Two of us had that exact same scenario last fall. We backpacked in, planning on staying for up to 10 days. I had hunted the area before, and had packed a buck out with my camp in one trip. Four years later, I knew that at 63 it would be safer to make a separate trip to get the camp out. We had our coolers full of ice back at the truck, and they would be good for a few days if the meat was already cooled down. Try to avoid putting warm meat on your ice if possible. We had a river that came right out of the mountain by camp, and we had in fact chosen that campsite for that reason. We were snowed/fogged in for three days, but on day four, my partner got a good 4x4. It later warmed to 60+, so the boned out meat went into game bags, then heavy duty lawn/leaf bags, and into the ice cold water. After the day cooled off, we hung the game bags (be sure to take them out of the plastic), and hung them high in a shaded tree. If it had warmed the next day, we were prepared to pack out the deer to the truck, and if necessary to a meat locker in Jackson. We had stopped by the locker on our way through town to ensure their availability. It got into the 30's at night and 50's in the day, but my partner's deer was likely still very cool in the tree. I shot my buck on day six, and we repeated the process and enjoyed tenderloins on the fire grill that night. We packed both deer out on day 7, there was some ice still in the coolers, but we drove to town to top off the ice and to reward ourselves with a hot shower and a good meal, and maybe even a beer (or two). We packed back in on day 8, and out with our camp on day 9. We were home on day 11 (MN).
Our meat was as good as any deer that we have ever shot. Go in with a plan to cover all weather possibilities. Look for water on your topos if you haven't pre-scouted the area. You will need fresh drinking water any day or two anyway. You can make a plan, but this style of hunting is often like combat.....all plans change with the first shot. Good Luck.
