Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Best setup for packing out meat

Hey guys. Interested in some advice. What are you guys using for back packing you quarters out of the woods? Looking for comfortable and well built. Will mainly be used for whitetails. Tore my mcl this year and could not find time for surgery. We head far back into the wilderness and im not quite sure i can make the drag yet. Figured this gets me back there with a plan to get my meat out. Thanks

Stone glacier packs and a pedal bike with panniers (depending on location). Easy to push a bike around and saves your back/knees.

Kifaru for me.


In the US - no bikes allowed in the wilderness. Outside of the wilderness if you have a decent horse trail you can use a bike to push with panniers it works awesome.

We use mountain bikes with tailers (Blue Sky) where the trailers will fit on the trails..

They are allowed in the Travel Management Area we usually hunt.

A bike easily carries a whole deer or one quarter. A trailer will carry two deer or half an elk plus.

I have a mystery ranch metcalf setup I’m about to sell

Pm me if interested

Does anyone in your area rent llamas? They're very easy to use and are great packers. Rentals, though, can get expensive. The closest one to me costs $80/llama/day for a 3 to 6 day trip. You'll likely need several of them.

When I hunted deer back east, we used wheelbarrows. They're made to push heavy loads and a big inflatable tire works well on any decent kind of trail. We'd go 3-4 miles in.

Some years ago, my partner and I used a wheelbarrow to pack an elk 4 miles. It was a 4x4 and we got it all in 1 trip. Granted, it was on an old logging road and 95% downhill. We used a rope so both of us could pull on the occasional uphill stretch.

Hint: don't try this with a cheap Walmart wheelbarrow. They'll fall apart with that much weight on rough trails. Only use a quality heavy duty one.

I use a Kifaru cargo sling for most day trips, I like to go in as light as possible...

Seek Outside Revolution is very comfortable with heavy loads.

You mean like this one?

Been with Kifaru for a long time. My favorite pack is my old HighCamp on a Bikini frame. Can easily haul a full boned out whitetail or single hind 1/4 of an Elk. My newer 14’r or even my old LateSeason can do a fully boned whitetail but there won’t be much room left over.

Looking at a Mystery Ranch PopUp 28 right now - might be something to look into for you as well.

Good luck!

Kifaru Stryker

There's lots of good options, no doubt. As long as the frame and belt fits you, I think the method of strapping it to the frame is of less importance, barring extremes.

Personally I keep an old Cabela's external frame pack around with 10 feet of rope for certain situations, but also have a quarter panel attached to my Kifaru frame, under the main bag for other situations, specifically the first load of meat.

I see you're from central Pa., and probably hunting the same type of terrain as me in the NY Catskills and Adirondacks. For a great day pack that's small and slender enough not to hang up in the brush and heavy timber, and has an excellent load shelf for meat hauling capability, I can highly recommend a Mystery Ranch Pop Up 28.

Hey, tinman.... Does your pack loadout change depending on roughness of country or if there is meat to pack?....

If I know, or really think there will be meat to pack then yes: and I take my external frame pack. I am ALWAYS packing meat though. ALWAYS.

As far as ruggedness, generally no, not really. Distance and the need or lack of need for more gear to be along has more to do with whether I take my Kifaru quarter panel, or my entire Reckoning pack.



That is a really unique piece of gear you have there on the lower right. Does that cock and ballz help you kill elk or survive a cold, lonely night in the backcountry? Safety first, ya know?

not MY loadout, I saw that and thought of you.....

I still can’t understand the separate pack frame and daypack deal so many guys like.

My kifaru bikini with timberline bag weighs less than my badlands 2200, has 2-3 times the capacity, hauls heavy loads better, and cinches down flat when empty. I have a cargo panel but never use it, the bag works for everything.

Really nice to always have with you, the means to haul out a full deboned deer or elk quarters and not have to go back to the truck or trailhead to swap out an equal or heavier day pack for a capable hauler.

I bought a SO Evolution off of Whttail_in_MT. He was a pleasure to deal with, and the pack was better than described. I believe this Revolution is what replaced the Evo he sold to me. I'd buy his Revo if my Evo wasn't holding up so great after 6 years of hard hunting now.

Thanks Chris. I've downsized again to a frameless day pack as I'm realizing I just don't need a full blown pack frame for what I do nowadays.

For me - it's reducing bulk.

In the East - for the most part, it's tag and drag to the trail or truck, and limited "hard" areas to get out of.

Out West - we have access to horses, but I'm expecting the worst - the animal is dropping into the canyon before expiring, the number of blow-downs in the old burns will keep the horses out.

I'm archery hunting mostly, and the Kuiu load sling with the 1800 size pack in the sling works and moves well for me.

I've been playing with Kifaru Stryker (loadsling and day bag) - it's comfortable , but still getting used to the added size of the larger pack.

Yeah, kinda like that

I’ll put in another plug for Seek Outside, perhaps I’m biased since they are made here in Wester Colorado. It is the most comfortable pack I’ve carried for both bac-acking and hauling meat.

...you wanna trade for a Pop-up 28?

Yup, same type of area. I'll look into that, thanks

There's more options than time right now.
If you want a bare bones lower cost method there are all kinds of options by going with an external frame/ freighter and comfortable suspension. You'll have connection strap attachment points for 1" webbing or whatever you have. Bungee cords or tire inner tube bands, ie ranger bands and "S" hooks work great too. The quarters are going to cool well exposed to the air, or can be covered if you prefer.
I suggest the lower cost basic options like this to anyone who is shopping for a meat pack and not exactly sure what they want. It provides what will get the job done until they narrow the selection needs.

I just re-read the OP and saw the "tore the MCL" reference.

My question is, how bad is the knee, and is it painful? If so, I'd definitely be looking at some kind of cart with wheels to take the weight off your knee rather than putting the weight in a backpack and on your bad knee.

The cart huntsman listed or something similar is where I'd go if I had a bad knee.

Just did another elk (5pt.) with a Barneys Hunter external pack frame. Game bagged then plastic bagged into the bag without bones - have to leave them anyway. I enjoy the stability of the external frame, plus it is a great place to hang your rifle - right over your right shoulder. Guide buddies in AK use the Yukon bag which is larger at 7800 cu. inches. Bag selection is a personal choice based on your hunt style and needs in the field.

In my opinion the frame setup with the bag to carry meat (like mine) is rather old school. The new logic says that you can carry all of your random personal stuff in your bag still while putting your meat sack between your personal bag and a frame. The new system (Kifaru Stryker / Frame, PopUp 28 etc) works pretty well because, we hunters, are carrying more ‘essentials’. When lots of us started, we had no rangefinders, charging cables, backup batteries, GoPro etc. Now we do and as much as it’s cool, it complicates the hunt.

Remember the days of one layer plus a coat, Porro prisms, blue tarps, decent leaky boots, tents with no stoves,
a polyester orange beenie, a pocket full of ammo and a foggy scope? I do but those days are thankfully behind us. I mean we still killed stuff but now we somehow need to be comfortable. New packs allow for that and I’m cool with it.

Go Kifaru & don’t look back. Call Aaron & ask specific questions about your specific needs. You’ll be happy you did.

Cheers

Ask Aron what he thinks about the meat shelf vs one big bag. Personally I did the stacked bags thing, whole boned out buck in the inside meat bag, camp behind it and it REALLY sucked. Center of mass way way too far behind me, for an 8 mile pack out. Never again. A single bag with everything closer to my body works way better for me. So does less weight.

But we all have different experiences.

Btw. Trekking poles are going to be very helpful to someone with a bum knee

I’d snag a good pair if your not already using them. What a difference they make

Yep, especially on the downhills.

Old Skool Day Pack Setup (with trecking pole)
.

Pluses - ultra light, cheap, instantly expandable.
Minuses - no support, this version was a little noisy.
Maybe I should start making and selling these.

BTW, dad was 71 years old in this shot. His normal load was knives, ammo, snacks and a gallon of water. VIetnam era fatigue shirt. Jeans. Nam boots.

If your knee blows up miles from the trail head your pards will appreciate a cart to get you out on. Bigger wheels are better.

Knee has improved significantly. Im doing 2 miles a day walking at a fast pace. Have made the trip to stand a couple times now, minus all the gear and i felt ok. No where near 100% though. My daughter just shot her first deer last weekend and i drug it the old fashioned way and it felt ok. Wasnt a lomg drag though. Just trying to prepare as we go far back in for rifle and its very rocky and a good climb to get back out. Has been chit drag even when i was feeling great, but its an amazing stand

Sounds like a great set-up, I wish you luck with the stand and the knee.

Thank you very much!

Stone Glacier xcurve frame with smaller dry bag attached. Hauls deer out great and drys quickly for day hunts (I take a month off to chase the rut)

Last year I shot one about 2 miles in on the State forest in Potter Co. I managed to get the whole boned out deer on my MR Sawtooth and made it out in one trip thanks to the load shelf. Most of it was uphill. FWIW, If I had to do it again I'd make 2 trips out. I was spent, but happy.

Barney’s frame.

It may have been mentioned, but if you don't have trekking poles I'd suggest getting them. I use them all the time in rough terrain packing. If I had a torn ACL I'd want all the stability I could get. Best of luck.

I'm rolling lol... yep... safety first!

Most people think of trekking poles as something to help carry the weight. Where they shine is with helping you keep your balance. With 50+ lb on your back, it's easy to twist an ankle or knee if you aren't careful. The poles really help to catch a trip or fall before it happens.

This

A sharp knife and strong legs.
I'm still doing it at 61 years old.
This was last month.

So, what setup do you use?

sally, that looks awful, uhh, labor intensive.....

Nice setup. So easy a dog can do it.

For just packing meat, Its tough to beat a bull pack. Very strong and very comfortable.

You use the buckskinners blanket too! The more you skin & bone the more workspace you’ve got. Walked downhill with lots of clean meat using the skin as my workspace.

Keep rockin’ at 61!

I use a wheelbarrow on whitetails all the time.

I used to have an old one I took the "legs" off and just had the wheel. REALLY makes it go through the brush better. Any kind of trail at all and you are set to travel.

I hunt with an Eberlestock X2 day pack, and can pack out an elk quarter on the first trip. In the truck is a Kelly meat hauler pack with a shelf that makes subsequent trips.

I also carry a light small plastic tarp to put meat on as I’m working up an animal.

Works for me…and I’m 67.

I use a milsurp ILBE pack and bag the game, bone in or bone out. It’s about the cheapest way to get an excellent suspension system with more capacity than I can carry.

Trekking poles are a given.

Eberlestock Just One is what I have been using the last 10 plus years.

Nice bucks Huntsman.

I left hundreds of dollars of kifaru in the closet in favor of an 80s vintage Dana Design Alpine. 6000ci capacity, single tubular bag construction, the bottom 1/3 easily cinches down to nothing for daypacking and humping meat, the dana "beavertail" good for strapping foam pads, boots or shoes, and layers when the inside volume is used up. Side pockets fit a rifle butt and compression straps keep it tight against the side of your pack, in a manner that allows easy rest-sitting on a rock or stump (the kifaru gunbearer requires doffing your rifle to sit on anything, which sucks when there's nothing handy to lean it on...). I use the gunbearer while hunting, but strap the rifle to the pack if packing a long ways to get the rifle out of my armpit (and the barrel out of my headlamp glare if hiking in the dark).

I bought that pack for $50 a few years back. This year I 3-tripped a raghorn elk plus hot tent camp out a few miles with it.

The packwheel options are pretty interesting. Easy rolling with a 29" wheel.

Mystery Ranch Sawtooth worked great this year. Hauled out 3 elk & 2 deer this season farthest 4 miles in through rough terrain with 2 younger guys helping on the elk & 1 of the deer. 4th day of the hunt was 13 miles with 4,000 ft of climb 1/2 with a 90 lb pack - not bad for over 60 & 6,000 ft higher elevation than home. One guy had an MR metcalf that worked well. The other had an Alpz that won’t hold up for another season.

A good solid external frame and about 15 ft of line. Don't care for a shelf as they sometimes force one to elevate a heavy load.

For a deer, at least a deer thats not huge, any dang thing you have. Packed out deer and half caribou with a cheap bass pro pack no frame internal stiffeners. Not biggy. Though the deer weren't far and the caribou was only 5 miles of tundra. Ugh. LOL.

For a moose hindquarter I've not found it yet. Most of the guys use Barneys frames. I dont care for them that much. I keep trying my kifaru long hunter frame and shelf and its ok. Not what I kept hearing to my mind but still works.

My SO Evolution frame is in another league for packing weight comfortably, compared to my Kifaru LH.

By far the best packing method I have found is 3 strong young men to haul out my elk!

Back profiles differ for sure and some folks just don't fit into a Kifaru frame. That said, they have come a long ways since the days of the Long Hunter.

My Hunter's frame fits me like a glove. I love it way better than any EXO, SO, Stone Glacier or Mystery Ranch I have ever tried.

Pack fitment is certainly individual. I have no experience with the newer Kifaru models, but I can definitively say that my SO is far more comfortable on my back than the LH, particularly when loaded down.

My meniscus is a little suspect too, so when I was deer hunting farther back in I took more trips with a lighter load on an external pack frame. I bolted two pieces of aluminum angle about 12" long to the bottom and used the front small wheel off a wheel chair mounted between the two angle pieces. When I'd get tired of carrying the meat, I could put it on the ground and wheel it like a mini wheel barrow or pull it like a one wheel wagon. Worked great. Horses for out west and elk. No way I was packing out one of those on my back.

Nothing wrong with that at all.

If you do ever get the itch for another pack though just realize that modern Kifaru's have had a lot of R&D put into the frame fit, compared to their Long Hunter days.

Good to know, thanks.