back packs and tents

[old man]

I am 74 years old, planning my first OMO elk hunt in area 37 in Wyoming. planning on driving as far as possible with an all wheel suv and setting up base camp. then backpacking as far as I can and setting up spike camp for a couple days at a time. I only have a day pack and a cheep two man tent. the Question is, Do I need 4 season tent or tents, and what is the difference between 3 an 4 season tents? Also how big of a backpack do I need? Do most packs come in two pieces one for gear and one for meat hauling. Considering my age and how many more hunts I will be able to make do you all think I should still get the best equipment? will probably be hunting in Oct. for riffle and Sep. if I ever go with the bow.

 

[.280 Remington]

Good lord. 74? You'd better have younger help or horses. That elk will be rotting before you get it all packed out.

 

[deer_shooter]

I admire the spirit and I hope you have a successful hunt. If I were you,I'd spend the money on a good bag and sleeping pad over the tent, especially if you are only using is as a spike.
For a pack I use a day pack and have a pack frame for hauling meat either in my truck or in camp. May not be the best plan but it works for me. You can get a frame from cabelas for around $150 or so.

 

[knobbytire]

God bless you. 74 is absolutely inspirational. I hope I'm still hunting elk in 24 years.

You're going to need something more than a day pack. My hunting buddy and I both use an Alps Commander which is a low cost ($120ish on Amazon) freighter backpack that has a removable bag. We don't remove the bag from the frame and just use it for a super sized hiking backpack. We did replace out all the rings with cotter pins to hold the clevis pins in place. A bit of electrical tape to quiet down the squeeks.

Our thought is that we're reducing our meat weight by deboning, so learn to do that. Also, you don't need to gut the elk, just debone it. Depending where you hunt, you can carry the meat 100 yds, drop it, turn around and go for another load. Keep doing that 100 yds at a time until you're out of the forest. We've also talked about wrapping the cooled meat in the hide, sewing it up with paracord, and dragging it out. Haven't tried that one yet.

As far as a tent goes, we both have a light backpacking tents from REI that each weigh 4 pounds or so. We camp at about 11,000 feet (Colorado) so it does get cold and out 15 degree sleeping bags don't cut it on their own. We filter water and boil it on the hiking propane stove and pour the water into our Nalgene bottles which get tossed into our sleeping bags. Those Nalgenes can radiate heat for 8 hours or so. Then in the morning, we have sterile water to drink from. Last year, we had 6" of heavy, wet snow fall on us. My particular tent model seemed to do pretty well. My pal's held up, but we could tell it strained more than mine.

Other gear: Get a light propane stove. A water filter (MSI sweetwater is what I use) to filter out cysts and bacteria. WalMart has a taller Stanley stainless steel pot which we cook on. We only take a 3"-4" knife each. Sharpener. Paracord. Rope. Lots of dehydrated meals. A tin cup that can also be used for heating water. Lighters, matches, hand sanitizer, toilet paper, map, compass, spoon, fork (spork?), NOAA weather radio, LED headlamp, spare batteries, a yard of duct tape, Nalgene bottles, cable saw, etc. I'm sure that I've missed a few things. There are lots of detailed lists out there.

Keep in mind an ounce here, an ounce there over 16 items adds up to a pound. Take a kitchen scale and weigh every component. Can you shave some weight from it? I've seen hikers who cut their toothbrushes down to shave off a few ounces. There's also a wonderful material called "drillium" - drill holes in it to reduce its mass.

Final thought. Walk further and more frequently to get in shape. Park at the farthest corner and walk across the lot to the store. Take the stairs. In general, get more active.

 

[old man]

Meat

I would be more than happy to share the meat with any other hunters willing to help hall it out.

Good lord. 74? You'd better have younger help or horses. That elk will be rotting before you get it all packed out.

 

[WyOpitz]

I live in Sheridan, I'd be more than happy to let you borrow my eberlestock X2 if this pack would work for you. I plan on hunting both September and October in the Big Horns. I will probably be over in 38 most of the time, but might be able to help pack out. Just PM me if you make it out this way or are interested in borrowing that pack.
Bryan