OK after 55+ years of elk hunting and with 50+ elk taken do I hold out for a toad or kill a peace of meat? It is not that easy because I can still walk and hike but my back will not let me pack it anymore. I have friends that will take care of the old guy, but when does that become to much to expect? I hate asking for hep but never want to quit hunting or fishing.
What do you think
- Thread starter oleefish2
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Mtnhunter1
Well-known member
Well, spend the rest of your remaining hunting years looking for that "TOAD", say 400"r or bust! You will probably never have to worry about packing meat again....but, if you do find and down your "TOAD", finding help with the meat packing shouldn't be a problem.
Gerald Martin
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Depends whether your friends who are packing meat for you are ending up with plenty of the meat for their efforts.
I’d ask the one who will be packing for you what they think.
I’d ask the one who will be packing for you what they think.
Lyfter1013
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Im Not sure of who helps you or how close you are with them but let me share this side... my dad has quite a few health issues and even though he isn’t as old as some of the other guys that are still on the mountain he just physically can’t do what he could even 10 years ago.. with that said I spend a good portion of my season here In California hunting with him no matter what even if it’s me driving him down forest roads and not being able to do any hiking when he’s having a really bad day. And I wouldn’t change that for anything and the last deer he did get the only other time i seen my dad smile like that was when he held my daughter for the first time. I’d trade my next 5 years of hunting if it meant I could take him out and pack out an elk for him.. especially knowing how much he did for me as a kid when I first started hunting..
so I guess what I’m trying to say is depending who your hunting partners are and how close you are you getting one more bull before you can’t go anymore might mean more to them than you realize.. I may be way off base and think differently than others but that’s my 2 cents so take it for what it’s worth.
so I guess what I’m trying to say is depending who your hunting partners are and how close you are you getting one more bull before you can’t go anymore might mean more to them than you realize.. I may be way off base and think differently than others but that’s my 2 cents so take it for what it’s worth.
Montanan4life
New member
I enjoy helping out packing for somebody that loves to hunt but can no longer pack.
Seeing them excited and able to enjoy the hunt with no worries is payment enough for me, I don't think you will have any problems finding help.
I don't see myself ever tiring of helping out my mentors, I may have to take more breaks the older I get but will continue to help until I'm the one
that needs the help.
Seeing them excited and able to enjoy the hunt with no worries is payment enough for me, I don't think you will have any problems finding help.
I don't see myself ever tiring of helping out my mentors, I may have to take more breaks the older I get but will continue to help until I'm the one
that needs the help.
diamond hitch
Well-known member
Depends on the freezer level. If you have the stock to float a year - chase a toad. If not chase something tender. I've never had the freedom to be picky and tend to take what is offered. Sadly enough the big bulls always came early in the season and were less than prime table fare.
Early on I hunted with friends and shared packing until the year I killed my elk around vets day and needed help. I had packed out theirs early but they were too busy to help me. It was an awakening and the hunting party turned into 1 at best and usually just family. The days of free guide services ended in 1975 and I don't miss them. As I can see 70 on the horizon I don't see a lot of change. Things just take more planning and time. For some reason I experience self doubt at times but as I get back into the operation the decades of experience fall in line and the rhythm returns.
I'm hoping I can break 80 before the end.
Early on I hunted with friends and shared packing until the year I killed my elk around vets day and needed help. I had packed out theirs early but they were too busy to help me. It was an awakening and the hunting party turned into 1 at best and usually just family. The days of free guide services ended in 1975 and I don't miss them. As I can see 70 on the horizon I don't see a lot of change. Things just take more planning and time. For some reason I experience self doubt at times but as I get back into the operation the decades of experience fall in line and the rhythm returns.
I'm hoping I can break 80 before the end.
Gunner46
Well-known member
I'll be 65 this hunting season. The 23 yrs I spent in the Marines are just now really starting to show the wear & tear I put my body through. I had to seriously consider whether, or not, to even apply for a tag. Well, I did, knowing that I'd have to redo my thinking of getting one out. Yeah, I'd love to bust a monster, but then what? If I draw a bull tag, I'll deal with it and make $$$ professional arrangements well in advance. If I get a cow tag, I'll take what is presented and tuff it out.
farmerboy1381
Active member
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I don't know how close you are with the people doing your packing, but I will say my grandpa is getting to the point that he is having a tougher time getting out. He taught me how to hunt and was in a big part the reason I love the outdoors now. Last year I took him into one of my honey holes and he passed on shooting a nice one because he didn't want to make me drag it out. I don't think I really showed it but I was extremely disappointed, unbeknownst to him I purposely put him in the top area and myself in a secondary because it would have meant a lot to me to see him get the nice one. If you are the type of person who worries about being a burden chances are you are not.
