Hunting from a bicycle

sparelink

FNG
Joined
Jul 20, 2017
Messages
47
Location
Oregon
To all you guys who hunt with aid if your bike, please tell me what you value in the bike itself. Are you looking for a hardtail or full suspension? 26v29 tires? Anything special that makes it better for hunting.

I have a cart already. Just looking at possibly adding a bike to have more option available for future hunts.
 

DeepMauka

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jun 11, 2013
Messages
161
I hunt from my Walmart "fixie" someone gave me for free. No joke. I peddle that bad girl as far as my legs can handle, then walk it to a spot I stash it. Hunt, kill, then enjoy the downhill ride, or make the trek back to my vehicle easier than walking. It ain't pretty, but it beats walking back with a heavy pack. If I can't ride and have to walk a ton, still easier to slap my pack onnit or use the bike as a double wheeled trecking pole.

I guess all that to say, the bike doesn't have to be that fancy. Just get on it, peddle to your spot, and have fun. Aloha
 

FlyGuy

WKR
Joined
Aug 13, 2016
Messages
2,087
Location
The Woodlands, TX
I used my mtn bike for hunting for the 1st time last year (in TX). It went "OK". Carrying a LOT more weight than a typical ride, and my biggest fear is a bad wipeout. The backpack and weapon really throws your balance point off (no trailer for me) and makes it harder to move/shift/hop to avoid obstacles.

I've been looking at those fat tire bikes more and more. They've really come down in weight to what a normal mtn bike tire would have been in the day. Supposed to give more stability when crossing ruts/rocks/roots.

They are also supposed to perform far better in mud and sand - which we have a ton of way down here in TX...

Anyway, something you might consider looking into.

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Joined
Apr 5, 2015
Messages
5,824
It isn't really a great option for me back east. I tried it on a scouting trip in Canada in an area with very sandy logging roads. My traditional mountain bike got bogged down a lot and the extra gear was a pain in the ass compared to just riding. I enjoyed it and was able to cover a lot of ground fast but would give one of those fat tire bikes a hard look if I was going to make it part of my routine.

One thing I noticed in Canada with moose and here in the northeast with whitetail and coyotes is that animals didn't seem to regard bikes as much of a threat. I have biked past dozens of whitetails on the road and trails without them bumping.
 

Beendare

WKR
Joined
May 6, 2014
Messages
8,247
Location
Corripe cervisiam
I've fished and scouted off my bike...never actually packed anything out with it....and I've ridden the fat tire Trek Farley, my take;

After the initial 'Cool' period wore off with the Farley, I realized I would never want one. I was working against the big balloon tires on uphills and its less responsive than my 29'er. Factor in, I'm a big guy. Heck when I bought my 29er one feature I insisted on was the shock lockout so I wasn't working against the suspension.

Check out the 'Born and Raised outdoors' guys on youtube. They do a lot of hunts in Oregon on bikes. Those locked off fire roads are conducive to biking. You lose a little of a bikes advantage in the really steep up and down stuff. Plus you need a trailer if you are packing out....a heavy pack on a bike is a bad idea.

Bike wise, and middle of the road mtn bike will work...quality components matter more than the brand of bike.
 
Joined
Jan 24, 2016
Messages
59
I'd say if I'm looking at a bike, one with disc brakes and front shocks are a must for the long heavy downhills.

Besides that if your on logging roads of some kind, the tire size doesn't really matter.

Like DM said above, we use ours more for the ride out then the pack in. We'll stash the bikes at the top of where we're hunting and grab them either to load up the meat or cruise home. I can tell you six miles of down hill in the dark is much better and faster on a bike.


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hodgeman

WKR
Joined
Mar 4, 2012
Messages
1,547
Location
Delta Junction, AK
The bike is mostly driven by the terrain you're dealing with. When I started using mine, I just pressed my existing 29er into service, added a BoB...and it works OK. Most hunting gear is a collection of compromises and hunting from a bike has more than most. Lot of guys have fat tired rigs now, better in sand and mud...but not for the fire road. Unlike full on technical mountain biking, full suspension won't get you much- especially pulling a trailer.

The most convenient thing I've some across is the short rifle- a handy little carbine is far more convenient to pack around on a bike than a full size rifle.
 

Btaylor

WKR
Joined
Jun 3, 2017
Messages
2,441
Location
Arkansas
Tried one on one of our wma's and brought a boned out doe, API climber and bow strapped to my back first time using it. Next 2 times got flats and had to push the thing out. Problem here is the woods roads on the wma's are closed to motorized vehicles and they let the roads grow all year and then bush hog them right before season. Makes it hard on tires. Oh that bike is a Walmart special too that got painted flat black. If riding where constant flats aren't an issue, they work great.
 
Joined
Apr 27, 2017
Messages
42
Make sure you have or get a good seat, one that is very soft! Buddy and I did a bike in hunt a few years ago and it was both of ours first time on a bike in quite a while. The bikes had basic run of the mill seats. We both couldn't sit down for a week cause our asses hurt so bad! Lol.

I work in garbage, and our transfer station has a bike recycle bin. I just scored a prettt good bike. Good shocks, disc brakes. Going to give it a new chain, tubes in the tires and the best softest damn seat I can find, then we are going to give this another try.
 

aion2come

WKR
Joined
Jul 31, 2013
Messages
501
Location
Joplin, MO
Be careful on downhills. Know of a young man in Colorado from a few years back that got a 6 point bull, and while "riding it out" died riding downhill on a gravel road when he let the bike get going too fast and lost control.
 
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