Archery Talk

JT Fisherman - Hope you don't think I shot at 100 yards.......40 +/- is my limit!!! Just stated what the scope/bow is supposedly capable of.

 

That's a dandy!

 

Very nice!

 

yes, yes it is..

 

I agree. Passed a beautiful 8pt in Buffalo NY last year cause he was at 45 yards and I’ve only been archery hunting for a year. I know I can drill my target at 45 yards all day long but real world is different story.
Same goes for rifle. Longest shot on an animal I’ve taken is 200 yards. I can shoot further than that but I won’t take a shot on anything if I’m hunting. Not worth the suffering of the animal Or the heartache lol

I pass stuff up to a fault.. because I don’t want to lay awake at night worrying if it’s suffering. Only animal I’ll make an unethical shot on is a pig. Fuck those things

 

Woah! Very nice!

 

Hell yea! I reckon you’ve earned the right to that badass Ravin crossbow! Godspeed sir!

 

I’m not trying to call anyone in here out. Glad you keep it within an ethical range!

 

I didn't think you were - just wanted to clarify my statement.

 

So, for something completely different, let’s chat about a loadout for a backpack elk hunt. Been down with COVID since 30-Dec including a week and a half in the hospital. I’m able to WFH and have been since 18-Jan. My mind is never far from hunting, planning hunting, dreaming about past hunts…you get the picture. I decided to re-organize my elk gear, re-weigh everything, make some additions and deletions.

The list is kinda long so I broke it down into three sections.

First up is Clothing packed thru Shelter. Couple comments about this group. First, Core4Element is no longer made. It was an off shoot of Sitka and they retained the original Mountain Mimicry camo which is awesome. I use it thru whitetail season. I’ve had the C4 Assault Shirt since 2012 and it looks new. It’s a great mid-layer or if it’s cool, an outer layer. Second, two things that will always be in the pack is the C4 Assault Shirt and a First Lite short sleeve Aerowool wick tee shirt. It’s like wearing silk, that’s how soft it is. I’ve worn one for five days in a row working out, no stink.

Sleep Kit and Shelter system has worked out pretty well. I spent about 10 nights in the REI bag last year in temps down to the upper 20’s with a just a base layer. Was quite comfortable. The Klymit Static V Ins inflates with about 10-12 puffs and insulates very well. I think if I was anticipating anything lower than 20-25 I would add a thin closed cell foam pad. The real eye-opener was Hyke-n-Byke tent. This was recommended to me by a PA elk hunter with about 20 archery elk to his credit from WY & CO. It’s not as sexy as a Big Agnes or as light, but the price and performance was on the money. One option I like is I can use the footprint and fly as a lightweight shelter. That setup has withstood some serious thunderstorms with 35-40mph winds, with pretty much zero water blowing in. Downside is with no actual floor to side transition, creepy crawlers can come in.



Next up is the Cook Kit thru Hunting Equipment. Nothing major here. Stove is typical isobutane burner with a Jetboil stand and 8oz cannister. Fuel cannister is good for about 2-1/2 hours burn time. Figure 2 ten minute burns each day is about 100 minutes. Stove has performed flawlessly down to 25 degrees. Most likely going to replace the Lifestraw with a Sawyer Squeeze or similar just for the volume of water required each day. Looking at reviewing the first aid kit and possibly reducing the weight a bit. Still a bit undecided on the Adak bino harness. The bino portion is great, the range finder pocket is a bit cumbersome to use.




And finally, we have the Kill Kit thru Pack. Only thing I may change is the quiver on my bow to a Tight Spot 5 or 7 arrow quiver. Water is not included in the list, however I would most likely take 4L on the pack in, with water available for either filter or treatment with aquamire drops. Meals are oatmeal or a breakfast granola mix, BRCC coffee (steep bags) in the AM, Protein Bars (homemade recipe) maybe Butthole Sandwiches for lunch, and Peak Meals for dinner. Snacks, mini snickers, trail-mix (homemade), etc... Each days food is placed in a one gallon bag for better organization.



Total pack weight, not including water, is 40.16lbs.

Clothing worn in as follows: Core4 Boxers, mid weight merino socks, Lowa Camino GTX boots, either Wrangler Outdoor Flex pants or Core4 Highline pants. Most likely the C4 pants as they have more pockets, and provisions to vent in the crotch and roll up the legs. First Lite Aerowool SS wick Tee shirt, Kuiu Gila Lightweight Hoody. The Kuiu Gila is another piece of gear I will always have with me. Just a great piece of gear. First Lite ball cap and sunglasses. One thing I did forget on packed clothing is a pair of Crocs. Them and baby wipes are mountain gold in the backcountry. Another shout-out for the Wrangler Outdoor Flex pants. No, they are not Kuiu Attack pants. They are also not $140 a pair. I have several that I use for scouting, hanging stands, pretty much anything in the woods, and the durability has been great. The best recommendation I can give is that quite a few longtime elk hunters on Bowsite and Rokslide wear them. They can usually be picked up for $25-$30/pair.

So there it is. If I get an opportunity I'll add some pics of the load out. Feel free to comment, add your choices or what to remove.

 

Damn you went full spreadsheet on us!

my pack weight in Montana two years ago (including food and water) was just over 50lbs. Colorado this year I was damn near 60 because I had a significant amount of water plus it was colder so more clothing and heavier sleeping bag.

I’m planning on cutting weight by swapping my hand pump for a couple of life straws and this year I won’t be carrying my backpacking pot that I usually cook in. I’m moving back to using my kleen kanteen for boiling water and just eating out of the peak meal bags.

I use a MSR pocket rocket (I’ve had it over a decade and it’s still running strong) for a stove and love it. Lightweight and compact.

 

Ya, as an automation eng I tend to do that. When I first started looking at this archery elk thing, I downloaded the data from Toprut on success rates for each unit vs amount of public land. Some OTC units had a 15-16% success rate but then digging into it I would find it was 85% private with pretty steep trespass fees. Spreadsheets made that very easy!

Once you reach 40lbs it gets difficult to pare down weight. And typically to do so has an exponetial price increase. So there are a few areas I'm looking to drop some oz's. I think I can get my first aid kit down to 8oz. Maybe look at some lighter game bags.

 

Keep an eye out for Big Agnes sales on tents. I’ve got the fly creek ul1 and it comes in just over a pound. I’ve had it for a decade and customer service has always either replaced or repaired things when they break. Sad thing is that now they don’t make it anymore so I’m gonna have to spend again to get a new one.

as a wilderness guide the two main areas I would always recommend cutting weight was in spending the money for a nice sleeping bag and a nice tent. Everything else is just a matter of ounces. I know ounces add up but when you’re not talking 15-20 mile days over the course of weeks, ounces don’t matter as much

 

The REI bag comes in under 2lbs, that's an actual measured weight. I could drop 1/2 a pound going to Thermarest Neoair Xlite (large) put the packed dimension is significantly higher.

 

Impressive spreadsheet. I wouldn't know where to start for an overnight hunting trip, though it does sound awesome (and I understand likely the only way to go for most (if not all?) Big western game animals.

 

stick around here and we'll learn ya real good

I had the added bonus of being a hunter most of my life and spending several years as a wilderness guide leading backcountry trips.. so when I decided to give things a shot out west, I just had to combine the two.

 

Yea I splurge on my sleeping pad. Its the largest item in my pack typically.. but im 6'2 and about 260 so a quality sleeping pad that is big enough to fit my oversized ass is mandatory to being rested

 

i think you need to add some boots in? and you're missing a weight for the bino harness/ binos. not super helpful but best i can do from over here!

 

The weight of the bino/harness is in there. 42.7oz. Includes Vortex 8x42's and SIG Kilo1600 rangefinder. Even thought it's being "carried", I typically don't include what I'm wearing. The Lowa Camino's come in at 3.4lbs per pair. As far as sleeping pad I'm 6', 185lbs. My bag is 75" lg so I like a bit longer pad.