging meat. I see camps with electric fence around tent, and hanging meat unprotected. It's, the best setup for the bear scared. Myself, most bear encounters have occurred while hunting, before a kill. If I was to use an electric fence, it would be around my well earned hanging meat.

 

[Schaaf]

I scream. At the top of my lungs.

From the second I pull the trigger until the last chunk of meat is in the freezer.

 

[LuketheDog]

Bears will eat what they see as the easiest and most interesting stuff first, typically it's gut pile>meat bags>you...unless you do something to change that order, like sleeping in a tent with your food and bloody clothing. If there are no good gear-hanging trees around I'd recommend at least stuffing your bloody stuff in the very bottom of your buddy's sleeping bag when he's not looking and sleeping with your boots on.

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

Bears will eat what they see as the easiest and most interesting stuff first, typically it's gut pile>meat bags>you...unless you do something to change that order, like sleeping in a tent with your food and bloody clothing. If there are no good gear-hanging trees around I'd recommend at least stuffing your bloody stuff in the very bottom of your buddy's sleeping bag when he's not looking and sleeping with your boots on.

I've just been sneaking chucks of kidney into my buddies pockets

 

[LuketheDog]

I've just been sneaking chucks of kidney into my buddies pockets

Aha! Someone finally came up with a good use for a kidney, cause they sure as heck aren't good for eating...