How far have you actually packed a moose?

[johnnycake]

Alaskan moose are huge and live in some of the worst places to pack. I think I'm in the boat of rather packing an elk 10mi than a moose 1 mile.

I've solo packed elk 5 miles one way with a 2,200' elevation gain from the elk to the road. And as I've posted, I've done some really stupid things packing out moose . I'll do that elk packout 10x over again before I pack another moose on foot more than ½ mile.

 

[fngTony]

Not in Alaska but two of us three trips 1/4 mi from a road bone in. Fourth trip was with a third guy which was head, cape and gear. Not steep terrain but bad footing. I’m in better shape now but still nothing to brag about. Hard to say how much further we would have been able to do it. I had a capable pack and trekking poles, he had no poles and a backpacking pack. If we both had decent gear and got into a little better shape I think we could have done a mile each way. Tricky to say though as someone mentioned that the variables make the difference plus it was hot so spoilage was a concern. My worst part was the awkwardness of bone in quarters making an unbalanced load. I thought an elk quarter was awkward but not compared to a moose.

 

[AkMtnRunner]

About 2.5 miles solo with a large moose boned in. The trail was good and fairly level though. Turning it over after getting one side taken apart was the toughest part. After getting it all in bags, walking it in always seems like victory laps.

 

[KShunter8080]

I love hearing about what all you guys are willing to go through! I plan on heading back up there in 2026 and will be mentally (and physically) preparing myself for a long pack out just in case.

 

[Robinhood21]

As you know, in the moment it's pure misery but it's all worth it when it's all said and done.

I will say, it seems I have permanent nerve damage in both of my big toes from this past years pack out. I remember getting back to the tent and my toes were tingly and numb after the first day and it stayed like that the last couple days out there. When I got back I googled it and it was called "Christmas Toes"... most cases go away in a couple months but here we are 8 months later and it's still there. Maybe eventually it'll go away but so far it hasn't and it's pretty annoying. I guess that's the price you pay

 

[Roofer1]

1.5 miles per my OnX tracker. Watched him with a cow for two days. Third day he was still there and I figured "to he!! with it".

 

[cnelk]

1st AY 60” bull was 1/2 mi to the lake. Pure misery. 2 guys. Bone in

2nd AY bull (buddy’s) 1/2 mi to the lake. Misery again. 2 guys. Bone in.

1st Colorado Shiras moose (bull) 1/2mi. Not as bad. Used a jet sled for the meat. Packed the head and antlers.

2nd Colorado Shiras (cow) 100yds. Alone. Piece of cake

As mentioned above, of all the dozens of elk I’ve packed, moose are definitely the hardest

 

[cnelk]

I remember our old pilot telling us when we landed on a remote lake in Alaska… “you boys ain’t elk hunting… don’t go tramping around a long ways from camp”

One of those things you never forget

 

[northernmadman]

hunting has changed for me over the years. used to be a couple hundred meters at most over boulders and tundra squishy type terrain, now I back up the Argo and throw the moose in the back and travel back 10-15Km back to camp. much easier on the body
as mentioned earlier, learn to call and what calls when and where and the moose will walk right over that tarp you have laid down and shoot it then. that also helps keep the moose meat clean

 

[medvedyt]

1st AY 60” bull was 1/2 mi to the lake. Pure misery. 2 guys. Bone in

2nd AY bull (buddy’s) 1/2 mi to the lake. Misery again. 2 guys. Bone in.

1st Colorado Shiras moose (bull) 1/2mi. Not as bad. Used a jet sled for the meat. Packed the head and antlers.

2nd Colorado Shiras (cow) 100yds. Alone. Piece of cake

As mentioned above, of all the dozens of elk I’ve packed, moose are definitely the hardest

moose is nothing even the alaska-yukon one once you dealt with bison ... the worst is when there is no snow ...

 

[WMR]

First bull, 2024, 100 yard pack/drag to the lakeshore. Wife & I just stayed near the lake and called. Bull came in on day 3 and that was that.
Much easier than the elk I’ve packed out in the mountains. Past 60 now, I’m not up for any long moose packing jobs. That’s a young man’s game.

 

[tt280AI]

About 10 yards to the water, a 1.5 mile boat ride, about 100 yards up again.

 

[johnnycake]

As you know, in the moment it's pure misery but it's all worth it when it's all said and done.

No. No it is not.

moose is nothing even the alaska-yukon one once you dealt with bison ... the worst is when there is no snow ...

I've killed 2 wild bison (4 yr old cow Henry Mountains UT late December; 17yr old massive bull Delta Junction, AK). I've helped clean and pack several other bulls and cows. Some with snow, some without. Luckily only one of the cows involved any real packing. Dealing with the whole hide is pretty terrible over anything more than a couple hundred yards.
The suck factor on breaking bison down compared to AK bull moose is pretty equal I think.

 

[Yukon Cornelius]

my first bull in 1996 co-harvested with my battle buddy (KIA 2004). We shot this 40" bull down in a steep valley floor, 1/2-mile straight line from the truck/road. Zero experience with the actual weight of moose meat nor the volume. We had army rucks and blazed a packable route up and down this 15% gradient. Cookie trailed 1.2 miles one way.

Took us 2 long days and we had to debone it to pack it up hill.

That winter I bought a 13' American Camper raft from K-mart in Fairbanks and changed my hunting strategies. I vowed to NEVER shoot a moose more than 300 yards from camp. For 28 years since, I have not.

From experience, if you think you have to, you really just need learn better ways to coax them across that gap. I've dragged 30"- 67" bulls that varied in weight from 400 lbs to 720 lbs. Trust me, that shit hurts even short distances. Because of that experience, the last 15 years I can't recall packing one even 100 yards from the river/camp.

My first bull pack was about 800 yds. Never again. I am with you. I won’t chase a bull. I let him come to me.

 

[Snowwolfe]

Back in 77/78 a buddy of mine shot a bull way down in a valley in back of Eielson AFB. He told a bunch of us we could have half the meat we packed out. Managed one trip up the hill before I said F this, lol. I guess my pack weighed about 60 pounds and estimated it was a 1.5 mile hike up a 45 degree sloop to get to the truck. Took me 3 days to recover.
Some moose aren't worth the trouble.

 

[mainbeam pursuit2]

Packed a Colorado shiras about 1/4 mile uphill, was glad I had some young help.

 

[johnnycake]

It just comes down to terrain. Give me dry ground and mileage doesn’t matter if it’s a big bull. The farthest pack out was a late season Chugach hunt when the ground was frozen. There was no bitching as it was all men amongst us. None of us felt we were doing anything unusual, especially when we saw two guys in their late 50’s with a bull about 1 mile farther back than us.

I'll give you that. But realistically, the number of moose killed and packed on hard ground is much smaller than the number killed in the swamps of Satan's taint.

 

[medvedyt]

my first bull in 1996 co-harvested with my battle buddy (KIA 2004). We shot this 40" bull down in a steep valley floor, 1/2-mile straight line from the truck/road. Zero experience with the actual weight of moose meat nor the volume. We had army rucks and blazed a packable route up and down this 15% gradient. Cookie trailed 1.2 miles one way.

Took us 2 long days and we had to debone it to pack it up hill.

That winter I bought a 13' American Camper raft from K-mart in Fairbanks and changed my hunting strategies. I vowed to NEVER shoot a moose more than 300 yards from camp. For 28 years since, I have not.

From experience, if you think you have to, you really just need learn better ways to coax them across that gap. I've dragged 30"- 67" bulls that varied in weight from 400 lbs to 720 lbs. Trust me, that shit hurts even short distances. Because of that experience, the last 15 years I can't recall packing one even 100 yards from the river/camp.

is it the reason Larry you moved from the 30-06 to 300 weatherby?

 

[MDR]

1. 30 yards
2. 35 yards
3. ATV next to it
4. Same as above
5. 200 or so through an old burn

 

[SliverShooter]

2021, I was 63 at the time: Solo; 1 1/4 miles on ONX; 60” bull; Boned out; Terrain was 50% tussocks, 25% thick brush, 25% kind of decent terrain, spongey but not real soft, the feet only sunk in 4-6 inches; Gained couple hundred feet in gradual elevation, nothing you would consider steep.
2012, hunting partner and I carried my 50” moose 1 1/4 miles, heavy brush the last 1/4 mile, fairly good footing the first mile. The last 1/4 mile was a lot harder than carrying the pack loads the first mile.