Never elk hunted before but Im looking to try it this fall. Ive been reading and watching videos on the quartering and the pack out. If I go out there alone, how many trips will it take to haul the meat out? guessing one per leg and another or two for other meat and head? more/less? I have butchered a lot of deer cattle and hogs, and worked in a small butcher shop for a couple summers so not worried about breaking one down, just don't want to get in over my head on the pack out and loose any meat. Thanks all. SB
How many trips for a solo pack-out
- Thread starter sbrville
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A bull elk will yield somewhere between 180-270ish pounds of boneless meat, plus the head/antlers.
Lots of factors influence how many trips that’ll take you.
Lots of factors influence how many trips that’ll take you.
Dougfirtree
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My (limited) experience is that a cow elk will take you 2-3 trips solo. So, I would expect 4-5 for a good sized bull (including the head), though I've never done that. I would guess that I could pack out a calf in one trip.
Carl 9.3x62
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I'd say you are about right. In my experience anyway. Depends though on distance, terrain, snow, and how much else you are hauling in your pack. If its a small elk you may be able to combine front legs, or loose meat with one of the front legs. I did a cow in two trips, bone in. But it was only 1/3 mile and flat.
teej89
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More than likely 3 but it's all circumstantial includibg terrain, weather, etc....
treedagain
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i leave the bone in.
Bullshot
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I was part of a banner 2 elk packing day this past fall. My cow (bone in) came out with 5 very easy bone-in loads including gear/weapon, could have done 3 heavy or 4 easy. Friends bull came out in 4 very heavy loads mixture of bone/deboned (5 trips including gear and weapon). I doubled my pack up to the max and carried what had to be 175+ lbs and hips have not been right since, so don't do that.
Art Vandeley
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I would spend an extra 20 minutes at the kill site and bone them out if it's going to be a long solo pack out.. I would prefer to have the bone in if it's not too far.
Carl 9.3x62
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I've always packed bone it. But I have never had to pack out a camp at the same time. Normally cold when I kill them so I don't worry about a cooler. Easier to hang with bone in too.
This was my first year archery elk hunting and I was successful on a 2.5 year old bull. It took me 4 trips to get him packed out (all meat and caped out skull). I was able to get the vehicle within about 3/4 mile of the kill site, but had to climb roughly 400-500’ out of a canyon to get from the kill site to where I could park the truck. I wouldn’t have wanted to try and do it in less than the 4 trips it took. I’d consider myself in pretty good shape (28 years old, 5’10”, 155lbs) and for a first timer that was all I could handle solo.
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These are interchangeable terms, right?
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Keep hammering bro. I’m eating strawberry ice cream right now, dreaming of more than 8.5 hours of sunlight.
Schaaf
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I had a packout once that took two trips, all downhill and I couldn’t stand up right for a week. I now make three trips.
EYJONAS!
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Too effn many........ unless you get very lucky and get him in a hell of a good spot. It's gonna suck but, the suck is worth every bone crushing step. My advice...... bring a friend or too. Good luck.
D
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There are a tons of different factors that can play a roll fitness/mileage/elevation gain or loss. Safe assumption is as others have said 3 to 4 trips.
I would definitely debone it... to quote the most handsome hunter on the forum;
"The front leg bone after boning out the front shoulder weights 10.4 lbs, the rear 11, and the hide + lower jaw, + meat of the skull after you clean it up weights 15... so yeah if you aren't boning out/cleaning up your skull in the field your are unnecessarily carrying out close to 60lbs of stuff that will end up in a dumpster."
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@sbrville you might find these threads interesting
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www.hunttalk.com
I would definitely debone it... to quote the most handsome hunter on the forum;
"The front leg bone after boning out the front shoulder weights 10.4 lbs, the rear 11, and the hide + lower jaw, + meat of the skull after you clean it up weights 15... so yeah if you aren't boning out/cleaning up your skull in the field your are unnecessarily carrying out close to 60lbs of stuff that will end up in a dumpster."
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@sbrville you might find these threads interesting
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