Is backpack hunting as great as it's craked up to be?

CoHiCntry · Mar 11, 2014

I'm right there with ya! You don't HAVE to backpack to have a great hunt or to be successful. It's like everything else... backpack hunts seem to be appealing, mostly to newbies because it seems like the most "extreme" or "hard core". Everybody wants to be like the guy they see in the trophy mags. That's just the way it is. Certain areas call for backpacking but most don't. Don't get me wrong, I love backpacking and have had great memorible times doing it. It IS NOT the only way to hunt though contrary to popular belief!

One problem I have is sleeping. I cannot sleep good in a small tent on a pad which makes it really tough after a few day's. Therefore base camps with more comfortable cots and wood stoves and my favorite... our cabin, is much more enjoyable for me.

Interesting topic. Should be some good opinions out there.

Ikeepitcold · Mar 11, 2014

I am in no way a hard core hunter, minimalists, or even a 7day back country hunter. I spend a night or two in the mountains in a bivy with my gear and I do really enjoy that. Hard core I think depends on the hunter. Is there a definition of Hard Core hunting? I'm not sure. I feel that I hunt hard and even hard core in my own terms of what that means. I always have a base camp where hunting camp is living in the hills. Be it my camp trailer, wall tent, or high camp where we can take the quads and have the comforts of camping as most people know it. The mountains where we hunt the 7 day pack in hunt is unnessicary where a night or two is totally common for us.

RockChucker30 · Mar 11, 2014

I don't think you HAVE to backpack to have a good hunt out west, and in fact for someone who has never backpacked I wouldn't recommend it.

Backpack hunting is a tool, the same as a map, a gun, a bow, call, etc. Backpacking in means your camp is more mobile, so it is easier to check out new areas if you don't find game. It is also more energy efficient. If elk are located 3 miles from the trailhead and you can discretely camp 1/2 mile from them then you just saved up to 6 miles of walking in and out per day, and gave yourself more time for sleep.

Backpacking in general and backpack hunting especially isn't for everyone. There is a physical fitness bar that needs to be chinned, specific gear needed, but most of all it takes knowledge and preferably some experience. It is my fear that someone successfully drops an elk 5 miles deep with 3k+ vert to get out and realizes too late that they've made a mistake.

Ikeepitcold · Mar 11, 2014

I had a conversation with Guy that he said in parts of Wy you have to walk for miles to get to the base of mountain just to beignet your ascent to where you would start hunting. In Nv the mountains are close to trail heads and you don't have to walk so far just start hiking up the mountains. I think that is that case you would have to back pack in and stay for multiple days to make the hunt efficient just as Rockchucker has said. Be mobile.

hardstalk · Mar 11, 2014

I think it adds more adventure to my hunts. Do I always pack in? No, but I always have the necessities incase I have to sleep on an animal until morning to kill it. A hunt is a hunt, some enjoy spending 5+ days alone in the hills. Myself included. You find a different element to the hunt when doing so. But alot of the successful and consistent trophy mule deer hunters I know have a pretty cozy camp along a road. The biggest bucks might not be 5 miles in. But on some hunts I prefer seclusion.

mnhunter · Mar 11, 2014

I agree 100% that you don't need to backpack in to have a great time. That being said, I never leave MN without the gear to go in for a couple of days if it is neccesary, to give me a positional advantage on an animal.

NVBird'n'Big · Mar 11, 2014

I have just got in to backpacking in the last few years and I really do love it when it's either just me or a partner who loves it too. That being said I still do love a traditional camp hunt. Growing up hunting with my Dad brother and uncles (who are definitely not backpackers) the hunt was more than just for the horns, it was sitting around the campfire and eating good food out in the mountains we all loved with the people we most loved. Although I cannot wait to get the pack back on every year, I still love most when my Dad draws and I get to spend the time up there with him. We hunt hard and have taken some really nice animals but coming back to camp after the long day makes the hunt something special.

25contender · Mar 11, 2014

Here at home we don't do any backpack hunting at all. They are all day hunts from the house. When I am out west I personally find it easier to pack in to where I start hunting (a little over 3 miles) and set up camp. I just find it more time and energy efficient to pack in. It doesn't have anything to do with whats been read in a magazine or seen on TV since I have been doing it the same way since the late 80s early 90s. Now if I could drive to where I start hunting that would be a different set of circumstances. Packing in also allows me to move around more freely if I find animals further in. Last year elk hunting I moved camp 4 times never that far but up to higher altitude to where I found the elk. I would have been drained if I had to come down from the 9500ft rugged terain and and then back to the truck or base camp 3-4 miles away at 7500ft and then back up again the next day. In my case I just think it is more about efficiency.
But I do really like the day hunts around home!!

extreme minnesotan · Mar 11, 2014

Looking at maps, I find it hard to locate any spot that is isolated. I am a non resident so I can't hunt the wilderness areas, but from that can you actually find an area that do not have trails every 1 to 2 miles apart? I am talking Wyoming. It seems that there are trails everywhere.

I like the others enjoy the solitude that backpacking offers. But who can't sleep better in an RV or cabin. Most of my elk hunting has been in Colorado where we rented a cabin and could view elk from the cabin that we went after. Great hunts and a lot of fun. First cow I shot couple buddies didn't go hunting that morning and knew where I was going to be and actually watched me draw back and shoot. They couldn't see what I was shooting at but got picture of me at full draw from a mile away.

THelms · Mar 11, 2014

I do both. In fact am in the process of revamping both my setups. I'm going more minimalist with my backpacking gear; ie, just a bag (coyote-ing out), tarp (more extended multi-day trips.) However, I fully enjoy the comfort of a good base camp/car camp. My wife and I are having a wall tent made to our specs for just such trips. There are a couple spots in the Wyoming mountains that lie in General Elk units where I have had great success and wonderful hunts (note the difference) from a car camp/base camp. The luxury of having a cushy wall tent/camper/pickup bed to retire to at day's end or after a couple days coyoted out cannot be measured and is one of the best arguments against backpack hunting. With that said being versatile enough to leave the roads behind can as Frost poeticized and I misquote "make all the difference." There is much to be gleaned from being alone and on your own in the wilderness miles from a road; it keeps us honest with ourselves and our creator, eliminating any doubt of our true place in this world. At the same time taking little kids and or less hearty individuals along with us can be impossible on "backpack" hunts and does alienate us from the treasure of time spent among family and friends in a more reasonable locale and comfort level. There are trade offs both ways.

As I've written on here once before and will allude to again now; last fall was a time for the security and comfort of a wall tent base/car camp for a buddy and myself. He is not one for all night stays in the great wide open and prefers and is therefore most comfortable in a more secure environment. Now some would think that this limited the possibility for his/our hunting success or kill. Not at all. We got up early each morning and often times hunted right from camp. We were always in elk and he eventually killed his first bull that weekend. That hunt would have been miserable for him and therefore me as well if I'd dragged him miles into the backcountry.

It is about balance! We have lost that perspective with our modern warped technology infused over-civilized sensibilities. To many of us the hunt is a competition, we must WIN! I'm guilty of this at times... feverishly rushing up a drainage because I'm late! Totally missing a major part of the experience. However, if I were to tell you that the WIN doesn't matter at all then I'd be lying through my teeth. We hunt to kill, we hunt to live life, we hunt to stay centered, hunt to relax, hunt to be affirmed; there are so many reasons we hunt and HOW we hunt matters as much as why we hunt. For some of us loading up a pack and trudging off to fight imagined dragons is how we roll and how we like it. For others its about sharing time with others in the evenings, food, comfort, and hunting and that is how we roll and how we like it.

Point being? The west isn't a way to live its a place on a map and that map can and should be explored by hunters of all stripes in the ways them deem fit. The best of them know how to and participate in several different methods thus getting the most from their experiences. Hunt how you want and be happy, its a privilege not a right!

packmule · Mar 11, 2014

Timberstalker said:
It seems there is an enormus amount of discussion backpack hunting lately. I can see "new" western hunters thinking this the best and possibly the only way to be successful out west. I rarely stay out for days on end, to be honest it is rare for me to stay out at all. For the guys that are new to hunting out west it would be nice for them to know you don't have to be a backpack hunter to have a great hunt. At least I don't think so?

My greatest hunt was a sheep hunt, I was out every morning and evening for 17 day on that hunt. I was never more than 4 hours from camp and slept nice and comfortable in a RV every night. I for one would like to know that I can go out of state and still have a great hunt without having to spend hundreds of dollars on light weight backpack gear to stay out. The preperation that is involved it this style of hunting can be overwhelming, especially for hunters that are new to it.

How many of you guys still have great hunts out west without the pain and suffering of backpack hunting?

I prefer C,H&A, a flushable toilet and a steakhouse close by. IMHO, back pack hunting is geared more toward the opportunity units to try to get in and find the best quality animal possible well off the well beaten paths that have managed to out-maneuver the crowds. That's not to say you won't return to your vehicle and see the biggest animal of the trip standing 100yds from it.

Joseph · Mar 11, 2014

I spend way more time hunting each year just as day trips. I live surrounded by mountains and crown land so I just pick my spot for the day and away I go. My love of hunting and the outdoors is just enhanced by the backpack trips I do manage to fit in. Usually one 5-7 day day trip and two or three extended weekend trips each year. The backpack hunts my friend and I go on are probably just as much for the adventure as we always pick new areas to go into. We hike, hunt, fish, and generally just have a blast. You don't need to backpack to be successful but they are definitely my favourite hunts of the year. So far I have been more successful on my day trips, that may be due to better knowledge of the area or that I spend more time on day trips.

dustin ray · Mar 11, 2014

I also agree that you don't need to backpack in to have a great time. Sum of my best hunt have been out of my trailer or at a lodge on a guided hunt. But for me just because backpack hunting is so hard and challenging it is what drives me to train all year and theres nothing like it to be 10 miles from your truck and your only connection to your normal life is on your back and the only thing you think about is the hunt.To each is own idea of a great hunt and as long as i get to hunt im good. But im not busting my ass all year to out hike a guide or to hunt from my trailer it all about one thing to be successful in the mountains backpack hunting.

Musket Man · Mar 11, 2014

It really depends on the hunt, area, terrain, access, time of year, ect for me. If its late season and I can drive fairly close to where Im hunting its worth it to me to walk in every day and set up my canvas tent and wood stove. Coming back and warming up and drying out in the tent by the stove can be well worth it that time of year, plus the days are shorter and you can sleep plenty and still have time to walk in and out in the dark.

Early seasons if Im over a mile or so from where I want to hunt I would rather backpack in and camp close to where Im hunting. Especially in the high country climbing up a mountain every day takes alot of energy and I would rather save it for hunting. What I consider my 2 best hunts were backpack hunts in high country and I never pulled the trigger on either of them, but they were experiences I will never forget! I really like backpack hunting and the hardest thing about it for me is always breaking camp and heading back to the trail head.

You dont have to spend alot of money to backpack hunt. Most of my gear is Army or Army surplus. Its not the greatest or lightest gear there is but its tough and reliable and it works. With what ever gear you have and a good Army surplus store I bet you could get set up for a backpack hunt for $2-300 easily!

BigSurArcher · Mar 13, 2014

Great conversation here!

I backpack hunt for the adventure, the test of self, the search for solitude, and the increased odds of finding- and staying on- bigger, less pressured animals.

At age 13 my dad took me on my first true backpack hunt in the Ruby Mountains in Nevada. My dad had been hunting this way since he was in his 20s, and he had (and has) plenty of trophies to show for it. That first 5-day trip with him tested me heavily, both physically and mentally... but I loved every second of it. My dad coached me along the way, making sure that I understood that I was earning something with every grueling step, and every boring second spend behind the glass. He taught me not to get discouraged, because we had worked hard to get to a place where anything could happen at any time- and we were the only ones there to take advantage of a wide-open opportunity. He taught me to not be in a rush- because each morning we woke up, we were already "there". Like clockwork on day 5 that trip, these lessons were validated with a great 6x7 backcountry Muley on the ground. We split the load for the pack out on our Cabela's Alaskan frames, and I learned the extra steps required to properly care for game in such situations.

From then on, my desire to learn more and become more efficient at backpack hunting has not stopped. It's a year-round game, and a passion that has opened up opportunities that I wouldn't trade for the world. Backpack hunting fuels my motivation for proper daily health. It's what makes me excited to work hard and excel at my job. It's the reason my dad and I are as close as we are. Reflecting back, these are the reasons I continue to do it- even when "not necessary". It's like chasing a dream.

hardstalk · Mar 13, 2014

BigSurArcher said:
Great conversation here!

I backpack hunt for the adventure, the test of self, the search for solitude, and the increased odds of finding- and staying on- bigger, less pressured animals.

At age 13 my dad took me on my first true backpack hunt in the Ruby Mountains in Nevada. My dad had been hunting this way since he was in his 20s, and he had (and has) plenty of trophies to show for it. That first 5-day trip with him tested me heavily, both physically and mentally... but I loved every second of it. My dad coached me along the way, making sure that I understood that I was earning something with every grueling step, and every boring second spend behind the glass. He taught me not to get discouraged, because we had worked hard to get to a place where anything could happen at any time- and we were the only ones there to take advantage of a wide-open opportunity. He taught me to not be in a rush- because each morning we woke up, we were already "there". Like clockwork on day 5 that trip, these lessons were validated with a great 6x7 backcountry Muley on the ground. We split the load for the pack out on our Cabela's Alaskan frames, and I learned the extra steps required to properly care for game in such situations.

From then on, my desire to learn more and become more efficient at backpack hunting has not stopped. It's a year-round game, and a passion that has opened up opportunities that I wouldn't trade for the world. Backpack hunting fuels my motivation for proper daily health. It's what makes me excited to work hard and excel at my job. It's the reason my dad and I are as close as we are. Reflecting back, these are the reasons I continue to do it- even when "not necessary". It's like chasing a dream.

And that ladies and gentlemen is the intro to one hell of a book!! Or it could be. Sums it up well sir. Great post bsa!

Kevin Root · Mar 13, 2014

Well written BigSurArcher and very inspiring. I've found that some folks just don't enjoy backpacking much and some would rather do other things and or hunt other ways. There surly are a lot of other ways to kill nice mature animals and backpacking is not the only way to achieve that. Everyone does have their likes and dislikes in life and to each their own.

I get a lot of satisfaction and fulfillment from carrying a pack on my back and carrying all that I'll need for the overnight stays to get away from roads. For me, it makes it that much more of an adventure. I find hiking fun and I also really enjoy it. It's hard work backpacking at times and there is an element of danger it in but it's just something I find very gratifying. It's a triumph, an achievement and I think about doing it often and of ways I can do it all better and be more efficient at it. I plan on doing it as long as I can or until I'm not able to anymore. It's one of my passions in life to backpack in the mountains.

arwaterfowler · Mar 13, 2014

If BSA's post doesn't get you excited then backpacking ain't for you.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Is backpack hunting as great as it's craked up to be?

Veteran member

Veteran member

Administrator

Active Member

Administrator

Veteran member

Active Member

Veteran member

Veteran member

Veteran member

Member

Administrator

Veteran member

Active Member

Veteran member

Veteran member

Very Active Member

Veteran member

Very Active Member

Active Member