Packing Elk Quarters

[lif]

Didn't mean to start a fight. Lol.

 

[DEHusker]

Don't forget that a good sized bull cape/antlers can weigh 60+ lbs. This tends to wreck the 2 load theory for most guys.

Maybe I'm just a wimp but carrying 2 quarters, backstrap, tenderloins, loose neck meat, and any supplies/water that I brought with me is not a doable option for more than an easy flat mile or 2....even with the best of packs. I plan on 4 trips for a single bull if I'm packing it myself. And that's really getting things all together. I could probably do it in three by myself but getting camp and any cape/antlers back is always the dealbreaker.

 

[muddydogs]

An Elk femur, ball end to the knee, is nowhere near 8# on any Bull I've killed.

Well how much do they weight? I'm just going off the last 4 years of data that I have collected weighting my quarters, ready to eat meat and bones. I would like to see your numbers if you have real numbers and not guesses. I started weighing everything just so a know the real weights instead of peoples guesses as I always wondered why I didn't have near the weight that others claimed, come to find out I either shoot emaciated animals or most hunters are full of crap.

 

[cnelk]

The last time me and my buddies didn't pack out an elk. was 2001.
Since then we've packed out dozens and dozens and even a couple moose.
I've only weighed a couple of those elk but the quarter weight doesn't effing matter because it all has to come out of the woods
And it's all heavy by the time it's back in camp.

Something to remember is that elk weight can vary depending on the month.
An early September cow isn't gonna weigh as much as a November cow.
And an early September bull wlll prob weigh more than a October bull due to weight loss from the rut
At least that's my results from hunting elk for about 3 decades

 

[fltlndr]

I'd say the terrain has the biggest influence on the number of loads it takes to pack out an elk. Little elevation change with maintained trail access is going to be a lot easier than ascending/descending through windfall timber. There's places even Mr. Fitness Cameron Hanes would struggle getting an elk out in two loads.

 

[dangerousD]

Compared to most I'm an elk packing novice, having only packed one cow and one 6pt bull. I didn't write it down but we weighed my bull when we got back and I think it was right on par in the 220-230 range of boned out meat if memory serves. I carried out a whole deboned half (front, rear, back straps, neck) the first trip and I remember it being much heavier than the 90 lb weight I would sometimes train with on stadium stairs back home. It was only about 1.5 miles mostly flat and downhill but lots of blow downs to make it miserable. We deboned the cow also.

I probably wouldn't carry a whole half again if it's not an easy hike. I just don't want to damage myself too bad because I want to be able to do this for many years to come.

 

[LongWayAround]

I've found the best recipe for me is to leave the bone in the rear and de-bone the rest. Drop the rear in my pack and cinch it down, then pack loose meat/clothes/etc. around the top. I don't have tons of animals under my belt but I've tried boning out the whole thing, just boning the fronts, and not boning out any of the quarters.

Any of the above suck less than dragging a whole whitetail uphill.

 

[wseidel]

Something we've done since we started elk hunting in 2010 is use reinforced winter sleds to haul out our game bags filled with elk meat. This is still hard work but much easier than packing out on your back if the terrain permits. I use these sleds in our landscape tree business to transport 6 foot-tall spruce and white pine (200-225# root ball - heavy clay). Most of our hunts are heading in uphill so the return trip is primarily downhill. The sleds work better in snow - obviously - but also work well in grass. They would not work well in downed timber...but what does! I reinforce the sleds by putting eyebolts in the front lip with the plastic sled lip sandwiched between 10 inch lengths of hockey sticks (old school sticks - white ash). I also install loops of rope along the sides (sort of like carry handles) and these serve as tie-downs (useful when going down/up steep slopes). People laughed a bit when we brought them out the first time but they've made believers of many folks. The bottom line is they are much easier to haul meat with because the weight is not on your body and you are primarily using your stronger leg muscles when moving. The only downside is having one member of the hunting party return to the truck to pick up the sleds (we use 2-3 per animal...one sled per person). Hope this helps...

 

[cnelk]

^^^^^^

Like this.... half a cow elk on the sled

 

[wseidel]

Exactly!!! We generally have the rope a bit longer so we step inside it and pull with our waist/hips. We also occasionally turn around to alternately walk backwards and forwards - to use different muscles on a longer drag out. On steep uphills, we'll often team up to muscle sleds up a hill. On down-slopes with snow conditions, I can often walk behind my sled as the weight carries it forward....another advantage to having a longer rope.

Nice job, CNELK!

 

[GKPrice]

The last time me and my buddies didn't pack out an elk. was 2001.
Since then we've packed out dozens and dozens and even a couple moose.
I've only weighed a couple of those elk but the quarter weight doesn't effing matter because it all has to come out of the woods
And it's all heavy by the time it's back in camp.

Something to remember is that elk weight can vary depending on the month.
An early September cow isn't gonna weigh as much as a November cow.
And an early September bull wlll prob weigh more than a October bull due to weight loss from the rut
At least that's my results from hunting elk for about 3 decades

the most accurate post in this thread so far

 

[GKPrice]

Something we've done since we started elk hunting in 2010 is use reinforced winter sleds to haul out our game bags filled with elk meat. This is still hard work but much easier than packing out on your back if the terrain permits. I use these sleds in our landscape tree business to transport 6 foot-tall spruce and white pine (200-225# root ball - heavy clay). Most of our hunts are heading in uphill so the return trip is primarily downhill. The sleds work better in snow - obviously - but also work well in grass. They would not work well in downed timber...but what does! I reinforce the sleds by putting eyebolts in the front lip with the plastic sled lip sandwiched between 10 inch lengths of hockey sticks (old school sticks - white ash). I also install loops of rope along the sides (sort of like carry handles) and these serve as tie-downs (useful when going down/up steep slopes). People laughed a bit when we brought them out the first time but they've made believers of many folks. The bottom line is they are much easier to haul meat with because the weight is not on your body and you are primarily using your stronger leg muscles when moving. The only downside is having one member of the hunting party return to the truck to pick up the sleds (we use 2-3 per animal...one sled per person). Hope this helps...

a lot of us elk hunters, myself included, can only WISH for terrain that would support a "sled" - try hands and knees climbing out of a canyon in snow for half a mile and compare that ......

 

[Gr8bawana]

a lot of us elk hunters, myself included, can only WISH for terrain that would support a "sled" - try hands and knees climbing out of a canyon in snow for half a mile and compare that ......

No sled could get through this jungle where I got my cow 2 years ago.

 

[DRUSS]

A sled would be nice, when could use. We use a cart a lot on old logging roads. I did just cut up a bull from tthe coast range. With front shoulders knee up one at 45#,and 47# bones were 10#. Back hams to knee were 67#. Back leg bones came in 8#. Now my scale was a fish scale so not the best option, but myself and a couple other friends have been weighing our stuff the last few seasons just to see actual weights. I think we all hear some pretty amazing stories of guys packing some high numbers. So we started checking ourselves for our own info. This bull was from last weekend. He was one of my better Roosevelt's elk. On the other side last rifle season we helped pack out 2 smaller bulls both there front shoulders were 27-34# and back hams were 45-50#. Very similar sized bulls. First year branch bulls we figured.