Hirshey's Hunting Season 2016

[teanawayslayer]

Is that your mom with the backpack deer?

[hirshey]

Awesome write up Hershey, how do you like that tipi?? Is it spacious enough for 3 and gear? How much does it weigh, sorry for all the questions but it looks like a sweet set up for packing in??

Hey! So the Seek Outside tipi is considered an 8 man, but you want to half that (at least) for gear and stove additions. The basic setup (stove and tipi) is 10 pounds, but if you add the liner (which I would recommend) it ends up weighing in more around 13 pounds. It is a GREAT late season setup especially because you can dry gear out, cook, and be warm. I think after comparing my Kifaru 12 man and Jeff's Seek Outside 8 man, I'm still sold more on the Kifaru tipis... I like my stove better, the reinforced stake attachment points are nice, the hole for the stove is more manageable, and the attachment of the liners is much simpler. Overall, they're both lightweight and offer some great luxuries to spiking out in freezing temps for long periods of time. I'm sold... we will take it for all spike camp endeavors for trips with 3-5 people. If you get in the 4-6 range for people, you'll want a small gear tent (which is what the green one functioned as for us) or at least a way to keep your gear outdoors and out of the weather.

[hirshey]

Is that your mom with the backpack deer?

Heath, yeah she's one and the same... the gal that made the backpack deer down in SE Washington. 

But that's not her in the photo above, if that's what you were asking. That was the buck that was previously known as "Storm's buck".

[hirshey]

The deer made the full trek back down to spike camp that night, but the elk only made it to the river… turns out dragging a full elk (boned out, plus hide and antlers) 4 miles is quite the task! 

[hirshey]

Elk leaving spike

[hirshey]

My fella, the camp sherpa.

[hirshey]

Deer departing spike

[hirshey]

The plan for the next day went a little like this: my mother planned on taking a rest day, as did Storm. He planned on hiking the lowlands and glassing as he saw fit. His knees were pretty swollen, and truth be told I was fretting his ability to make the elevation necessary to get where we thought we’d find some creatures similar to the caliber he’d already turned down. This year was different; there were flies, warm weather, and low amount of rut activity for this time of the season. Derrick and Jeff were going to get the elk back down to base camp at all costs, which just left little old me. My plan was to strike out in a different direction and see if I couldn’t find one of those pesky wolves, or perhaps even a high elevation buck.

[hirshey]

As the new day arrived, I was already well on my way to my intended location; a beautiful, open, high-elevation basin I’d considered exploring for years. I was side-hilling and slowly gaining the ridgeline when the noise faded into existence; the unmistakable howl of a wolf. It was joined by others, as excitement buzzed through every cell in my body. They were close, but how close? As the light filtered into the expansive draw, was I going to be able to see them? I sat below a small rock outcropping, silent and shaking from both the cold and the adrenaline rush I was slowly coming down from. As it would turn out, the animals faded into the terrain without detection, and I stretched my legs, now asleep, and continued on my path. Within a quarter mile, I found three beds that had once been companion to these wolves, and fresh, LARGE tracks. Continuing up the hill, magpies revealed a deer carcass the wolves had also chosen to visit, but still no wolves in the flesh.

[7mag.]

I really like your stories, Kari. You have a very entertaining way of conveying how much fun you had. Your hunts are what most of us backpack hunters are looking for.

[hirshey]

Hey there little red riding hood..

[hirshey]

The head of my basin was in full view, although I had a long trek across the terrain to put anything in it in my crosshairs, but I glassed it anyway. Immediately, I picked up multiple groups of deer feeding their way back to habitual bedding areas. Many of those groups had bucks pushing them along… it was too far away to establish points on these animals, but I knew I had to take a closer look.

[hirshey]

I really like your stories, Kari. You have a very entertaining way of conveying how much fun you had. Your hunts are what most of us backpack hunters are looking for.

Why thank you... that truly means a lot.

[elkoholic1]

TAG!!

[Skillet]

TAG!!

My favorite thread every year.  Keep it coming!