transporting big game with carts sleds or packs diy options and opinions

saskgunowner101

saskgunowner101

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Just looking for thoughts or opinions on how best (in your opinion) to get game out of the field/bush? I usually hunt WT deer, and there's always snow, and there's always a sled, but I'm going to make a serious go of bear hunting on crown land, and it's very possible I'll be quite some distance from my vehicle with no option to drive up to the kill site. Do you guys have a favorite method of transport? I saw this vid on youtube which should be easy to copy. About 15 minutes in. Too low tech?? I'd like to see some diy option or solutions that you've come up with.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgSxPhILUCc
 
I once had a wheeled game cart but found it awkward to maneuver with a deer on it.
These days I use one of those black ice fishing sleds, it works great for me.
I try and hunt uphill from my truck, so especially with a little snow it's an easy pull.
I've heard of guys using crazy carpets too.
 
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saskgunowner101 said:
Just looking for thoughts or opinions on how best (in your opinion) to get game out of the field/bush? I usually hunt WT deer, and there's always snow, and there's always a sled, but I'm going to make a serious go of bear hunting on crown land, and it's very possible I'll be quite some distance from my vehicle with no option to drive up to the kill site. Do you guys have a favorite method of transport? I saw this vid on youtube which should be easy to copy. About 15 minutes in. Too low tech?? I'd like to see some diy option or solutions that you've come up with.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgSxPhILUCc
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A half dozen 18 year old football players. Joking aside we used a first aid stretcher that folded up when we hunted moose in the swamps and high country of Ont .
 
A frame pack and good tight weave game bags. Some parachute cord, and learn how to tie a diamond hitch. Or choose a roomy single compartment pack bag, but the diamond hitch tied directly is a little better on rough terrain. Packed many elk and moose and a couple deer out that way. Elk and moose in 8 pieces, bone in. Usually 6 trips, with easy pack weight.
 
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Game carts work and are cheap. Chances are you will be on some semblance of a trail if you’re on foot. Spring bears will be on the old skid roads eating grass and dandelions. Unless you’re an expert at skinning clean a bear hide/head/paws can be pretty heavy for some of us mere mortals. And awkward.
 
I plan to do more butchering on site as I get tired of carrying extra weight out. I move less and less weight shorter and shorter distances. Work smarter, not harder.
 
Couple different options. I made a cart using the wheels of a BMX bike that worked well I knew I had to haul an elk miles on gravel or dirt roads and it did the job. Friends had a one wheeled gizmo had a motor cycle wheel in the middle and grips on each end they wheeled out cow elk with it for years.
 
starvin said:
Game carts work and are cheap. Chances are you will be on some semblance of a trail if you’re on foot. Spring bears will be on the old skid roads eating grass and dandelions. Unless you’re an expert at skinning clean a bear hide/head/paws can be pretty heavy for some of us mere mortals. And awkward.
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head is not that bad to do for sure once you know what to do and do it with no rush. but you re not supposed to bring back the skull to env office?
 
starvin said:
Game carts work and are cheap. Chances are you will be on some semblance of a trail if you’re on foot. Spring bears will be on the old skid roads eating grass and dandelions. Unless you’re an expert at skinning clean a bear hide/head/paws can be pretty heavy for some of us mere mortals. And awkward.
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There will be trails for sure, but I can't quite know how close I'll be to one in the event I get a bear. The skinning part is the next concern, but if I can get myself home to some ice blocks, I'll buy some time.
 
I didn't mean to imply that there is anything difficult about skinning a bear, just that the hide can be heavy to pack out. We bring them out whole and skin on a table top or tailgate, saves a sore back. Take the paws off at the joint and the head off at the base of the skull and into the freezer. This is how most bears come in to sask taxidermists imo.
 
emerson said:
I plan to do more butchering on site as I get tired of carrying extra weight out. I move less and less weight shorter and shorter distances. Work smarter, not harder.
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This
Sleds work fine even on dry ground. Game carts work fine if you have level ground without a lot of deadfall trees
But deboning where it lays and packing out is the simplest and fastest method. I had my bear out of the bush canoed across the lake and quarters in the fridge in two hours last fall.
The next morning was a few hours finishing up with the meat to get it in the freezer. All the mess was left in the woods
 
starvin said:
I didn't mean to imply that there is anything difficult about skinning a bear, just that the hide can be heavy to pack out. We bring them out whole and skin on a table top or tailgate, saves a sore back. Take the paws off at the joint and the head off at the base of the skull and into the freezer. This is how most bears come in to sask taxidermists imo.
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It's my plan (at least at this moment) to get it out whole, but it's never bad to see about any other options. I've watched enough videos now that pulling the works and skinning shouldn't be too daunting, I meant concern in the sense of getting everything cooled and finished up in a reasonable time in warmer weather. We get spoiled in deer season up here, where you never worry about things going bad from heat, but rather that it'll freeze too quick.
 
we made a cart out of a length of aluminum ladder, hinged to fold at about the 2/3 mark, then put an axle through at the hinge and use small bicycle wheels
It has two cables to hold the v shape, adjustable

no pics handy, have yet to use in the hills but seems ok in the yard
 
Gutless method, break animal down into manageable pieces then pack it out on a good meat hauler pack. Carts and things wouldn't work in lots of areas around here. Also, always shoot bears UPHILL from your truck! :)
 
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