As a backcountry hunter, I love the land, crave solitude and respect the animals that call the mountains home, both before and after the kill.
The responsible mountain hunter takes care of their harvest, ethically and efficiently. In my mind, we owe it to the animal and the honored tradition of hunting. I have packed animals out of the hills from in "deep" on my back, with my llamas, with a packstring or depending on where I am hunting, sometimes even in a boat or bush plane. Regardless of the method used to get the meat from the field to the freezer, this video illustrates the basic guidelines I use for breaking my trophy down. In regard to backcountry hunting and meat salvage, above all, know your limitations and have a plan!
For more tips, check out my book, Backcountry Bowhunting, A Guide to the Wild Side, specifically, pages 137-142, where I delve into this topic in detail.
You can achieve your dreams…keep hunting hard, Cam
75 comments
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Searching for forward to researching more from you afterward!…
Rick Carlson, out of Idaho, offers some great advice I didn’t really cover in my off the cuff footage while breaking down my big wilderness blacktail. He suggested I remind all you elk hunters to get that hide off your bull quick, no matter what the weather. With that thick hide, even in the snow, the meat can spoil from the inside out. Rick added another tip — when packing the meat out make sure that if it didn’t have a chance to cool down real well before the pack you put it in something breathable. If not, again, there is a chance it will spoil. Thanks Rick. I know this info will help many backcountry hunters. Cam
Thanks for the tips Cam, lets just hope I have the oppertunity to use them this year.
Jeff
This is a HUGE help!!! Thanks for putting that together Cameron! I will be on my first “slightly backcountry hunt” in Nov…And, although I will only be 2-4 miles away from at least an ATV trail, seeing the video gives me a better plan of attack, should I be lucky enough to down a ‘Muley Monarch’…Great work, and thanks for everything you do!!!
When youpack out your meat do you alway’s put it inside the pack or do you ever take the pack off and carry it and put the meat on the frame?
Mike Dixon