Hanging Meat in the Backcountry

[wooduckman]

This is probably a really dumb question, but what's your strategy for hanging meat in the backcountry? Do a lash a game/meat pole in between trees and just tie your game bags to it? Do you just tie your game bags to whatever branches you can reach in various trees? I'm going on an Alaskan moose hunt this in September and am trying to figure out how to hang the moose meat and keep it out of reach from the bears.

 

[Maverick940]

I wouldn't worry about bears. For one thing, you probably can't hang moose quarters or rib sections or bagged meat any higher than a brown/grizzly bear can jump. They can jump a lot higher than you think. And, black bears can climb trees. So, I wouldn't worry about bears. If they want your meat, then they're going to take it.

I'd worry more about keeping it aired and cool and maggot free. To accomplish that, I usually call one of my pilots as soon as I get the meat, antlers and cape to a place where a plane can safely land/takeoff and thereby get the meat out of the field ASAP. If that's not possible, I usually cut poles or gather driftwood and then lay the meat on top of that, so air can get underneath it and surround it, and I erect an elevated, sloping tarp so that rain/snow doesn't accumulate on top of it.

 

[rayporter]

^^
on the ground.

besides you may be hard pressed to find tall trees[or any trees]

 

[1signguy]

Depending on the situation you may wish a whole bunch of bears would descend from the heavens and eat some of that carcass...

 

[wooduckman]

Depending on the situation you may wish a whole bunch of bears would descend from the heavens and eat some of that carcass...

LOL. Appreciate the responses above- Maverick that's exactly our plan- Get the meat to the landing strip ASAP and have the pilot come pick it up. Also good to know on the bears. I've been sitting here thinking hard about how I'll get the meat 20' off the ground away from the tree trunk. Do you guys use citric acid to preserve the meat longer or do you just keep it cool and dry and hope the pilot gets their quickly?

 

[Eagle]

Another option is once the meat has cooled to the ambient temperature, place in contractor grade trash bags and sink it in the nearest cold water source.

 

[Maverick940]

LOL. Appreciate the responses above- Maverick that's exactly our plan- Get the meat to the landing strip ASAP and have the pilot come pick it up. Also good to know on the bears. I've been sitting here thinking hard about how I'll get the meat 20' off the ground away from the tree trunk. Do you guys use citric acid to preserve the meat longer or do you just keep it cool and dry and hope the pilot gets their quickly?

Once my pilots get it out of the field, they hang it in a meat shed and peel the game bags off of it and throw the cape in the freezer. My hunter and I then retrieve the cape and antlers and whatever meat the hunter wants to take home, whenever we come out of the field. I don't use citric acid on any of my big game meat.

 

[Kevin Dill]

I suggest you go afield planning for the possibility of having to care for your meat for an extended period of time....several if not many days. I say that because I've seen multiple situations where a pilot couldn't get in to backhaul the meat for a good many days after the kill. Sometimes foul weather and/or high winds will keep planes grounded for days. When they finally can fly, meat may be the last thing on their priority list if they have other hunters needing to get in or out and make connections. If you're dealing with one pilot, it's very realistic you might need to hold and care for meat for 4-6 days after butchering.

I've done the horizontal meat pole thing between trees. Nice if you can find 3 trees in a triangle and run 3 poles between them. Makes it easier to tarp and keep protected.

Though I haven't done it myself, I know several examples of hunters directly immersing their loaded bags of meat in cold flowing water. They've left them in water up to 2 days uninterrupted and then pulled them out to hang/drain. I know it goes against what we hear, but I've seen the end product (meaning steaks, roasts and various cuts) which were as perfect as any meat I've ever seen. If the day comes I need to cool my meat rapidly and keep it cool or cold through a warm spell....it's going into the creek no hesitation.

 

[AK Troutbum]

I wouldn't worry about bears. For one thing, you probably can't hang moose quarters or rib sections or bagged meat any higher than a brown/grizzly bear can jump. They can jump a lot higher than you think. And, black bears can climb trees. So, I wouldn't worry about bears. If they want your meat, then they're going to take it.

I'd worry more about keeping it aired and cool and maggot free. To accomplish that, I usually call one of my pilots as soon as I get the meat, antlers and cape to a place where a plane can safely land/takeoff and thereby get the meat out of the field ASAP. If that's not possible, I usually cut poles or gather driftwood and then lay the meat on top of that, so air can get underneath it and surround it, and I erect an elevated, sloping tarp so that rain/snow doesn't accumulate on top of it.

All good advice here.
When getting it out of the field is not an option I usually just build a meat pole and hang in there with a tarp over the top. If there's nothing around to build a meat pole, then I'll find a sturdy enough bush to lay it on and tarp over the top.

Moose meat on a bush under that center tarp.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[wooduckman]

There's a lot of really good info in here, thanks to everyone that's contributed! I'm glad I can stop freaking out on how to get the meat way up in a tree and will instead focus on how to get it cooled as quickly as possible. Thanks again and hopefully I'll have pictures to share in a couple months!