SUV for hunting

[klaus enuff]

The Lee Valley cargo liner is great for all messy loads, you don't need to be a hunter to appreciate it.

On my last hunting trip one of the guys was using his Pathfinder with the cargo hitch rack as his set up. It would hit and drag in some bad spots on the logging roads and he ended up having to take it off before the road did it for him.

If you go for the bumper rack I would try to get the most ground clearance you can and stay off bad roads.

 

[Silverado]

A guy might do better to have a hitch basked fabricated that sits higher I think.

 

[dogzilla]

We always had a small trailer. It was just big enough to fit an atv. When we got a moose we would take the trailer as far as we could with the atv throw the moose on and tow it out to the truck behind the atv.

 

[Silverado]

Then you'd load the ATV and the moose in the trailer?

 

[yellowknifedave]

1992 suzuki sidekick -
has brought home everything from large caribou bulls to whitetail bucks; quartered in the field, packed back to the truck, laid out on tarps while the game is in game bags.

 

[hannibal]

I've hunted out of my X's 06 Kia Sportage- same size as a Escape, just keep the back seats folded down and carry a couple tarps to protect the interior from the blood and you're ready to go.

 

[broncoguy72]

If you wanted to use a trailer why not just rent a U-Haul ?

 

[Silverado]

If you wanted to use a trailer why not just rent a U-Haul ?

That might be an option for hunters from urban areas, but there are a lot of guys with no UHaul anywhere nearby!

I think hunters for the most part prefer to be a little more self sufficient too!

 

[gillmy]

A few years ago I saw a cradle made out of webbing that you would fold the animal in and it would attach to the tow hitch and you would close the webbing in the liftgate to secure it? It would then dangle off the rear bumper. Not something you would take on the highway, but for getting back to camp. I did a web search and could not find it, but I think it was made in Canada (Quebec?)....

 

[Thinking]

The Lee Valley cargo liner is a great option for your SUV, I've seen it used for hauling critters and it seems to work great. The trailer hitch rack is also useful too, as when you aren't hauling critters and such, it makes for a great way to haul fuel cans, keeping them out of the passenger compartment, where they really don't belong. Either is great, it just comes down to what you can use it for for the other 9 months of the year.

My suggestion however would be to sell the Escape, and get a Honda Ridgeline with a cap, then you have an SUVish truck, and then who cares what goes in the back?

 

[casterpollox]

I was wondering how long it would take before some one would come along and tell me to sell my Escape.

I think I might get both, the liner and the hitch basket. The one from Princess Auto sits a bit higher than the others according to the pics.

 

[savagelh]

Or just do this. I should have cut the tarsal glands off first, it smelled a little pungent but as soon as the deer was out the smell was gone.

 

[V1]

Get FJ. No carpet anywhere is awesome thing, trust me. All washable. I also carry a heavy duty SportRack roof bag if cooling is a concern.

 

[tokguy]

I use my '98 cherokee 4 door for deer hunting. It's handier than my big 4 X 4's
Dodge 3/4 and 1 ton's.
Better mileage and can climb a wall too.
It does have overload springs though. Sits a-- in the air empty but loading in deer in the back does'nt make it squat down. I've only loaded one at any time in it though ( rear seat stowed ). And it took a couple washes and vacuam sessions to erase the blood and hair.
Open the hatch and rear right door; grab by the head and in the back/out the side. Have to bend the neck a bit and the nose is right behind and between the seats, LOL
But it's not my primary vehicle, I'm lucky that way I guess.
Good luck and good hunting.

 

[cityhunter]

go to the dollar store and buy 4-5 tarps... your good for a long time !! as long as most of blood is drained out when your doing the gutting its not a problem.. .i put a big 10 pt whitetail in the back of the Jeep GC last year... ... little blood here and there but the tarp did the job!

 

[sjemac]

My first moose was carried home in my 4-Runner. Back seats down and the rear hooves touching the windshield.

 

[tokguy]

Nothing wrong with SUV's. Run what you brought, we've got the guns ( if Freud was right, LOL), big trucks are not nessasarily required....

 

[Silverado]

My first moose was carried home in my 4-Runner. Back seats down and the rear hooves touching the windshield.

LMAO. I'm certain if I wanted to load a big deer or anything bigger in an SUV, I'd quarter it first. Or at least cut it in half.

 

[sjemac]

LMAO. I'm certain if I wanted to load a big deer or anything bigger in an SUV, I'd quarter it first. Or at least cut it in half.

I wanted my wife to experience the "awe" of seeing the whole beast.

The only "awe" I got was "Aw ####! Look at all that hair and blood all over everything! It better wash out!"

The second moose came home on a trailer towed by a 15 year old GMC diesel.

 

[snowshoe]

I have a Malibu Max and use a big tarp in the back. With the seats layed down and a gig tarp folded in 1/2, it works just great. I have brought several whitetails home in it and have never got a drop of blood in the car yet.