Elk transport

[Jchip]

Hey everyone, this year will be my first time hunting elk and I'm trying to decide the best way to get it home. I'm only going to be about an hour from my house, is it worth skinning in the field, using game bags, then putting it in a cooler? I'm worried the meat would spoil in the cooler without cooling first.

I'm thinking I'll skin and quarter the elk, put the meat in game bags, then just toss those in some calf sleds in the back of the truck. Will the meat get dirty through the bags on the drive home?

Or am I better off gutting it and taking it home whole (like a deer in November)?

Any help is appreciated.

[coxy95]

A lot of things would factor into that, ambient temp, how long from shot to recovery, miles of gravel, or mostly highway? In general I would say you should be fine, that being said the quicker you can get the meat cooled off the better the end result will be

[Gboe8]

No matter where we shoot elk or moose we skin and quarter into game bags. My personal opinion is the quicker you can cool down the meat the better. They keep a lot of heat in the joints. And obviously the hide keeps a lot of heat in. I found meat quality has improved a lot once we started doing this.

[TrapperMike]

Remember to leave proof of sex attached.

[roper1]

Originally Posted by Gboe8

No matter where we shoot elk or moose we skin and quarter into game bags. My personal opinion is the quicker you can cool down the meat the better. They keep a lot of heat in the joints. And obviously the hide keeps a lot of heat in. I found meat quality has improved a lot once we started doing this.

Our method also.

[fordtruckin]

Yeah kind of a loaded question. A lot depends on the temp when you shot it
, how far your traveling, time of day and are you processing yourself or paying to have it done? A lot of places around me won’t take wild game if you have skinned it. For one they charge to skin it and two it does keep the meat cleaner.

Last elk I helped with we pulled out whole after dark, left in a truck over night and then it was a 7 hour drive back home for the hunter. I prefer if nothing else to get the guts out and make sure you split the hind end and brisket. I’ll prop those open and as long as it’s not terribly warm that will hold a couple hours easy. If your only an hour from home I’d say you would be fine unless it’s cray warm out.

You start getting into something like a bison and absolutely get the hide and guts out and then start splitting some of those larger pieces of meat down to the bone to get the heat out!

[35 whelen]

Every elk and moose i have ever done was taken apart on the spot ,get the skin off fast if you watch some gutless methods theres no reason to have very clean meat ,good luck.

[thumper]

Look up 'gutless method' videos, and only take home what you're going to eat, and what's legally required. Otherwise, leave everything in the field 'to return from whence it came'.

[Big Grey Wolf]

1) Gut elk as soon as he hits the ground. 2)Skid to cutline or road with ATV. 3) Skin out at cutline/road load onto trailer wrapped with clean tarps. 4) If cool (Oct/Nov) load into back of truck, space quarters 5) Go into camp and have a few ryes. If Sept go home to cooler ASAP.

[coyote_man]

Whatever you do do not transport home in a horse trailer with horses unless you want a well seasoned elk ready for the dump.

[coxy95]

Originally Posted by 35 whelen

Every elk and moose i have ever done was taken apart on the spot ,get the skin off fast if you watch some gutless methods theres no reason to have very clean meat ,good luck.

I disagree with not having very clean meat, that requires a ton of extra work while processing, and i don't especially like eating dirt and hair with my steak.

[35 whelen]

Originally Posted by coxy95

I disagree with not having very clean meat, that requires a ton of extra work while processing, and i don't especially like eating dirt and hair with my steak.

ILL guarantee my meat is as clean as you will ever find ,after doing over 150 animals with the gutless method , Its quite easy if your prepared with a kill kit.

[coxy95]

I think you may have missed a "not" in your previous post and it didn't read how you meant it. I agree the gutless method is the way to go.

[Justfishin73]

This was a big concern for me as well for our upcoming elk trip being mid Sept--5 day hunt--4 tags--only solution was to bring an enclosed trailer, freezer and genny.

[35 whelen]

Originally Posted by coxy95

I think you may have missed a "not" in your previous post and it didn't read how you meant it. I agree the gutless method is the way to go.

Sorry read it wrong,

[Coiloil37]

Can you drive into where it drops or get a quad in there to drag it out to the truck? If you can, knock the guts out and take it home. Hang, skin and wash it and you don’t need to stress about the hide being on for a couple hours. I’ve seen guys do it the other way and if you like eating hair, leaves, dust and all manner of forest debris go ahead. I find it repulsive.
I’ve only personally shot 23 elk and two moose but I’ve been involved in well over 100 elk/moose kills from late August to December and that’s the way we’ve done it every time we didn’t have to break the animal down to get him out. Never once did we lose meat or have any detrimental effects from leaving the hide on for a couple hours until he was hanging in camp or home and the meat was always clean.
I’ve done the gutless method a lot on deer and antelope and didn’t have much trouble keeping the meat clean “enough” but it always took plenty of time at home washing each piece of meat to get it “clean”. On a deer I don’t mind because I have to go through each piece of meat and cut all the fat and silver skin out before I make snags but I take my big animals to a butcher and prefer to take them in a maximum of four pieces.

It’s smart to have a plan for after he hits the dirt but for any elk hunter and especially a new one, the hardest part is killing one so good luck.

[bezzola]

I second the gutless method

[freeride]

I will say gutless as well. A big miss conception is you dont get the tenderloins by going the gutless way, its actually very easy to get the tenderloins out.

[freeride]

After saying gutless.. I have to follow up with this.

I listened to a very interesting podcast with a meat scientist talking about how meat is more tender if left until after rigor on the bone. It wont be able to contract as much as it can when it's not attached, thus not getting as tough, as well he said when a knife cuts into it the meat will automatically contract slightly even after death for awhile until the chemicals that cause rigor have dissipated.

Temp wise... early season or hot days get it cooled as fast as you can. That's the bottom line. Who cares if it's a little more tender if its rotten from heat. And vice versa if its just a little tougher but great tasting and not spoiled.

I also hunt solo early season without atv or horses. That limits me to gutless. Thus my preference. It's easy for just me to roll a bull over after getting all the meat off one side as well.

[AndrewM]

They are a lot bigger than a guy thinks. Big cow is a hell of a struggle to pull with two guys even with guts and head removed. Gutless method would be my suggestion. Doesn't take long and is very clean if done proper. Great youtube videos on it. Would take a heck of a cooler to fit it all in so just put in game bags and wrap it up in a tarp or put in garbage bags and head home.

[mtnhunter]

Originally Posted by Gboe8

No matter where we shoot elk or moose we skin and quarter into game bags. My personal opinion is the quicker you can cool down the meat the better. They keep a lot of heat in the joints. And obviously the hide keeps a lot of heat in. I found meat quality has improved a lot once we started doing this.

This ^^

I’ve harvested a moose in +25C and even though I was only an hour from home, I opted to use ice (keep water off the meat) to make sure the temp of the meat came down to safe levels fast.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[calgarychef]

Originally Posted by Jchip

Hey everyone, this year will be my first time hunting elk and I'm trying to decide the best way to get it home. I'm only going to be about an hour from my house, is it worth skinning in the field, using game bags, then putting it in a cooler? I'm worried the meat would spoil in the cooler without cooling first.

I'm thinking I'll skin and quarter the elk, put the meat in game bags, then just toss those in some calf sleds in the back of the truck. Will the meat get dirty through the bags on the drive home?

Or am I better off gutting it and taking it home whole (like a deer in November)?

Any help is appreciated.

That’s the way, don’t pile it high, lay it out as much as possible, hang it as much as possible. Don’t put it into a plastic cooler or bag if it’s still warm...that’s the kiss of death.

[thumper]

I generally hunt solo as well, and have used the gutless method on everything from antelope to moose. I like to take my time, strip off every bit of meat I'm going to eat, keep everything clean & hairless, and transport it back to the truck in cheesecloth game-bags, on a plastic kiddies sled. With moose and elk, I only hunt mornings, to give me enough time with daylight to process them thoroughly. If possible, I'll keep the hide in one piece, and slide it out on a sled as well, to give to a native friend who distributes them to craftspeople.
Gutless works for me, because:
- I'm old and fat, and I only need to drag out what I'm going to use
- reduced to smaller pieces, it's easier to handle a large animal solo
- I like the idea of everything I'm not going to use, being returned to the ecosystem, not wrapped in green garbage bags, forever buried in a landfill.
- I like doing that processing outdoors, in the field. It's part of the hunting experience - like our ancestors did at the bottom of a buffalo jump!
- I don't have to dump bones, hides and bit's & pieces into dumpsters near home, under cover of darkness
- I'm already half way to final meat cutting into steaks/roasts etc.
- I'm not transferring CWD across the province

What I don't like is having to fuss around to meet regulatory requirements of having evidence of sex/species attached - but such is life.

[huntinstuff]

you have your answers

I just love your optimism! So awesome!!!!!

[calgarychef]

Originally Posted by freeride

After saying gutless.. I have to follow up with this.

I listened to a very interesting podcast with a meat scientist talking about how meat is more tender if left until after rigor on the bone. It wont be able to contract as much as it can when it's not attached, thus not getting as tough, as well he said when a knife cuts into it the meat will automatically contract slightly even after death for awhile until the chemicals that cause rigor have dissipated.

Temp wise... early season or hot days get it cooled as fast as you can. That's the bottom line. Who cares if it's a little more tender if its rotten from heat. And vice versa if its just a little tougher but great tasting and not spoiled.

I also hunt solo early season without atv or horses. That limits me to gutless. Thus my preference. It's easy for just me to roll a bull over after getting all the meat off one side as well.

It’s absolutely true that the meat is more tender if left on the bone and hung. It works better if it’s a whole side so I all gets ”stretched.”
The weight of the carcass plays a big role in that. Lots of people will chime in and say it’s not true and that “their meat is tender” but it is true.
It’s also true that it’s far more difficult to accomplish in the field. So as hunters we have to take what we can get, our processes aren’t as perfect as the meat plants.

I also have no problems with hanging animals with hide on but only if it’s cold out and they can cool down in a reasonable length of time.

[Jchip]

Thanks for the input everyone

[graybeard]

Originally Posted by Gboe8

No matter where we shoot elk or moose we skin and quarter into game bags. My personal opinion is the quicker you can cool down the meat the better. They keep a lot of heat in the joints. And obviously the hide keeps a lot of heat in. I found meat quality has improved a lot once we started doing this.

Yuppers....Your optimism is refreshing....

Good luck....

[buckman]

For me it depends where the Elk is. Each method works. You seem very sure of the kill,good luck on your hunt.

[Big Grey Wolf]

The advantage of gutless method is it takes lots of time. Thus local grizz has time to find you and your elk, Then you get to run like hell and leave more meat for him. Thus you have less to carry out.

[35 whelen]

Not much time at all 2.5 hours by myself less if my partner is there ,takes most guys that long to get back to quad get trailer back to camp then back out .We always carry kill kit on our quad a few pictures then get to work ,But yes if you have never done it could take some time and there is grizz in most elk areas,GOOD LUCK.