Backcountry rifle hunters, ammo quantity?

[StupidLightweight]

Minimum of 10, but 12 is likely safer. Three buddies and I almost ran out of ammo on a DIY New Zealand hunt in 2019. We never expected herds of feral goats.

 

[OKHunter84]

I would say at least 10 to be safe. If you drop your rifle then you'll want to check zero.

 

[wyogoat]

I was packed in this week in a remote part of Wyoming and had 4 in the gun, a spare mag of 3 and an extra 4 so 11 rounds total and that seems pretty reasonable and that’s my usual round count for back country pack in hunts.
Ya things can go sideways but there’s a point you have to slow down and reevaluate the shots you’re taking.

 

[knale87]

2 full mags and then a couple boxes at the truck.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

4 in gun, 2 on stock in a SAP holder and 2 in bino harness

 

[7mm-08]

Three in gun and five extra in pack. 20 more at the truck.

 

[Nine Banger]

When deer hunting I have 10 rounds. 1 4 round and 2 3 round mags in my chest harness. That is my comfort level. I top off immediately upon end of the event.

Rationale: my best nights doe culling are 5-6 animals, coyotes come thru occaionally too. If I run out its the end of the world.

When thermal hunting I have a 15 round mag in. I resupply when it hits around 5 rounds otherwise I let it roll if its just down a few.

Rationale: 1-2 shots per night is average...more than 3 is a busy night or a shit show on moving target. I can't fix a bad zero in the field without attracting attention. If I run out its not the end of the world.

I'm bringing 50 in my travel case tho. Made a nice little hole for an ADG box.

 

[ChrisA]

About 10 to 12 rounds total in the field, the remainder of a 50 round box back at camp, and the ever present 2 to 3 rounds in the defroster vent of truck.

 

[Matt5266]

Thanks guys, seems like I was doing what most are. Carrying about 10 to 12 on person.

 

[Macintosh]

generally 9-12, which is 3 full mags for both of my 2 main hunting rifles. Have never had the opportunity to fire more than 2 in a trip. Except partridge hunting. That's a long story, but have used more than 2 full boxes of shells in a day, so now I consider it bad juju to count my shells at all, I just dump in a full box every time it starts feeling light.

Also, thee is this thread which has a lot of additonal responses to the same question. There was also a more recent thread than this one on the same topic which as I recall had some entertaining "rodeo" stories, but did not find it in a quick search. https://rokslide.com/forums/threads/how-many-rounds-do-you-carry.145356/page-7

 

[Brucebarker024]

2 in the mag, 2 in the sap round holders, 10 in an ammo wallet. 30-50 in the truck. I am usually hunting with someone when backpacking and have had rodeos before. Never ran out yet but the extra insurance is worth it.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

When deer hunting I have 10 rounds. 1 4 round and 2 3 round mags in my chest harness. That is my comfort level. I top off immediately upon end of the event.

Rationale: my best nights doe culling are 5-6 animals, coyotes come thru occaionally too. If I run out its the end of the world.

When thermal hunting I have a 15 round mag in. I resupply when it hits around 5 rounds otherwise I let it roll if its just down a few.

Rationale: 1-2 shots per night is average...more than 3 is a busy night or a shit show on moving target. I can't fix a bad zero in the field without attracting attention. If I run out its not the end of the world.

I'm bringing 50 in my travel case tho. Made a nice little hole for an ADG box.

You do a lot of doe culling in the backcountry?

 

[TaperPin]

I usually carry about 10, but even if you’re camped 6 miles in and 2,000’ up, the trailhead is only a few hours away if you have to make a quick trip to restock. The last time I had to dash back in the middle of a hunt for something (forgot the little am/fm radio that helps me sleep), without a rifle or much in the pack it was fun going so fast and light - left at 10:00 and was back by 2:00 or 3:00, so lost very little quality hunting time. I knew a runner and one time he jogged back to the trailhead for something. lol

There are things that can change the number. If hunting solo, more rounds would be nice if you’re injured and need to use them to signal. In grizzly country I’ve known guys who had a bear that would get close to camp, they’d fire a shot and it would run off a few hundred yards, then slowly make his way back - this went on for quite a while. If the camp is extra close to the trailhead, or if a horse is carrying the weight, there’s no downside to extra weight so I’d probably bring an entire box. If flying in I’d probably have two boxes. I’ve also hiked a wicked steep rocky son of a gun to check one small area and only had the ammo in the gun - that was the hunt that convinced me to get a lighter gun.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

I carry around ~10rds. BUT might augment that on future youth hunts because I just dealt with a rodeo on one of my son's hunt. He has shot really well in the past but he wounded a pronghorn. I know if "I" had the gun I could have dropped it on a follow up shot while it was in motion (when it slowed) but he wasn't able to and burned through the ammo I had without killing it. He did hit it again but it was still alive and we were out of ammo. It was weak enough I was able to chase it down and knife it, which was far from ideal.