Those aren't stupid questions, good on ya for preparing in advance. The last thing you want is to be standing there, miles from camp, with a dead elk and your......knife in your hand. Boning it out is the only way to go with yourself as the pack mule.

You won't need to put the meat in a creek overnight to keep it cool, in October it's best to hang it up with good air circulation, with a bag if you want but lots of times I just use the cheap cotton stretch "game bags" to keep it clean.

I hang it overnight before boning, it's easier that way.

I've done what you're describing a few times, I seem to have my best luck in the evenings. What I do is skin/process the animal using the gutless method, one side at a time, starting at the backbone peel the skin off the side. Fillet out the backstrap, separate the shoulder and the ham, and hang those whole in a spruce or fir tree, on the shady side to account for the sun in the morning. I carry some parachute cord for hanging the shoulders/hams, separate the lower leg, and run the cord through a slit between the leg bone and large tendon that goes to the "knee." It's hard to hang a big ham by yourself, so the way I do it is find a big enough branch about head high or a little higher, and break it or cut it to leave a two-foot stub on the tree. Run the parachute cord through the leg, and tie a loop about a foot in diameter in it and lift the ham and slip the loop over the stub of the branch, saves the effort of trying to hold it up and tie a knot at the same time. Assuming you're alone.

Once you have the backstraps and legs separated, you can trim the rest of the carcass for meat, and get the tenderloins. You'll need a bag for that. To get at the TLs I find it easier to cut open the belly at that point and let the guts spill out, that creates some space to slide your hand in, it's easier that way. Plus, scavengers will tend to go for the guts and leave your hanging meat alone.

Lots of times I do this after dark so I don't mess with boning it out, I just pack up the backstraps and TLs and go back to camp.

Come back the next morning after a good rest and a big breakfast (preferably with a pistol) and a couple large garbage bags to lay the pieces on while you bone them, and go to work. If the meat is kept in the shade the day after the kill, you don't have to get it all out in one day, it'll be just fine for another day in October.


A wise man is frequently humbled.