In reading discussions here on packing out elk, I noticed no one seems to use game carts. Perhaps the terrain most people hunt makes it impractical, I don't know.
I've never shot an elk(yet)but I did go elk/moose hunting last year. We only packed out one moose,and luckily it fell within a couple hundred yards of a oil lease road. The area's I hunt tend to be crisscrossed with cut lines and old logging roads, so I thought a game cart might be a good idea. I'm thinking of building one out of aluminum and using the wheels off a bmx bike I scavenged. I have a good pack frame, but if I load up the pack frame and then load the game cart, I could take more than twice the amount of meat on one trip.
I'm thinking I can use the brakes off the bike and mount the lever on one handle,to handle any steep downhill sections. Also wondering whether I could use a harness hitched to the cart to do the pulling instead of my arms,and just be able to use myt arms to steady the load. Just some musings,not sure if this is practical or not.
If anyone has experience using carts on elk or other large game,I'd be interested to hear about your experience,and what you would improve or change.

I have a game cart and its very useful for many purposes. Can't use it in all game hauling situations, but often enough. It has its limitations, in heavy downfall obviously. But it can prove helpful even hauling the last few hundred yds after I've gotten game out of difficult spots.

I built one once out of welded square tubular steel with a bicycle wheel on one end and two hand grips on the other. I packed several antelope and two mulie bucks out on it. The one wheel is good on sidehills, but half the weight was in my hands. It would work for an elk quarter.

I now have a two wheel carrier that I bought from Cabela's. The weight is balanced over the wheels. I've used it to pack quite a few antelope, sometimes two at a time. It can be "tippy" on sidehills, and if one wheel goes over a rock or bush. One or two people can operate it.

I've seen a heavy duty one with one wheel under a large wire basket and handles on both ends for two people to hold on to. The one I saw would carry half an elk. The wheel was about the size of a motorcycle wheel.

Years ago I packed a camp into the Bob Marshall Wilderness with my horses. Two guys used one of these heavy duty, one wheel carriers to pack their camp in with. The Forest Service Ranger saw their track on the trail, followed it to them, wrote them a ticket for using a mechanical device in the Wildneress, and made them hire an outfitter to pack their camp and the carrier out on his mules.

These have caught my eye but I've only carried them out in quarters on my back.

http://www.neetkart.com/index.html

I have used one of Cabelas heavy duty 2 wheelers to carry out several deer works great except in mud. If I expect to be in mud or snow I use a sled.

seems like an illegal ticket, a stick and a pivot is a "mechanical device"

I have dignity and won't touch the things.

However, I have heard from many people they work well. It sounds like in the conditions you hunt in they would be a huge help.

It depends on where your hunting in a lot of wilderness areas you can't use any thing with wheels. They are very popular here in the NW a lot of the areas we hunt are not assessable by trucks we have to hike in or bike behind gates. Carts can be a big help once you get them to road system it. We have been tinkering around with brakes because of the hill issues. They work well for us at times. When younger we always used packs as we get older the carts have their place. The dual wheel carts work the best I have friend who hunts solo most of the time the last 3 elk he used his cart by himself to get his elk out. He usually makes 2 trips meat only.

We only use them for antelope hunting

I think they could be a huge help. What brands are better than others? Any features that are worth the cost or any features that don't really help?

We use them whenever we can. Most of us actually use bike carts
but one friend converted a Cabelas cart to a bike cart.

If you are 2-8 miles behind a locked gate they are a life saver.

It is rare that we have to pack more than 1/2 mile to get to a usable skid road. 200 yards is more like it.

I had a single wheel cart made from a motorcyle front tire so it would have brakes. It wasn't that useful a feature and I find most any reasonable game trail in Eastern oregon will fit a game cart.

I have used one twice. I don't think they are as practical for my use as a sled would be. Both times we pulled elk up out of a steep valley and both times it would have been easier to pull a large plastic sled. Both times were bare ground, no snow.

The cart may be worthwhile on the level, but up-hill, I still think the sled would be better. The following pictures show where we pulled the whole elk up a steep mountainside about 1,000 yards with the help of 4 wheelers and "Mule Tape"...

I can't speak to other parts of the country, but if you're using a game cart in Idaho then you're very unlikely to be hunting productive elk habitat.

Having said that, I'd very much LIKE to be able to use one.

Dave

What is a bike cart,and why is it better than a game cart? That Neetcart looks,well,neat...but I wonder if it is more practical than the usual side by side config? It looks to me like with lots of weight it would be quite top heavy and you might have trouble not tipping it over.There must be a stand I didn't see that holds it upright for loading,or else how would you accomplish that?
Now I'm startin to think,and that is a dangerous propsition! What about a 4 wheel cart,using biycle wheels? Almost like an oversize grocery cart. Hell, you could probably fit damn near a whole elk into a Costco grocery cart! This would also make it easier to have one pusher and one puller.
I've thought about a regular game cart like Cabela's offers, but modifying it so that you have handle's on either side of you and some sort of yoke or tongue that attaches to a good harness and kidney belt,like a quality pack frame would have. This would take the weight from your arms and transfer it to your hips while still aloowing you to use your arms to balance the load.Hmm, I need to think on this more. This design might work with a sigle wheel design too,allowing for a more manuverable cart without the additional strain on your arms.

My hunting buddy and I split the cost of a game cart some years ago. It has been a lifesaver on some occasions and worthless on others, depending on the terrain and vegetation.

The two elk my son-in-law and I took last year got taken out the old fashioned way - on our backs. The two deer I took the year before came out on the cart.


Edited to add: Of the four antelope my nephews and I took last fall, one was dragged all the way out, one was carted all the way out, and the other two were half dragged and half carted.

I have never used one,but they would not work where I typically hunt elk. Usually there is only a narrow trial. Rocks,logs, blow downs, would make it almost impossible to navigate.I could see some one doing more lifting than pulling.

They would be dandy for pronghorn or eastern Colo plains deer.
However,almost all the ranches I hunt a person can drive to within fairly close proximity of the downed animall as long as you are not drivig on winter wheat, crops or prime pasture land. Common courtesy says you always drive along fence lines ,which usually have a two track along them and you don't drive thru tall CRP lands as the exhaust pipe/catalytic converter can start fires.

As far as I know,all wilderness areas are like national forest.Administered by the federal govt and all use the same set of regulations. Wheeled vehicles of any type,motorized or not, chian saws and the like are all prohibited in wilderness areas.

In addition, all NF have maps showing where motorized vehilces of any sort are permitted or not

I use mine a lot for deer and antelope and one elk. For the elk first we had to get it off the mountain to a level enough spot to use the cart, but then we still had over a mile of creek bed and coulee to get him to the road. In that case the we got it out in 2 trips.

It would have been worthless on the mountain due to the steepness, but it was much easier after that with the game cart. I use the Super Mag Hauler (looks like the one shrapnel has an elk on). It made getting over logs and shallow washes much easier.

Game carts are the best thing that ever happened. I bought a small one several years ago, one that would fit in the small back seat of the 90 ford pickup I had at the time. It has two wheels about a foot apart and they just fit the cow trails that are about everywhere I hunt. I have hauled out a lot of deer and antelope and 3 or 4 elk. 1/2 elk is way too much for it unless it's a real easy haul, 1/4 works just fine. I have better luck pushing mine like a wheel-barrow. Be sure to get puncture-proof tires.

I love my deer carts and use them every time I or a friend kills a deer.

A real lifesaver around here since we cant quarter a deer out.

Heres my most recent deer all tied up....had to roll him about a mile out....woulda been tough dragging him out.

I have a couple of game carts, one a typical model with side-by-side wheels and one a Neet Kart with in-line wheels.

The standard cart works real well on ground where the wheels can be level side-to-side. We have used it on game from pronghorn to moose, but it ain't great on sidehills or if you have to cross dips or logs or any other obstacle.

I've also used some other side-by-side carts, and they all have the same problems.

The Neet Cart can be a little top-heavy with a big load, but with the option of handles both in front and back, and two guys in decent shape running it, it works well. Because of the two in-line wheels it also woks fine on sidehills, and can even go over medium-sized logs or rocks. The hand-brakes really help going downhill, or even uphill if you need a "break" yourself. It's also very well-made, and tough.

The Neet Karts are becoming more popular in my particular part of Montana, partly because they're made in Montana. I bought mine at Capital Sports & Western in Helena, where they also rent them.

Here's mine.

Over 50 years ago my father (a talented mechanic), made one out of round conduit and an old bicycle front fork and tire. We carted many deer out with it -- sometimes two or more at the same time. It has handles on the front and rear. In sagebrush type of vegetation it works pretty well. It is impossible for one person to run it when it is loaded. My best friend in high school was not very large in size but was exceptionally strong; we always put him on the downhill side! . I still have the cart hanging in my garage mainly for nostalgia, but it is still functional. We had four relatively small deer on it once but we had 4 or 5 of guys running the cart at the same time and it was in open mainly rocky, shrub covered terrain. We used it for many years before I ever heard of a commercial product. Dad was not a big man and packing out a good 4 point mule deer buck in the late 1950s motivated him to make the cart.

They can work well in certain areas if not too steep and not a lot of dead falls and underbrush. If someone was able to devise a brake device would really help out.

I use mine for antelope and white tails on public land.

Have not used it for elk yet because too steep and too much brush. Would work on well used game trails and in sage contry. Get the wheel covers so brush does not get into spokes.

I've never knocked down an elk where a game cart would've been much help. But when antelope hunting on walk-in areas I've used a wheelbarrow to good effect. the wheelbarrow makes for easy braking on the downhills (push the handles down) and for uphills with a partner all you do is have your parner tie onto the frame in front of the wheel with a rope and pull. The plus side of all this is almost every body already owns a wheelbarrow, so you don't have to invest in a specialized piece of equipment.

Everywhere I've ever hunted elk it was too rough to use a cart, but I made use of my homemade rig on my recent Oryx hunt on the WSMR in New Mexico. It is made from a Workman 3 wheel bike rearend and conduit and was a real help on the Oryx trip.



Of course, having a pretty huntress as your gunbearer don't hurt either!

So what did you do different with your home built cart? Looks like it might be narrower and a bit higher than most factory carts? Looks like maybe you are standing inside the frame? I'd be interested in more details,that's a good size critter you got laoded there and it seems to be handling it well.

A bike or cycle cart is a bicycle trailer with [in our case a hitch that mounts to the seat post.

Carts are fine on level terrain or when one is going straight up or straight down a hill. Try one is this country, and there is only one direction it will go.


I can furnish the GPS coordinates for a fine cart if one would like to retrieve it. A buddy hauled one up and after two attempts at side hilling abandoned it. Two trips in one afternoon with my pack frame, and I had his deer off the hill. It looked much the same as the one posted by Jeffpg above.

1minute,

That looks very much like BXXXXXXX Reservoir...no?

1minute,

That's why the Neet Cart has in-line wheels. It works very well on sidehills.

My home built cart's platform is based on the rearend of a Workman 3 wheeled bike. We used to use them where I worked to haul a toolbox around for troubleshooting in a manufacturing plant. It is tall because of the 24" tires that have heavy duty tubes inside. We simply used conduit to build a frame that is welded to the factory platform on top of the axle. The frame allows me to get inside of it for great control of the cart. The Oryx weighed about 400 plus and was no problem at all.

I have had this cart for several years, but never had the real need to utilize it until my Oryx hunt. It is definetly one of a kind and I have christened it "The Oryx Cart". (not to be confused with Ox Cart!)

Years ago we made our game carts..First was a single wheeled with bicycle brakes with handles on both ends..It worked alright in fairly flat ground but was tippy..Next was a dual wheel as the ones they sell now and without breaks...It also wasn't very good in steep terrain and the lack of breaks can be dangerous.

I now use a Lewis Chain Saw Winch and alot of rope and cable.I suppose in flat terrain or old logging roads game carts would work pretty good but around here the use would be very limited.

Jayco

My buddy shot this elk last season and he called me and another buddy to come help him get it out.

We drove the pickup as close to the elk as we could and then brought his game cart up to it. You can see the white pickup in the background right by the left 4th point. It doesnt look real steep right where the elk is but just off to the right of the picture it go pretty steep. We cut the elk in half and it took us at least half an hour just to get the back half on the game cart and tied down. We just drug the front half. We would drag one half down a ways then go get the other half and bring it down to where we left the other one. It was 100 times easier dragging the front half down that it was trying to control the game cart, get it rolling again after it would get stopped by a rock or clump of grass, etc.

But a family friend was out deer hunting around the same area me and my girlfriend were one morning. She shot her buck and he happened to see us. He brought his game cart out to us and it was a life saver. It would have sucked to drag that 250lb+ buck 1/2-3/4 of a mile across that stubble field by myself. Game carts can be a life saver if you can use them for deer and antelope but aren't a whole lot of help in most elk country. I would say use them if you can/want.

iddave:



No comment

I've used them and they are fine for flat ground (Eastern hunts) or prairies, but for elk habitat, they suck. They are more work than they are worth. I pulled a quartered up moose out in trip, 3.5 miles back in. I was able to follow a cow trail most of the way. I should have just deboned it and been done. It would have been easier.

Trying to get a loaded cart over rocks, logs, mud, brush etc., is a LOT Of work and really beats you up. I have never been more tired than when I got that moose out. It took 4 of us all day long with that cart. It was a good sized one with a motorcycle tire. Keeping 600+ lbs. balanced on one wheel in crappy terrain with the feeble strength of a man's arms is a workout. Flinch

I hunt on country criss crossed with out of commission logging roads, that we use for access into our hunting grounds. If the roads are seasonal or still in fairly good shape, the game cart is worth its weight in gold.

We brought by bear out three miles in less than an hour last week. granted, it would`ve came out just as fast on our backs, but its kind of nice being able to break down the animal back at home or camp compared to the woods.

I pushed a stroller with a kid on the Appalachian Trail and it sucked because of roots and rocks. My boy was only 45 pounds. I bet a 180 pound elk half over the Appalachian trail would really suck, and it would be even worse on a nontrail situation.

I think that sums it up it all depends on where your hunting and the terrian your in.
We would never use it cross country unless there is a road system. I have used a bike to haul a deer out we drapped it across the handle bars and the seats and pushed it actually worked pretty good we even had to push though part of a old burn with logs every where the bike did pretty good. I would never have considered taking a game cart in there...

I can respect that.

If it's flat enough to not tip over a two-wheeled cart, they are a lifesaver for states where you are not allowed to cut up in the field (like ND). It's nothing to take one a mile or two over easy terrain.

As I posted earlier, the Neet Kart is very different from most "game" carts. It was partly developed to use in back-country rescues of injured people, but also works better than any other cart I've seen for game retrieval, due to several features, including the in-line wheels.

It won't work in every situation, but it works better in rougher country than any other game cart I've encountered.

If anybody has an open mind, they might look at www.neetkart.com

That would be a handy rig

How well does it balance. It looks to be much better than a sxs wheeled cart for mountainous terrain.

That's the point of the in-line wheels. They work on sidehills, unlike side-by-side wheels.

They balance very well if the load is balanced. If you watch the video you can also see how the handles can be changed to work in different terrain.

With heaver loads more people help, but the handles are designed so 2-3 people don't get in each other's way. But because of the hand-brakes, one person can do pretty well with even a fairly heavy load. I took two field-dressed pronghorns (about 150-160 pounds) out of some badlands last fall by myself. With two guys in decent shape 300 pounds isn't bad at all.

The in-line wheels also allow them to go over fairly sizeable rocks or logs pretty easily. The guy with the mule deer on his Neet Kart demonstrates how that's done.

That looks to be a better system than the standard wheel design. Having used a standard game cart before, in elk country, this would be the only type I would try again. Thanks John

We tried a home-made game cart with side by side wheels and while it worked well on decent terrain, it was next to useless in the commercial forestry block were were hunting because of the deep plough furrows..

A part from an ATV or a garron, I don't think there is an easy way to get a carcass out of such rough terrain..

This is what I use. It has earned its keep on the first haul.
http://www.atvbackpackercart.com

That Neetcart is intriguing.One question I have that I can't see on th website is about loading it. Does it have a stand to keep it upright while loading?
I can't see myself spending the money to buy one, but I think I might just try to build something similar.

Alright Pete, I'll bite. What the heck is a garron?

Do we speak the same language?

Sorry, I keep forgetting ..its the generic name for the pack ponies up in Scotland that were (some times still are) used to get the Red red off the hills/ mountains..





At one stage most of the Red deer shot on the Scottish hill would have been extracted either by Garron or simply dragging them down to where a LandRover could accesss.

These days, the use of ponies is the exeption, Quads,and Argo's and other ATV's being a far more common method.



That said, a few of the big Estates still use garrons especially during the stag season, mostly out of tradition though...

xxclaro,

The Neet Kart can be propped up pretty easily by standing it against a tree or rock, but then you have to lift the animal onto it. What I do is lay the cart down on its side, tie the animal onto the platform, then tilt the cart upright--a much easier process than lifting a dead animal on top of it.

I have used most of the methods shown here, in addition, bycycles, sleds, plastic bags (snow or frozen ground) and winches with telephone line ( old tech). Never used horses. But for most of the country I hunt your choice is to either leave them there or pack them out. Horses are probably the best overall but the most expensive. There are even places where horse can't go but not many !

Kinda off topic,but maybe not.I just recived the CD on the travel management plan for the White River NF on CO, from the Forest Service.

No motorized off road or off trail travel is pemitted for retrieving big game anywhere.

Dispersed camping parking may not be more than 300ft off a road.

Parking cannot be more than 10 ft off the road.

My cousin built this cart for his horse to haul. Note the low load floor behind the seat, it's easy to lift a deer that high (or a dog box, he uses it for hauling beagles when rabbit hunting, too). It works really well in the North Missouri farmground he hunts. His ground is pretty flat compared to elk ground, though.

He built it out of scrap in the old junkpile behind the barn, and the most costly item was the sheet of plywood he cut for the seat, load floor, etc. He's cheap, I'm surprised he even spent the money for the horse....

I have seen more than a few but you don't have to pack nearly as far as if you didn't have horses.Steep and Rocky terrain isn't a horses best friend but they sure beat the alternatives.

I'm stuck on chainsaw winches and Mule tape these days.



Jayco

We use carts and ice fishing sleds where appropriate. The sleds work better where trees are blown down, the cart on old roads. You can load the sled on the cart and go. Seems like no tool is best in all situations. Also have a pack for hauling quarters.

This one is interesting.

http://www.sasquatchfabrications.com/index.htm

I bought this one.

http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=1206641&categoryId=0&parentCategoryId=0&subCategoryId=0&indexId=0&productVariantId=1622443&quantity=1&itemGUID=e7c400a4ac10085220f2a08bed2757b8&WTz_l=SBC%3Bcat104791680%3Bcat104689980%3Bcat104353380&destination=/checkout/item_added_to_cart.jsp

It works fine on the prairies for deer and antelope. Would be limited on sidehills and burns etc. like Mule Deer says. But for $99, who could leave it on the shelf?

I can't get that link to post properly. Sorry.

I forgot to add that I took my Super Mag Hauler's axle to a machine shop. They did some fabricating so one pin is pulled, then the wheels and axle are easily removed. No tools required, much easier to transport and store.

I've used two-wheeled game carts like this one by Cabela's:



For the reasons mentioned above (narrow trails, sidehills, rocks) I like a good old stout wheelbarrow with an inflatable tire much better, and have used them a bunch. You can drive one down a narrow foot path, no problem. They're designed for heavy loads, and the inflatable tire bounces over rocks and roots much better than a hard rubber tire. You can't put a whole elk in one, but quarters would work fine.