Flying vs. driving

[trickytross]

We agreed on hunting elk every other year. Then we went........
Now we are trying to figure out how to get back there every year. Currently it is 32 hours according to Google for us to get where we wanna go, so more like 34 hours or so driving. This past season we rented a suburban, took 2 weeks off work and went. We left on a Friday, got there midnight Saturday and hunted half a day Sunday and then left on a Saturday night and got home Monday morning at 6 am. We hunted 13.5 days. WE were fortunate to harvest an elk while out there and the tale is awesome. But, it got us. No we are trying to figure out how to do it annually.

Unfortunately, we will not be able to take 2 weeks off every year, so we are exploring 2 options; 1.) Leave Friday afternoon and be at the trailhead Saturday evening, Hunt Sunday-Friday, leave Saturday mid-day or evening and be home Sunday evening/ Monday morning and have 6 days, at best, to hunt, or 2.) Fly out on Friday, rent a vehicle to where we could theoretically be on the mountain hunting at some point Saturday. Hunt until that following Sunday and fly home. That would give us 8 days hunting.

Has anyone done both, if so, what were your thoughts?

To the folks who fly, what have you found to be the most efficient way to get meat and antlers back? Southwest and Frontier the best 2 options (hunter friendly and baggage)?

We have compared cost and found that it will only be in the neighborhood of $250 more per person to fly out there, but our apprehension comes from getting the meat back. I have read where folks will take their packs and mail the majority of their gear home and check the meat in coolers they bought from Walmart; or get the meat frozen and insulate it with blankets and put it in a Rubbermaid tote and check it?

Look forward to hearing from yall.

 

[Superkodiak38]

I drove out this year, my drive was similar to yours, I am in the same boat considering fly vs driving. For now I will continue to drive for a couple of reasons.
1. Cost -it's cheaper to drive and split the costs with a second guy even if it's only part of the way.
2. I can bring more gear so I can base camp and or bivy.
3. Getting meat home, A friend who flew told me it was going to add 500.00 to his trip to get meat, cape etc home and he lives near me relatively speaking. Also I process all my game myself, I know it's mine and what has been done with it so no surprises.
4. No TSA !!!

 

[boom]

this year. for elk, i flew.

i had planned on driving. i was only to help my brother fill his tag, so i didnt need to bring a firearm. i did however. bought a license so i could shoot a .22 at grouse.

my boss scheduled a two day out of town meeting on the day i was supposed to hit the road. screwed me.
i bought a last minute ticket to elpaso for $700 and got totally bent over.

pros: it is amazing how little you can travel with. i brought the .22. a duffel of street clothing camo clothing mix. i wore two pairs of pants in the wilderness for the 14 days. i carried on my day pack with my optics. i LOVED the lighter load. it was easy.

Cons: meat travel. we didnt score but that was a concern the entire time. i would have brought home a frozen backstrap and gotten the rest thanksgiving. (when i do drive). i was at the mercy of my brothers food shopping. (i did save the money) and i had to suffer his crap beer.
there was stuff i did miss. my vintage lanterns, my own camp chair. more than two pairs of pants.

we made it work. but the biggest thing i missed was my smaller toyota tacoma. his big truck was handicapped on some of the tight roads. we hiked a lot!! because of it.

 

[5MilesBack]

For me, road trips are half the fun. I would even drive to Alaska if I hunted up there, but that's me. I don't mind driving. There is no way I could ever get all my stuff on a plane to do a hunt the way I expect to. Not to mention then having to deal with trophy and meat care and shipping.

 

[davsco]

i guess if you have an outfitter hunt where most everything is taken care of (camp/lodging, animal packout and care, including scouting time), you probably don't need as much gear so not as much of a hassle flying. but man when we (wife, dog and i) went out for colo first rifle, we had the bed of my pickup TOTALLY packed (incl extra gun, extra pairs of boots, camping gear, etc). just can't imagine paring all that down enough to somewhat economically fly out and back. other nice thing about driving is you can be a little flexible (leave earlier, stay later, etc).

 

[FlyGuy]

I started flying b/c I can get in MUCH more hunting time. When you are forced to minimize your gear for flying you start to see just how much crap you don't need that gets loaded into a p/u truck. The rental car cost can get expensive, but totally worth it for me and much easier if splitting between 1-2 others.

Meat logistics can be challenging, but I was able to get my Moose to a local processor, cut up and frozen; then used a local FedEx shop to package it into 49lb Styrofoam lined boxes. They shipped my gear to my house and the three of us checked the meat boxes with the airline as luggage. Worked like a charm!

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[sasquatch]

I have been driving but am looking into driving also. I have flown to hunt Kylie’s before so I have some experience getting meat home.

If you can have it cut and frozen you can put it in the cube type ice chest and check it as luggage. First class tickets allow two checked bags up to 70lbs.

I like having all my gear to base camp as I go for 3 weeks each year. So what im looking into is a storage shed near where I’d would fly into. I can store all my camp gear and stuff there for the year and pick it up when I fly in.

I could basically fly and rent a car for almost free from saved up travel miles so. I will have to drive one more time for sure tho, as I have to get my gear there one last time.

Just some things I’ve been looking into


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[Fullfan]

We hunt Idaho every year, several of us do the drive to get the gear there. And several of the guys who have a limited amount of time fly. It all works out, we do everything as a group, from pooling the funds to packing the elk. It takes the right group of guys, we have rules and if you cant follow the rules, you never come back with us. Three of us bought a 24' enclosed trailer that is only used for elk hunting, plus most of us have 3/4 or 1 ton trucks. We are able to take as much stuff as required, including two freezers that we all bought to haul meat home. Have been doing this for years. We have gone from tent camping to renting a furnished house, but we can hunt from the place we stay which makes it very convenient. Most years the cost is between 1000 and 1300 per guy. That includes everything but tags and if you fly.

 

[N2TRKYS]

I've done both, fly and drive out West. I absolutely hate driving out there. It is too time consuming and much more expensive to drive. I fly out there and if successful, I drive home. If not successful, I fly home. This is what works best for me.

 

[elkstabber]

I used to drive when my job gave me more time off. Now I fly more in order to maximize my hunting time.

I mostly backpack hunt in archery season so I don't need a lot of bulky clothes, in fact my gear rarely gets close to 100#. That 100# number is the magic number that you need to stay below. I'll check two bags. One is the Everest 40 bow case and the other is a big duffel. They have to weigh less than 50# each. Then I also bring a small school-type backpack with my optics, bowsite, releases, etc as my "personal item" on the plane.

I bring a small FoodSaver vacuum packer and some big bags. You can cut the bags and re-seal them to make bigger bags. Then, if successful, I'll put the quarters into the bags and seal them. Buy cheap 48 qt Igloo coolers and the vacuum packed meat goes inside. The airlines won't let you fly with meat if it could leak out of the cooler. I do this mostly because I prefer to butcher my own animals. Once I get the quarters and big pieces home I process them at home on the kitchen counter.

Then compare the cost of shipping your hunting gear versus the extra baggage fees. This depends mostly on the airline. Shipping can be good because then you have less to drag through the airport. I've dragged some wide loads through airports and it sucks.

For a rental you want to shop around. Priceline has great rental prices but if you tag out early and return the rental early you will pay for the whole time that you reserved. Ouch! Regular rental car companies will credit you for the days that you didn't use it.

 

[ChrisAU]

I think one of the biggest hang ups for me is renting a vehicle capable of handling where I want to go? I don't want to be stuck 10 miles down a forest service road because the 2WD Tahoe the rental desk had would slide off a cliff.

 

[randman]

Pretty interesting posting

 

[mireland62887]

I've done both, but I prefer driving. We can reach most of the western states in 20 hours or less, so it's a reasonable one day shot. When driving, there is no rental car check in/out, airports, lines, etc. Plus, you can bring as much, or as little, gear as you need. We just got back from Montana. It was 18 hours from door to camp. We had a pick up truck filled with gear to set up a comfortable camp. We had extra ice chests to bring meat home. It was relaxing.

A few years ago I flew up to Alaska for a caribou hunt. The whole airport process is annoying in itself, but I flew from Sacramento to Anchorage in just a few hours. I brought home 100 pounds of caribou meat and 50 pounds of halibut in three fish boxes, sold at Sportsman's Wharehouse. I checked it in as luggage and it came out on the carousel. For the antlers, I had to split the skull cap in half and put them in an bicycle box wrapped in foam. It worked, but I'd rather drive. It cost me a couple hundred dollars for the extra baggage fees to get the meat and antlers home.

I did something similar in Alabama several years ago with a whitetail, although on that trip, we bought an ice chest at Walmart, put frozen, processed meat inside, duct taped it shut, and checked it as luggage.

For me, driving is way better and worth a day of lost hunting time.

 

[rtaylor]

In a similar situation this antelope season. We flew out, rented a truck and flew back with our meat. A couple of problems: We killed the first day and had to pay for a hotel for the rest of the the week. The other problem is what if you kill on the last day. Then you have to try and have it processed and frozen solid by the next day. I think next year we are going to fly out and rent a truck and drive the rental back. That way we can come and go as we please.

 

[Ironmerganser]

I prefer the drive like 5milesback. You have to be table to take the time though and some jobs wont allow that so I get the wanting to fly option. I have driven alone and with a group. Either way I love the road trip.

 

[FLAK]

I've always left the meat with a processor and had it frozen
and shipped by UPS 2nd day in a cooler on wheels.
Same with a Gemsbok I had mounted, left it at the Taxi.
He mounted it, crated it up and shipped it to the house.

 

[N2TRKYS]

In a similar situation this antelope season. We flew out, rented a truck and flew back with our meat. A couple of problems: We killed the first day and had to pay for a hotel for the rest of the the week. The other problem is what if you kill on the last day. Then you have to try and have it processed and frozen solid by the next day. I think next year we are going to fly out and rent a truck and drive the rental back. That way we can come and go as we please.

My buddy killed an elk the last day of our hunt a couple of years ago. We had it broke down and in coolers in no time. We don't use processors or freeze the meat before coming home. We flew the meat home that trip, as well. It was super easy.

 

[keller]

the road trips are half the experience my hunting partners and I drove to mt 18 to 20 hrs every year for many years elk hunting. havnt done it for awhile now. I look back at the drive and the hunt it is about 50/50 good memories its all about the experience.met my wife in mt while elk hunting we drive back and forth with our 2 children frequently now.. sometimes our kids bring friends.we can bring our own stuff and feel comfortable.guessing we would spend at least 1/2 the time in airport ticket/security.last year I booked a dall sheep hunt in ak. decided to drive from wi instead of fly.best experience of my life tons of scenery and I will do it again.my wife and kids loved it.had a freezer and coolers in the truck brought home a lot of sheep meat and fish.alot of good memories.

 

[sasquatch]

My buddy killed an elk the last day of our hunt a couple of years ago. We had it broke down and in coolers in no time. We don't use processors or freeze the meat before coming home. We flew the meat home that trip, as well. It was super easy.

Can you explain how y’all handled the meat through the trip home? Just got it real cold before the flight with ice to where it’s stay cool till y’all got home? Curious Incase this happens to me one day


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[moeleo]

I love the drive. Even with multiple trips out west a year, the drive makes it. Coming through the plains of Colorado seeing the mountains getting closer is the best sight to me. Plus getting to take extra gear to leave at the truck. Every trip we also make it a point to go see something, or visit someplace we haven’t been before. I take the extra days off, life’s to short not to see things and take some extra time to enjoy the sights.


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