backcountry list

[huntingnut]

I found a great Mountainsmith 20 deg syn bag on E-bay for $40 shipped. my Brother and I bought a cheap two man pack tent and had horrible condesation problems. We went with mre's because we didn't have a stove, but they weight a ton for a 5 day hunt. I am looking at the jetboil, my brother in-law has one and loves it. My first pack in hunt had my pack weighting in a 75lbs. That was way too much, it killed my on the pack in. I will be working on macking that lighter for this year.

[coastalghost]

Military camo gore-tex bivy for me, tyvek for the bottom with boughs underneath for cush...lightweight folding saw is indespensable for boughs and or sawing of antlers etc. siltarp for the top and a 3/4 length thermarest prolite 3.  MSR pocket rocket(jet boils are probably better but just a little more weight),isobutane, titanium mug with long wooden spoon, Mtn house, smoked summerun steelie for lunch or the bbq pork, energy bars, Kashi instant brkfst. iodine for water. I use the "bladder" from the "wine in a box" as a water receptacle...works awesome.   Instant coffee,ibuprofen and a couple of theraflu packets, 6 pack bud and some crown:chuckle:

[Broken Arrow]

Here is my short list of major items I use.


bivy: http://www.beyondoutside.com/ItemDesc.asp?IC=ch1%2Dbiv%2Dalpingr
 
stove: http://jetboil.com/
 
bag: http://www.bigagnes.com/str_bags.php?id=dc
 
pad: http://www.bigagnes.com/str_pads.php?id=ia
 
tent: http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?AFC-googlebase&productId=39195392&engine=googlebase&keyword=28366
 
pack (2800l): http://www.badlandspacks.com/
 
rain gear: http://www.riverswest.com/static/index.html and http://www.hunting-fishing-gear.com/article-display/900.html
 
gortex socks: http://www.surplusandoutdoors.com/ishop/877/shopscr1302.html
 
knife: http://www.gerberstore.com/index.php?xpage=itempage&xid=708

gps: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=145&pID=310

Boots: http://www.danner.com/category/id/100353.do

Water purification: http://www.msrgear.com/watertreatment/

Food: MRE’s and Mountain House

[MountainWalk]

coastalghost, thats a pretty good idea concerning the wine in a box bladder.. iv had quite a few store bought bladders, and all of them leaked real bad. a client once gave me a real nice camelback, and the bladder was real nice. but it got stolen. i now use two water bottles, and bring about 3 feet of fish tank pump tube with me. the tube is good for grabbin water.

[coastalghost]

my old hunting buddy turned me on to the wine bladder...Ive used the same one for 15 years and never had a problem with it. Sometimes where you camp and where the water is can be a bitch to get to so I like to grab as much as I can before heading out.  I like the fish tube idea....may have to throw some in.

[coonhound]

My take on Washington Bivy hunting is a little different than going on an Alaska hunt.  I don't see the point in investing $1000's of dollars in gear unless you're going to be using it for 4 season use. 

I only use mine in September and October:

-I use the Cabela's XPG bivy, around $100
-Big Agnes pad, around $60
-Don't remember the name of my bag, it's prima loft fill rated for 15 deg, weighs 2.9lbs  $120
-Cabela's XPG wing, about $70

That's only $350 for my sleeping arrangement and it keeps me warm and dry at less than 6lbs total weight.

I use the Eberlestock J104 for my pack, it's very versatile pack that handles a heavy load of meat comfortably, that is as comfortable as 80+ pounds can be.

A very important piece of your gear is the boot. Most of the German or Italian made boots are great, The Meindl's are great, I just picked up a pair of Kennetrek's we'll see how they do, they seem like great boots so far. 

In Washington it is rare to find a place that is deeper than 10 miles, most of my bivy hunts are in the 4 - 7 mile range.  If the weather gets extremely bad and you can't take it anymore, you're never more than 3 - 4 hours from the truck.  In Washington you don't need a lot of gear to stay safe.  My take on a stove is optional, if I'm only in for a couple days I just eat cold items like sandwiches, jerky, granola etc.

Good luck,

Coon

PS I'm counting on a couple summer trips you better be ready.

[ICEMAN]

When I pack in for just a few days, for heating water, I take an esbit stove and fuel tablets. Incredibly small, lightweight and predictable. When you are leaving, you are not packing out half a can of fuel... Dont laugh, they work, and if you only need a few hot meals on a trip....they work fine.

http://www.rei.com/product/653343

[actionshooter]

When I pack in for just a few days, for heating water, I take an esbit stove and fuel tablets. Incredibly small, lightweight and predictable. When you are leaving, you are not packing out half a can of fuel... Dont laugh, they work, and if you only need a few hot meals on a trip....they work fine.

http://www.rei.com/product/653343

No laughin here, used sterno a time or 2. It works

[clhutner]

This may seems like a dumb question, but if you are carrying all that gear in to hunt and you are successful killing something, do you have to make a couple trips out to take the meat out, or do you just take certqin parts of the animal?  Sorry if you think this is a silly question but I have been thinking about soing this and was not sure how this was done.     Thanks.

[actionshooter]

I try to pack light enough to pack out a boned out deer and my gear in one trip. For the most part thats wishful thinking and its 2 trips
 And all the meat comes out!

[archery288]

It depends on how many people and what the plans are!?  Usually there is 2 of us, so we'll pack out the meat of the one kill and leave our camp up...(I am talking archery elk hunting here) Then go back in and see if we can take another within the rest of the alotted time period we have...  Unless like 2 years ago, we killed 2 bulls in the same morning so we spent all day packing them out, left camp up, and came back for it a couple days later... but usually we're coming back in for our camp set-up because we don't have horses...

[jimkirk]

for a stove , i made one of these alcohol stoves.
http://www.csun.edu/~mjurey/penny.html
very inexpensive, works good in moderate weather, made a wind screen from a oven liner. less than $5 in the whole setup. a quart of denatured alcohol from home depot $5.99. not as powerful as a pocket rocket, but lighter, silent and a simple setup.

[MountainWalk]

here is what goes into my pack for a backpack hunt.
10'x10' canvas tarp                     one bottle of iodine tabs
g/f's pilates mat                          one folder, one fixed blade knife
20' of 1/4 inch rope                     two pillowcases
one bottle of iodine tabs               3' of fishtank airline tubing
gerber folder saw                         pocket rocket
one can of fuel                            two 9 hour candles
two water bottles                        orienteering compass and 7.5'' topo
whistle                                      three bic lighters
two shotgun shells                      food -amount appropriate for length of trip

[JoeE]

shotgun shells? why only two?

[mossback91]

here is what goes into my pack for a backpack hunt.

                        pocket rocket