First Pack Advice

[tgus59]

I am a long time whitetail hunter from Iowa, and am going on a drop camp elk hunt in Idaho. We will be packed in on horses 4-8 miles in. From the drop camp, we will be doing day hunts. If we kill something, we will need to pack the meat back to the drop camp. Day 1 will be pack in, hunt for 6 days, and day 8 will pack back out. I'd like to stay under $500, and probably closer to $400.

What bag is best for this? Do I need something like the MR Metcalf, or would something like the Pop Up 28 make more sense? If I went with something like the popup, what is the best way to pack in the gear I'd leave back at camp? Are any of the Cabelas packs worth owning?

 

[amack26]

If you want something that wont break the bank the Kuiu Icon Pro 3200 has been a great pack if your are going back to camp each night. it compresses really well for the day trips and can hold a couple deer quarters so I would imagine it would work fine for elk. They pop up in the classifieds from time to time. If you have the money get a Kifaru, its a buy once kind of thing!

 

[alpinej7]

+ 1 for Kifaru and i’d Also highly recommend stone glacier. Either of those new will exceed your budget but look online here for a used rig.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Buy once, cry once. Get a kifaru a stone glacier and be done with it.

 

[Desk Jockey]

If you are going to make a habit of backpacking or backpack hunting consider something top shelf - kifaru, MR, stone glacier or something. Think about something cheaper if not.

Don’t get me wrong, I am a gear head and own lots of packs. I think top brands are worth every penny if you use the hell out of them or are just into them. Honestly they aren’t really needed for someone that is going to use them once.

If this is one and done then borrow or buy something cheap or that you can use for nonhunting. $200 at an REI or sporting goods shop will get you a lot of pack

 

[Fatcamp]

I had it to do again a Kifaru frame, cargo panel, and strap any day pack on it.

 

[Farmingdale's Finest]

My son and I are using MR Glaciers. They are from the mountain lineup and not hunting specific. I have comfortably trained with 75 pounds up to 5 miles a few days a week this past summer. I added a Kifaru Grabit for extra capacity like the meat shelf but the total cost was less than 1/2 of the cost of a Metcalf and IMO very little compromise. Total cost was about $270 for pack and Grabit. Here is a pic of my set up.

 

[Coveyleader]

What pack do you use for Whitetails? In the scenario you describe you won't need to invest much unless you want to.
I would stay away from a big investment until after your first hunt. Elk hunting is tough, who knows if you will ever do it again.

A pack like a 2200 from badlands would suffice if you have one already. You could even bring your Whitetail pack and just pack in a Kelty Cache Hauler style frame and you'd be good.

You can hunt elk on a budget no problem. No need to invest in a high end pack which seems to be the rage these days.

 

[Fatcamp]

Cabela's pack frames work just fine. Not the greatest, but affordable and have a meat shelf.

 

[IaTrent]

Exo 2000, allows you to haul Elk and would not be too big for Iowa tree stands. Once you get the Elk bug, you will do more trips.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[manitou1]

You should be able to find the Metcalf in that price range. I shopped around and mine (2018 model) was well under 500.00.

 

[Trial153]

https://www.archerytalk.com/vb/showthread.php?t=5488897

 

[Jbehredt]

What pack do you use for Whitetails? In the scenario you describe you won't need to invest much unless you want to.
I would stay away from a big investment until after your first hunt. Elk hunting is tough, who knows if you will ever do it again.

A pack like a 2200 from badlands would suffice if you have one already. You could even bring your Whitetail pack and just pack in a Kelty Cache Hauler style frame and you'd be good.

You can hunt elk on a budget no problem. No need to invest in a high end pack which seems to be the rage these days.

Ssshhhhh! This is an open forum, my wife could read this!

 

[Usi05]

Cabela's pack frames work just fine. Not the greatest, but affordable and have a meat shelf.

This is what I am doing this fall on my first trip. I know 3 other guys that went with Cabela’s packs and two hauled out bulls with no complaints.

If I love it (as I suspect I will) I will invest in a better back.

I’m a whitetail guy from Michigan going down the same rabbit hole! This site has helped me save a bunch of money already but some folks are Gear Junkies!

 

[tgus59]

I'm finding some pretty good deals on the classifieds, and will most likely go that route. Its amazing some of the things these packs will do, and seems like I'll constantly be tinkering to get the setup perfect!

 

[tgus59]

I found a MR Selway 60 on the GuideLite Frame for $300 and pulled the trigger! Now I just need to figure which pull out bags and attachments to add.

 

[steinb3rg]

Picked up the cabelas multi day pack for $219. Have been training with my anticipated day hunt load (roughly 20-25lbs) plus a 50 lb bag of sand on the meat shelf. Bag is 2500 cu in compressed and can expand to 4000 cu in with expansion zippers. It has a side zip access for the large compartment and exterior gear pockets for spotting scope, misc gear, etc... Once I got the height adjusted for me, it has been very comfortable with the weight.

 

[Redinjam]

Best pack for 7 day back country hunt?

 

[Rbonsen]

Buy the most you can afford but have a realistic idea of your needs. I have the Cabela's extreme Alaskan outfitter pack, as well as a couple from Eberlestock, and the Kuiu. Gear changes and something better always comes out as soon as you make a purchase. I started my back pack hunting with an Alice pack on a bear hunt 15 years ago.....and a cotton shirt, double knee Carharts and work boots. Steep learning curve on that one. Nothing like packing a bear a few thousand vertical feet to make you consider new gear! The Cabela's pack has hauled at least 10 elk and a lot of deer very well, and is very comfortable but I didn't like carrying the frame everywhere. I got the Kuiu this year and won't look back. It carried a 100 lb load with no pressure points or hot spots. They compress down to nothing for day hunts and have plenty of room. My experience is with the 7200 bag and the 2200. I also looked at Exo, Stone Glacier, Mystery Ranch and Kifaru. I also had to get approval from the war department for spending, so Kuiu is where I topped out with the options I wanted. Good luck!

 

[gvsugod]

Buy the most you can afford but have a realistic idea of your needs. I have the Cabela's extreme Alaskan outfitter pack.

I have a question about the cabelas extreme Alaskan and Alaskan 2.

With the meat shelf is it possible to secure a meat load by floating either pack or with the shelf on outside of bag? There is one of each for sale locally for a tad over $100. Seems like a good deal, just want to make sure if we do need to haul meat with gear I can.