Preserving meat

[intothewild]

How would you go about preserving meat in a situation like this?

I am looking at doing a canoe trip for 5 days hunting Elk and Deer.
Looking at going third week of sept, temp will be 0 to +10c at a guess.
If we shoot something on the first/second day what are our chances of keeping the meat good and what methods would we use? we would most likely be butchering the animal out there to save space in the canoe.

any help would be awesome.

cheers,

[mad mountain mike]

I would debone the animal and put the meat in water proof bags. During the day I would keep the meat covered and on the bottom of the canoe. In the evenings I would put the meat in the river, that time of year the water should keep the meat cool.

[rottie]

Originally Posted by mad mountain mike

I would debone the animal and put the meat in water proof bags. During the day I would keep the meat covered and on the bottom of the canoe. In the evenings I would put the meat in the river, that time of year the water should keep the meat cool.

We have done the same,in the high country with no running water we used to debone thencool over night then cover with moss

[nof60]

Quarter it. Hang Quarters from game pole with a tarp to shade it and protect it from rain.near river and smear blood on the outside of quarters to get a really good crust. Keep quarters dry dry dry. Put a tonne of black pepper on quarters when still wet to keep flies away. Build small smokey fir just upwind of game pole to keep flies away. Afetr your meat is crusted good double bag in really heavy industrail garbage bags and submerge in stream during heat of the day taking it out and hanging it from pole as soon as it starts to sool off. Keeping it dry is key. Dry is as important as cool. Inspect it a couple times per day and if you see fly eggs cutt them off.

[Bound2Fish]

Quarter the animal and tie them to a tree. Then toss them in the river. It will keep them good and cold and the meat doesnt get water logged either. Plus you get the added benefit of having very very very clean meat for butchering.

[nof60]

Originally Posted by Bound2Fish

Quarter the animal and tie them to a tree. Then toss them in the river. It will keep them good and cold and the meat doesnt get water logged either. Plus you get the added benefit of having very very very clean meat for butchering.

I had to butcher a moose in flowing water once and the meat was completely full of sand. Even after we took the bark off it a week later and cut it it was still gritty in places. That being said sharpening up your teeth to eat moosemeat while eating moosemeat is not all bad.

[Redfrog]

I have had the good fortune to take a few sheep and deer in early season in the high country. Hot days and cool nights. Some days were camp days and some days were move days. We had access to cold stream in camp.

I quartered or boned the carcass and wiped it all down with cold water.
the trim went into a cheese cloth sack and was hung to dry. Keep the bags small so the meat can actually dry. Hang it in the shade along the creek if you can. Failing that,hang it where it will dry on the outside forming a skin.
The flies like to blow the wet surfaces, so inspect folds etc. for eggs. I use pepper or vinegar on a cloth and wipe the carcass where it may not be dry yet.

The idea is to get it as cool as possible through the night and then loosely tarp it in the shade during the day. We have kept meat like this for a week or so without problems.

I don't have a problem wiping the carcass with a wet rag, but I won't submerge the meat in a lake or river to keep it cool. You will be dealing with sand and handling the wet meat/cloth is a pain.

Camp vegies on the other hand can be chilled for weeks in a creek.

[intothewild]

thanks for all the response, much appreciated.

I was also reading today that you can spray a citric acid mix on the meat to stave off bacteria, any experience with this? will this alter the flavor/quality of the meat?

cheers