Hunting Washington Forum

Big Game Hunting => Out Of State Hunting => Topic started by: Wanderer on October 26, 2014, 10:03:34 AM

Title: Getting it home
Post by: Wanderer on October 26, 2014, 10:03:34 AM: going on our first out of state hunt. Elk tag in arizona late november. driving down. assuming we have good luck - looking for suggestions on how to get the meat back. should i just take a bunch of coolers down or ??
Title: Re: Getting it home
Post by: vandeman17 on October 26, 2014, 10:09:59 AM: Get it cooled quick, debone it and get it on ice. Should be good to go
Title: Re: Getting it home
Post by: lokidog on October 26, 2014, 10:19:32 AM: Easier is to buy U-haul boxes as needed and line with foam from Home depot. Works great and doesn't take up room on the way there.
Title: Re: Getting it home
Post by: Guy on October 26, 2014, 08:09:12 PM: I hunt Wyoming every two or three years. What I do is take a couple of coolers in my rig.

Once I tag my game I take it to the local meat processor and have it cut, wrapped and frozen while I do a little photography or fly fishing for a day or two. Pick up the meat, pack the coolers with it, and drive home. Once I had a delay in the trip home and it was almost three days from the time I picked up the meat and the time I got home.

The meat was still frozen solid as rocks when I got home! Good coolers, packed tight, frozen meat and if you want to get real good about it, some dry ice in the coolers helps too. I just came home with a mule deer and a pronghorn, it's about 900 miles. The deer was in one cooler, the pronghorn in the smaller cooler and all was well, once again. I've brought home I think: 2 pronghorn, 4 mule deer, and 1 elk over the years. Wyoming has been good to me.

Regards, Guy
Title: Re: Getting it home
Post by: Guy on October 26, 2014, 08:13:02 PM: Oh, and it's well worth reviewing the CWD regulations... Prohibiting transport of brain & spine across state lines.

This one perplexed me for a bit until I made contact with a taxidermist near where I hunt. Now he takes the heads, mounts them, and ships them to me several months later when complete. It's all very legal and safe. You're not going to get caught with a nasty CWD deer skull in your rig along the way.
Title: Re: Getting it home
Post by: actionshooter on October 26, 2014, 09:42:28 PM: I have done what guy has recommended a few times hunting in Colorado, seems to be the best way I have found.