This season, I was fortunate enough to take a cow elk. This was a first time opportunity to hunt with a fellow horseback hunter that I had met the previous year. He called me just before the closing of early cow season, suggesting that next Friday would be a good day to ride. That morning at about 9:00am, a cow fell to the report of my .338. I was about to learn a lesson in field dressing that in fact should be refered to as field "butchering" as the knife did not once penetrate the abdomen until the very end. Before we began, he asked that I check my watch and that I follow his lead. We proceeded to skin the upside hind and front shoulder. Then the upside ribcage. The rear hind and front shoulder were detached and placed on a tarp. Let's not forget the loins (often refered to as backstraps) and neck muscle. The skirting meat around the rib cage was lastly removed. The animal was then flipped over and the procedure was repeated on the opposing side. The abdomen now was finally opened and the guts slightly moved to the downside in order to remove the tenderloins. The unspoiled quarters, neck, loins, skirting meat were then placed into the "meat bags" upon my pack horse.
Total elapsed time, 33 minutes. All done with minimal mess and very clean meat.
My new hunting friend had learned this procedure from a Yukon guide during his last hunt in the Territory. The real neat thing of it is that much to my surprise, this procedure is outlined in the November/December 2006 issue of "Western Sportsman" magazine. It includes, pictures using a deer for example. I had the opportunity to try on what I consider a large specimen for a cow elk. I wished that I could scan this article and post it for everyone's pleasure and benefit, but I believe that there may be some copyright infrigements. <edited spelling>
Total elapsed time, 33 minutes. All done with minimal mess and very clean meat.
My new hunting friend had learned this procedure from a Yukon guide during his last hunt in the Territory. The real neat thing of it is that much to my surprise, this procedure is outlined in the November/December 2006 issue of "Western Sportsman" magazine. It includes, pictures using a deer for example. I had the opportunity to try on what I consider a large specimen for a cow elk. I wished that I could scan this article and post it for everyone's pleasure and benefit, but I believe that there may be some copyright infrigements. <edited spelling>
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). When I moved to Fort Mac I just moved it up in size and did the same thing with several deer (could put the meat in a plastic tub in the back of my "wife's" new 4-Runner). Thought I had had an original idea
