given the option would you do a pack hunt alone ?

I have been backpacking and backpack hunting alone since 1964 and worked in very remote BC-Alberta wilderness alone for extended periods since 1965. I enjoy backpack solo hunts, but, it is NOT for everyone.

I would give one simple bit of advice here and it is that, IF, you feel strongly that you would be in danger when backpack hunting solo, then, LISTEN to your intuition and go with partner(s) on simple, local hunts, gradually building your skills and confidence and NEVER be ashamed to turn around and come home if you become unsure that you can cope with the situation you are entering.

I have seen a number of VERY experienced BC mountain people, the REAL kind, come out in a bag on a chopper and more inexperienced "macho" types as well. Here, in BC, hunters get lost and are never found fairly frequently and NO amount of bravado will compensate for over-reaching your abilities or being under-equipped.

Remember, this is about FUN, not about scaring yourself shitless just to prove something to the stoolwarmers at the local tavern.....

Usually, if far from home, I try to at least make camp with a friend, although we may hunt in opposite directions.
One of the times that I was hunting solo in the lower 48, I fell off of a small bluff when rocks gave way.
When I woke up, I was happy to find that both legs still worked. Luckily, I knew the way to a house that was not a mile away. Spent a week in ICU with multiple rib fractures, skull fracture, etc. Had this been in really remote country, the results would have involved even more misery than they did.
Once on a solo hunt in the Gila, the loneliness, altitude, and difficult terrain together really made the hunt miserable after just a few days.
Go with a buddy is my advice.

I like hunting alone, got used it, whenever I planned a hunt with a friend they back out for some reason....now I do all my sheep hunts alone, get dropped off by supercub, call them on my Iridium phone when ready for pick up....no problem.

I did a LOT of solo hunting from the early 80's until 1992 in the Cascade Crest around White Pass ( Hwy 12 ).

Three times I had to limp out slowly to the truck. I always took a first aid kit and ALWAYS let someone know where I was going to and coming from.

Never broke any bones, but a twisted knee will realy slow you down when you are 6 miles from the truck. And a bad fall onto your back and bruising your Kindeys is not fun either. Once on horseback, I had food poisoning so bad, all I could do was load up the horse, and climb into the saddle, hold on and point him toward the truck. I never did figure out what caused that, and it cleared up in about 6 hours.

I had more issues of pissing off a Cow Elk or Sow Bear, during the summer months than during hunting season, so I always packed enough pistol.

Now with the medicial issues I have, I always am with someone that I know in the same area, and keep in touch with walkie talkies on regular interviews.

James Wisner
Custom Metalsmith

Iridium Sat phones make it less dangerous.

I can tell you that they are much different during the first three days out then they get less different but probably more dangerous.

You do find depths of your person that you will find in any other way.

It is not about how many game tokens you store up in this life but about how you live and experience life; and if you are confident in your skills and come up with a system to eliminate most risk then you will have one of the best hunts in your life.

Sincerely,
Thomas

I find myself hunting alone much of the time these days. So many of my friends that I used to hunt with have passed. I still hunt hunt by myself. The experiance can be wonderful, as being by yourself will allow you to hunt as you like.
I have inlisted several younger friends to hunt with me, but find many of them not really dedicated to the hunt. I have no Idea why.
Some only desire to establish a kill. My idea of a hunt is to HUNT. This makes me sad.
So, I have been hunting alone.
My wife is so stressed that I hunt alone.
I just do a double and triple-take on personal safety. Think several times over decisions.
But, cannot think of personnal risk because of my age.
I just want to HUNT, and only HUNT!!
For me, life is about hunting.
If I were to die hunting. I would be satisfied with life.

quote:

Originally posted by white eagle:
given the option would you do a pack hunt alone ?

I write as a member of a search and rescue team . . .

If you hunt alone, and you fail to return when expected (or your absence is noticed serendipitously) and all that's known is that you're somewhere in my county, a whole bunch of folks will be called out to find you with the intent of rescuing you (or recovering your remains).

Searches into the back country are always inconvenient and can be very dangerous for those, like me, who undertake the task.

If you are without a companion, our job would be extremely difficult because you'd be in the "ROT" (Rest of World) . . . unless you'd kept someone, somewhere, informed of your most recent moves by radio or cell phone (if going solo, most people don't keep family or friends informed of their most recent movements).

If you are with someone, our task would be much easier and safer, because your buddy would have at least some idea of where we should begin to search for you.

Just FWIW.

Brian

Hunting alone is the chance you take. But if you go...know what your doing, and be smart about it. With todays technology, going alone doesn't mean they can't find you if in distress. To me going alone increases my success...

Well Mr. O'Connor, where I go probably the only guy who would be able to find me if I didn't come it is my cousin-in-law.

I don't see search and rescue as getting within 20-30 miles of where I go.

I know them and I grew up with them but they really are lowland people with hearts of gold.

If I come out in a Bag so be it.

Read Alaskan Hunter by Ray Chandler, who presently makes custom sniper rifles for both Canadian and US Troops.

I figure that my close group of friends pretty much knows where I am going and you know that I do a pretty good job at minimizing risk. I believe that it might be more dangerous taking somebody who doesn't know how to do a self-arrest in a fall or somebody who gets vertigo and falls off a cliff.

I have been doing this since 1985 and I am still young enough to do it so I will continue. I could try to find some young person to inculcate but you know that I try harder than most people would believe possible to temper myself for it each year. Ex-for today-425lb bench for 3 reps and 6 miles on hills in 40 minutes just today and I am still two months out. My pushup count is at 450 pushups per night and I do 350 pullups three times per week(sets of 20/10/20). I will get my mileage up to three 20 mile runs per week and some serious hiking up crap with my 65 lb pack- scouting. 5000 rds of 22lr/ 50 rds of 06/50 rnds of 22-250 from all positions so 400yrd shots are chip shots.

Sure, I took a 15 ft header 5miles in this last goat season and hurt my lower back but I still drug my carcass out and I am ready to go again this year.

Sat phones are enablers but they are great for wives who worry.

Sincerely,
Thomas

quote:

Originally posted by Kaboku68:
Well Mr. O'Connor, where I go probably the only guy who would be able to find me if I didn't come it is my cousin-in-law.

I don't see search and rescue as getting within 20-30 miles of where I go.

I know them and I grew up with them but they really are lowland people with hearts of gold.

If I come out in a Bag so be it.

[ . . .]

Sincerely,
Thomas

Thomas,

I really wasn't intending to impugn you personally, your fitness, courage, toughness or your outdoor abilities, and I'm genuinely sorry that my post gave offense.

But I think my point still stands: it's more dangerous to hunt alone than not, and if a lone hunter is injured or becomes lost somewhere in the ROW, and a search is mounted, other people become involved, even if the lone hunter doesn't care whether he's brought out alive or in a bag.

To a greater or lesser extent those searchers or retrievers are placed "at risk" (the amount depending on a whole raft of variables): in the absence of information from a (hunting) companion, they may well search especially dangerous areas unnecessarily.

Just FWIW

Brian

quote:

Originally posted by Kaboku68:

I have been doing this since 1985 and I am still young enough to do it so I will continue. I could try to find some young person to inculcate but you know that I try harder than most people would believe possible to temper myself for it each year. Ex-for today-425lb bench for 3 reps and 6 miles on hills in 40 minutes just today and I am still two months out. My pushup count is at 450 pushups per night and I do 350 pullups three times per week(sets of 20/10/20). I will get my mileage up to three 20 mile runs per week and some serious hiking up crap with my 65 lb pack- scouting. 5000 rds of 22lr/ 50 rds of 06/50 rnds of 22-250 from all positions so 400yrd shots are chip shots.


Sincerely,
Thomas

You must be in a good shape.

Dear Mr. O'Connor,

I didn't want to come off as harsh. Its just that for the most part search and rescue in Kenny Lake isn't as dedicated as you folks in BC.

I remember when I was teaching in Ambler a guy with a load of bootleg liquor got lost between Huslia and Shungnak. The first group of search and rescue didn't return. So another group of search and rescue when looking for the searchers. They didn't show up or radio back either. Finally, the town minister went out with some of the teachers. The searchers were fine but all of them were camped comfortably and completely snockered on R+R that was generously given up by the "rescued" bootlegger.
He ended up running out of product before they returned to the village. Most Search and Rescue teams are much more professional than that.

I admire you Canucks. Kind of feel that you guys are brothers from another Mother.

For the most part I would agree that going solo is not smart.

However, most of the time I have had more problems with partners who either give up or get injured that I have enjoyed greater success just going solo.

Most people up here argue that you might have two or three true loves or people who are your soul mates in this life but you are unlikely to find another dedicated hunting partner who is willing to give you the shot and who you are willing to give up the shot for. Basically a great hunting partner is harder to find than a good woman who understands our makeup.

For those of you with family or spouses that are willing to go with you- Please do not rub it in the rest of us live in a more difficult world.

Sincerely,
Thomas

I do not agree that it is always more dangerous to hunt alone, even in very remote regions, such as northern BC or the "Territories". For someone, like me, with decades of training and field experience in living solo in remote wilderness and the best gear available, plus, good health at pushing 64, it is, in many respects, safer.

This is because I do not have to concern myself with a terrified, irrational and aggressive partner in an emergency situation....and I have had this happen. I am quite capable of dealing with an emergency and then keeping alive, comfortable and ready for evacuation alone and I prefer this, as good partners are VERY difficult to find.

I DO agree with the utmost care and attention to having my "CEO" know EXACTLY where and when I will be and I NEVER go away from my camp without my emerg. camp pack on, NEVER, even to take a dump 100 yds. from my tent.

My wife is a former "outpost" RN in the Yukon and NWT and we have a system that works for us, plus, she is EXTREMELY competent in emergencies and could give lessons to many SAR techs I have known.

It is first personality type, then skill, then gear and then keeping contacts with your "fall back" that will keep you safe and enjoying your solo trips. I intend to go on a few this coming season and would be alone in northern BC right now were my wife not off work with illness.

So, it is a situation that one needs to think over and then decide if it is for you and to do so rationally and with self-knowledge.

I enjoy the solitude and being able to hunt without having to keep up with someone else. I've hunted alone in north Idaho, SW Colorado, and several places in NM...both in Nat'l Forests and wilderness areas. If something happens and I die out there, then I can tell you that I will die doing something I love. My wife doesn't like it when I pack in alone, but I compromised: told her I promise not to scuba alone if she'll not throw a fit about me hunting alone. If someone has to come and find me, then it'll be a first. I always leave an itinerary and a map that shows where I start and (generally) where I'm going. So far, I haven't needed assistance, but have assisted a couple of other parties in finding their ways out.

given the option would you do a pack hunt alone ?

yes.

Like others have said ignore the macho bs and be safe.

quote:

Originally posted by white eagle:
given the option would you do a pack hunt alone ?

I hunted Mtn Goat last year alone in the mountains of SE British Columbia. 4 days on foot with my pack. took a fantastic billy. it was by far the hardest hunt of my life, and the most rewarding. I have spent countless days in the wilderness alone, packing, canoe/kayak tripping, etc before, but never in such steep, unforgiving terrain. start small and work into it. it's very rewarding but comes with risk. you have to be ready to do a risk assessment for every action you take.

I mostly prefer alone, but a man's got to know his limitations.

Yup, and we see guys get lost permanently here in BC quite regularly, these are often the kind of bush "experts" who carry their "survival kit" in a small tin in their pants pocket and never carry an emerg. camp. My younger bother, now retired, was a "paramedic" here and flew out quite a few like this, "bagged and tagged".

I remember one in the SE part of BC that was a "mountaineer" from a European nation and tended to scoff at our "little" 10,000 ft. peaks in the West Kootenays. He just disappeared one day and was not found for over 20 years, not too far from my second BCFS fire lookout, they only found his skull, ,one boot and a tibia, IIRC. I was probably only two miles from him when he bought the farm, but, in that country, cold and wet and alone, that is a LONG way from safety.

This is why I NEVER go anywhere without my daypack with an emergency camp and I have used it several times. We should have courses in our schools on survival when alone in the bush, but, the government would rather waste our taxes on bullshitt like "multiculturalism" and propaganda against guns, hunting and Canadian traditions.

I guess I am kind of a crazy person so they let me do what I want when I teach Alaska Studies. This is a class where I teach the History and Geography of Alaska. However, I go one more step and actually teach the students the elements of survival. We watch Bear Grylls on his Alaska Trip- Where he does almost every single thing wrong and we dissect it. I teach the students about the three conditions found in Alaska: 1) Endure; 2) Survive; and 3) Thrive. Endure is when its colder than -50F. Survive is -20--50F. Thrive is warmer than -20F. Remember that this is Fairbanks so the temperature range is appropriate.
I was told that I couldn't teach the students how to Snare rabbits next to the slough by the campus by the Assistant Superintendent. However, it doesn't prevent students coming to me years later thanking them for simple lessons that they used in the USMC or our in emergency situations. Life in the north country is tied to survival. I do note that the Dual Survivor Hippie Fellow is pretty sharp even if his barefoot fetish is weird. His book is really good.

I have found two different campers dead out in the brush. One from a fall and the other from a bear mauling/possible robbery. This doesn't prevent me from going out into the country.

Sincerely,
Thomas

Hasn't anybody else been on hunts where they were damn glad they had a companion to help their sorry ass survive? Shit happens, and sometimes it takes a friend to make it tolerable. Not all of us are Rambo. Not all of us evade falls, soakings, illness, bear problems, etc. And after 50, those things become decidedly more likely.

Why would bear problems become more likely after 50? That has not happened to me and I turned 64 at the end of June, in fact, I am inclined to think that older, more experienced, cautious and less "macho" people are LESS inclined to have trouble in the wilderness.

I have a couple photos of me climbing the sheer face of "The Giant's Kneecap" in Kokanee Glacier Park, near Nelson, BC, without ANY protection, age 29, 1975. I made it up and down and dammed near killed myself, laughed it off and went to the bar that night....I would NEVER even think of attempting that now!

I don't see anyone here saying that a GOOD partner is not a great addition to a hunt or backpack or a Sat. afternoon beer session...but, my two closest friends are 42, both have very young children, younger wives and are very busy with work...so, I often go solo and have done all of my life, since age 18.

No biggie, just what I do and enjoy.

Dewey, you are proably a special case. The rest of us generally don't see, hear, walk, or climb as well as we did in our 20'-40's. Arthritis and heart disease are starting to take a toll, whether we know it or not. For some, mental sharpness is beginning to decline.
Of course if we've reached the stage where we won't be disappointed if we don't return, then none of that matters. But survival when severe problems/disasters strike is nearly always made easier with the assistance of a partner.

quote:

[...snip...] Of course if we've reached the stage where we won't be disappointed if we don't return, then none of that matters [...snip...].

Absolutely true. I think that's absolutely key.

To me, the question is how are others — those who might risk their own well-being to search for me — to know that I have reached that point?

I mean, it's one thing for me to talk about how I want to check out in the abstract, when (for example) death by starvation isn't imminent. But in the hours preceding my death, when I'm overdue (lets say I'm a reasonably fit person with a broken leg, to hell-and-gone out in the Siskiyous), how do others know that this is my moment to say to the world: "sayonara?"

Should we worry about such things?

If yes, which assumption should we make?

1) I really would be perfectly happy to die from an otherwise treatable injury, one from which not only do I know I would recover, but could return to hunting, backpacking, etc.?

2) I would prefer not to die while in otherwise great health, leaving behind family and friends who love me, and that having changed my mind, I'd now welcome being searched for and rescued?

I'm really not trying to anger anyone or be a turd . . . I'm genuinely interested in the terms under which my wife, friends and I should risk our own safety to search for others.

I don't want to be a pontificator. I really don't feel that I am an expert. Excited about the outdoors but not an expert.

I believe I have a child like fascination of nature. I try to look at nature as a place that I could adapt too. I don't go into the glacial rivers or dangle solo over cliffs. I watch the environment and have bagged trips because of incliment weather. Hell, I am a school district employee and if there is a way to bell a cat then that is it.

However, the lack of a suitable hunting partner is not cause for me to packit in and wait until next year. Life is too precious. We are all working toward an end. The time that I spend in the mountains is my one religious retreat. I am not a church goer. I find god in the high country. I have several life insurance policies that would add up to more than 1 million dollars. I write my wife a very long letter of what to do if I don't make it and I leave it in the glovebox of my truck everytime I go in.

In Alaska, we describe it as meeting your Alaska. Everyone up here meets their Alaska somehow. Some when they are old and some when they are young. One of my heroes died of a heart attack when he was packing a moose hind quarter out. Now that is a way to go. Doing something that you love in the great country. I would rather go out that way than in a hospital bed. Its just my view and as I said I don't seek my death but I love the country and I can't find people who have the same passion to hunt like I do. Others use planes or they have more time or they are set to hunt the low lands and think that I am plumb nuts. That is fine. My hunt is a journey to find myself and if I kill a big ram its going to be bigger than the 41 inch ram that I have already taken or close enough to make the pack worth the meat which is great. I am not really a trophy hunter instead I am a bit of a nut who really wants to watch and live for a while in the way that people did before all of this crap. I like the primal ways and I can tell you eating sheep ribs over a fire by yourself is truly living.

It is hard to put words to the quality of life that you get out of crazy mountain hunts but I will continue to do them until I croak or they croak me.

Sincerely,
Best of luck,
Thomas

I often BP alone, and in fact, just returned today from a solo BP. I love packing with others but it's not always possible and sometimes not desirable. Also bagged a 10,500' peak on the trip. I'm 49 and have been going alone since age 13... my parents were of the laissez faire school of parenting (grin).

I've been going alone since I was a kid. Some of my best trips have been solo. Just be aware and be careful. If the risk bothers you, don't do it. If it bothers you that I do...