Memories for a Lifetime - 2025 Hunt Recap & Basecamp Tips

[bsheisey]

First off, what an adventure! Our group of six guys (two dads and four cousins) ventured west from central PA to CO for a 3rd rifle elk/mule deer hunt. This was the first western hunt for three of us, first mule deer hunt for all of us, and the first DIY rifle elk hunt for all of us. We had some old intel on the area we were hunting from some friends, but were otherwise going in unfamiliar with the surroundings. Before the trip I posted a thread asking for everyone's best basecamp tips and tricks, and the Rokslide community came up big! Pages of useful information and past experiences were shared, many of which made our trip much more enjoyable and efficient.

Here is a link to that thread if anyone is interested in what was shared: https://rokslide.com/forums/threads/wanted-your-top-5-base-camp-tips-or-hacks.373375/

I wanted to pay it back by sharing what suggestions we utilized and worked best for us. I really had little to no complaints about our basecamp experience:

We utilized a 16'x20' Davis wall tent that we found on Craigslist, complete with a wood stove, rain fly and extended porch area. We paired this with a 12'x12' heavy duty pop-up canopy that served as the cook area. We fit 6 cots, a folding table and the stove in the wall tent, with a little room for some camp chairs to kick up our feet in the evening. In the canopy we had three folding tables, a couple of coolers, a cook kit and a generator.

• The tent
  • Six cots was a squeeze, but we made it work. It definitely helped to have a separate cook area away from the living space.
  • Mouse traps were a frequently recommended tip. We set a couple on each side of the tent and caught two mice during the week.
  • Various lengths of paracord worked great for a clothes line and for lashing up a meat pole (spoiler alert!).
  • Hanging shoe storage worked great for keeping small items handy and off the ground.
  • Camp crocs are heavenly after a day of hiking around in heavy boots.
  • Definitely bring more than one heavy duty hammer. A wall tent with a fly comes with dozens of stakes, and having two hammers for two hammerers is way better than one.
  • A luxury we had was a power station (200W) with a solar panel (100W) to charge it during the day. The power station was able to charge multiple devices in the evenings and run a string of LED lights that did a great job of illuminating the wall tent.
• The wood stove
  • Duraflame logs worked great to extend the fire as long as possible into the night. I would not recommend burning two at once though. We tried it and the stove got scary hot.
  • We brought a small heat activated fan for on top of the stove. It didn't seem to move much air, and it made a loud rattling noise when the stove was really hot. I don't think we'd use one next time.
  • Our spark arrester got clogged halfway through the trip, significantly reducing airflow to the fire. You definitely want to keep an eye on those throughout the week.
  • A frequent suggestion was to bring an old guy to stoke the fire in the middle of the night. Unfortunately the bladders of our senior members held out just as long as the young guys, so that theory went out the window. There was generally a mass exodus from the sleeping bags a few hours before the alarms went off to empty bladders and refuel the fire.
• The latrine
  • After sorting through everyone's recommendations, we utilized a folding bedside commode with a pop-up blind. The commode was perfect, as it was cheap, light-weight, sturdy, and it folded up nicely for transport. Here is a link for what we used: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001HP7AQE?ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title&th=1
  • We dug as large a hole as we could without the commode falling in, which allowed us to only have to relocate the toilet once during the trip. Not bad for six guys living on camp food.
  • We sprinkled some lime after each use and smell was a non-issue.
  • Dude wipes (or equivalent) are essential. Both for the toilet and for freshening up in the evening.
• The kitchen
  • We all packed waaaay too much food. This is a better problem than too little, but we would definitely pack less next time. Everyone went home with extra trail mix, jerky, protein bars, etc.
  • Another luxury we had was a propane powered generator, which wasn't very noisy, and microwave for heating up dinner. This saved a lot of time preparing dinner and reduced the amount of clean up needed.
  • We all took turns preparing a dinner to share with the group, pre-packaging and freezing individual portions ahead of time. Everything was delicious, and the microwave made it easy to have everyone's food ready as they got back to camp.
  • Cup noodles were a popular lunch. Just add hot water (or pop it in the microwave), and you had a warm, filling lunch ready to go. Plus you could burn the cups when you were done.
  • We used paper supplies for all of the meals. We burned as much as we could to reduce the amount of trash, although that probably contributed to the clogging of the spark arrester.
  • We made the last minute decision to get some flats of bottled water before we headed up the mountain, and they made it really easy to grab for some quick hydration. It also allowed us to conserve the water we brought in jugs for cooking and cleaning.
  • A personal opinion: My butthole sandwiches made for a tough chew, and were quickly unappetizing. I'm going need to find a different solution for my midday meal.
• Miscellaneous
  • Having a battery powered tire pump paid off big time when one of our trailer tires developed a slow leak.
  • There was dust EVERYWHERE. It had been a very mild and dry fall in the area we were in, and we didn't anticipate how dusty it would be and how much it would cover and infiltrate everything. We might have to bring a tennis racket next time to beat the tent before we pack it up.
  • Getting to camp a day early was huge for our group of lowlanders. I never thought I would get so winded and light headed setting up a tent. I definitely needed a day or so to get acclimated to the 9,500' of elevation we were camping at. Thankfully nobody got serious altitude sickness.

Many people suggested that it was almost a guarantee that one or more people in a group our size would want to cut the hunt short. Thankfully we were blessed with successful hunting and good attitudes. We may never get to do another hunt like this with this group, and I am very thankful for the opportunity and the support of our wives who covered for us at home while we were gone. Thanks again to everyone in this forum who offered their advice and support!

Hunt recap to follow below!

 

[zwalker]

First off, what an adventure! Our group of six guys (two dads and four cousins) ventured west from central PA to CO for a 3rd rifle elk/mule deer hunt. This was the first western hunt for three of us, first mule deer hunt for all of us, and the first DIY rifle elk hunt for all of us. We had some old intel on the area we were hunting from some friends, but were otherwise going in unfamiliar with the surroundings. Before the trip I posted a thread asking for everyone's best basecamp tips and tricks, and the Rokslide community came up big! Pages of useful information and past experiences were shared, many of which made our trip much more enjoyable and efficient.

Here is a link to that thread if anyone is interested in what was shared: https://rokslide.com/forums/threads/wanted-your-top-5-base-camp-tips-or-hacks.373375/

I wanted to pay it back by sharing what suggestions we utilized and worked best for us. I really had little to no complaints about our basecamp experience:

We utilized a 16'x20' Davis wall tent that we found on Craigslist, complete with a wood stove, rain fly and extended porch area. We paired this with a 12'x12' heavy duty pop-up canopy that served as the cook area. We fit 6 cots, a folding table and the stove in the wall tent, with a little room for some camp chairs to kick up our feet in the evening. In the canopy we had three folding tables, a couple of coolers, a cook kit and a generator.

• The tent
  • Six cots was a squeeze, but we made it work. It definitely helped to have a separate cook area away from the living space.
  • Mouse traps were a frequently recommended tip. We set a couple on each side of the tent and caught two mice during the week.
  • Various lengths of paracord worked great for a clothes line and for lashing up a meat pole (spoiler alert!).
  • Hanging shoe storage worked great for keeping small items handy and off the ground.
  • Camp crocs are heavenly after a day of hiking around in heavy boots.
  • Definitely bring more than one heavy duty hammer. A wall tent with a fly comes with dozens of stakes, and having two hammers for two hammerers is way better than one.
  • A luxury we had was a power station (200W) with a solar panel (100W) to charge it during the day. The power station was able to charge multiple devices in the evenings and run a string of LED lights that did a great job of illuminating the wall tent.
• The wood stove
  • Duraflame logs worked great to extend the fire as long as possible into the night. I would not recommend burning two at once though. We tried it and the stove got scary hot.
  • We brought a small heat activated fan for on top of the stove. It didn't seem to move much air, and it made a loud rattling noise when the stove was really hot. I don't think we'd use one next time.
  • Our spark arrester got clogged halfway through the trip, significantly reducing airflow to the fire. You definitely want to keep an eye on those throughout the week.
  • A frequent suggestion was to bring an old guy to stoke the fire in the middle of the night. Unfortunately the bladders of our senior members held out just as long as the young guys, so that theory went out the window. There was generally a mass exodus from the sleeping bags a few hours before the alarms went off to empty bladders and refuel the fire.
• The latrine
  • After sorting through everyone's recommendations, we utilized a folding bedside commode with a pop-up blind. The commode was perfect, as it was cheap, light-weight, sturdy, and it folded up nicely for transport. Here is a link for what we used: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001HP7AQE?ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title&th=1
  • We dug as large a hole as we could without the commode falling in, which allowed us to only have to relocate the toilet once during the trip. Not bad for six guys living on camp food.
  • We sprinkled some lime after each use and smell was a non-issue.
  • Dude wipes (or equivalent) are essential. Both for the toilet and for freshening up in the evening.
• The kitchen
  • We all packed waaaay too much food. This is a better problem than too little, but we would definitely pack less next time. Everyone went home with extra trail mix, jerky, protein bars, etc.
  • Another luxury we had was a propane powered generator, which wasn't very noisy, and microwave for heating up dinner. This saved a lot of time preparing dinner and reduced the amount of clean up needed.
  • We all took turns preparing a dinner to share with the group, pre-packaging and freezing individual portions ahead of time. Everything was delicious, and the microwave made it easy to have everyone's food ready as they got back to camp.
  • Cup noodles were a popular lunch. Just add hot water (or pop it in the microwave), and you had a warm, filling lunch ready to go. Plus you could burn the cups when you were done.
  • We used paper supplies for all of the meals. We burned as much as we could to reduce the amount of trash, although that probably contributed to the clogging of the spark arrester.
  • We made the last minute decision to get some flats of bottled water before we headed up the mountain, and they made it really easy to grab for some quick hydration. It also allowed us to conserve the water we brought in jugs for cooking and cleaning.
  • A personal opinion: My butthole sandwiches made for a tough chew, and were quickly unappetizing. I'm going need to find a different solution for my midday meal.
• Miscellaneous
  • Having a battery powered tire pump paid off big time when one of our trailer tires developed a slow leak.
  • There was dust EVERYWHERE. It had been a very mild and dry fall in the area we were in, and we didn't anticipate how dusty it would be and how much it would cover and infiltrate everything. We might have to bring a tennis racket next time to beat the tent before we pack it up.
  • Getting to camp a day early was huge for our group of lowlanders. I never thought I would get so winded and light headed setting up a tent. I definitely needed a day or so to get acclimated to the 9,500' of elevation we were camping at. Thankfully nobody got serious altitude sickness.

Many people suggested that it was almost a guarantee that one or more people in a group our size would want to cut the hunt short. Thankfully we were blessed with successful hunting and good attitudes. We may never get to do another hunt like this with this group, and I am very thankful for the opportunity and the support of our wives who covered for us at home while we were gone. Thanks again to everyone in this forum who offered their advice and support!

Hunt recap to follow below!

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Looks like an awesome time!

 

[bsheisey]

HUNT RECAP!

In addition to the great camp experience, we also had an awesome hunt! We went into this hunt with low expectations, focusing on enjoying the experience and time with family. We were in a Colorado unit with high odds to draw a mule tag and OTC elk hunting. While I don't want to call it a "once-in-a-lifetime" hunt, a number of us probably won't have many opportunities to hunt out west given the cost and time away from family that it requires. Because of that, most of us purchased both elk and mule deer tags to be as opportunistic as possible. We had some information on the area from friends that had hunted there six or so years ago, but were mostly learning as we went.

All of that being said, we managed to fill all six of our mule deer tags! The elk evaded us, but each of us shooting a mule deer more than made up for that. As this was the first western hunt for a lot of us, we weren't going to be picky about what we shot, but we still managed to shoot a couple of really nice buck.

The weather during and leading up to the trip was unseasonably warm and dry. There was no snow on the ground, and we didn't get a drop of precipitation in the six days we were in camp. This made water a key resource, as a lot of the water holes were either drying up or freezing solid overnight. Through scouting and reading sign, we were able to key in on mule deer movement between bedding and water. I believe that the mild weather led to very good mule deer activity in the area that we were in, as they had no reason to push to lower elevations. We camped at 9,500', and all of the mule deer were killed at between 9,300' and 9,700'. I also believe that it made the elk hunting more difficult, as they had no reason to leave the dark timber for food or warmth.

Given the availability of the tags, it was no surprise that we saw a lot of hunters. One thing we didn't expect was the number of people driving up and down the roads all day looking for game and stopping at various glassing points where they could see a long ways. That definitely isn't an effective style of hunting where we live in PA, so it caught us off guard. We quickly learned that all you had to do to avoid most hunters was to get a half mile or so off the road, or get into an area that you couldn't easily glass into. Three of the buck we shot, including the biggest one, were all in the same area, which was only around 800 yds off the road across relatively flat terrain. That made for some really nice pack-outs with a crew of six guys.

Here is a summary of the buck we shot:

• Opening Morning Buck - Tall and heavy 2x2 was moving a group of does over a flat. Made a move to get closer and unknowingly walked to within 15 yds of him just over a knob. He bounded away but stopped to look back at 60 yds, which gave time for an offhand shot.

​

• 2nd Evening Buck #1 - Set up on a knob close to where we saw a solid buck the day before the season started. Had another group of hunters move in and set up to glass only 200 yds away, so we moved to the other side of the saddle, closer to the bedding. Half an hour before dark we saw a branch antlered buck on the opposite hillside with some does and killed him at 260 yds. It took a bit to find him in the brush, but eventually stumbled upon the small 3x3.

​

• 2nd Evening Buck #2 - Walked down a long ridge to find an area well removed from the road. Started working back and bumped a few deer coming out of the drainage. Heard more movement in the brush so we sat down at a spot where you could see across a depression in the hillside. Around a half hour before dark a group of doe came out of the draw with a good buck following. A 200 yd shot put down the tall 4x4.

​

• 3rd Morning Buck - Went back to the same spot as the heavy 2x2. Saw deer in the distance and moved up to get in position. The group of deer changed directions and ended up walking right by the hunter's position, allowing an 80 yd shot at the really nice, dark antlered 4x4.

​

• 3rd Evening Buck - Walked around a mile from the access point to a spot overlooking a meadow with a water source. Saw a smaller buck chasing does around 450 yds away and tried to set up for a shot but couldn't get steady. The deer moved into the brush so the hunter moved closer to where the deer were. They came back out and he dropped the young fork at 350 yds.

​

• 5th Morning Buck - Back to the same spot as bucks #1 and #4. A tall fork was chasing does across the flat and presented a shot at 80 yds, making our group 6 for 6 on mule deer.

​

On our last day of hunting the younger guys dove into the really thick terrain to try to luck into an elk. We found some really fresh sign, and are pretty sure we bumped a few elk out of their beds as we dropped into the drainage. We could smell the elk in a few spots and crossed tracks with freshly kicked up dirt where they had just run out of the area. We would have loved to at least put our eyes on an elk, but when we were presented with great deer hunting we decided to focus on that. Overall an amazing trip that we won't soon forget!

​

 

[HairyScandinavian]

Fantastic! Thanks for posting the recap!

 

[270Hunter]

Congratulations on a successful hunt, seems like you guys had an awesome time!

 

[Laelkhunter]

Congratulations. You guys will have a lifetime of memories from this experience. Time to start planning the next "hunt of a lifetime".

 

[4weight]

Very cool informative post OP. Glad you guys had a great time in Colorado.

 

[Lowedown]

Looks like a great trip, good for you guys putting it together and doing it! congratulations