Temp for leaving elk carcass overnight

[waspocrew]

This is a great point. I think a lot of brand new elk hunters totally underestimate how large and heavy the animal is and how much meat there will be to deal with.

I know I did until I walked up on my first bull on the ground.

I’m still surprised every time I walk up to a bull in the ground. Big animals.

It only took killing two elk for me to become more selective on when/where to shoot elk.

2017 - shot a cow elk across a canyon last hour or so of light. Had my brother with me, found her in the dark. Quartered and packed out in the dark.

2018 - was solo and shot a bull across the same canyon. This was at 1:30 PM. Quartered the bull and started packing. Got half of him out and luckily a friend met me after the second load and helped me get the remaining quarters and head.

I now pass on bulls depending on the situation (time of day, distance to vehicle, solo or friend, snow, etc). If I don’t think I could safely get to the animal or get it out in a timely manner, I’m not shooting. I’ve eaten some tags because of this, but I’ve been fine with that decision.

 

[mad_angler]

I'm a bit confused.... We've all heard stories of folks not finding animals until the morning. I seriously doubt that every animal found at 9am is a complete loss...

 

[nphunter]

I'm a bit confused.... We've all heard stories of folks not finding animals until the morning. I seriously doubt that every animal found at 9am is a complete loss...

Maybe not a complete waste but defiantly not as tasty as it found the night before. I know guys who have left animals overnight that when found the next day hadn’t even went through rigor yet so they lived most of the night which makes a big difference. I also think there is zero reason to leave an animal lay overnight, every hunter owns a headlamp, the only exception is maybe in grizzly country but a bear would probably be more afraid of a couple of headlamps than someone sneaking around the woods without one.

 

[nphunter]

I’m still surprised every time I walk up to a bull in the ground. Big animals.

It only took killing two elk for me to become more selective on when/where to shoot elk.

2017 - shot a cow elk across a canyon last hour or so of light. Had my brother with me, found her in the dark. Quartered and packed out in the dark.

2018 - was solo and shot a bull across the same canyon. This was at 1:30 PM. Quartered the bull and started packing. Got half of him out and luckily a friend met me after the second load and helped me get the remaining quarters and head.

I now pass on bulls depending on the situation (time of day, distance to vehicle, solo or friend, snow, etc). If I don’t think I could safely get to the animal or get it out in a timely manner, I’m not shooting. I’ve eaten some tags because of this, but I’ve been fine with that decision.

I think this is a good practice for most people. I’ve seen animals go to waste that were shot very close to the road just over a steep hill because the hunter did t know how to manage the animal.

Personally I don’t have a limit, I hunt until I kill and then figure it out. Break the animal down right away no matter the distance and start cooling it. Sometimes that means tossing it on top of a sage bush in the sun so the breeze can cool it. It’s amazing how quick a piece of meat will cool if exposed to the air, even on a hot day.

This years bull I packed meat about 8 miles and my buddy packed around 12 because he made an extra trip instead of 2 heavy trips he did 3 lighter ones. It was 4 miles one way with a couple creek crossing and zero shade in the 90deg desert.

This is how we cooled him out, killed him at 11 am and made it to the truck with the first load at 10:15 pm. I made sure to stop where I could toss the meat up on a bush or rock each time as we leap frogged the meat. Packing meat all day in 90deg sucks but the meat cools out just fine once it’s off the elk and getting circulation.

 

[butcherboy]

There are good reasons to leave an animal overnight as long as the necessary steps to get it cooling are taken. Nothing better than to let the wind and drop in temp overnight to cool it. Huge risk in getting hurt due to fatigue and just not being able to see beyond your headlamp. Taking a wrong turn, ridge line, specific draw, etc and ending up even further away from your truck or camp. It happens and more than most care to admit.

Another thought is for those than insist on packing everything out that night. You get back to camp at 3 am. Are you putting the meat directly into coolers with ice or is it sitting on logs or hanging from branches at camp? If so, then essentially it’s still being left out overnight. The only advantage is not having to go back or possibly having an animal finding it. I still would rather pack in daylight. I like seeing where I’m going and seeing that big tree or boulder and saying to myself “I can make it that far” then again and again until I’m done. I’m also not going to shoot something 4 miles in. When I do leave the quarters hanging I pack out backstraps, tenderloins, rib meat etc on the trip out. I’m just not going back that night for more. If more people are with you then take more on the trip out. Heck, I’ve shot animals in the morning and left them to hang on a game pole in the shade the rest of the day and still come back the next morning to pack them out.

 

[nphunter]

There are good reasons to leave an animal overnight as long as the necessary steps to get it cooling are taken. Nothing better than to let the wind and drop in temp overnight to cool it. Huge risk in getting hurt due to fatigue and just not being able to see beyond your headlamp. Taking a wrong turn, ridge line, specific draw, etc and ending up even further away from your truck or camp. It happens and more than most care to admit.

Another thought is for those than insist on packing everything out that night. You get back to camp at 3 am. Are you putting the meat directly into coolers with ice or is it sitting on logs or hanging from branches at camp? If so, then essentially it’s still being left out overnight. The only advantage is not having to go back or possibly having an animal finding it. I still would rather pack in daylight. I like seeing where I’m going and seeing that big tree or boulder and saying to myself “I can make it that far” then again and again until I’m done. I’m also not going to shoot something 4 miles in. When I do leave the quarters hanging I pack out backstraps, tenderloins, rib meat etc on the trip out. I’m just not going back that night for more. If more people are with you then take more on the trip out. Heck, I’ve shot animals in the morning and left them to hang on a game pole in the shade the rest of the day and still come back the next morning to pack them out.

I’m exhausted everytime I pack out an elk. IMO you’re taking on more risk packing out in the heat of the day than at night. Heat illness and heat exhaustion can come on very quickly when using that much energy, especially in areas where you can’t find shade. I think there is very little risk walking via headlamp at 1/4 mph, it’s not like a person is running around and going to walk off a cliff. I don’t know anyone that doesn’t hunt with a map or compass or both, I guess if that’s the case and a person is worried about getting lost than that is a concern. IMO if your worried about getting lost in the woods then meat care is the least of your worries.

I agree it would be fine to hang and animal in game bags overnight, I would still rather hike with meat during the night. I normally make a trip to town to get the meat cool ASAP. This year my buddy that helped me pack my bull out slept where we hit the road and I drove the meat and horns down off the mountain and got it in a fridge since we packed it around all day long in the hot sun. When in the woods we normally find a nice cool spot to hang it for a day or two in the shade depending on nighttime temps.

This is a good option too if a person is in the timber. I like to use cord in my pack and make a hanging post, hang and clean the quarters and then I can do a good job making sure only clean boned out meat goes in the bags. I would have been alright leaving meat hanging on this pole for several days in this creek bottom but to me it doesn’t make since to walk a couple miles out empty. We leap frog meat until we are back to camp or a road we can drive to. This particular area is one of the biggest shitboxs I’ve ever hunted, cliffs everywhere, dead fall all around and crazy thick reprod once your out of the bottom. We still chose to pack meat all night long in this spot instead of hiking out and having to come back in.

 

[butcherboy]

Well, you’re really not in the hot sun all day and neither is the meat. You’re in the trees walking in and out of shade all day which is not going to affect anything one way or another. It’s going to take a while for that meat to heat up once it’s cooled off as long as it doesn’t actually sit out in the open sun. I’m not afraid of getting lost. I’ve been hurt before stomping around in the dark and it’s not fun being a few miles from camp and packed in 4 miles from a trailhead. I do pack out meat with me on the trip out. If I’m back to camp at midnight I’m not going back that night. I’m going to crash and get some sleep and come back in the morning rested and ready to go. If the meat is in a game bag and in my pack I’ve never had a concern with flies or bees. Most pack outs in NM usually aren’t that bad. Logging roads everywhere or oil and gas roads. The worst are usually in a wilderness area which I don’t hunt much anymore. My pack out last season was pretty easy. 1 mile on an old logging road to the atv then maybe 1 1/2 mile drive to camp. Shot the elk at 8:30 in the morning and back at camp around 11. Had some lunch, took a little siesta and went back early afternoon to get the rest. Had everything hanging again at camp by 4 pm. This one was probably the easiest one I’ve had packing on my back. Except 2017 when I killed a bull on the same spring then the pack out was exactly the same. Everyone has their way of doing things and if it works then keep doing it.

 

[nphunter]

Well, you’re really not in the hot sun all day and neither is the meat. You’re in the trees walking in and out of shade all day which is not going to affect anything one way or another.

In general I agree, I think initial care is the most important factor. Hunt location is also a factor, I’ve killed two decent bulls here in the last few year. No trees but once you’re on top going from one drainage to the next there’s a good breeze.

I also enjoy suffering probably why I’ve never seen another sole in this area.

 

[butcherboy]

Dang, that bull died in some open country! Definitely requires some different tactics. That’s one area I would probably carry a small tarp or maybe some SIL nylon. Create some kind of shade with trekking poles or with some brush. I wouldn’t want to leave it for long in that country either. Possibly move it down into a shaded area in that draw while I’m packing the meat out. I think one of the biggest problems is what others have mentioned about having a plan before an animal is killed. If you do have a plan then you are already ahead of the game and can modify accordingly. I always enjoy threads like this!

 

[highcountrymuley]

I'll add my .02 ... 4th season, high temp around 29* low around 10* I shot cow at last light. No indication of hit but thought I heard her crash in woods a few min later. Couldn't find her in dark and didn't want to push if wounded. Found her next morning at about 7am kinda crouched /fallen against tree. Not air flowing underneath but kinda against tree with left rear leg sticking out under right side. Left shoulder was on ground... I could move all extremities after some tugging. So definitely not frozen.
I was conscious of the meat touching ground being spoiled, kept all 4 quarters labeled separately to monitor. Got everything out that day through off and on snowstorm. Home at about 11pm and in coolers.
Got all hair off, cleaned up quarters next day. Changing frozen water bottles . All meat was fine and can't tell any difference in any quarter's taste.