Hauling an elk out of the woods?

[Member 5605]

Elkaholic:
That is very impressive. Whole animal on the bike. Can we assume you pushed and didn't ride/coast?

 

[Mutoman]

That is hard core! I can't imagine trying to balance that much weight while pushing a bicycle.

We've always boned em' out and packed em' out. I took a couple of young guys with me once and they packed while I boned, took them each two trips at about a half mile. My niece packed the head out. It was a good family adventure.

 

[Elkaholic]

Elkaholic:
That is very impressive. Whole animal on the bike. Can we assume you pushed and didn't ride/coast?

You assumed right. Pushed the bike. The nice part is when you come to the down hill you have brakes. I did hop on the elks back one time and then got thinking. This is going to hurt like **** if I crash.

 

[Elkaholic]

That is hard core! I can't imagine trying to balance that much weight while pushing a bicycle.

We've always boned em' out and packed em' out. I took a couple of young guys with me once and they packed while I boned, took them each two trips at about a half mile. My niece packed the head out. It was a good family adventure.

It’s not nearly as hard as you think. Slow and easy… I bet my back feels better than your. (After packing)

 

[45_70Sharps]

Hmm, how much lighter you think I could get that load if I boned the elk out on the spot and only hauled out the meat and hide? And maybe the head if it had a nice sized rack? I plan to hunt on the wet side btw. As near to Marysville as I can. If the areas I hunt and my tags allow for it I will probably be hoping for cows rather than anything with antlers btw. I am more interested in meat than trophies.

I am also on a very tight budget, so horses or expensive gadgets are pretty much out of the question.

No maybe to the head. It's coming out or you are probably going to be in trouble unless it's an any elk area. Not even sure that they wouldn't hassle you if you found an any elk area.
If you have the skills, packing the meat and head and leaving the bones behind is a good way to go but you will still be looking at multiple trips.
If you haven't done it, it can be a job trying to do all that cutting in the woods and getting out by a reasonable time.
I'm not there with the boning it out skills myself but I might be temped to give it a try some time.

I hunt alone a lot so I just try not to end up somewhere that having an elk down is going to be too big of a problem for me to deal with.
When bow hunting I'm extra mindful of the fact that if there is a big hole to run into, they will end up down there when they pile up.

 

[bondo7777]

I gotta say I have killed 13 bulls in 22 years of hunting and some of the hunts were horse pack. The easiest would be quartered and down hill 1/2 mile to the truck. The most gradifying was in what my brother calls the hole. Killed at dusk quartered hung in a tree and built a fire taking turns keeping it going. In the morning packed out the head while he prepped the first to quarters. I brought the packs back and we were done and in the sack by 1 a.m. This is a awesome sports. Enjoy it while you can and take your kids and show them the ropes. God I can't wait til hunting season begins......

 

[lane]

One of these!

 

[JC9995]

If you're by yourself, plan on 5 round trips. One for each quarter, one for the head/antlers and hide(if you keep it). A bull is going to be in the 600-650 pound range without the hide, head, or feet; a cow will be about 200 pounds less. So figure 100 to 150 pounds per load, four times. Then another trip for the head. And your gear. And rifle. And water.

Those weights are a mean, wet-side elk tend to be larger than dry-siders.

Bingo. The fun stops when the gun goes boom.

 

[jerman1964]

I have always quartered them, once we boned one out that was TOO steep for even the horses, and since then I have learned that it is not Always necessary to shoot any bull you see. Packing them out is so much fun for some folks, I have made alot of $$ by using my pack horses for other peoples meat. The other slick trick I saw was a blue plastic sheet that was wrapped under the carcass, then tied shut and used to skid it out. Slick, but didnt work as well in the thick brush. When I quarter them, I tie one quarter to a pack frame and then hang two frames on a saddle, works the same on a bicycle, although elkaholics rig looks pretty slick, too. By using two pack frames its easy to balance the load on horse or bike. A travios, indian style, works good, too, if you have the room to drag it. Be Careful packing the head out, I take orange ribbon to tie to the antlers, so if someone sees them they dont try to bag my elk and hit me or my horses by mistake. I scared myself once, so I pass that one on incase. Good luck, and happy hunting>

 

[Spitpatch]

Talk about the money.

Talk about the job: I don't advertise, and I don't offer. But if any hunter in my canyon needs my horses and asks, he gets 'em. He gets 'em now, and no questions. I give my time, I give my horses, and I give my effort to get any elk out of the woods as fast as possible to good preservation.

Yep, some can't believe it. Then I explain I do it for the animal.

Then they understand. My hope is they pass it along. Cuz I been there. Elk down, far away, no horses. I am my brother's keeper.

I expect nothing. Sometimes I get a loin or a hindquarter. Most times I make a hard friend.

 

[Decker]

Talk about the money.

Talk about the job: I don't advertise, and I don't offer. But if any hunter in my canyon needs my horses and asks, he gets 'em. He gets 'em now, and no questions. I give my time, I give my horses, and I give my effort to get any elk out of the woods as fast as possible to good preservation.

Yep, some can't believe it. Then I explain I do it for the animal.

Then they understand. My hope is they pass it along. Cuz I been there. Elk down, far away, no horses. I am my brother's keeper.

I expect nothing. Sometimes I get a loin or a hindquarter. Most times I make a hard friend.

A gentleman and a scholar. Well played.

-d