I upgraded to a kifaru pack this season and just got back from my elk hunt. I must say that I was impressed with how it carried the weight. I didn't get an elk, but packed in pretty heavy. I carried all my gear plus a kifaru sawtooth shelter with liner, and the kifaru medium box stove. I didn't weight it fully loaded, but the pack was a little over 61 pounds with food water based on the weights of each piece and my spreadsheet calculations. That weight does not include the weapon, clothes I was wearing or boots.
The pack I went with was the reckoning with duplex hunter frame, and I was very impressed with the layout. Center zip was very nice and added convenience to get gear out during day hunting. I added pockets to it, and it has the guide lid I had plenty of room for all my gear. We packed in for 5 days. I had enough room in the pack to go 7 or 8 days, but I would have had to go lighter on shelter options and stove. What I like about the bags with the meat shelf is this: if I need extra space, I can expand the packs hauling capability by separating the bag and using the meat shelf with a dry bag for more gear as an option. the I was able to place a hydration bladder in there and the stove bag without having to expand the bag from the normal frame mounting set up. Another item that will fit in there is a cut down piece of a thermarest ridge rest sleep pad. I cut one to fit into that slot for kneeling on around camp, or sitting on during glass sessions. But I should also mention that last minute I swapped that out for my other 4 foot ridge rest pad, and just rolled it up and secured it under the lid. I went with it because it snowed a foot up there, and I wanted the extra room of the 4 foot length pad. It is definitely hard to balance the amount of gear you need, and stay at reasonable weights. I was going for a target weight of 52 pounds, but ended up close to 62. One of my takeaways from this trip is that I could have run a lighter shelter option with a smaller footprint, and a lighter stove option.
Oh hey....quick tip: get some trioxane! I have used the wet fire and cotton balls with vasoline, but let me tell ya, that trioxane stuff (recommended by aron Snyder and a few others around here) definitely works great. We had to get a fire going in my stove when we got to our campsite after the snow had dumped, and it was a bit of a challenge to get a fire going initially. The trioxane worked great!! Its an add to my kit this year that will ALWAYS be in there now!!
Good luck in your decision, im just rambling as I sit here recapping my trip....LOL. Didn't get an elk, but we had a great time (looking back). Im sore and wore out, but hell....application season is right around the corner for 2019! you have a full year to research gear and advice on this site which is good. Im no expert, but hope there was some helpful info somewhere within this post....LOL. good luck!