Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Backpack Hunting Tips

I want to share a few tips for backpack hunters I have picked up and ask others to do the same. Please chime in. Your tip may seem trivial to you but someone will find it useful. Here goes a few of mine:

SIT ON BOTTOM OF BACKPACK
If you put your sleeping bag in the bottom of your backpack, you can sit on the bottom of the pack without breaking anything. It provides a dry clean comfortable seat to glass or when taking a break.

MOUNTAIN HOUSE SLEEPING BAG WARMER
After eating a Mountain House meal, the container can be rinsed out and filled with warm water. This makes a great warmer for your sleeping bag and a good foot or hand warmer. You do have to be careful with it, but if closed properly, they are pretty tough to break open.

USE MUMMY BAG AS A QUILT
I don't like the feel of a mummy bag but it is the compromise of light weight and warmth. However, on nights that are not real cold, you can use it as a quilt. I put my feet in the foot box and leave the bag unzipped. It is much more comfortable to me.

SMART WATER BOTTLES
I think these are the perfect water bottle. They are tough, lightweight, fairly quiet, and cheap. Too, they slide in and out of a backpack pocket pretty easily.

WEAR LAYERS TO BED
I wear extra layers of warm clothes to bed. This requires me to carry a lighter sleeping bag and it makes it easier to crawl out of the sack in the morning. Midnight nature calls are easier also when you are warm.

I am by far not an expert. I do consider backpack hunting for big game essentially an alpha sport , using a culmination of skills , often somewhat isolated in varying conditions. Add in solo and you up the ante.

Here are a few tidbits I have that may help

- Pack light but don't sacrifice your ability to carry weight, stay warm, and keep dry.
- A light pack to me makes the most sense, it is always worn
- Reduction of equipment is as important as anything else to save weight.
- Move to where the game is , but keep pack outs realistic depending on weather conditions , help , angle of slope etc
- Don't kill yourself energy wise. Realize a pack out can take a lot of effort. Save enough effort to get it done when it counts

TO me the biggest advantage of backpack hunting around here is conserving energy. Getting up at 4 am and gaining 2000 ft of vert everyday saps your energy and often leaves you missing out on the best opportunities. By backpacking you can get near game (and possibly only carry 15 lbs more on the hike in) hunt early, hunt late , and if you need a break mid day then take it. There are also a lot of other advantages (hearing game at night) etc.

Kevin

Always carry at least two lights, one compass, a waterproof map and a way to start a fire (Fall/Winter trips).

Carry several Ziplock FREEZER bags (they're tougher than storage bags). There's an infinite number of ways to use them. The OP suggested using a Mtn House bag as a bed warmer. I suggest putting it inside a Ziplock for extra safety. A wet bed doesn't sleep well.

Extra flashlight? Ever tried changing a bulb in the dark? At least LED's rarely need changing but even batteries can be a trick when you're blind.

Don't use super light plastic headlamps in the cold, they can break and be a frustration

I have tried to change batteries on a moonless night in the woods. Not easy. Nor is walking a couple miles at night without a GPS, in an unfamiliar area, and raining hard. A simple compass on a watchband becomes REALLY nice to have!

Compasses? A few years ago I bought my wife and I 2 bargain basement sets of trekking poles to try out. They had compasses in the handles. At any given time the 4 compasses pointed in 4 different directions. REALLY useful.

That said, a good compass and a map is imperative. A GPS is a machine that can fail. They're great but not nearly as foolproof as a compass.

Add in a couple Cyalume sticks to the inventory. One over your kill site works wonders on finding it in less than ideal light. They also work great to help change batteries/bulbs, and on the back of your pack (or your buddies) provides an easy visual reference as to location in the dark. They weigh almost nothing, take up very little space, and when needed, they are more than worth it.

Keep your TP dry!

I collect 1/2 rolls from the bathroom and put them in qt freezer bags. A partial roll flattened out fits just fine. They stay dry and are easy to pack.

Baby wipes. You'll thank me later.

Ditto on FREEZER Ziplock bags. They are great for many things as mentioned including a spare canteen, phone/camera protection, or even a trash sack.

BRING LESS USELESS CRAP! I know this sounds reactionary and over simplified but I have taken a few first timers and although they asked me what to bring , most showed up with way more than needed.
I would add:
1.A little travel bottle of shampoo. (its nice to feel human)
2.A travel bottle of dish washing liquid. (its nice to eat out of a clean bowl)
+1 on the baby wipes

Don't wait until you are up on a mountain miles from anywhere to see how good your gear works.

Dishwahing soap is shampoo and is supposed to kill fleas and ticks. I've always used it when packing, even pre-internet... some old person showed me that when I was young... lol

Kent

Gotta love the internet....ok one or the other then...lol

I like to do a lot of base camp / spike camp / bivy camp if needed and feasible.

Sometimes it is nice to set up a good base by your entry point, hopefully for pack out comfort if you end up packing something out in the night.

Other times, I often have a bivy camp capability that I can pull out from my backcountry location if needed , or if I'm suspecting / slash hoping it will be a long night.

Granted , I could probably help myself by being more lazy at times.

I'm a firm believer in letting your age and physical condition define how you backpack hunt. I'm an older guy in decent physical condition and still like to backpack hunt in CO�.as long as I can horseback into a base camp (with an outfitter). I'm in my mid-60's and I'm quite capable of hiking and climbing 5 to 7 miles a day from a mountain base camp with a daypack. I'm just not capable packing out an elk several more miles back to my truck.

If using a stove to heat water for freeze dried grub or melting snow for water you should be prepared and practiced at doing it in your tent during storms. If planning on using a bivy sac this should be a consideration.

mike r

The best way to get in shape for carrying heavy loads on your back in the hills is to carry heavy loads on your back in the hills. Nothing will increase your odds of success more than pre-season scouting and the best way to test your gear is on a pre-season scouting trip. Pre-season trips are also great in helping you figure out what you can do without. Because the more gear you leave in the truck, the better off you'll be.

Sometimes, it's better to forget about the place you found on the map that's 7 miles in, and hunt the place that's 2-3 miles in. The animals are where you find them, not where you think they should be.

In addition to many excellent comments already:

Show up a full day or two before the opener, stealthy scout the area, locate exactly where you're going to be first light on opening morning. Keep all noise and movement to a minimum.

Don't camp in creek bottoms, the cold air settles in the bottoms and the sun doesn't reach there often. Don't camp on ridge lines even though they may be flat and sunny - the wind will get you most times. Keep your camp clean and food stuffs hung away from camp, bears do show up during the dark of night. Eat fatty foods before bed time on cold nights. Spend extra time to COMPLETELY clear your bed area. Drink water even when you don't seem thirsty and eat lots of calories.

If you're freezing your ass off, get up and work up the fire. Shivering the night away doesn't do you any good.

3 1-gal jugs of water in a pack is 25lb. When I'm working my llamas to get them in shape, I load the panniers with water jugs and carry a pack myself. By hunting season, I have some well traveled water and both the llamas and me are much better off, too.

Great idea, I carry the water uphill and dump it to save my knees on the downhill.

mike r

Every year for a couple of decades I setup a big base camp using tents. When car camping in a bigger tent, I take a small propane space heater and I place it close to my sleeping bag so, in the morning, I can reach over and start it running without getting out of my sleeping bag. I also take an extra foam pad and lay it next to my sleeping bag so I can stand on it instead of the frozen floor.

These days I may setup a base camp at the trailhead but I do most of my hunting out of backpack camps. The cheaper your gear is, the tougher you have to be. Be sure to protect your tents from the wind. Try to �hunt uphill�. That means set your camp low and hike uphill to do your hunting. Therefore, when you kill an elk you can drag it downhill instead of hauling it uphill. Don�t try to learn to camp on your first wilderness hunt. That�s a recipe for disaster.

I like to organize my group into self-sufficient teams of two people. Two people to a tent. Two to a stove. Two to hunt together (the buddy system). Two people with similar abilities.

I usually carry four or five days of food and no more. I try to return to base camp occasionally to get more food, fuel, clean underwear and cleanup some. Then go back out for another four or five days. I hunt on the way back to base camp and on the return, so I don't lose any hunting time.

I'm not a proponent of using backpacks designed by hunters. When I'm backpacking, I use gear designed by backpackers for backpacking. The most important factor when choosing a pack is to get one that fits your body and is comfortable on the trail. There are lots of good backpacks offered on the commercial market. I use an Osprey Aether 85 because they are offered with taller torsos and I need that for proper fit.

Try to get everything inside the pack. Load the heaviest items close to your body and near the top. This improves balance. Anything hanging on the outside unbalances the pack, makes you lean forward, and stresses back muscles.

I never carry a hatchet when backpacking. Too heavy. A small lightweight folding saw does the same things and weighs less. You don't need a sidearm because you're carrying a big game rifle. You don't need a SPOT. Too heavy.

I go in about three or four miles and hunt the area between those people that day hike from the end of the road and those that horse pack in farther.

Don't camp in a creek bottom. The cold air and snow settle in the bottoms, so it�s colder there. Don't camp on a ridge top either. It may be warm and sunny when you setup your tent, but it will get windy and cold.

There�s an art to keeping warm when sleeping in the cold. Start by insulating yourself from the frozen ground and then use a really good sleeping bag. I suggest that you use both a closed cell foam sleeping pad and an insulated pad like a Thermarest �Camprest� or �NeoAir� or Big Agnes �Insulated Air Core�. You need a mummy style sleeping bag rated at 0� or colder.

A good 4-season backpack tent with a vestibule will make a big difference. It's important to keep the inside of the tent dry and free of snow. So leave your boots in the vestibule. One big advantage of sleeping directly on the snow is that there won't be any rocks, sticks or bumps under you and the snow will eventually conform to your body contours. If you setup your tent on the snow then first put a light waterproof tarp on the inside of the floor. Any moisture will run under the tarp and freeze between the tarp and the tent floor. Next build a nest inside the tent with extra clothes, stuff sacks, backpacks, etc. This keeps you from rolling off the sleeping pads onto the frozen floor of the tent. Wear only clean dry clothing to bed. Wet clothes, even those wet with only perspiration, will take several hours to dry. Wear your knitted hat to bed as a nightcap. Also sleep 2 to a tent and the extra body heat will make a difference. Bring a wide mouth pee bottle so that you can urinate in the middle of the night without leaving the tent.

If your feet get cold, zip up your coat and slip it over the bottom of your sleeping bag. Or you can put a couple of hand warmer packs in the bottom of your sleeping bag. If your chest is cold, put your coat or vest on inside the sleeping bag.

Bring a good thermos with an insulator. I couldn't find an insulator big enough to take a thermos, so I built my own using foam rubber and duct tape. At night first temper the thermos and then fill it with boiling water and put it inside the insulator and then inside your backpack. In the morning you have hot water for instant cocoa and oatmeal without getting out of your bag.

Store your boots with the laces pulled wide open so you can get your feet into them when they are frozen in the morning.

Leave your water bladder at home because the hose will freeze solid. Take a metal water bottle and store it upside down at night so the lid won�t freeze shut. You can thaw the main body of the bottle over your camp stove.

Don�t let your water filter freeze. If it freezes you can�t use it and it might crack the ceramic filter. First purge the filter the best that you can then put it in a ZipLok bag inside your sleeping bag.

Have a backup plan, contingency for emergencies. Expect some gear to break or fail and be ready to repair it or adapt to do without it.

Expect someone to get injured or sick and be prepared to care for them.

You need to be proficient at wilderness navigation so you can hike three or four miles from camp into unfamiliar country and get back to camp at night, in the fog or in a howling blizzard.

Cotton clothing can be deadly when the weather is cold and wet. You don't need to buy the most expensive clothing, but you do need to use synthetic, wool and/or wool/synthetic blends. Dress in layers. Take several layers and leave that heavy coat at base camp.

I've been backpacking for fifty-five years and only recently started using trekking poles. I wish I had started sooner.

A Jetboil stove may be the most efficient outfit for boiling water and if that's all you're going to do that's great. But they're not very good at simmering a casserole or frying fish. I use an Optimus Crux or an MSR Pocket Rocket during the summer, and an MSR Whisperlite or Dragonfly on cold weather trips. I use simple propane appliances for base camping.

KC

Have a change of merino wool top and bottom and socks, for sleeping only. Change into nice clean "jammies" for night. Makes you feel human after a long day.

+10 on baby wipes.

A handy piece of gear I've used the last couple years is a lightweight down vest. Doesn't have to be top of the line, I use an LL Bean. Good extra insulation layer, compacts small when not used, lightweight. I put mine in my bag at night and put it on in the morning, it's toasty warm having been in my bag. On really cold nights, you can wear it to bed and it isn't bulky or uncomfortable to wear.

No way I'd trust a Mtn. House bag to hold hot water inside my bag. A Nalgene bottle on the other hand...

Thermarest NeoAir. Good insulation and comfy.

A pair of camp shoes. Flip Flops, sandles, Keens, Crocs, something lightweight and comfortable. Sure feels good to get those boots off at the end of a day. Also easier to get on for the 3AM pee.

Ibuprophen

Don't schit upstream....

Tanner

Or piss into the wind. Or tug on Superman's cape....

Ran into this last year. Hiked two miles down to a dry camp a group of old timers set up every year. Friendly guys but they were adamant we drink their water. It was in a 15 gal jug and tasted horrible. They started acting dodgy when we told em we were gonna filter out of the creek. Idiots. Gotta go a long way up stream once you've seen that.

Everclear, tang and filtered creek water= mountain martini
And if you run out of fuel for your alchohol stove you can burn the booze!

With my llamas, that's no joke. There's something about getting their feet wet that triggers them to unload. When crossing a stream, I have to keep them moving or they'll pollute the creek clear to the Pacific. NEVER drink downstream of llamas.

I've seen Tanner do that. Must be why he mentioned it.......

I feel you can use a pack designed for both efficient backpacking and the ability to carry hunting loads. That is what I do.

You can also go very minimalist and light, or very prepared and comfy. For me the correct way is to strike a good balance of efficiency , comfort and reliability. This balance will be different for everyone based on their preferences. The area where I am least willing to compromise is in sleep gear.

Regarding camp locations, I use higher ridges often , but prefer sheltered areas if available. For me, most of terrain I frequent doesn't have a lot of usable spots not near ridges or saddles.

Instead of hunting up, I prefer hunting down and being near several good glassing spots. A perfect spot for me is one that I know in an hour I can cover several spots where game might be.

One of the downsides mentioned to hunting down is carrying game up to camp. For me that isn't much of an issue, as I am almost always going up from somewhere , very seldom have i had all downhill or level pack outs. Pack outs are usually greeted with a few hundred feet of uphill somewhere.

One of the reasons I often do set up a base camp near the TH is for the reason of if I get something that easier to get to base camp than to my backcountry camp. In my areas I usually frequent, Elk are usually on the backside and the easier to access ridge lines, but sometimes they move into little holes and pockets that are often overlooked and trail less closer to the base camp.

All said and done, I go pretty light. I have a few pieces of gear, that for me , just work. Above and beyond that, my kit is pretty flexible.

There are a lot of ways to backpack hunt. As mentioned, I have some areas I am pretty familiar with and put in a lot of time scouting. My favorite hunts though, are the non scouted ones, in a new territory where I just put camp on my back and walk until I find game (likely solo). Those type of hunts in unfamiliar terrain, really make you take a look at things with an open mind. You just keep moving , until you reach your limit for a pack out or until you find something. I have had good success finding game this way, but often get bit in the rear , by something like a hidden rock chute I didn't know was there. Overall though, the rewards are high for hunts like that.

I'm not a big glasser, often I think boots on the ground is just as effective as glassing if not more. They both have a pace though. I'm not interested in glassing something I can't get to in a reasonable time frame.

Overall , while I think backpack hunting is an alpha sport requiring a culmination of skills much like adventure racing or mixed climbing, I think the most important part is setting reasonable expectations. Determine what your goal is. Is your goal game in the freezer, antlers on the wall, or just the experience ? Match your terrain, gear and style with your goals and capabilities and above all ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE AND HUNT. If you enjoy the hunt and experience then it is always a success regardless of if you are carrying out a pack full of game or not.

TRUE!

Don't lose your pack...and always keep some essential survival gear on your person (not in your pack) at all times...

PS if you carry a SPOT etc, then make sure to change the batteries every so often. ..

Personally, I like to hike into my spot, not carry it with me.......

LOL

Keep your spot warm as well, either type of spot. I've had new batteries in a spot that failed to send because of battery power. The were lithiums as well, changed right before trip and first time turned on. Overall though, it has usually been pretty reliable especially if you are in more open country

Speaking of which, I have a spot connect for sale $65.00 via paypal. PM me or I'll put in in classifieds soon

While backpack hunting is a gear intensive game, it isn't about the gear, its about the hunt. The most important thing is to enjoy it - otherwise what was the point? Now, enjoyment can take on weird forms, and if you have masochistic tendencies and own a pair of boots and a rifle, then backpack hunting is almost certainly for you.

Backpack hunting means different things to different people, and that is going to make strategies and tips less transferable. My first thought on reading this thread title was "Always have a tarp and a sleeping bag with you.", but that will just be dead weight to a lot of people based on how they are hunting. Along those lines, take what others tell you with a grain of salt. Its entirely possible that it works perfectly for them and doesn't apply at all to you.

I tend to think of things in terms of resources. Time, effort, food, etc. If you spend all your time climbing a mountain to see the other side of it, you may lose the ability to hunt a different drainage in the other direction. If you go light and only bring 2 days worth of food up the mountain, you are not going to be able to kill something that is a day away from the top and get it back down (that one has bit me before and it sucks). There is an opportunity cost to every move you make, so it makes sense to spend a little time thinking about those before making a move.

Going uphill is a cakewalk compared to coming downhill, and especially with a heavy pack. Don't go up something you can't get back down.

Don't shoot it if you can't retrieve it.

Do what you have to do to sleep well.

Take care of your partner, switch out leading/breaking trail, keep things positive. Everyone needs a cheerleader now and then, but Debbie Downer rarely gets a phone call during hunting season.

This is especially true if your partner is a llama. If you don't take care of them, they schit in your water supply.

They gotta drink at some point too, and payback is a MF.

If you get anti-bacterial wipes they do double duty; one thing a lot of people don't do a good job on is backcountry sanitation and this means sanitizing your hands before you eat or drink. This is really an obligation if you're in a group and preparing food for others.

So bring either anti-bacterial wipes or a small bottle of hand sanitizer.

I bring along hand sanitizer and it also works great for lighting the wood stove and cleaning up after butchering an animal.

When I got to bed in my teepee at night I put wood under the wood stove to get it super dry. And then in the morning I load it all up from my sleeping bag, squirt in some hand sanitizer, light it up, and within in moments the whole teepee is warm and it time to leave the sleeping bag and cook breakfast.

Also I don't do 'spike' or 'base' camps anymore. I like to keep it all lightweight and portable and carry it all the time. You camp when you find the animals. On a recent elk hunt we brought along a teepee and woodstove that weighed 5 1/2 pounds total combined and all 4 of us fit inside comfortably. Not much of a penalty for portability - and also no need for propane if you cook on the stove. and so you save weight if going out for really long.

Patrick

Be careful. There is a difference between baby wipes and anti bacterial wipes. Baby wipes are great for cleaning up, washing your face, using in place of toilet paper, heck you can take a reasonably good backwoods bath with them. They're called baby wipes for a reason. They originated for wiping your baby's nether regions and are gentle, won't cause issues.

Anti bacterial wipes are a whole 'nuther animal. While they are handy with a number of useful applications, they are not something you want to "bathe" with nor use in the place of TP! At least I don't! I'd keep them away from any "sensitive" areas!
They are fine for your hands. Personally, I keep a small bottle of hand sanitizer in my pocket for my hands, and carry baby wipes for other jobs.
Find some flushable wipes and they'll biodegrade if you're not carrying them out in your trash.

I always carry a pair of Playtex gloves, the yellow ones with high cuffs. They're great for dressing and skinning as they keep your hands clean and dry and they have decent traction for pulling on wet hides and innards. They're stronger than most rubber gloves and last longer. I started using them because they're the only good glove that comes in XL for my large hands.

I have antibacterial wipes I've been using to wipe my arse with for years. Hate to get graphic here, but first I use TP, then a wipe or two for complete clean-up, then another clean wipe for my hands.

It's never been a problem.

Alrighty then. If it works it works. I think I'd check what type of anti bacterial agent is in the particular brand of wipes. Whatever you use obviously works for you. I would think bleach or alcohol would be somewhat harsh.

But then maybe my arse is more sensitive!

I carried nytrile gloves for years. They always seem to break apart when you're up to your elbows in guts.
Learned this ^^ trick^^ from RC last year in Idaho. I now carry a pair in my field dressing kit. Playtex dishwashing gloves in XL fit me fine.

My mistake. I said Rubbermaid gloves but meant Playtex. This one:

That's easier to remedy by not gutting elk.

Tanner

Agreed Tanner

I use the Playtex gloves whenever I'm not backpack hunting. I know they don't weigh much but I do everything I can to keep my weight to a minimum. And anyways, a little game blood and gore on my fingers keeps me from picking my nose.

An added twist to the kitchen glove is a kevlar glove liner, they're warm and you don't cut through them with your knife. Did this trick when skinned and quartered a bison in the field, it was -15 that morning but it had warmed up a tad by the time I got to the bison - still mighty cold. Cheapest to get the kevlar gloves where they're sold to sheetmetal workers.

I used a Kevlar glove on 3 animals this year. It does provide a nice margin of safety, but I thought they were also a bit on the dirty side. Hair etc, seems to stick to the gloves pretty well. I will use one next year as well, but likely use it a bit more sparingly.

I sometimes envy those people that get animals in easy spots , that are easy to keep everything nice and clean

Kevin

Some good info on this thread...

I did find the spot reply hilarious as I don't carry one. My friend does, he was forced to after, shall we call it a "mishap", while on a backpacking trip. His gf's mother made him get one...he forgets they require batteries lol

The Kevlar glove is a good suggestion. If you accidentally cut an artery several miles from the truck, you could be in big trouble. Because of this I am always careful when dressing an animal, but a Havalon knife cuts meat like a hot knife cuts butter, it would do your hand the same way. A glove would reduce that risk.

I jabbed my finger a couple years ago with a havalon while boning an elk, thus the Kevlar glove for the non-knife hand. An LEM meathook would work as well.

The easy fix though is to replace the havalon. I quartered a deer last week with an outdoor edge Razor Blaze and found it superior to the havalon in so many ways. Weighs about 2 oz more, but is stronger and much easier to grip and maneuver.

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

dont do alot of cold weather back packing but have had good luck keeping the line from freezing up if after i take a drink i blow air in the mouthpiece which leaves the tube mostly full of air, not water....

If it's cold I just tuck the tube inside the pack and so it's placed in between the bladder and my back(where it's the warmest).

Take a drink every hour or two so it's not much of an inconvenience.

That's also useful in hot weather so you don't get a mouthful of hot, nasty tasting water from the hose.

Speaking of that nasty taste from some bladders, pick up one of these and never deal with it again:

http://www.cascadedesigns.com/platypus/hydration-systems/hoser/product

I think it was EdT who recommended it, keeps your water tasting good.

This is always a good tip but it is especially important when backpack hunting.

The message is good but to affective, they need to practice with proper grammar. 'Your' is possessive, as in 'your foot'. The correct word here is a contraction of 'you are'...you're.

A great way to train, scout and prep for a hunt it to pack water in and cache it. In Arizona anyway ....

I put water in my pack here too, there's just no point in caching it

A few negative thoughts on spot in this thread. But for us its peace of mind for families. It isnt' big enough or weigh enough to matter for that. Especially when i'm in Alaska all by myself, and makes the wife happier and my older mom happier too. I prefer to have the wife along, and she prefers to be along, but what if something happens. It can make a difference.

RE changing batteries, I thought that was teh case with everything that takes batteries and always have a backup anyway.
Maps, compass along with GPS, 3 ways to start fire, multi use sleeping pad used as sitting pad too for glassing or waiting out areas etc...

pack wise... I"ve found you have to find what works for you. I've spent a lot, and been less happy than with spending less. That was an accident but the cheaper pack just fit and carried loads better for me. And was a bit lighter to start with.
Camo is not needed.

NEVER leave your pack. Ever. Mine is on my back unless I"m just up to go pee from a location or such... its my life and I carry trhat with me, rather than extra this or that in a few pockets.

On a bush plane flight in though I will have a fanny pack with extreme survival stuff in it, and that stays with me on the plane all the time, the only time I have something replicated.

Our SIL is a pilot for Homeland Security. He never flies anywhere, even as a commercial passenger, while wearing anything synthetic and he always has leather gloves in his carry on. Fire melts synthetics far faster than cotton or wool will burn and gloves are invaluable in an emergency where fire, broken glass, or anything sharp is involved.

Day-um. Here I sit on a plane, swathed in synthetics with no gloves. Hope I make it.....

Uh-oh, the pilot's a woman. Does that make this a bush plane? Forgot my extreme survival gear!

For fire, carrying really good, foolproof tinder with you is probably just as important as always carrying your favorite source of ignition (firesteel, lighter, matches, etc). For me, it is Wetfire + small Bic.

I hide Bics and hanks of cord everywhere in my stuff, pants, jackets, etc. like a squirrel prepping for winter. I wrap the Bics with tape AND jute twine so I have both cord and tinder in one. If I could find good quality and inexpensive button compasses, I would superglue them to the bottom of the Bic. When I get creative, there will be a fish hook and sewing needle under the tape.

Putting a water bottle in your sleeping bag is a good way to keep it from freezing, but it is not much fun snuggling up with a cold water bottle. To solve this problem, warm the water and then put it back in the bottle at bedtime. It will warm up the sleeping bag and then the water will stay liquid all night.

Stop taking in fluids at least 2 hours before bed

One of the best things about floorless shelters, (especially those that allow you to stake the bottom of the walls up off the ground) is that you don't need to worry about leaving the tent to take a leak in the middle of the night. Just zip down the sleeping bag, roll toward the tent wall, and let 'er rip.

Carefully of course, and I draw the line at a deuce even in a big tent.