Elk

[Nightowlruss]

What do you do with the hide? If I am lucky enough to kill I think I would like to keep the hide. Have it tanned

 

[PredatorSlayer]

I have never kept the hide. I am a euro mount guy, I think its more natural and have never been a fan of shoulder mounts, so I dont even cape them out.

 

[Marble]

I have half a a mule deer hide from a buck i got mounted. I really like it. I move it around the house. Sometimes the dogs finds it and loves to lay on it. But only for a few minutes..

Taxidermists will buy them from you.

They are not really expensive to tan. I think less than $150. You can fresh it, salt dry it and then choose a tanning company.

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[LongWayAround]

Skinning an elk sounds like a lot of extra work, especially if you're very far from the truck.

If I could drive out and load it whole... maybe.

 

[bz_711]

The first time I packed a bull out of the mountains the thought of keeping the hide ever, or even the cape for a mount, quickly left my mind.
Luckily I prefer euro's anyway...but so much goes into getting the meat off the animal and to the truck that it's hard to have the brain or back capacity to mess with hide. Hides are HEAVY!

BUT...if you are close enough or if you have packers...go for it!

Good Luck!

 

[Fullfan]

They stay where the bull dies, I'm not going to carry an additional weight that I do not have to.

 

[cnelk]

I put the hide back over the carcass after doing the gutless.
No way am I carrying it out.
Back to nature it goes

 

[KsRancher]

My son's first elk in 2023. He wanted to keep the hide and have it tanned. And my brother's GF wanted the feet for the dogs to chew on. So we packed out a lot of extra wieght. I packed the hide out. Wasn't too heavy, we just didn't get it folded and tied up good enough. So it didn't ride good at all. That hide ended up being one expensive venture. I made a post about it in the "gripe" thread. When my son gets a place of his own he wants to display the hide on the wall by his euro.

 

[justinspicher]

No hide for this guy, I know I won’t do anything useful with it.

 

[mt terry d]

I've always loved hides. I hate throwing any away, even deer hides.
Seems like a waste but there's no market for them.

I have one summer hide from a bull at beginning of the bow season and
a winter hide from a late November bull. Interesting to see the difference.

Call around to taxidermists in your area to see if they can point you to
a tanner.

Had one done last year and it was $285 from Montana Rug in Arlee, MT.
They were very good to deal with and did a fine job.

Skin it carefully, keep it cool. Be sure it has all the heat out of it,
then roll it up flesh side to flesh side then toss in freezer

If it's warm and the above isn't practical flesh it as best you can ( the tanner
will do a final fleshing) and salt it down heavily.

** I think you can put it in a garbage bag after salting as it's going to
leak fluids and get a little messy. Maybe someone with more experience
will speak up on this part. Like I said I "think" the plastic bag is okay.
Better yet, check with the tanner before the hunt for their advice

Good luck on your hunt.

 

[NoDakfarmin]

My last elk I caped out and had it soft tan. Use it as a rug in my trophy room! They do shed some so low traffic area they work best. They have beautiful capes and don’t see the point in wasting. Also have a deer cape I use on my shooting bench to protect rifles and such. Get it tanned you won’t regret!

 

[cnelk]

I had my cow moose hide tanned last fall.
She wasnt a large cow and was close to the road so I saved the hide.

Flesh the hide > salt the hide > salt hide until hide is dry.
Do not freeze a rolled fresh hide because it takes forever to freeze and you risk hair slippage

Use non-iodized salt, its cheaper. It took 3-4lbs to salt the moose hide

Once dry, fold it up as best you can, then send to a tannery.

I used Moyles - https://moyle.net/
Cost about $430

Price list is on their website
They do good work

 

[Maverick1]

I kept one cow elk hide. Because it died 600 yards or so from the vehicle and I wanted one to go with the deer, moose, and bear hides already at home. With exception for carrying out the cape from a few bull elk, all others have been left in the field.

Kill, quarter, and pack out the meat from an elk a couple of times and you will view the value proposition of the effort and time packing out a hide differently.

Edit to add: I’m pretty much a solo backpack hunter, typically hunting with the bow in early to mid September. Once an elk is down getting the meat out is first priority. With temps sometimes in the upper 70’s - 90’s, packing out a hide doesn’t become top priority after 2-3 days of packing meat.

 

[Indian Summer]

I was never one to care about packing weight. My gun is not light, but it’s the best tool for the job so I carry it. My spotting scope is not compact, but it’s worth it to me to pack. Ice skinned one cow elk out from head to toe. One of my guides wanted it and I was close to the truck.

The biggest factor for me is time. If you kill an elk at the end of the day, I highly doubt you will be in the mood to skin the entire thing. And you have to quarter it so there’s no waiting until the next day. I guess the answer is in the right situation it’s not bad. Early in the day and close to the truck. Otherwise no.

Most people who go through the time and trouble to pack out an entire hide never do it again.

 

[Mtnmilsurp]

We lay the hide hair side down on the sled, put meat on, then wrap the hide around the meat for the drag out

 

[Dave_]

I've kept 2 because they were less than a mile from the truck. They are the last load if I have the time and energy. They are heavy.

I had one professionally tanned, it looks pretty cool hanging on the wall. I did the other, it looks fine but stiff. It's been folded up in the attic. If I have more I may do hair off.

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[Pony Soldier]

Early on there was a facility in town that would ship hides to get tanned. They also made coats, gloves and a variety of products out of the hides.

I don't remember any that were hair on but the products they made were spectacular. I had a couple coats made; a vest and many, many pairs of work gloves. After that I got the the hides tanned for my use. I made a number of chaps that I have used for over 40 years. I made moccasins for myself and my kids. I think up till age ten the kids spent more time in moccasins than shoes.

Although I had both elk and deer hides tanned, I found the elk the most durable. I found I could get them split to the thickness I wanted and even colored.

When I left Spokane, I stopped doing it and the company moved to Idaho but I still have a few hides and parts and pieces that I use for repairs and creations. Elk and deer hides can be sewn with a regular sewing machine.

The only complaint I have is my wife had my coat cleaned and it shrunk. I still got 30+ years out of it. It was warmer than anything I have been able to buy. I have never had an urge for a hair on hide but if you have the tendancy to make things and a sewing machine, you and tandy can make some neat and useful items that will last your lifetime.