Meat Transportation

[swiftni]

I’m driving west at the end of August for a muley hunt, and want to be prepared in case I’m lucky enough to shoot a deer.

What is the best way to transport the meat back east (2 days of driving)?

If we shoot one early, we may have time for a processor to pack and freeze the meat (ideal situation).

If we shoot one late, I’m not sure the best way to transport that meat home. Can you transport the meat back quartered in game bags in a large cooler? Should you use ice or dry ice? What is your method for multi day meat transport?

 

[wytx]

It will have to be boned out, due to CWD .
Look into dry ice on your way. Here in Wyoming it is available at almost every grocery store.
Get some bottles of water and put them in a cooler with dry ice to freeze them or just put dry ice in a paper bag inside the cooler with the meat and it will freeze.
Depending on which state, remember to keep evidence of sex legally with the meat or on a quarter.

Blocks of ice on cooled meat would work too, just check your cooler on the way home. Don't let your meat swim in the cooler.

 

[rayporter]

i like dry ice but plain ice will work just fine. dont worry about the meat being in water as that is a very common way to cool the meat in the south.

and many of the states you will go through need research on cwd regs. boned out meat only and cleaned skulls.

 

[southLA]

I was under the impression that you could bring back quartered meat so long as no spinal cord or head was on it? (with reference to actual meat, not horns)

 

[swiftni]

I was under the impression that you could bring back quartered meat so long as no spinal cord or head was on it? (with reference to actual meat, not horns)

This was my impression as well, but I’ll have to double check to be sure. Boning out would help with cooler space, so might go that route anyways

 

[swiftni]

It will have to be boned out, due to CWD .
Look into dry ice on your way. Here in Wyoming it is available at almost every grocery store.
Get some bottles of water and put them in a cooler with dry ice to freeze them or just put dry ice in a paper bag inside the cooler with the meat and it will freeze.
Depending on which state, remember to keep evidence of sex legally with the meat or on a quarter.

Blocks of ice on cooled meat would work too, just check your cooler on the way home. Don't let your meat swim in the cooler.

Would you keep the meat in standard game bags if you went the dry ice/frozen bottle route?

 

[tquiet]

If I have to rely on a cooler to keep meat cool while traveling, I’ll go as far as vacuum sealing deboned meat once It is good and dry.

It’s my opinion that nothing good will come from letting the meat get wet from melted ice.


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[ScreamingPotato]

I do this all the time, tried dry ice once and never again. I just toss any quarters and trim in the cooler on top of ice and keep the drain plug open. I hate water logged meat so try not to pack too much meat into each cooler otherwise inevitably you'll have some that sort of sinks to the bottom and gets bathed. If it's in your truck bed put it in the back and face the drain towards the tailgate, it usually drips out the back slowly. I'll leave whole quarters in the game bags but trimmings and cuts I like to pull out and layer it on top of ice to keep it from being bunched up, this would be true for boned-out quarters as well. I keep the meat this way for roughly 10 days after the kill and then process it. Packing this way makes it easy when I get home I just unload coolers and leave them on the back porch tilted slightly down to be sure all melt drains.

 

[DooleyVT]

The best method we have found is to bring a really small chest freezer along and plug it in when we get there and if everything lines up right we freeze the meat solid for the 2 day ride home. Obviously only if you will have some access to power being either a small generator or utility power. Good coolers and ice will work but is a PIA.

 

[swiftni]

I do this all the time, tried dry ice once and never again. I just toss any quarters and trim in the cooler on top of ice and keep the drain plug open. I hate water logged meat so try not to pack too much meat into each cooler otherwise inevitably you'll have some that sort of sinks to the bottom and gets bathed. If it's in your truck bed put it in the back and face the drain towards the tailgate, it usually drips out the back slowly. I'll leave whole quarters in the game bags but trimmings and cuts I like to pull out and layer it on top of ice to keep it from being bunched up, this would be true for boned-out quarters as well. I keep the meat this way for roughly 10 days after the kill and then process it. Packing this way makes it easy when I get home I just unload coolers and leave them on the back porch tilted slightly down to be sure all melt drains.

What was the downside to using dry ice?

 

[ScreamingPotato]

What was the downside to using dry ice?

Too cold in spots close to it, not cold enough in spots away from it. If you mix it with regular ice it melts down to the bottom then freezes from the dry ice and you end up with a giant meat popsicle that's a pain to pick through when you're home. Also not worth the expense, and since I process all my own it'll stay on the porch in coolers with ice for 10 days anyway so the dry ice really serves no purpose.

 

[Mykolaivka887]

What is the best way to transport the meat back east (2 days of driving)?

Can you transport the meat back quartered in game bags in a large cooler?

Yes. Try to freeze it as soon as you come out of the mountains, right before making the long drive home. If you can't freeze it even just a little bit, then leave it on the bone and make sure it's chilled sufficiently before placing it in coolers, and then dump either regular ice (frozen water) or dry ice (if you can find it).

 

[KnuckleChild]

I mean I sometimes will leave whitetail quarters in a cooler on top of the ice and keep the water drained out for a week before I get around to finishing it up and freezing it. As long as you keep it above the ice with some kind of barrier (trash bag, piece of plywood, whatever) and don’t let it sit in water it should be fine.

 

[wytx]

Does your state allow meat form CWD states top be still on the bone? That will determine if you just throw the quarters in a cooler or not.

Dry ice will freeze everything close to it, spread some around in your cooler between ice jugs and they stay frozen.
It does have a learning curve so to speak.
Make sure your meat is cooled before doing anything with your cooler, it can trap warm air inside and spoil your meat.
Game bags usually only for hanging and transport but not in the cooler, wouldn't hurt anything though.

 

[sram9102]

Freeze twice as many milk jugs as will fit in your cooler. Chill the cooler with half then put the other half in when you leave fill the voids with ice and don't open the cooler until you need it. Try and get the body heat out of the meat before you put it in the cooler. 4 trips from IN to ID and we have always had partially frozen jugs when we got back home 9 days later. The jugs keep the meat out of the water as well.

 

[long hunter]

We use a lage size marine grade igloo cooler, yes if you can have the meat processed shrink wrapped and pre frozen better yet, if not and you can I would de-bone the meat place in double large size zip lock type bags, place in cooler dry ice on bottom, meat and then dry ice on top, seal the lid on the cooler with duck tape and bring home, have done this last two hunts and plan on doing it in 2023. It is a two day drive for us coming home once home the meat is frozen solid. 2019 it was a four day trip home as we stopped in S.Dakota for a two day pheasent hunt still no problems.

 

[eaglemountainman]

For my western hunts I fly, with my frozen meat in my pack in the overhead bin.

If I ever drive, I'll be going the chest freezer in the truck bed route. Plug the freezer into the motel room overnight via an extension cord. During the day, the freezer is in cooler mode with a bit of dry ice for insurance.

My FoodSaver sealer runs on AC or 12v DC current. I'd bring that along too.

 

[rayporter]

Arkansas does not allow any bones in from cwd states. and only cleaned heads.

so check all states you go through. Arkansas has a rep of catching out of staters with game just traveling through.

 

[Mikeray]

I've used a yeti 125 and put the quarters, trim, cape and 15lbs of dry ice and that was perfect for size. Then drove two days home and everything was nice and cold.

 

[nphunter]

I will be using dry ice in my yeti on our antelope hunts in early August, I have always used regular ice but hate wet meat, especially dirty wet meat from bloody, dirt-covered game bags.
I will kill the antelope, and quarter into game bags doing my best to be meticulous about keeping the meat clean, I will toss the meat onto my roof rack even if it's sunny and drive back to camp or drive for a while allowing the wind blowing over the meat to cool it down before putting it on ice.

Even in hot weather the wind will be the fastest way to cool down the meat and it will waste much less ice, after the meat is as cool as it will get that way I will toss it in the cooler, cover it with a sheet of cardboard and then stack dry ice on top. I will check periodically and once it is nice and cold I will remove it all and toss the dry ice all in the bottom of the cooler, cover with cardboard and put the meat on top. It will stay this way until I get home.

I have a small yeti I will fill with dry ice and keep everything else in my larger coolers until I actually need to use the dry ice, the less you open the cooler the longer it will last.

The skull and hide will get the same treatment only I will get it into the cooler sooner to start freezing the head since it will hold heat much longer.

When using dry ice it;

-Put anything you want to be frozen below the ice, the coldness will sink down to the bottom of the cooler and freeze anything it passes on the way down.

-Put anything you want to refrigerate above the dry ice, it will typically only freeze items under it but does a good job of keeping things above it cool.

-Do not let dry ice sit on the meat or anything you care about, it will frostbite a person and the freezer burn meat, cardboard or folded-up paper bags make a great insulator.

-Keep your dry ice in a small air tight cooler with very few gaps to prolong its life and use it when you need it.

-You can also use it to refreeze water bottles in other coolers and rotate them out of the smaller cooler wiht dry ice in it.