Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Preparing for elk camp.. any quirks??

LA LA LA LA LA LA LA!!!!! TOO MUCH INFORMATION!!!

-jeff

I take 1 Tylenol PM (2 seem to carry grogyness into the next mourning)when I get in the sleeping bag in camp. If I am really tired or a bit sore I have trouble getting to sleep.
I sleep better and am more rested for the next days hunting.

I was told some years ago to "load up" on bananas a day or two before getting to higher altitudes. I like nanners so I do it. I'm not sure if it is helping but it doesnt hurt. I have yet to have altitude problems.

I'll take 400 mg of ibuprofen at the end of the day elk hunting (or skiing, or anything else very strenuous). It REALLY seems to help how I feel the next day. Seems to calm down the hot spots.

Bananas are a Food of the Gods for people doing strenuous activities. I sometimes have to adjust to the altitude for a couple days, sometimes not. It's ironic because I grew up at almost 7000 feet, but I've been at more or less sea level for the last 20 years so now going up to even just 8000 feet whacks me out for a little while...

-jeff

Something everyone knows, but a reminder never hurts. The following becomes more true the farther from the everyday world you are.
Any item...Any...that you can't lay your hands on may as well not exist.
Any injury, no matter how simple it might be at home, puts your life at risk when you're alone on a hunt. Take extra care even doing simple tasks.
Another person, even a ten year old, increases your chance of survival by a huge percentage if you are injured

I learned the bananas thing a long time ago. Also, a quick tip: If you ever get cramps, especislly the big bad leg cramps, pickle juice will make them go away almost immediately. I used it so much when I was playing Baseball and Basketball at the same time of year, I didn't mind the taste at all. I would say it works quicker than any drug I could imagine. $.02

Pickle juice? Dill or sweet? I never get cramps myself, but now I'm wondering about those other types of cramps that my wife gets about every four or five weeks...

Trim your toe nails if you're going to be hiking up and down mountains. Too much downhill jamming them into the toes of your boots and they'll work themselves loose. I had a buddy lose about half his toe nails hiking off of Mt. Whitney (CA) back in 1990. It was quite the gruesome spectacle. Now I trim my toe nails before every hike.

I also like to take 2000 mg of Omega 3 fish oil, 1500 mg of Glucosamine, and 1200 mg of Chondroitin each day for my joints.

Good topic.

I second the haircut and armpit shaving. Makes it easy to do a quick clean up before going to bed.

I also take along a good sunscreen and apply it where I know I'll get burnt.

Wet wipes are a good idea - not only for toilet paper, but if you really can't stand yourself after a few days of hunting, are good for a waterless cleanup.

If you're on medications, use a medication dosette or get your pharmacist to blister pack your meds for you - beats going through a bunch of prescription vials.

Taking along the following over the counter meds for the first aid kit: Acetylsalicylic acid 325 mg (Aspirin), Acetaminophen 325 mg (Tylenol), Dimenhydrinate 50 mg (Gravol), Loperamide 2 mg (Imodium), Ibuprofen 200 mg(Motrin), and Senokot. Getting proper instruction from your pharmacist or doctor on how and when to use them.

First aid kit - checking it out to make sure it is up to date and knowing how to use it properly.

Taking along two knives - just in case one gets lost, blade gets busted. Make sure that both are sharpened before going. A small sharpening kit is also a good idea if you're in a sizeable camp where lots of game will be dressed out.

Several of those rain ponchos that come folded up in a small package. Good if you want to travel light and still have some rain protection.

Take along a rain suit - put it on before gutting your big game and you don't get blood and gore over your hunting clothes - and it's easy to wash that off your rainsuit.

John, you must hunt in a different area than I do! We don't worry about getting rained on, we worry about getting clobbered by a whiteout blizzard. It's happened to me twice now. Once, hiking out, we tried to get photo's of ourselves with 6-inch mounds of snow on our packs and heads, but it was so cold the camera would not work!

Nobody has mentioned a spare rifle, so I'll throw that out. Spare scope at a minimum.

The common denominator here is "get in shape!". To that end I ride a bike HARD several times a week, work out on our trampoline, and climb a large cedar tree on our property several times a week. At 42 years old and with a marginal right hip joint due to a ski accident 20 years ago, I try to keep things low-impact at this part of the year. I'll start hiking hard soon, though, to get those obscure little muscles in the calves and shins in shape. Anyway, I remember my first year at elk camp one of the guys saying, on the night before opening day, "tomorrow is when the Bataan death march starts" and he wasn't that wrong! By the end of the week we were all WHIPPED. So I try to get there in good shape.

If it's at altitude, drink lots of water those first few days.

-jeff

Jeff, where I go hunting in Alberta, we can have the four seasons happen in one day, so I like being prepared.

Great thread. The only thing I would add is duct tape. It has many uses and takes up little space.

CK

My only quirk is facial hair, I will start not shaving the closer it gets to season, and I like to be clean shaven. Just like I like my UHHHH never mind.

"Bald Eagle" is what I am told it is called. Very majestic and worthy of respect and admiration.

CK

As far as shaving armpits, etc., I think I'd try that the first time on a plain old camping trip where I was going to walk around a lot before going hunting (if at all). Get good and sweaty without a shower for several days and see how it works. I don't like to try anything new on the actual hunt, for obvious reasons.

Some think that hair on the armpits and crotch helps to cut down friction and chafing where your body parts move (and rub) past each other. I'm not sure if it's true because I've never tried shaving for a comparison, but I wouldn't want to find out 3 miles from the truck with a load of meat on my back.

ziplock bags of various sizes - Use them for electronics, socks, maps, cow call, bullets, batteries, you name it. They protect from moisture, dirt and dust, keep stuff organized, the air seal provides some protection, and they mitigate the noise of items in your pack. Where plastic bags really earn their merit is after you have been out several days and you need a containment for something and reuse them.

washcloth - you can't take a shower, but having something as simple as a washcloth can transform you into a human from something else.

bagels - Use them instead of bread for your sandwiches. They wont get crushed like bread and they make for a hearty sandwich.

Some excellent experiences and suggestions on this thread.
One thing not mentioned yet is that your elk camp should not be TOO comfortable...Keep it practical and Spartan, including your sleeping area.Watch what you eat and avoid eating meat at all for two days prior to the hunting.
Should you get winded by the elk or leave your scent in damp country, the less you smell like a carnivore the less they will will be concerned with your traveling thru their country.

Learn to hunt like the birds and small animals were your quarries..They are the small sentinels for most large game...and they see GOOD and DO talk.

IF one gets TOO comfortable in his camp, he is apt to stay up too late and wake up too late and the elk will laugh at him...

I find I hunt better when hungry and get out hunting long before dawn..:)
Hunting naked will make you slow down too..:)..:)..Jim

Jim the hunting hungry was good but in line 2 can you wear moccisins or is that cheating..



I find I hunt better when hungry and get out hunting long before dawn..:)
Hunting naked will make you slow down too..:)..:)..Jim

ehunter, the 'hunting nekkid' part was to humorously allude to one of the toughest preparations hunters have to contend with:

slooooowing down...:)...

There's a time to hustle and a time to go as slow as a banana slug..:)

Far too many hunters take their high paced life and mind with them and end up literally racing around the forest..They THINK they are moving or hunting slow..but they are not compared to a successful predator.
Then wonder why they don't see much of anything except maybe some 'going-away-fast-elk..or where elk have been..:) Jim

I agree completely on the hunting slow, and tried for years to convince my kid that he was doing everything wrong. I finally gave up because I got tired of hearing the same old argument......"look what's hanging from the meat pole Pop"

Tracks, I too am occasionally amazed at game killed by the most inept hunters..using upstate NY deer drive tactics for western elk..:)
There's probably a time and place for faster, noisier hunting..

Chances are that one or the other will get that lucky shot at some critter fleeing from the "hounds & beaters..:)"

My style of hunting has always been with small groups or even solo, remote walk in areas, little or no hunter or local poacher pressure, and thicker cover.
Particularly as one who has been primarily an archery hunter, I have done the best, seen the most game ( unaware of me) when still hunting.
Jim

My kid has one advantage, he can shoot well and in a hurry, and keeps doing it until the game is down. Then too he getting a bit more careful as he matures.
I like to take a few slow steps, then wait a while before moving a few more. I once walked within a few yards (fifteen or less) of a sleeping Elk doing it that way. Trouble is I was not looking as well as I was moving, he came out of his bed and scared the scht outta me. To this day I can still see those Ivory colored tips of his rack while I stood there with my jaw hanging down.
Or maybe I should say I can still see them if I walk downstairs and look at him.