The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting American Big Game Hunting So you down a big elk or moose in the evening hunt...Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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...you get it back to camp at 8pm. If you can't hang it from a tree, what do you all do to keep it as cool as possible until the next morning when you drive it in to town and drop off at the butcher. Let's assume it's archery so it's still fairly warm. Edited - assume no ice around. Mike Legistine actu quod scripsi? Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.  What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | ||
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Could you lay the quarters over ice until morning when you head out? Of course, this assumes you have ice. I have heard of guys building willow other branch pliers and lying the meat on that to allow air to circulate. Worst case scenario, I guess, one could lay the cuts in a cool and shallow spring or branch. | |||
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Get it into pieces (quarters). Get the hide off and put it into mesh bags (to help keep flies/dirt off). Lay it atop branches/logs so air can circulated and in as much shade as is available. Hope the bears don't get to it and pack it out at daylight and get it chilled asap. The heavily muscled areas retain a lot of heat and will turn quickly. | |||
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Rokslide meat and trophy care is an entire subforum on related topics. This vid was found there and while long it is interesting. If you don't have the time, fast forward to 34:35 for your situation.: . "Listen more than you speak, and you will hear more stupid things than you say." | |||
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Not ever hunting too far from home. No need to. DIY cut up, carried out and transported home. Chilled/wrapped/frozen asap. Marathon. No rest until it's all done. | |||
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This^^^^ | |||
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No brainer there  " Until the day breaks and the nights shadows flee away " Big ivory for my pillow and 2.5% of Neanderthal DNA flowing thru my veins. When I'm ready to go, pack a bag of gunpowder up my ass and strike a fire to my pecker, until I squeal like a boar. Yours truly , Milan The Boarkiller - World according to Milan PS I have big boar on my floor...but it ain't dead, just scared to move... Man should be happy and in good humor until the day he dies... Only fools hope to live forever “ Hávamál” | |||
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One thing we always did was peel the skin off the chest, cut thru the rib joints and throw out the brisket. Then IF there's snow, pack it full. And around the outside. Get it laying on it's back. Prop it so it stays that way and open. Make sure the neck, and shoulders are split open. They'll keep like that til morning just fine as it cools down at night here in CO. Get there as early the next morning and get it packed out. Bag it, hang it in the shade. We never had a problem with meat spoiling. Doing these things. I like to cut the quarters or hunks, as they come off, lay out on the snow, each piece as it's cut off, roll the first one's over. Then pack snow in the bottom of the cooler, layer meat, snow, then top it off with more snow. I've had meat packed in coolers that way for 8 days and still no sign of the snow melting in 50-70F temps. Of course there's a lot more to it than this bit. George "Gun Control is NOT about Guns' "It's about Control!!" Join the NRA today!" LM: NRA, DAV, George L. Dwight | |||
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we been down in the 40's at night already. get it cleaned out and back to camp. they make hanging racks that go in the trailer hitch on your truck. they are good enough to skin on. | |||
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Another one for this. No reason you can't get it off the ground unless there are no trees but even up on rocks is better than nothing. But no matter what gut it, get the hide off and quarter it or it will start to spoil, even in cold weather. Roger ___________________________ I'm a trophy hunter - until something better comes along. *we band of 45-70ers* | |||
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I always bring a lb of ground black pepper too in my day pack. Helps keep the flies away Regards, Chuck "There's a saying in prize fighting, everyone's got a plan until they get hit" Michael Douglas "The Ghost And The Darkness" | |||
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After you do this piss around the meat to keep the small vermin away, it works. Dave | |||
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Mike, Having done just that on three moose I can tell you with a moose you won't get it out and to camp that night if you shoot it in the evening unless you shoot it beside a road somewhere. Sadie and I would skin one side, remove the front and rear quarter coming back in the AM to finish the job. It would take us about 3 hours from the moose hitting the ground to having it bagged and ready to go to camp. On an evening hunt it's highly unlikely you'd have that amount of daylight left to work in and then of course you need to be able to get back to camp. Mark MARK H. YOUNG MARK'S EXCLUSIVE ADVENTURES 7094 Oakleigh Dr. Las Vegas, NV 89110 Office 702-848-1693 Cell, Whats App, Signal 307-250-1156 PREFERRED E-mail markttc@msn.com Website: myexclusiveadventures.com Skype: markhyhunter Check us out on https://www.facebook.com/pages...ures/627027353990716 | |||
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All this^^^^. I've shot several early archery elk and moose and the WORK isn't done until the hide is off and it's into pieces draped over brush or hung in a tree to cool. This is regardless of how late it gets or how tired I am!!!! Get right back there in the morning since some will end up in the sun, no doubt. You'll never lose meat if you follow the poster's advice. Zeke | |||
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What Matt Norman said is correct. Get it quartered, into mesh bags and hang them from a tree branch. You get evaporative cooling and it will be just fine. I do this in NM frequently and it is hot in the early season. | |||
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My father lost all the meat from his 2012 moose in September. He shot her about 1830 and when they came back in the morning she was rotten. They couldn't get their side by side to where the moose was, and had to pack out quarters. They still packed her out, and the butcher shop got about 30-40 pounds of meat out of her. Really sad. This was at 9000 feet on Union Pass in Wyoming. | |||
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I'll add that if I can't shoot a bull in October before 1600 I'll probably head back to camp. I am hunting by myself, and I doubt I'll be able to get him quartered and hauled out on my game cart in that amount of time. But if we have 20-30 degree temps, I'll shoot one at last light, strip the hide off game bag and hang it in trees. | |||
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Honestly guys, never say never but I never lost meat from elk even in over 90F You just don’t wait and work on it till shit gets done or don’t go hunting unprepared " Until the day breaks and the nights shadows flee away " Big ivory for my pillow and 2.5% of Neanderthal DNA flowing thru my veins. When I'm ready to go, pack a bag of gunpowder up my ass and strike a fire to my pecker, until I squeal like a boar. Yours truly , Milan The Boarkiller - World according to Milan PS I have big boar on my floor...but it ain't dead, just scared to move... Man should be happy and in good humor until the day he dies... Only fools hope to live forever “ Hávamál” | |||
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Very true. Why not just stay there until the jobs done, then either go back to camp or spend the night. I've done both. Roger ___________________________ I'm a trophy hunter - until something better comes along. *we band of 45-70ers* | |||
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There's been times when we've thought it might be better to just camp there til it's all eaten than packing one out from where they died. There's a whole lotta places you can't get to with wheels on it. Some it's a real ordeal to get to with horses even. George "Gun Control is NOT about Guns' "It's about Control!!" Join the NRA today!" LM: NRA, DAV, George L. Dwight | |||
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Some folks call them knife & fork elk for the nasty places they go to die in. I've never had one fall where you could drive to it. So it all comes out on my back!  Roger ___________________________ I'm a trophy hunter - until something better comes along. *we band of 45-70ers* | |||
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You know it's funny how so many people read so much into things. This post has nothing to do with how long or hard a hunter is willing to work or not work. It's simply about if you can't hang your meat from a tree, what other techniques are there to keep cool overnight. Mike Legistine actu quod scripsi? Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue. What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
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+1 on this. Done it many times. Key is to get air circulating under it and get that hide off ASAP. | |||
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Key piece is missing: cover all red meat with branches so birds can't see it. Birds are what attract bears and coyotes. | |||
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So interestingly enough I was along for the taking of a Bull Moose in Idaho on Sunday. Bull was dropped at about 7:00 pm. It was pitch dark by ~8:00. Even in the mountains of Idaho there were no suitable trees for hanging. All the trees in the area were either aspens or smaller spruce or pines and any branches high enough would likely not support a moose quarter. I had actually scouted the area early and looked for some. Now fortunately, the pick up could be driven to the moose. Took me and another individual a bit over 3 hours to get it skinned, quartered, backstraps, tender loins, and neck meet removed and all bagged. So I took my folding atv ramps, layed them on edge, slightly spread open to make two "A"s that made a zig zag support structure across the pick up bed and laid the meats bags across that support structure. Provided about 11 inches of air flow underneath and then I also had a small folding ladder with me and used that which provided about 8 inches of air flow space. Night time temps dropped into the low 40s so the meat was just fine overnight. Mike Legistine actu quod scripsi? Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue. What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
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Right on Mike  " Until the day breaks and the nights shadows flee away " Big ivory for my pillow and 2.5% of Neanderthal DNA flowing thru my veins. When I'm ready to go, pack a bag of gunpowder up my ass and strike a fire to my pecker, until I squeal like a boar. Yours truly , Milan The Boarkiller - World according to Milan PS I have big boar on my floor...but it ain't dead, just scared to move... Man should be happy and in good humor until the day he dies... Only fools hope to live forever “ Hávamál” | |||
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True. I always cover the meat with branches as well. I've usually done this to keep direct sun heat off of it but yeah, keeping birds off is a concern. I also tie a piece of clothing on it to provide human scent, hoping this will keep scavengers off temporarily until I can get back to it for final recovery. | |||
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That's why I piss around the meat pile. If you going to hunt till the last legal hour in the back country be prepared to work in the dark. It might be wise to prepare to spend the night. Dave | |||
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The first time I shot an elk (a cow) I was hunting alone. Shot her right about sunset. I debated for a few minutes whether I should start on it right away, hang the meat in the game bags I always carry with me and come back in the morning for the meat or go back for my truck. I chose the latter and hiked back to get my truck. By the time I got back to the elk it was about 7:30, but I was able to drive within 100' feet of it. By the time I was all done skinning, cutting and putting the bagged meat in the truck, it was about 12:30 AM and the coyotes were circling within a few yards of the carcass. Drove back to the cabin and hung the game bags on hooks in the garage, poured a drink to celebrate and finally got to bed about 2:00 AM. Damn good thing I took the time to hike back for my truck because a few hours later it started raining and didn't stop for two days. No way would I have been able to drive in over those muddy tracks to my meat, and the hike would have been a long, sloppy bitch. | |||
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On the breaks of the Snake a number of years ago, my brother and I lost 1/2 an elk ham to an eagle, despite the fact that we covered it with branches. I like to peel them on the hide and quarter if at all possible. This has never caused a loss due to spoilage. | |||
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You have to get is skinned, quartered, bagged and off the ground. Most important: split open the neck! "There are worse memorials to a life well-lived than a pair of elephant tusks." Robert Ruark | |||
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The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting American Big Game Hunting So you down a big elk or moose in the evening hunt...
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