Truck camp packing list

[isItFallYet]

Now that's a thing I wouldn't have thought of. Genius! Thank you!

Bear spray works great for your engine compartment! Learned this on a whim, while accidentally choking my father-in-law out, who happened to be downwind from my truck! I also sprayed a perimeter around my truck and that did the trick for those little bastards!

 

[rambo2345]

More water than you think you could ever use.

 

[Wrench]

Peet boot dryer!

A big ass pot to keep water in. At minus temps you're going to have to thaw water.

I suggest white gas for heat and light. It works better cold and is less bulk for the bang.

 

[Wrench]

....and a battery booster. A big one.

 

[S-3 ranch]

Trail Fire Grill for all base camp cooking needs.

Shower system: bucket, rechargeable battery powered shower pump, pop up changing station. Simply add boiling water to bucket and add other water to get to desired temperature.

Food: vacuum seal and refrigerate/freeze real food to prepare for dinners each night. Boil/simmer in the bags for easy/no clean up or grill/wok pre prepped meals over the Trail Fire for same.

Toilet: @mtnwrunner has a system using a bucket, bags and a toilet seat that’s simple, clean and you don’t fill the area(s) with cat holes for others to deal with. Yes, you have to pack your scat out and deal with it.

Kitchen trash bags and a bucket with lid

 

[BDRam16]

For that long of a time with that far of a drive to town I’d get a 12v cooler. Run it off a large battery bank with solar panels. Might be too late to get that going now but that would have you set with relatively fresh food the entire trip.

 

[MT-nuffgun]

Wow, you guys go fancy with your shower systems. I haul water in black 5gal buckets and leave out in the sun, cut the top off a Gatorade bottle and stand on a tote lid. Generally get 4 showers off 1 bucket. If it’s late season I take a big bag of wet wipes.

 

[Mtnmilsurp]

So how did the trip go?

 

[robtattoo]

So how did the trip go?

Honestly?
Best hunting trip of my life.

I ended up spending 17 days in the mountains, with a couple of trips to town for R&R, a proper shower & laundry.

I didn't pull the trigger on an elk, but I passed on 9 cows holding out for the 5x5 bull I'd seen regularly. I was into elk, probably 10 out of 17 days, once I'd got a rough handle on the area.
I couldn't camp where I'd originally planned, it being full when I got there, so I went to a second area I'd scouted & basically had the place to myself! There was a reasonably easy, 2 mile trail within a half mile of camp & I used that to get me up high, taking maybe 1-3 mile loops out from it. According to Onx,I averaged 8 miles a day (and lost 9lb doing it!) I only bumped into one other hunter during the whole 17 days & never crossed another footprint on the trail at all.

The first few days were unusually warm. High 60s - low 70s during the day, 20s at night & drier than a popcorn fart. I think on day 6 maybe, the snow showed up & the mercury dropped, topping out at 28° during the day & hitting -22 at night.
The propane heater DEFINITELY paid for itself & I only needed to top up on gas after 13 days. I'd guess the heater was on 'low' for about 9 hours every evening/night. Not to shabby!

Late October is always wierd in that area. The rut may just be wrapping up (I did hear 1 lone bugle) or it could have been over for 3 weeks. If there's snow, the migration kicks in & it can be hectic with herd of hundreds or, if it's warm, it's tough to even find elk. Mule Deer are always abundant though.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Heck yeah man sounds like an amazing trip! Some of my best hunting trips over the years have turned into camping trips with no kill.

I did 3 weeks straight, solo one year and hunted harder than I ever have for a big granite buck I had seen scouting. That was one of the best trips of my life that I still think about over 12 years later.

 

[Mtnmilsurp]

Glad you had a good time!

 

[robtattoo]

A few trip pics...

 

[robtattoo]

 

[robtattoo]

what a difference 8 hours makes.....
Apparently the mice thought that my tent made THE best roof for their colony. Damn things kept me awake for the first couple of nights, until my brain learned to tune them out (and realize they're not bears) And I forgot to take mouse traps.