Mystery Ranch Dragonslayer general eastern hunting loadout.

[swany66675]

First post: life long hunter and backpacker my Dana Design Astraplane just turned twenty my Scarpa light mountaineering boots (will be replaced this next year can't replace the soles again.) are twenty-one.

After lurking for long time reading reviews decided maybe I should join in the fun.

I know this isn't a mountain hunting setup but it could easily be trimmed down once the need arrives.


I can still fit all my layers in the pack, and lunch or a boned out deer. The pack is compressed as small as it will go with this loadout and still has room for a jacket, plus extras.

My binoculars, cheap Bushnell pair but work well enough for me. Usually a kleen kanteen, game calls.

 

[swany66675]

Garmin GPS, is used most often when the kids are with me and when I need to give someone my exact location when in the woods. The other belt pocket holds a buck alpha delrado folding knife and my extra rounds.

Flashlight and two quart and two gallon bags.

Flashlight, toilet paper (also use it to mark blood trails), leatherman and a bic.

 

[swany66675]

Inside pack on left side Wyoming saw (held in place with carabiner), and three pouches mounted on spadelock. Yellow thing at the top is a clip on flashlight, gets the most use.

Bottom pouch

Water treatment and first aid.

Middle pouch kill kit

Kifaru meat bag, tags (only need them when games down), rubber gloves, clean up wipes, my custom knife 1 of 3, close friends own to two matching.

Top pouch

Lighter, DMT sharpening stone, small repair kit, few bandaids, small pill capsule with meds (missing from photo), small fire kit in pill bottle. Batteries, Game laws, permission to hunt notes, ear plugs (handy when sleeping under a tree) compass.

 

[swany66675]

Behind Velcro pannel on spadelock, leatherman bit kit, small fix blade (gift from a polar bear), pen, fire steal, and small piece of cord. Two 'biners.

Behind spadelock small hatchet and large contractors plastic bag.

Otis cleaning kit for all I hunt with rides in bottom of pack.

Swapped out the twelve gauge brush with a twenty gauge, and the same for the other brushes to make them specific to my needs.

Usually there is drag rope in a quart bag during deer season, and for the super observant the horse blanket pin on the left side of the belt makes a handy place to hang small game.

Almost forgot a thermacell rides in the top half the time.

I have two long pockets I add and with them I have enough room for a long weekend out.

As always any advice or suggestions will be appreciated!

 

[hodgeman]

I loved my Dragonslayer. I switched it out for the (now discontinued) Big Horn and it has become my favorite light pack rig.

I'll make a suggestion... why not consolidate all those knives/saw/hatchets/sharpeners into the Leatherman and a Havalon? That'd save you at least a couple of pounds or more...not sure you'd need more than that to break down whitetails.

I also never carry a cleaning kit in the field. A piece of electrical tape over the muzzle keeps the goop out of the barrel.

 

[swany66675]

The Wyoming saw is new this year and I'm just trying it out. The two fixed blades have sentimental value, and the buck will likely be culled from the pack it was all I used for years. I actually use the hatchet for skinning and all splitting bone. The leatherman just lives in the pack, I use it more when I'm fishing then hunting. I know its over kill, sometimes I just throw things in just for some extra weight for the exercise.

I always wanted to hunt out west and treated our hunting seasons like practice since I was a teen.

 

[WoodsWalker270]

Thanks for sharing your loadout. I bought my Dragonslayer a few months ago and have been very pleased with it. Just went on a 4 mile hike yesterday with about 30 lbs. Felt great the whole time.

 

[swany66675]

Thanks for sharing your loadout. I bought my Dragonslayer a few months ago and have been very pleased with it. Just went on a 4 mile hike yesterday with about 30 lbs. Felt great the whole time.

The only thing I could have seen them change on the Dragonslayer is the side compression straps. I wish they had the same layout they do now with tag end of the strap starting at the frame. Then you would have the option of using them the current way or wrapping them around and meeting over the zipper. This would make it a little easier to haul odd shaped or loads to big to fit in the pack.

 

[MattB]

My estimation is you carry much more stuff than you need and have redundancy on top of redundancy. I'd get something along the lines of Kifaru medium pullout and figure out how to fit everything but the binoculars, GPS and extra bullets in it. If it doesn't fit, you probably don't need it.

As an example and as was previously stated, you could do just fine with a Havalon/extra blades and leatherman rather than 3 knives, a stone, a leatherman, a hatchet, and a saw. That will save probably 5# from your pack.

 

[Kevin Dill]

I have a Dragonslayer and it's my all-time favorite day-pack for all-day jaunts in rugged country. There are a lot of good packs out there, but for some reason the DS really covers my needs like nothing else. The comfort and profile really make it a perfect hunting companion. If your loadout suits you, that's the most important thing. I suppose I could toss a few things out and save weight, but I go with what I want on board. Nice pictures and description!

 

[ezmorningrebel]

I bought a stone glacier serac this year but I can't convince myself to sell my dragonslayer.

 

[swany66675]

I think I'm going to start a little project and make myself an ASAT pack cover.

 

[swany66675]

My new pack cover and two game bags.

The game bags are sized to fit in my dragonslayer. Bored and had extra material.

And last how the cover attaches to the bottom of the pack.

 

[WoodsWalker270]

Pack cover looks great swany! Good idea using the hipbelt buckles to secure it on. Where did you find that fabric?

 

[swany66675]

Pack cover looks great swany! Good idea using the hipbelt buckles to secure it on. Where did you find that fabric?

I had been keeping an eye on eBay for a while and when two yards of brushed polyester came up for sale I jumped. I was more worried about it being silent then light, or water proof. I may waterproof it in the spring but for now I have no reason to. I've also considered adding a zipper (or magnetic closure) down the center for fast access or to the right side access to the quiver.