great thread, many have been listed here already, but these are the ones I feel most advantageous ime
1. get in shape, carrying heavy loads while training makes up for the lack of time you can train vs. actually hunting. I try and work up to 90 lbs. at least to train with before a bp hunt, also I don't side hill when training, straight up in the nastiest slope I can find and through blowdowns, loose rock etc.
for a ten day hunt my pack usually weighs 55 lbs. or so going in, after used to hauling 90 it seems light and comfortable
2. trekking pole, at least one, I've never taken 2 due to weight, but a tripod is more stable than a bipod and with a trekking pole I can go faster and safer than I can on two legs.
3. Food, I don't take much of anything to eat if it doesn't make c/o calories per oz. I'm looking for 100 calories per oz.
also easy prep, if it takes more than boiled water, it ain't going
4. Lt. wt. gear, grams add up to ounces, ounces add up to pounds, I'm critical on gear being lightweight, if I can pare weight on gear I can take more food and stay out at least 10 days
5. I take a 3/4 length pad and also a butt pad to sit on rather than sitting on my pack as one poster suggested, it fits between the pack and frame. wet ground no problem, frozen ground I have insulation, a few rocks etc. takes the blunt edge off them Then I can use it along with my 3/4 pad when sleeping to provide more insulation from cold ground
6. Used Mtn. Hse bags, YMMV, but after hiking hard all day, I ain't crawlin outa the bag in a rainstorm to go take a leak. I unzip my sleep bag (if it's zipped, use mine as a quilt often too) grab an empty bag, pizz in it, open the door and pour it on the ground on the downhill side of the tent. Enough food and enough rest are key to being able to hunt hard ime.
7. I carry lt. weight binocs, in my shirt pocket to take a quick glance at.... is that a white rock or a sheep? The spotter and tripod get used for serious glassing. so I take a pirate looking eyepatch to put over the off eye to keep from having to squint and getting a headache from glassing too long. Also drill a hole in bottom of stem of tripod, use a lt. wt. carabiner and a mesh bag if it's windy, put some rocks in the mesh bag and now I have a lt. wt. tripod no longer lt. wt. that's more stable in the wind. Also use backpack and raincoat to shield my spotter from the wind as a windbreak as needed.
8. hydrate, for serious bp hunting, I like the platy type bags with a hose so I can use the bite valve and drink on the fly
9. Practice the way you'll play. Like to shoot my rifle with my heartrate up off my pack. I don't take a shooting bench with me. Practice also covers Calvin's very good suggestion of practicing with your gear before you go.
10. one very small headlamp and one photo micro II are all I need in the way of light. The two of them don't even weigh an oz.
I'll either take new ones or old ones with fresh batteries.
the two knives I take don't weigh much more than an oz. either.
Did I mention I believe in going light? thought so.
great thread, ain't nada like being on a windswept ridge in high country
