Solo pack outs?

[252to208]

I am truly solo hunting this year my usual hunting buddies both have different tags this season and our dates are all overlapping. In the past I have leapfrogged the meat 300-800 yards at a time (terrain dependent) keeping all the meat together it has worked well in the steep areas of Idaho I tend to hunt but if anyone has a better or more efficient technique I am all ears. We tend to do this as a group as well and seems to work well with two guys too over the 3-5 mile trips all the way back to the truck.

 

[Hnthrdr]

Two options really, leap frog, or one way to the cooler. Always depends on terrain, shade/ creek availability and temperature, it’s sucks. Only cheat I have is shoot a really young rag horn and you have to back a fraction of the weight. I favor more trips with less weight these days instead of trying to get it all at once

 

[GunsAreFun]

What do you feel are the pros of leap frogging?

I never quite understood it. I certainly understand if you’re trying to get the meat to a cool, shaded spot so it will last longer.

But if that is not happening with every load, why would you want to mess with unloading and loading constantly? That’s a lot of time, and just getting to your feet, especially if you’re alone is just about the most difficult part.

 

[airnjones]

How far do you usually go in between stops when leapfrogging?

 

[Geewhiz]

What do you feel are the pros of leap frogging?

I never quite understood it. I certainly understand if you’re trying to get the meat to a cool, shaded spot so it will last longer.

But if that is not happening with every load, why would you want to mess with unloading and loading constantly? That’s a lot of time, and just getting to your feet, especially if you’re alone is just about the most difficult part.

I don't understand it either. I load as much as I can possibly carry and then enter trudge mode until I reach the pickup, and then turn around and do it again, and again, until I'm done. Occasionally I'll stop and just lean over to rest for a minute or two but getting up off the ground with 100-150+ lbs is the hardest part, why do it more than I need to? Got to cover the distance either way.

But talk about exhaustion. One time I made it back to the pickup after the first or second trip around 2 am and was the only time I was so tired I was able to lay down on the bare ground in the rain and fall asleep. haha 20 minutes later "oh $#!t" and back at it.

 

[Poser]

In "nasty" terrain, 800 yards is ~45 minutes. Certainly lots of variables, but that's getting in the < .5 mile per hour territory.
When packing out in such conditions, I tend to find it necessary to stop about every 45-60 minutes to rest and readjust heavy packs for comfort purposes.

What I don't understand is the time you are losing to unload, store, hike pack, load your pack back up and retread that same 800 yards. If you're loading your pack up with 70, 80, 100, 130+ lbs, its going to take some time to get that weight all situated. If you're doing this in increments of less than 800 yards, it just doesn't make any sense to me. I'd say that anything less than around 1.5 miles at .5 miles an hour, just knock it out.

 

[PredatoronthePrairie]

I train all summer with a 50# pack.
So I try to keep my loads to that weight.

If it means an extra trip or two. Then that's what I due.

Over the years found going heavy 70-80 just added unknown stress to the body that it wasn't used to and would break down faster.

So I take the toartus over the hare approach.

 

[TaperPin]

I like leap frogging because it maximizes the amount of time a person can have under the pack - you’ll be working all day. If doing a trip all the way back to the mother ship, you’re limited to full, or at least half trips. It also gives your body much needed breaks throughout the day as you backtrack for the next load.

The worst case scenario is doing a full trip back to the truck and you start going lame after two long round trips - forced death marches are hard on even the tough guys - with half an elk 6 miles in and a bum knee you’re going to need help. Leap frogging let’s you ease up and pace yourself to nurse a knee to get it all out. In practice we go balls to the wall and what happens happens, but from the couch it seems to make sense. Lol

While leap frogging an elk I’ve tagged a nice mule deer, so there’s that if seasons overlap.

It must also come down to how a person’s brain works - some friends have to go heavy/fast and all the way to the truck, or it’s mentally painful, while I don’t mind grinding it out like a tortoise from sun up to sun down with a reasonable load.

I also enjoy the area I hunt - the more time I can spend on the mountain the better - I’ve been known to slow down and enjoy the view even if it takes a few extra days.

 

[High Climber]

Most important thing is get the meat in the shade, preferably hanging. After that it’s whatever floats your boat. Sometimes if there is an obvious spot like a ridge top I’ve got to get to then I’ll pack to there, other times just make it to truck and come back again. It’s all work any way you slice it! Good luck out there this year

 

[Hnthrdr]

I like leap frogging because it maximizes the amount of time a person can have under the pack - you’ll be working all day. If doing a trip all the way back to the mother ship, you’re limited to full, or at least half trips. It also gives your body much needed breaks throughout the day as you backtrack for the next load.

The worst case scenario is doing a full trip back to the truck and you start going lame after two long round trips - forced death marches are hard on even the tough guys - with half an elk 6 miles in and a bum knee you’re going to need help. Leap frogging let’s you ease up and pace yourself to nurse a knee to get it all out. In practice we go balls to the wall and what happens happens, but from the couch it seems to make sense. Lol

While leap frogging an elk I’ve tagged a nice mule deer, so there’s that if seasons overlap.

It must also come down to how a person’s brain works - some friends have to go heavy/fast and all the way to the truck, or it’s mentally painful, while I don’t mind grinding it out like a tortoise from sun up to sun down with a reasonable load.

I also enjoy the area I hunt - the more time I can spend on the mountain the better - I’ve been known to slow down and enjoy the view even if it takes a few extra days.

Very true, about 2 years ago I was dead set on being a stubborn mule and only doing 1 trip, now i realize that taking my time and splitting it up is much more enjoyable for all the reasons stated above

 

[Wrench]

Leaping makes sense to me if you need to get away from the kill dite and into a place that can provide your best case scenario for overnight meat storage.

5 Mile deep kills mean 40 mountain miles really easily. You can try to two trip it....but injury risk becomes a real concern. I've done a few 2 trips but nothing 5 miles and with my camp. I am no longer tough enough for that feat.

 

[Wrench]

Killing a deer when you have 3/4 of an elk 35 miles of hiking away is potentially wanton waste if you don't pull it off. That'll be hard to defend if you're already slowing down or in pain.

 

[87TT]

When I used to try to make as few trips as I could, I would be sore and tore up for a week after. Now I take more trips ans am fine later. I do move the meat away from the carcass a few hundred yards and to shade. Then start making trips with no more than a rear quarter and an empty pack. First trip is my bow, hunting stuff and loose meat.

 

[elkliver]

i agree with several others, Leap frogging only makes sense if you are moving to a stopping point or waystation. To a cool shady spot next to the creek Back to base camp or up out of the canyon and close to a main trail. That might make sense because then you have easier terrain to deal with as it starts getting dark.

 

[ndbuck09]

Done it both ways. It is nice to have all the breaks on your body when you're leapfrogging. I do think it makes more enjoyable due to this. You can actually revel in your success when you're going back up unweighted because it's an easy part. We do 1-1.5 mile segments. I do feel that anything less would be pretty inefficient as others have stated with the reloading/repacking pack. Then there's also the human part that causes you to just generally take a long break on the flips, where you otherwise would just be moving if you were doing longer carry's.

 

[bz_711]

We've never leap frogged...but solo I think I might at first just to get all meat to a dark/shady spot with water...then do full haul outs from there. This also gets meat away from carcass.

Good Luck!

 

[WyoBC_99]

I definitely lean to more, smaller loads, but the question of distance is more nuanced. After the animal is down, it's all about keeping the meat in good condition and in the early seasons that will dictate my choice. I try to get the meat into a cool shaded creek bottom or other good spot as quickly as possible, and then plan my packout to keep the meat in good locations. Depending on the terrain, that could mean long hauls or shorter between those good, cool spots.

 

[ridgefire]

Last year I packed all the meat off the ridge top down to the trail and then made trips back to camp from there. I figured I would get the hardest part out of the way while I had the most energy and strength. It worked out great.

 

[IdahoBeav]

Smaller loads and all the way to the pickup on each haul. Unless it's a very safe trek, I don't think a large load is worth the risk. The prime meat goes first, and I don't take any breaks when loaded. I drink water and recover on the empty walk back to the kill site.

 

[Usi05]

I am hung up on the bone or deboned part of it. Solo this year in an area with Grizz.

I like the idea of deboning for weight savings but it takes a little bit of time. I am leaning more around just packing out with bones for the savings of time.

No leapfrog here if I shoot one this year. Seems like too much time messing with the pack.


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