Gutless method solo

[NRA4LIFE]

I have never heard of anyone else mentioning this, but I use my tripod to hold up legs if I am by myself. Beats the hell out of throwing them over your shoulder to skin the undersides. View attachment 957726

That is a fantastic idea.

 

[Mikido]

I have never heard of anyone else mentioning this, but I use my tripod to hold up legs if I am by myself. Beats the hell out of throwing them over your shoulder to skin the undersides. View attachment 957726

Post of the year. Genius

 

[butcherboy]

I just step over the leg and use the back of my knee or leg to hold it while I use two hands to skin. I’ll also just hold the leg between my knees as well.

 

[HunterGatherer]

I definitely prefer to start at the spine and work down- for sure on bulls. They piss all over themselves during the rut. That thick black hair around their junk is about the rankest part of the whole animal. Don’t want to start the whole process by getting your hands and knife covered in stanky urine. Same with the lower legs- I do those last, also to keep my knife sharp until the end.

 

[Blackbird]

I have found you can slip a leg in the loop on your trekking pole and jam the other side in the ground and be able to adjust the height of where it’s being held. It works pretty well when you don’t have a buddy to hold the leg.

 

[Coveyleader]

If you do the gutless correctly, no ground tarp needed. The carcass/torso is your table. Get the hide down past mid body, and as you pull quarters off, just lay them on the cavity that should be clean, and into the bags.

For the elk hunters amongst us, gutless anything smaller than an elk, a deer or antelope for example, is about a 25 minute task. Feels like you're breaking down a squirrel.

I'd defiantly get the hide off of the quarters. I've never done that, but in my brain, it just goes against everything there is to cooling down your meat. If I decide to debone, I either do it right on the table (the torso) or I always carry a contractor bag, and will do it on that.

 

[Weldor]

I use the 99 cent plastic rain poncho's for ground tarp. pre packaged and fit anywhere. I just did a gutless on a cow in a Maserated area, what a pain. Small and large pieces of wood everywhere. She kept sliding around and so did my feet. Did have to spend some time cleaning the meat the next morning. It's a little harder when it's pitch black.

 

[butcherboy]

I definitely prefer to start at the spine and work down- for sure on bulls. They piss all over themselves during the rut. That thick black hair around their junk is about the rankest part of the whole animal. Don’t want to start the whole process by getting your hands and knife covered in stanky urine. Same with the lower legs- I do those last, also to keep my knife sharp until the end.

I understand your thinking here. If you make your skinning pattern starting from the brisket first and going back and making the cut from the underside of the skin then urine won’t get on your knife blade. Also, wear gloves. Make the skinning pattern on the back of the legs going down the tendon. The other option is to just shoot cows and young raghorn bulls like I do.

 

[wytx]

Some paracord around the hoof then over the rack holds it up out of the way.
No issues with a little dirt on the meat side, it gets trimmed off after aging anyway.
Hide stays on quarters until we hang them, then they may get skinned but not always. We age with skin on now when possible.

 

[taskswap]

https://zpacks.com/products/groundsheet-poncho-flat weighs 5.9oz and can be used as a poncho, ground sheet, tarp, or to lay meat out on. It's super easy to clean - just spray with a hose. (I love multi-purpose items.)

That one is expensive but ultralight. What I used before this was https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07539S9G3 which is 11oz but crazy cheap and still does all the same tasks. And is also extremely easy to clean.

Lately I haven't even bothered with that. I've been using https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085NLPPGM as pack liners - unscented and compostable, won't add any odors or other issues to meat. Since I use them as pack liners ANYWAY I just put a meat bag inside one right when I start field dressing. As I bag the meat the outer bag protects it from dirt. (I don't hang them in these obviously, this is just if I have to lay a bag on the ground.) I didn't weigh them but they're probably a half ounce apiece, tops. If you wanted, you could cut one open and just use it as a ground sheet and not a bag at all. I wouldn't reuse them so no comment on cleanability - I just compost them or throw them out if they're dirty. An 80-ct will last decades of hunting.

 

[willfrye027]

I picked this idea up from someone on here, but trekking poles crossed up and propping a leg were clutch when I broke down my bull solo this week. Came out nice and clean. I also had a Mylar emergency blanket that I used to help keep meat off the ground/dirt, especially those big hind quarters which i could not physically lift with one hand when doing the hip joint.

Deer are pretty easy to do solo but I might see if the trekking poles make it easier next go around.

 

[Ranger 692]

I have done the gutless method plenty of times, and it is definitely easier with someone there to help. If I get a mule deer my last time out solo, I was thinking about keeping the hide on the quarter until I can remove it and get it to a tarp. It seems like this would help in keeping hair and dirt off the meat. Has anyone out there tried this?

Yes. Works well in a pinch or super steep spot where they always seem to end up

 

[menhaden_man]

I learned a trick from a guy in Appalachia - you can take a quarter off and find a good branch (v slot) and hang it in there by the knee cap or elbow. Great to do to cool things down as you get sorted out. I’ve done it with the last 3-4 deer I’ve shot in backcountry.

 

[HiMtnHntr]

You can get a majority of the hind of an elk off from the top side working down from the spine side. You get good at it when nobody is there to help you…

The tripod and other ideas about tying that leg up are good. Never tried it… still use the over my shoulder and between the legs.

I have started taking more breaks to drink water and even have a snack. I used to just go right at it and not stop until I was finished…

 

[GunsAreFun]

Get Mylar emergency blankets. They cost nothing, weigh nothing, and have alternative uses for emergencies. They’re also good to wrap the antlers with so some idiot doesn’t shoot you.

 

[BreechFace]

I just cut from anus to Adam’s apple then up each quarter to the joint where I cut and break off the leg. Then start skinning each side until they connect at the backbone and I’m left with a natural clean “flesh tarp” to break down the quarters, neck meat, back strap, then go in for the tenderloins.

 

[noisy]

I have started taking more breaks to drink water and even have a snack. I used to just go right at it and not stop until I was finished…

This is a somewhat overlooked but very important thing for me too. I have to consciously force myself to relax, take breaks, etc. Just calm down. There's a lot of adrenaline that comes with shooting an animal, and you have a razor sharp knife in your hand. The potential for a serious accident is high.

 

[Ross]

Here is where you need to be able to improvise. 3.5 yr old bull, versus 6-7 yr old bull. Both shot at 4 and dark is in 45 minutes, your 2 and 3 miles in, alone and mid October. The larger bull is pinned against 2 large trees, in mud and on a good incline. If you’re not careful, IF you can move him against gravity he rolls into a nasty rocky muddy draw. Your best bet alone, start to dissect and remember your biology lesson. It is dark quick, pull off a quarter and hang, remove hind, skin, repeat. Pull all meat on that side. Then flip and repeat, with guts in or gut, to fight against gravity. I flipped after several contortions and use of a lot of paracord, one reason I pack 100 ft. This bull was work and patience was key. The other bull, easy peasy, as tiny and on table top, and not pinned against gravity. It is easy when there are extra hands &or small, or not in a bad position. Just be prepared for the worst and jump for joy on the best scenario. As noted, go slow, take breaks, this is no time to make a mistake