Never never never drop your pack. You think you're just going 30 yards to set up, next thing you know you are 1/2 a mile and downhill from your pack, you have no water, and you still have a bull bugling 300 yards in front of you.
I have a Benchmade Altitude. I love the knife, super light weight and I put a paracord handle on it for more to grip. I have to say though, I wasn't particularly impressed when I lost the edge about 50% of the way through a bull elk. Definitely some user error, probably caught a lot more hair...