Downsize from Multi-Day pack to Day pack?

[Tradbeau]

OP. Here is a picture of something I put together that might offer a solution for you. I use this mainly for training and when I’m just coming to help pack meat, but have used it for hiking trips with the family or as a light and fast option too.

K_pem, showing my ignorance here but what went into that build?

 

[K_pem]

^^^we aren’t that far apart. Sorry for the overreaction.

The deer I packed was 40+ pounds plus my bino, rifle, extra jacket, knives, extra flashlight and batteries, etc. so maybe 60(?) total?

It wasn’t as comfy as a proper pack would have been. Maybe 1.25 miles. But it was downright easy compared to dragging her or carrying her (I carried her 1/4 mile, gutted, before I gave up and deboned her). It was an absolute breeze compared to toting the whole deer.

I’ll freely admit that bringing a half-load of meat back to the truck in the first trip isn’t as efficient as having a proper pack with you. But if having a lighter pack for the initial hike in makes me lighter and faster I’m more likely to kill something, more likely to get up and do it the next day, and so on.

There’s no easy button.

All good man, that’s the problem with trying to have a conversation through text format. You miss out on like 90% of communication.

But I mean idk what kind of daypack you’re using, but my EXO weighs about 5lbs (I could shave a half a pound ditching the hip belt pockets and Nalgene holster) the way I have it kitted out. I can’t imagine you’re saving more than a couple pounds by carrying a “daypack.”

And yeah, carrying an animal out whole sounds good and fine until you’re doing it… ask me how I know (pics attached), you ain’t doing that with a daypack haha, kidding of course.

Like I said, you do you; but I think you’re missing out lol.

 

[K_pem]

K_pem, showing my ignorance here but what went into that build?

Haha! No worries man.

It’s just a K4 frame with a crib load panel on it and the accessory straps that EXO sells to use the lid with the 2200 or crib.

Then I ordered some Molle compatible pouches on Amazon (probably went through about a dozen before I found one suitable quality and shape for the fit and space I wanted) and attached those directly to the crib panels Molle cuts.

What you can’t see under the lid is two light weight sil nylon dump pouches that pack into themselves for hauling like extra layers/garbage/snacks/ect (more pics attached).

It’s a sweet little lightweight setup. I keep it in my truck all season with a change of clothes and some basic shit in it, just incase I get a call that someone got something down and needs a hand. Otherwise during season I’ll leave it at camp or in my truck/sxs. It’s nice to have around and not bloody up my main hunting setup when I know I’m just hauling meat. Plus I elected to go with the taller carbon stays on this frame so that i get just a little more load lift assistance and it carries a little better. Otherwise the rest of the year it’s my training setup.

 

[270-300]

I typically pack a day pack and keep a frame pack in my vehicle. How i pack the day pack depends on where im hunting and what. But for elk it has lots of food and water, small tent, a nylon 2 person hammock that makes a great resting spot or a tarp for shelter, and everything i use to quarter elk including alaska game bags and an empty spray bottle with packets of 1 oz of citric acid powder in it.

When i kill something, i cut up the meat and quarters and put it all in the game bags and hang it from a tree. If its daylight this lets the meat cool down while i walk back and switch to my frame pack. If its night i leave it for the next morning and get it with the frame pack then.

I find it real hard to effectively hunt trying to slip through brush and rocks with a frame pack on.

 

[Chris in TN]

I find it real hard to effectively hunt trying to slip through brush and rocks with a frame pack on.

When I hunt, I am moving through the woods looking around, being quiet,, looking for sign and listening for sounds.

When I hike I am plodding along with little else in mind but getting to the next stopping point and taking the weight off for a moment.

The more weight I carry, the farther I slide up that slope from 'hunting' to 'hiking'.

 

[Chris in TN]

All good man, that’s the problem with trying to have a conversation through text format. You miss out on like 90% of communication.

But I mean idk what kind of daypack you’re using, but my EXO weighs about 5lbs (I could shave a half a pound ditching the hip belt pockets and Nalgene holster) the way I have it kitted out. I can’t imagine you’re saving more than a couple pounds by carrying a “daypack.”

And yeah, carrying an animal out whole sounds good and fine until you’re doing it… ask me how I know (pics attached), you ain’t doing that with a daypack haha, kidding of course.

Like I said, you do you; but I think you’re missing out lol.

My daughter's day pack weighs less than a pound. It's tiny, but held what she needed. Mine probably weighs two pounds.

The issue isn't just weight, though, it's cost. Lightweight hiking gear gets spendy. And bulky. I can be a bit clumsy as is; the bigger my pack gets, the worse that gets, especially the moment I go off-trail.

As for carrying an animal out whole....when I was much younger and a bit dumber, we did it a lot, between two of us - we'd throw it on our shoulders and take turns toting a smaller deer, or lash it to a pole like the old paintings would depict the Indians doing at Thanksgiving. That frankly was terrible. Or we'd just drag it. The doe I keep referring to, I did tote her a quarter mile or so. The weight wasn't terrible, what was terrible was that the weight was off-center. Every step was a balancing act. But once I got her deboned and stuffed into a pack, honestly, it wasn't that bad. With the daypack more or less full and some other random gear lashed to the sides of it I couldn't really sling my rifle and had to carry it alternately port arms or balanced in one hand, but the 1.25 miles I packed her went much faster than the 0.25 miles I carried her.

I didn't get pictures of any of that. I shot her at dark and gutted her, toted her about a quarter mile and knew I was either going to hurt myself or be out there half the night or both, so I dropped her, pulled out my little tarp and knife and headlamp and started deboning her, and the rain started. So I finished that in the rain then packed her out in a light mist. Definitely a 'type 2 fun' sort of night.


ETA: wait, I did get one picture of her. Yes, that’s a 30-06 I walloped her with. She was an older doe. Not sure her weight is obvious in the picture but photography isn’t my strong point.

Per Google earth, she was about 2,830 yards from the truck when I shot her. So 1.6 miles. Fun night.

 

[Macintosh]

People are acting as if this is a binary choice. It’s not. Clearly the options are slim in the “load carrying day pack” category, but they exist. And if people demand them, more will exist.
This is my 18l day pack, and we packed this guy out just shy of 4 miles. This was dumb for sure, done only because the processor said they would not accept a quartered antelope and we didnt have a way to package it for transport ourselves. But it did work. If you dont want a full sized backpacking pack suitable for carrying 10 days of backpacking gear, you DO NOT need to give up the ability to pack meat. Shades of grey, yes, it is not as good as a big pack for carrying heavy loads. On the other hand it has the flexibility and profile on your body of a large hip pack. But it’s 100% not a black and white “either you can pack meat or you cant” choice.





Here’s my brother with the same model tiny day pack on, carrying an entire 190lb whitetail buck—4 bone-in quarters, the backstraps, loins and neck meat, everything but the head. Had to carry it a bit over a mile back to camp I think, he said it was an uncomfortable carry, Im certain a k4 would do a lot better…but then again it’s an 18l day pack with +\- 100 pounds on board, and its literally got nothing above your shoulders or behind your head to catch on every low-hanging branch. The load doesnt look huge but bro is a very big dude.

If the profile of the pack above your head and shoulders isnt a big deal where/how you hunt the juice may not be worth the squeeze. But The point is that you CAN have your cake and eat it, too.

 

[Randle]

I think this is where the MR pop up shines.
Small enough to not hinder brushing it thru, but very capable of hauling a load out.
I have hauled out 3 elk loads of around 90 lbs and find it is now my day hunting amd load hauling pack.
I did upgrade the belt to a kifaru though .

 

[270-300]

My daughter's day pack weighs less than a pound. It's tiny, but held what she needed. Mine probably weighs two pounds.

The issue isn't just weight, though, it's cost. Lightweight hiking gear gets spendy. And bulky. I can be a bit clumsy as is; the bigger my pack gets, the worse that gets, especially the moment I go off-trail.

As for carrying an animal out whole....when I was much younger and a bit dumber, we did it a lot, between two of us - we'd throw it on our shoulders and take turns toting a smaller deer, or lash it to a pole like the old paintings would depict the Indians doing at Thanksgiving. That frankly was terrible. Or we'd just drag it. The doe I keep referring to, I did tote her a quarter mile or so. The weight wasn't terrible, what was terrible was that the weight was off-center. Every step was a balancing act. But once I got her deboned and stuffed into a pack, honestly, it wasn't that bad. With the daypack more or less full and some other random gear lashed to the sides of it I couldn't really sling my rifle and had to carry it alternately port arms or balanced in one hand, but the 1.25 miles I packed her went much faster than the 0.25 miles I carried her.

I didn't get pictures of any of that. I shot her at dark and gutted her, toted her about a quarter mile and knew I was either going to hurt myself or be out there half the night or both, so I dropped her, pulled out my little tarp and knife and headlamp and started deboning her, and the rain started. So I finished that in the rain then packed her out in a light mist. Definitely a 'type 2 fun' sort of night.


ETA: wait, I did get one picture of her. Yes, that’s a 30-06 I walloped her with. She was an older doe. Not sure her weight is obvious in the picture but photography isn’t my strong point.

Per Google earth, she was about 2,830 yards from the truck when I shot her. So 1.6 miles. Fun night.
View attachment 1023103

Zero gravity water in that pack?

 

[Chris in TN]

Zero gravity water in that pack?

I meant the empty packs.

I've joked with one buddy about tying some helium balloons to our packs to make them 'lighter' but it might look like a circus moving through the brush and the balloons would probably get hung anyway.

 

[270-300]

I meant the empty packs.

I've joked with one buddy about tying some helium balloons to our packs to make them 'lighter' but it might look like a circus moving through the brush and the balloons would probably get hung anyway.

Pack weight is about 1\10 the concern of pack design for how hard it feels to carry.

 

[4090Sharps]

To build on what I posted earlier, here's a 30.4oz Durston Kakwa 55 filled with a bone-in Coues buck and some water.

All in, with the tripod and some other gear, over 60lb. Carried over 3.5+ miles of rough terrain. While not as comfortable as my K4, not uncomfortable. The bag compresses well, harness bulk is minimal, and most importantly the frame isn't too tall while still offering functional load lifters.

 

[UnckleBob]

Unless you’re hauling out quarters, a frame is overkill. Agree with you, get a nice sturdy internal frame pack that’s ~40+ Liters and call it a day.

What if you wanted to carry out an entire deer in one trip? 4 quarters + blackstraps & tenderloins?

 

[GB1]

Following.

 

[Ross]

There are many very good daypack options around. I’m currently running the stone glacier for my last two bulls. Also have a couple KUIU’s. The stone glacier is just lighter. I have a t2 frame and t3 with bag. When I want to be more nimble, not often at this age and grinding through timber I run the daypack. Simply lighter and more form fitting and fits my style and age better. Yep, can’t pack anything out other than tendies and that is fine. Return with the pack team and pack Mr Elk out. Many options and no right option for all. Find what works for you. So much better than 5 decades ago, you have so many good options.

 

[BBob]

Older kuiu ultra 1800 will save you 3lbs and still have a meat shelf. You could do a light load on the way out with it and grab your bigger pack for the next trip. Might be worth a shot.

That’s exactly what I use for my run and gun early season archery elk pack. The Ultra’s slimmer suspension in this case is better than the Pro. It’s perfect and will haul a pretty good sized load out. I have a rectangular game bag that slips in perfect between the bag and frame. A buddy uses an Ultra but with I think a 3000 bag for the same purpose.

 

[Crews]

What if you wanted to carry out an entire deer in one trip? 4 quarters + blackstraps & tenderloins?

I personally don’t see any reason you couldn’t throw them inside the pack and roll with it. I used to have a Stone Glacier Kiowa that fits this day pack description. It could carry 50-60lbs in a pinch without too much drama.

 

[mtnbound]

I've had an EXO K4 5000 for a year or two now, and the quality and features are, as many of you know, top notch. Zero complaints there.

What I'm starting to wonder though, is if "for me", it's just too much pack. I only day-hunt - returning to camp or cabin after each day - and a lot of times I'm just tagging along without a tag, shed hunting, or just hiking here and there.

It makes me wonder if I might be better served with a true day pack. I know the EXO can strap down to a very small size, but you still have tons of padding everywhere, and sometimes it feels a bit restrictive to my movements and hiking as far in as I may want due to the bulk and weight.

Anyone have any thoughts or advice on this kind of a scenario, or faced something similar? Again, I really do love the features of the EXO, but just wondering if I'd be more nimble on my feet with something smaller, lighter, and simpler. Thanks!

You can most certainly scale down to a day pack. Will it suck to pack out with a pack with less hip belt and shoulder padding, yes. Can it be done, yes.
You do mention that the EXO feels restrictive and limits how far you can hike in and this is where I think you might regret going with a lighter pack. It’s one thing to suffer for a mile or so using a lighter pack but your body is going to be more fatigued dealing with a load for longer distances with a less padded or a less supportive pack.
Yes, you could take a small first load and bring in the better frame for the rest but I prefer to take my heaviest load out first as I am at my strongest.
I dislike having to swap needed items from one pack into another one as I have seen and experienced people forgetting critical items during this change over because of both mental and physical fatigue.
Just my two cents.