Solo archery season

[Navesgane]

Hello all, new member here in SW Colorado. I'm really enjoying this forum and hope to learn a lot and share when I can. I'm fairly new to elk hunting and am considering taking up bow hunting for elk but have a few concerns. Mostly is the after the kill scenario. It's fairly warm here during archery season as I'm sure it is many other places so what or how do you pack out meat in warmer weather and keep it from going bad, especially when its just you? I like to hike out a good ways when hunting during rifle season but its also much cooler. Thanks!

[easeup]

I have been lucky I guess in that none of them ever went bad on me. September does have plenty of hot days normally.
Just stack your quarters onto some fallen timber so the air can get under them or hang in a tree if you have such equipment to do so.
And make sure they are in the shade and have the fly cloth on them. they will cool out sufficiently at night.

[twinkieman]

We have done exactly like the previous post, and after getting our meat back to camp, hung it during daytime in old sleeping bags, and then take those off overnight. The meat stays great this way. If the only thing keeping you from archery hunting is the heat, then you really should have no concerns, you should be an archer in no time.

[otcWill]

We've left a few for quite a while (6-8hours) and never had any spoil. Get it off the bone and hang it in the shade or put in in heavy duty trash bags and submerge in creek or just hang over a creek and you'll not have a problem. Good luck!

[WapitiTalk1]

Hello all, new member here in SW Colorado. I'm really enjoying this forum and hope to learn a lot and share when I can. I'm fairly new to elk hunting and am considering taking up bow hunting for elk but have a few concerns. Mostly is the after the kill scenario. It's fairly warm here during archery season as I'm sure it is many other places so what or how do you pack out meat in warmer weather and keep it from going bad, especially when its just you? I like to hike out a good ways when hunting during rifle season but its also much cooler. Thanks!

Welcome to "the" elk forum Navesgane; glad to have you on board. Here's a thread that contains some good information on this very topic. Feel free to bring it back up by posting a comment, asking a question, etc. It's probably a great time to bring that one back "up" as we're getting very close to season. RJ

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2335&p=28939&hilit=game+care#p28939

[Castnblast]

Ditto on all the above. Remember the meat will spoil from the bone out. You can cut deep slits down to the bone along the muscle and tendons lines to help it cool more effectively.

[Bullnuts]

I like to get the skin off in a hurry. If I quarter, the quarters go into game bags and get piled onto limbs in the shade while I pack them out. If I'm not having to quarter, meaning that I was able to drive up to where the elk went down or I'm able to get a game cart in and take the animal out whole, I get it into the vehicle, skin it there with the old rock under the neck hide trick, and then head for town to put it in the cooler.

[>>>---WW---->]

Go to www.youtube,com and type in (fred eichler field dressing elk) This is the fastest way to break down an elk that I have ever tried. You can do it skin on like in the video or skin off. Which ever you prefer.