How do people pack out boned meat?

[biederboat]

I am curious how people who pack out boned meat do it. I have a Camptrails Freighter frame and some nice bags made from old heavy bed sheets. Do you put the boned out meat into the bags and then just strap the bags on? When you get it into camp, do you just hang the meat in the bags as you would quarters?

Please note that I'm not asking how to bone out meat from the carcass or whether to bone or quarter. I just know sooner or later when I get that big bull 3 miles out it's coming out of the woods boned and I just want to do it the easiest way possible.

Thanks,
Biederboat

[ 02-23-2003, 10:52 AM: Message edited by: biederboat ]

[SeanD]

I throw it in bags and strap them to the pack frames. I try and keep the meat as clean as possible, and then after we get back to camp, I pull the meat out and clean up any hair, etc, then put it back into bags and hang it with the quarters.

[Clackman]

i prefer a nice pick up but if not i use a chain saw winch and bring them out whole i have been on maybe 50prox elk kills never had one yet we had to pack board but i always take em just in case.

[Gun Rod Bow]

I read a book written by an Oregon guy from Medford area called "bullets-blood-and backstraps" Awesome name huh?

It went into pretty good detail about boning and caring for meat and taking it out on packframes.

It was specific about the need to let the meat cool properly by laying it out and letting the air get around it. We do this with quarters.

My opinion is I don't bone quarters. I leave front and rear quarters on the bone. Bone out the spine, tenderloin, neck, ribs. This way works fine with a back frame. But I ususally put it on my horse or mule when it's quartered.

Good luck.

GRB

[Grantspastor]

I commend you on your choice of pack frames. Mine has performed wonderfully. I never boned anything out. Even with the various moose we killed...we packed it out bone-in. My feeling was it would keep more meat from being wasted.

We usually hunted from a river camp. Once we got the meat back to camp, I'd hang it from a tree with a block and tackle. I sleep better when the Alaskan bears can't get to it

[ 02-23-2003, 09:24 PM: Message edited by: Grantspastor ]

[Beer Waggin]

I do the same as GRB. Bone out everything except for the quarters, then I strap it all on my Kifaru pack.

[ 02-23-2003, 09:31 PM: Message edited by: NorRivDave ]

[tailchaser]

I hate to bone critters out in the field, but sometimes it's necessary if you're in there five miles or so and don't want to make a couple of return trips. The best way I've found it to seperate the meat into certain bags, front shoulders into one, a ham in each bag and then backstraps and excess meat from the rest of the animal. So you have four bags basically. Strap it very very tight to the pack frame. Nothing more annoying than leaning to one side while the meat leans to the other for five miles. Like one of the guys said, clean it up back at camp and seperate the meat when hanging it. You don't want pieces of meat (two chunks of shoulders) touching or as little touching as possible. If it touches it'll create a moist spot and spoil. One other thing is to wipe it down with a bottle of vinegar when cleaning the meat. It keeps the bugs off of it, and makes a nice sheen on top of the meat and you don't loose nearly as much from the top layers. Amazingly it doesn't hurt or create a taste on the meat at all.

tc

[CAGEY]

I place the meat in regular meat sacks and then into a pack sack which is on a regular back pack. Once i get to camp the meat is cleaned and then hung on a pole to air dry and cool. Wet meat in a pack sack is a sure way to spoil the meat. It needs to air out and cool properly.Once it has cooled out i put it back into a clean elk bag and hang same. If i am in camp for several days i will sometimes just leave it on the pole and drape a tarp over the pole to help keep the weather off of the meat. I have never lost any meat due to spoilage. If for some reason i cant get the meat to camp the same day i make sure that it is up off of the ground so air can circulate around and under it. We usually bring the meat out in quarters but when boning out some of it the method i described seems to get the job done with no problem.

[jet]

A few years ago I built a single wheel decoy cart which works great as a pack out cart. I usally push it into the area that I am hunting and stash it. If it is a mt. goat terrain... pack frame all the way.

Jet~~~

[K16]

NorRivDave you've got a message.