Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Ever take your sled or cart in before you get a deer?

Or do you gut the deer, take your gun and heavy stuff back and come back later for the deer? I'm not much for dragging one too far these days without a sled or cart, or would it be something to spook deer or get swiped?

About 20 years ago I shot a moose here in Idaho. It was only about a mile to the truck, slight slope going out, and some snow. Our plan was to drag out 1 quarter then come back in the morning with a toboggan for the rest. About 1/4 mile from the moose, we cut fresh bear tracks in the snow. We decided real quick that the moose was coming out that night even if the sun came up before we finished. Normally I'll go back without a gun but we took one that night. I didn't want to rely on throwing pine cones to chase a bear off of my moose. The bear didn't show up but a pine martin claimed it and he wasn't very happy about us big bullies running him off. We left him the hide and rib cage as a consolation prize.

The last few years , I have used a ground blind and a climber occasionally, as the hills and creeks are getting steeper and deeper in my old age !
When I use the ground blind I drag everything in with my calf sled .
Normally however, I am only about 1 mile max from the truck, so I can either go back and get the sled, or call my buddy who is hunting a few meadows up to come over and grab it , and meet me at my kill. I do the same for him.
It works great as neither of us are really into tree stands or ground blinds! LOL
Cat

Nope…….elk and moose on a sled!

Deer get boned-out, and meat carried in a bag on a “freighter” pack frame with head (if decent) tied to load. Most are close enough to road/2 track access that this isn’t necessary! memtb

I always have my little trailer hooked up to jeep or Polaris, I don’t take it off. Always hauling firewood, pigs, corn, cshit, deer, etc





I’ve remodeled it since this pic was taken, welded plate on the sides, got tired of cshit falling out. I did same to 16 foot in background. All my trailers are closed in now.

I almost took my deer sled with me one night last year with plans to ride it down the hill back towards camp when the day was done. I didn't though, figuring it was bad luck. But mostly because I knew the ride with a big, heavy, expensive rifle, would probably go badly. Might try it with a bad weather beater though.

I carry a packframe when I hunt. The first load of meat comes out when I head to camp after a kill. One less load to pack later.

1. Shoot deer
2. Drag to nearest 2 track
3. Walk back to cabin and get truck
4. Take deer to cabin
5. Hang up deer
6. Gut deer and rinse clean with hose

I’ve left roll-up sleds hidden near my stands for years, and also cabled deer carts to trees, ready to hand for hauling out my deer. Otherwise, I’d have to make a trek of about a mile and a half just to get started bringing out my deer. Being able to legally cut up game in the field is a relatively recent thing in this region. Now that I’m old, and kinda gimpy, I’m gonna have to evolve a bit. I have game bags and a small jet sled in my truck, and anything I kill a mile or so back is going to get cut up for the trip home. That jet sled weighs only a bit more than a roll-up, and is much simpler to use. I have a very fancy cart that was used for my last deer, but it weighs nearly 50 pounds, fine on level ground, but a certified bitch on steep hills. It’s staying home from now on.

Yes but not before my horse. Never put the cart before the horse.

no but i probably should ? i kinda think its bad luck for me if i do ?

Oh how I wish they would allow that here. We can field dress an animal to help lighten the load but otherwise the animal has to stay intact.

No, when I did use one there were a few nights I loaded the cart before going out because I had a feeling. More often than not I was right. And that was back when I was bowhunting 30-40 days a season or more sometimes.



I sometimes have wondered if I shot deer to justify it, kind of a self fulfilling prophecy if you will. Fun to wonder sometimes.

I carry a deer sled in my truck during the hunting season. But I don't bring it out to my spot until I have a deer down. One, it would be way too noisy to haul it out on the way. Two, it's bad ju-ju.

We leave a couple in various spots for the season in the woods.

When I was a bit younger, we used to just gut them and drag them out. Got older (and more affluent) gut them, hike out for the quad, ho back and get them. Where I hunt here my buddy keeps a 2 wheel cart where I park my truck, which is 5 minutes walk from my stand. Small deer I just drag out. Larger ones I go back for the cart.

Canoe, in years past, through 3 lakes, 3 quarter-mile portages from road, gets me about a mile in to a moose hunting area I like. Once I even portaged again to the forth lake, as we had a moose down back there, at the wrong end.

Is it worth it? Do the math, paddling vs walking the lakes shores. With 10 or more packs of moose meat, that's a heck of a lot of walking, with weight, and without on return for the next load.

Quite possibly next year again, tho I have to do some "wood-working" here and there, before then, after being AWOL back there for over a decade.

I took a cart 7 miles up a FS trail up here one time, caribou hunting. Wasn't worth it- easier to backpack it out.

That sounds like way too much work.

Me? I wait until the animal is down, usually in the middle of the field. Then I call back on the radio and whoever is at camp comes out with the truck. We throw the animal in the back and roll on back to the camp.

I stash a roll up sled at one of my blinds in my usual hunting area at our lease. Being there will save me about a mile of walking back to get it for several spots I usually hunt. My ground blind, chair, or various trail cams have not been bothered left out there all season.

I like that, hills are getting deeper and steeper. They sure are