Go in deep!

[feanor]

A man’s got to know his limitations…

 

[Poser]

For weekend archery hunts (sat/sun), I limit it to more like 2 miles unless there are really good reasons to push deeper. Plenty of options within that radius. I do hunt deeper for longer hunts, though

 

[Hnthrdr]

Get enough rope and some pulleys and haul that sucker out haha. That steep! Would be crawling with weight on your back for that first 1/4 mile. It’s going to cool down this next week, weather is right if you want to give it a crack

 

[ID_Matt]

My longest packout for a bull, was a 300+ bull at just under 5 miles.

But your name says it was a full 5 miles back..... Sorry, had to!

 

[deltadukman]

I helped my brother pack his out last year. 5-600' pretty vertical on loose rock with blowdown and not a lot to grab on to. Then 1 mile "on trail" with a lot of blow downs across the trail. Made 2 trips. It sucked @$$. I couldn't imagine doing that all by myself on top of quartering out, and that's half of what you are talking about.

 

[TheCougar]

I was in a spot this weekend 3.5 miles from the truck. It was down in a bit of a hole and it would require hiking meat up to a trail, but then fairly easy from there. I wouldn’t have hesitated to kill a bull back there and will be going back in a week, but I’m not sure how much farther I’d want to kill a bull. I had 2 bulls going nuts down in a hole, I ended up leaving them. They were growling and grunting and if a bull ever sounded 350”, they were these two. It would be required a 1000 foot in 1/4 mile hike up, then 2.25 miles of steady incline to the truck, all solo. Getting the meat up that first 1/4 mile would have been an issue.

Am I just a little puss?

I see guys on here “I killed my bull 6.5 miles from the truck solo”. With a trip out for camp, you’re talking 50 miles-ish assuming 1 trip for camp and 3 trips for meat. On a mature bull that’s pushing 3 loads at 100lbs for about 20 miles, plus your 40 pound camp in an additional load. I don’t want to call BS but….

I think you’re right that 99% of what you read is overinflated and hyped up. Every bull is 300+, every hike is a 2000 vertical foot climb and 10 miles one way. In the history of Rokslide, I don’t know if anyone has ever packed out a 260” bull downhill. That being said, unless I was certain that I couldn’t get it done without spoiling the meat, I would have totally gone in there. I won’t turn back from a bull unless I know it’s not possible. I’ll deal with the pain later if there’s success staring me in the face. Shoot first, ask questions later.

For the record, my longest pack out has been 4 miles, and it was downhill, which was almost as bad as uphill. I’m strong, but getting older and I can’t do what I used to do. But I never let it stop me, which is probably why I’m nursing an injury most of the time.

 

[sndmn11]

The irony of this thread is that @Ucsdryder @Hnthrdr @feanor @svivian are all in my phone, and I know @cnelk is on Ucsdryder's speed dial.

You could kill a bull in a dirty nasty place and I bet all of it would be more than halfway out if not in the cooler by 12 hours after you put a hand on it.

My two helpers were sick this past weekend and I was solo. I wasn't worried about moving the meat so much as cutting up a "medium" bull on my own in a clean manner. So I knocked two days off of this first trip and will add them elsewhere.

I don't think much in terms of distance; X miles in one place might not be anything in another place. A good trail for 3 miles takes me about as long as a 1/2 mile in deadfall. Low grades versus high grades, etc.

 

[dbeeler]

I did a 4.1 mile packout last year by myself and I don't think I could do any further. I hauled out camp, meat, and head in three trips total. The first trip was actually 4.5 miles and then I moved the truck closer. 90% of my trip was on a trail and mostly downhill. I'm thankful it was a small bull. If it had been a big bull I would've needed another trip for sure. I shot it on the 8th day and had already hiked 60 miles when I shot it. So after the three round trips packing I couldn't have possibly made another. I'm in pretty good shape but my feet, legs, and back were past their limit.

So it's possible, but not easy.

 

[SDHNTR]

No packer for hire nearby?

 

[bow_dozer]

Not to crush your dreams, but were those 350" bulls tied to trees? All this talk is saying they are already on the ground, dead.
If you were down in the hole and passed on a shot opportunity, then i could understand.
I don't think you (or anyone) are just going to casually go in there and smoke one. Just the realist in my talking...

 

[Dirtbag]

a lot of guys who claim they are packing out bulls solo 5+ miles are either lying or don't know how to read a map.

 

[Ucsdryder]

Not to crush your dreams, but were those 350" bulls tied to trees? All this talk is saying they are already on the ground, dead.
If you were down in the hole and passed on a shot opportunity, then i could understand.
I don't think you (or anyone) are just going to casually go in there and smoke one. Just the realist in my talking...

This is my first year and with the way they were bugling I’m pretty sure if I went down there I’d definitely kill one. I’ve listened to all the podcasts and got a ton of info from reading rokslide.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

I was in a spot this weekend 3.5 miles from the truck. It was down in a bit of a hole and it would require hiking meat up to a trail, but then fairly easy from there. I wouldn’t have hesitated to kill a bull back there and will be going back in a week, but I’m not sure how much farther I’d want to kill a bull. I had 2 bulls going nuts down in a hole, I ended up leaving them. They were growling and grunting and if a bull ever sounded 350”, they were these two. It would be required a 1000 foot in 1/4 mile hike up, then 2.25 miles of steady incline to the truck, all solo. Getting the meat up that first 1/4 mile would have been an issue.

Am I just a little puss?

I see guys on here “I killed my bull 6.5 miles from the truck solo”. With a trip out for camp, you’re talking 50 miles-ish assuming 1 trip for camp and 3 trips for meat. On a mature bull that’s pushing 3 loads at 100lbs for about 20 miles, plus your 40 pound camp in an additional load. I don’t want to call BS but….

You probably already considered this, but in hindsight could you take a longer route out, that while longer, would have less elevation gain/steepness? Time is time, but if you had a safer route that still achieved the same goal of packing out the meat with more miles, would it be a more reasonable possibility?

EDIT: my biggest pet-peeve is back tracking, so I realize what I'm asking, but for a potential opportunity at an elk, I may make an exception.

 

[Hnthrdr]

This is my first year and with the way they were bugling I’m pretty sure if I went down there I’d definitely kill one. I’ve listened to all the podcasts and got a ton of info from reading rokslide.

But how many born and raised videos or hunting public have your watched… if it’s not all of them, your probably not tagging out

 

[Ucsdryder]

But how many born and raised videos or hunting public have your watched… if it’s not all of them, your probably not tagging out

The answer is all of them. Most of them two times. I even replay the calling sequences to see how the professionals do it. A couple of times I even shed a tear with the little guy who likes to cry when he either hits one or misses one.

 

[ScreamingPotato]

This is my first year and with the way they were bugling I’m pretty sure if I went down there I’d definitely kill one. I’ve listened to all the podcasts and got a ton of info from reading rokslide.

lmao well played

 

[Trumpkin The Dwarf]

A man has to know his limits. If it helps, my limit is 2-3 miles solo... Elk are huge. As mentioned above, if you're cutting one up solo on a steep slope, it's a 3-4 hour back breaker before you're even ready to start moving meat.

 

[feanor]

The irony of this thread is that @Ucsdryder @Hnthrdr @feanor @svivian are all in my phone, and I know @cnelk is on Ucsdryder's speed dial.

You could kill a bull in a dirty nasty place and I bet all of it would be more than halfway out if not in the cooler by 12 hours after you put a hand on it.

My two helpers were sick this past weekend and I was solo. I wasn't worried about moving the meat so much as cutting up a "medium" bull on my own in a clean manner. So I knocked two days off of this first trip and will add them elsewhere.

I don't think much in terms of distance; X miles in one place might not be anything in another place. A good trail for 3 miles takes me about as long as a 1/2 mile in deadfall. Low grades versus high grades, etc.

You can’t afford my packing rates!!

 

[sndmn11]

You can’t afford my packing rates!!

I have my own feet. I was worried about a hold the leg here while I cut here kind of person.

Is that the same rate?

 

[Hnthrdr]

I have my own feet. I was worried about a hold the leg here while I cut here kind of person.

Is that the same rate?

Come on @sndmm11 some 550 and and a carabiner and you will have legs wherever you want them