Getting meat home

[traviswdalton]

We flew back with meat and my buddy got his elk shoulder mounted locally. We'll never do that again. I'll be driving it home, if I'm successful from now on. It's WAY cheaper that way.

How much did it cost?


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[tbarile]

I’m struggling with the same decision this fall. One questions I have is about the meat. I like to process my own as I’m picky with silver skin, etc. Could I bone out the meat, freeze it, thaw it when I get home, process into burger and steaks, refreeze?

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

I’m struggling with the same decision this fall. One questions I have is about the meat. I like to process my own as I’m picky with silver skin, etc. Could I bone out the meat, freeze it, thaw it when I get home, process into burger and steaks, refreeze?

absolutely, it's easier to process with a semi freeze on it anyways, runs through the grinder better and easier to get silver skin off

 

[cnelk]

Could I bone out the meat, freeze it, thaw it when I get home, process into burger and steaks, refreeze?

I start hunting pronghorn in August, elk in Sept, more pronghorn & Deer in October, maybe another elk tag in Nov, another deer tag in December.

No way do I have time to process all the meat during that time. I quarter the animals up, wrap them up tight with plastic and freeze. I only process the smaller cuts.

Then in January, I thaw out what I can do each week, cut/ grind, package and re-freeze.

If I get in a bind, I will de-bone some quarters and take them in to my processor and have them do a single grind

 

[nphunter]

Just out of curiosity why not consider renting a small car and driving home if successful? My buddy flys out here to OR from PA every year and always buys a one way ticket. If he isn’t successful he flys home, if he is then he rents a car and drives home. It’s much much cheaper and you can have your favorite taxidermy do the work at home.

If your kids old enough two people driving would be a pretty easy drive. If the cost isn’t an object just have it all shipped overnight or 2 day express. Hauling that much meat through an airport and dealing with all the extra stuff that comes along with it is going to be a pain, plus you still are going to be 2-3K to have a bull mounted and shipped to you.

There is a good reason most on here are suggesting driving. Most people would not hesitate to spend a day and a half in a car to save a couple thousand dollars.

You would be money ahead to pay someone to drive it for you.

Not trying to derail your thread at all just giving a little perspective to others with the same question getting on here to read it.

Also double check your states rules on bringing in wild game. Oregon just changed there rules this year to not allow any part of the spine or brain matter to be brought home or untreated velvet antlers. Essentially you have to bring clean skull cap or it has to be taxidermied prior to entering. No flesh attached including velvet is allowed.

Good luck on your hunt and hope you get it all figured out.

 

[traviswdalton]

Just out of curiosity why not consider renting a small car and driving home if successful? My buddy flys out here to OR from PA every year and always buys a one way ticket. If he isn’t successful he flys home, if he is then he rents a car and drives home. It’s much much cheaper and you can have your favorite taxidermy do the work at home.

If your kids old enough two people driving would be a pretty easy drive. If the cost isn’t an object just have it all shipped overnight or 2 day express. Hauling that much meat through an airport and dealing with all the extra stuff that comes along with it is going to be a pain, plus you still are going to be 2-3K to have a bull mounted and shipped to you.

There is a good reason most on here are suggesting driving. Most people would not hesitate to spend a day and a half in a car to save a couple thousand dollars.

You would be money ahead to pay someone to drive it for you.

Not trying to derail your thread at all just giving a little perspective to others with the same question getting on here to read it.

Also double check your states rules on bringing in wild game. Oregon just changed there rules this year to not allow any part of the spine or brain matter to be brought home or untreated velvet antlers. Essentially you have to bring clean skull cap or it has to be taxidermied prior to entering. No flesh attached including velvet is allowed.

Good luck on your hunt and hope you get it all figured out.

I’ve been talking to a couple people that do this and I’m starting to like the idea. The meat isn’t that hard to fly home but getting the cape and antlers home isn’t so easy unless you drive. Plus like you said I can have my taxidermist do the mount.


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[Wmmichael20]

A couple years ago a buddy and his dad went to Wyoming and we're both successful right off the bat and we're out of the mountains in three days so instead of wait 5 days til their flight was scheduled they cashed in their tickets and rented a large suv and packed it with their meat,gear and heads/ capes and started driving and split it up into two days coming home from what they said they pretty much broke even after rental,gas and hotel cost but got everything home three days earlier and didn't have to pay to ship the meat or their mounts home.

 

[Newtosavage]

A couple years ago a buddy and his dad went to Wyoming and we're both successful right off the bat and we're out of the mountains in three days so instead of wait 5 days til their flight was scheduled they cashed in their tickets and rented a large suv and packed it with their meat,gear and heads/ capes and started driving and split it up into two days coming home from what they said they pretty much broke even after rental,gas and hotel cost but got everything home three days earlier and didn't have to pay to ship the meat or their mounts home.

This

 

[traviswdalton]

I’ve been going back and forth about how to get everything back home if successful. I was leaning towards renting a vehicle and driving everything back. I figured the cost for that around $1,600 plus 3 days of driving. Then I looked into flying back and having everything shipped. Shipping the meat was going to cost 5-6 hundred dollars. Local NM taxidermist quoted me $1,300 for a shoulder mount plus $400 to ship. My return flight ticket (SC) is $1,600 and with my son being able to check extra luggage it’ll only cost $60 extra to fly the meat home with us and I’m shipping the antlers and cape to my taxidermist. The NM taxidermist said they could cut the skull plate in half and put rubber hoses over the tips to fly with. I really didn’t like that idea and since my taxidermist is in Illinois I’m going to have the antlers and cape shipped to him.


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[4shore]

Headed to ID in Oct. I would imagine it should be cold enough by then that dry ice and frozen meat will keep for some time. Does anyone have any recommendations for processors in Central ID?

 

[traviswdalton]

I’ve been going back and forth about how to get everything back home if successful. I was leaning towards renting a vehicle and driving everything back. I figured the cost for that around $1,600 plus 3 days of driving. Then I looked into flying back and having everything shipped. Shipping the meat was going to cost 5-6 hundred dollars. Local NM taxidermist quoted me $1,300 for a shoulder mount plus $400 to ship. My return flight ticket (SC) is $1,600 and with my son being able to check extra luggage it’ll only cost $60 extra to fly the meat home with us and I’m shipping the antlers and cape to my taxidermist. The NM taxidermist said they could cut the skull plate in half and put rubber hoses over the tips to fly with. I really didn’t like that idea and since my taxidermist is in Illinois I’m going to have the antlers and cape shipped to him.


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Got lucky on the first day. I ended up having everything shipped vs trying to fly with it. American wildlife taxidermy in Albuquerque charged me $350 to prepare cape and antlers and will ship to my taxidermist freight collect.
I dropped off the deboned meat at Green Valley Meats. I haven’t got a bill yet so I’ll update when I do. My flight home got diverted and I missed my connecting flight in Atlanta. Had to spend the night at the airport. Luckily my luggage ended up in Columbia with me but imagine if a cooler full of meat got lost.



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[SniperHunter]

I did the cooler ordeal last year with a Mountain Lion and it worked out well, I am in the process of planning a trip to BC for a combination Hunt - Mountain Goat and Moose or Mule Deer I havn't figured that part out yet. It is a long drive for me being on the east coast and the time for the drive and hunt I just couldn't do (18 or 19 days). If I am fortuanate enough to even take one animal it may be too expensive to bring back on a plane, so I think the shipping options are best. I would hate to loose a hide in the mail maybe ship the meat a bring the hide back in a cooler?

 

[N2TRKYS]

Got lucky on the first day. I ended up having everything shipped vs trying to fly with it. American wildlife taxidermy in Albuquerque charged me $350 to prepare cape and antlers and will ship to my taxidermist freight collect.
I dropped off the deboned meat at Green Valley Meats. I haven’t got a bill yet so I’ll update when I do. My flight home got diverted and I missed my connecting flight in Atlanta. Had to spend the night at the airport. Luckily my luggage ended up in Columbia with me but imagine if a cooler full of meat got lost.



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That's a stud of a bull!! Congrats!

 

[Piscatory_4]

You should be able to drive 2-3 days with chilled meat in coolers without issue. If meat is frozen then definitely no problem.

I remember years ago, like in the late 60's, an uncle flew up from Florida to visit. On the trip home his brothers and sisters loaded an American Tourister style hard suitcase with frozen elk and deer meat from our hunts. Suitcase was lined with newspaper and strapped all around. When they got to Florida and it came down the baggage claim it was completely frosted over. They said they got lots of weird looks while heading out of the airport.

 

[traviswdalton]

Just paid for processing and shipping for my meat. $300 for processing which is what I expected. $850 for shipping isn’t what I expected. 240 lbs plus my location made the shipping much higher than normal. Most expensive meat I’ll ever eat.


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