New to the game

[haftard]

Im kicking around the idea of back packing into the goat rocks wilderness for hunting deer. I have never done a backpack hunt nore have i ever done any backpacking. I plan on setting up a base camp and doing a 2 night kind hunt. What are some thing you can think of that i should buy and or thing you whished you knew when you did your first backpacking hunt?

[follow maggie]

Get some type of shelter- tent, hammock w/ tarp, teepee, whatever- a pack, a sleeping bag & some sort of stove to cook with and start making short weekend camping trips when the weather clears up. Make notes on what you wish you had & what you wish you'd left at home. Of course the rest of the 10 essentials go without saying: https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/ten-essentials.html

[444Marlin]

There are a lot of strong bias' on gear and what works for me might not work for you.  There are a few 'gear checklists' out there for backcountry hunting, but they usually are by hunters who are well sponsored.

I was a back-packer and mountaineer before I started hunting.  Running into archery hunters back in the wilderness areas back in the day I thought, "...That is so COOL!  I want to do that!"  The transition was easier for me because I already had my back-packing kit dialed in and I was used to being cold and miserable for days at a time .  And there is a philosophy for alpine mountaineering of traveling "Fast and Light" that translates well into hunting.  And with hunting you are hopefully coming out heavy!

Start by doing some backpack trips.  The Goat Rocks is a great area.  As well as Bumping River, William O'.  If you can borrow some gear and packs to take for a test drive to see what you like and don't like - and then settle on what you want to buy.

Your pack will need to be versatile, being able to expand for coming out heavy and comfortable for packing a variety of loads.  I use the same basic pack design that I did 20 years ago:  Mystery Ranch (Formerly Dana Designs), just with updated features and materials.  My stove is still the same one I used for 20+ years, but I've switched back and forth between different cook kits.  Tents:  I like floorless, single pole (or use your trekking poles)...great weight/room.  And I'm a down bag guy. 800 or better fill with good draft tubes and collars.  Water filter is a pump, PUR Hiker (now they are Katahdin?).

[Stein]

My suggestion would be to find a buddy that has a bunch of gear and some stuff that you could borrow.  Putting together a complete list of backpack hunting gear from scratch is going to give you a bill that will make your eyes water.  It's a good idea to try some stuff out as well as see if you like it before you drop a ton of money on something that may only be used once.

[Cab]

Learn from my mistakes 

1. Timing and weather, expect it to be colder the higher up you go. First trip I went it was late sept and it was 70's at home.....30 at 6k in elevation. My sleeping pad and bag was rated for 40 degrees, safe to say it was a cold night for me.

2. Go out and hike the spot you want and really figure out the location you want to camp. This came in handy since I showed up to my spot in the pitch black, it was snowing(was not expecting that) and it had HEAVY fog. Fog so heavy I couldn't see anything so it would have been a nightmare if I had not known exactly where I wanted to camp.

3. Pack weight really matters, how far are you going to go and how much is on your back? Know this and plan for it. If your 2 miles from your truck and you plan to go 2 miles from base camp to hunt/kill your deer you are now 4 miles from your truck. 2 trips of carrying deer meat to(3 trips of 2 miles 2 with weight) base camp is 6 miles, 3 trips from base camp to the truck is 10 miles(3 trips with weight 2 with deer meat 1 with camping gear 2 without any weight 5 total trips for a total of 10 miles) so that's 16 miles in 1 day of hiking to get a deer out to the truck in a day. Plan ahead and do the math before getting in too deep especially if your alone. My first time I went 1 mile in from the truck and stay in a 1 mile radius roughly to play it safe.

4. WATER WATER WATER, what is going to be your water source? My first trip I was foolish and the area had no water source so that meant I had to carry it on my back so not fun, it doubled the weight of my pack.

5. Emergency plan, your out there hunting and suddenly you break your ankle.....whats the plan? Have your location and the area you're going to hunt figured out. Give your EXACT location to a girlfriend,wife, parents or buddy and tell them your time line. Tell them, if you don't hear from me by Sunday at 6pm start getting worried and if you don't hear from me by Monday 8 am call for help, I'll be in this location. Would it suck paying for search and rescue to haul you out, absolutely, but at least your alive. I make a game plan with my wife every time and I never stray from my location. I tell her where I'm going to be, I even tell her I'm hunting this area and I try to stay in that range at all time.

6. FOOD, plan this part well and let me tell you that a nice Cliff bar or other bars like it are great to save weight BUT if it's freezing those bars are hard as a rock! You'll break your teeth trying to eat them. Plan food that you don't need to heat up to enjoy because you could get there and it rains nonstop and now building a fire is a total struggle. Mountain house meals are better warmed up but you can eat them just fine cold. Can you build a fire in the rain? For sure but if your cold, hungry and wet how much patience are you going to have?

7. Don't let your ego/excitement get in the way! You see a perfect buck on this ridge, you have an ok shot but then realize that if that shot doesn't drop that buck in it's tracks that it's going to run down hill and that's 1k down hill into a hell hole. My first trip went so poorly that after being out there for 12hours I realized that NOTHING was going to plan, my gear was not rated for the temps at night which I didn't expect, all my clothes were soaked, my Cliff bars were all hard as a rock, everything was wet because it rained and snowed so making a fire while freezing was WAY harder then I expected(nor did the fire last very long no matter how hard I tried). I was cold, wet, hungry, I got 1 hour of sleep at best, I was in great shape physically but mentally I wasn't in any shape to make smart decisions. I packed it in and went home instead of moving my base camp another mile in which was the plan . Be smart and be safe, it might hurt your ego but it will end up being a story you can laugh about afterwards. I still plan to go back to that spot some day and hunt it, I have a score to settle with it  but at least I can because I didn't let me ego make decisions for me.

Hope this helps and I hope your first trip is better then mine was.

[OltHunter]

To piggy back on Cab's #5 - Garmin inReach that never stays out of reach.  I'm big on safety and will always recommend that first to anyone that asks.  It's not 100%, but your best option should you find yourself immobile or lost and out of cell service.  It does no good if it's buried in your pack though unless you get lost.

Sport Clot and some type of tourniquet system.

[haftard]

So rule 1 safty
2 plan ahead. Water. Camp site. Foods.
3 plan for the worst and plan for freezing tems
4 do a pre trip
5 grt in shape.
6 try it barrow as much as posibal or go with a buddy

[444Marlin]

Going with a buddy - especially one that is experienced and has some of the gear already is great.
Splitting up communal gear:  stove, cook set, tent, food, first aid, water filter - can cut back on each individuals' total pack weight.  Having someone to share camp duties with can also help with efficiencies.  And it's always good to have someone to help if something goes awry.

There were a couple early MeatEater podcasts that were focused on gear, that might be worthwhile to listen to.  Again, it's tough to weed out what is a valid preference for something because it's good solid gear, vs. who their title sponsors are for those episodes.

And all the best gear in the world won't do you a bit of good if you don't have good physical and mental fitness.  Walking in the mountains is different than doing a stair-climber in a gym.  Handling a stressful day at home is a lot different than a stressful day in the wilderness hours from first responders.

[bornhunter]

Why the goat rocks?

[haftard]

I realy like the way it looks on the maps and if i dont see any deer at least i might see some goats

[Onewhohikes]

Reg season?

[Tbob]

Lots of good advise so far! Not to discourage you, but my brother and I did an early archery elk hunt in there last year and didn’t see one deer hunting sun up to sun down.. good luck though!

[Jpmiller]

Don't buy super expensive gear and don't look strictly at backpack hunting brands. Lots of non hunting companies make good stuff. You can upgrade later when you figure out what you like.



Get a pack with some kind of frame. in my experience makes everything way better.

[millerwheeler]

Don't buy super expensive gear and don't look strictly at backpack hunting brands. Lots of non hunting companies make good stuff. You can upgrade later when you figure out what you like.



Get a pack with some kind of frame. in my experience makes everything way better.

To be fair if you find something you really like or that u know will suit you you should buy the best you can afford.  This upgrade later advice costs people so much more down the road . Just saying

[buglebrush]

Don't buy super expensive gear and don't look strictly at backpack hunting brands. Lots of non hunting companies make good stuff. You can upgrade later when you figure out what you like.



Get a pack with some kind of frame. in my experience makes everything way better.

Buy once, cry once.   

If you can't afford a quality pack, etc...  I'd try to borrow.