Hunting & Fishing DIY Hike Hunting Equiptment

BearNaked

BearNaked

Beer Saved The World
Full Member
Minuteman
Feb 13, 2017
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215
Texas
#1
I am looking into some DIY hunts that we would hike/stalk some game. I want to know of a good hiking pack that yall use for the ones that do this or similiar style. I am a large man so the small stuff just looks well small. This would also be used for normal non hunting hikes as well but mostly for hunting.

any good packs or suggestions?
 
#2
Kifaru,stone glacier or exo. I am running the kifaru 24" hunter frame with the reckoning bag.

 

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#4
Might also look into Mystery Ranch packs out of Montana. I have their DragonSlayer pack and am sure please with it. I think you can order it in various sizes so they should be able to fit you. Not sure they still make this pack but have others for day hunts.



 
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#5
How long do you plan on hiking / staying out?

I've got an arc teryx bora 80 for a large pack but use several different ones for day hikes. My favorite day hunting pack is probably from badlands. Easy to strap my rifle to and very comfy.

That kifaru looks great too
 
#6
most of the hikes will be day hikes, nothing over night. for the hunting trips, I would like to camp on the site where ever we can so that would be at most a 3 day pack. that would be maybe once a year thing but a boy can dream.

yea the kifaru are really nice.
 
#7
problem with pack like bad lands and eberlestock is they dont have functional load lifters once you get weight in them your shoulders take a beating. The mr are also good but heavier and have now sent production over seas. Where as kifaru, stone glacier exo and i think seek outside are all made in america with american materials. I like the fact i can switch multiple bags out on my kifaru frame if i so choose
 
#8
kurt said:
problem with pack like bad lands and eberlestock is they dont have functional load lifters once you get weight in them your shoulders take a beating. The mr are also good but heavier and have now sent production over seas. Where as kifaru, stone glacier exo and i think seek outside are all made in america with american materials. I like the fact i can switch multiple bags out on my kifaru frame if i so choose
Click to expand...

that is something i was looking at. somedays i would just need a small pack but then on long multiple night hunts i would need the bigger pack. or even pack the smaller bag in the larger pack for day trips from camp. something i am going to think about.
 
#10
BearNaked said:
that is something i was looking at. somedays i would just need a small pack but then on long multiple night hunts i would need the bigger pack. or even pack the smaller bag in the larger pack for day trips from camp. something i am going to think about.
Click to expand...

My bad will suck down small enough that it is a good day pack. It is easier to make it smaller than bigger when needed
 
#12
BearNaked said:
that is something i was looking at. somedays i would just need a small pack but then on long multiple night hunts i would need the bigger pack. or even pack the smaller bag in the larger pack for day trips from camp. something i am going to think about.
Click to expand...

To echo what kurt mentioned...
I have a Kifaru Bikini frame and three different bags for it.
  1. 4800cu/inHighcamp
  2. 7000cu/in Highcamp
  3. Mountain Rambler
To give an idea of capacity, I have spent 8 nights out of that 4800cu/in HC pack on a walk in wilderness bow hunt in the backcountry. It was tight, but doable in the early season. Nice thing was, once packed in to spike camp, that bag compresses down to nothing and very easy to hunt with.
Haven't had to use the 7000 HC bag as of yet.
The HC bags are very simplistic in design, really just a top load main bag to stuff full of shit. There are Molle attachments for adding different sized 'pockets', as desired. If you prefer a more compartmentalized bag, there are plenty of other options to look into...
I got the Mountain Rambler as more of a day bag to rifle hunt with. It has an internal center scabbard, and enough room to easily hunt 1-3 days out of. Will also have this combo along for any matches where a slightly bigger bag would be advantageous. The MR is presently on my Bikini frame and has a couple 20 lb. bags of rice strapped in for training hikes. The load shelf is made to haul a big load of meat (or gear) Nice bag!

Also have an EXO 3500 pack (original model). This is also a VERY nice pack! Have used it while bow hunting out of a 'drive in' camp, and packed a bull out with it. The EXO packs are very well thought out, and well worth looking into...'

Good luck!
 
#13
I've been looking into bag lately too. I have several friends that hunt for 10 days or longer in the back country bow elk and they have all suggested the kifaru bags. They typically run the duplex timberland 1, nomads, or reckoning. Im not a huge guy 5'8" 160lbs, but I've tried on the biggest guys pack, he's 6'2" 200 or so, with 26" stays, dt1 bag and it felt excellent. He uses the regular Hunting frame, he had probably 40lbs in the bag is all, but I can tell you that it weighed more in my hands than it did on my back. The weight goes to your hips and not your shoulders. I'll probably end up picking up the dt1 with the Hunting frame.
xdeano
 
#14
If your 5' 8" 160 i would go with the 24" frame and i have a 32" waist and the small belt is about sucked as small as it can get. I am 6' 172 just for reference. If you want i have Aron Snyders cell number from Kifaru and you could give him a call as he will have all the answers and is a great guy to talk to.
 
#16
BearNaked said:
I am looking into some DIY hunts that we would hike/stalk some game. I want to know of a good hiking pack that yall use for the ones that do this or similiar style. I am a large man so the small stuff just looks well small. This would also be used for normal non hunting hikes as well but mostly for hunting.

any good packs or suggestions?
Click to expand...

I have the Exo 5500 and love it. I used it for Midwest deer hunting this year and have been hiking around with 50lbs in it to prepare for a MT Elk hunt. My friend bought the Kifaru DT1 and it is much nicer but costs a lot more. Either one would be great. Both are very durable and have nice features.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#19
sheepdog697 said:
Ive got a gunrunner eberlestock pack and i love it. I wish the rifle scabbard was a little wider, because my gun BARELY fits with the vortex razor high turrets. Other than that the pack is extremely well built and laid out. Good luck searching
Click to expand...

put some weight in it and pack a few miles in the mountains you will want to get rid of that thing. I thought the same thing of my j34 they are well built just not well thought out when it comes to packing real weight
 
#20
My EXO 3500 with ~80lbs. of elk meat stuffed Kifaru meat baggie & strapped on the shelf: EXO3500.JPG
Getting the weight properly positioned up on the back is important. That little pack handles those loads, with ease...
 
#21
Kifaru, I run two of their packs currently, I have an X-Ray for edc/48hr bag which could easily function as a hunting day pack, it's 2000ci. My next setup is a Kifaru Bikini frame with an EMR2 bag, haven't used it yet but will shortly, I'm thinking this will be my last big pack ever just because it's built so well. The EMR2 is like 7800ci I think but compresses down to nothing! Also definitely doable as a day pack. I will probably buy more Kifaru packs because they are like crack haha! I'm going to try and get their Tipi/stove setup in the near future as well.
 
#23
30calDeath said:
Kifaru, I run two of their packs currently, I have an X-Ray for edc/48hr bag which could easily function as a hunting day pack, it's 2000ci. My next setup is a Kifaru Bikini frame with an EMR2 bag, haven't used it yet but will shortly, I'm thinking this will be my last big pack ever just because it's built so well. The EMR2 is like 7800ci I think but compresses down to nothing! Also definitely doable as a day pack. I will probably buy more Kifaru packs because they are like crack haha! I'm going to try and get their Tipi/stove setup in the near future as well.
Click to expand...

As good as the bikini frame is the hunter frame is that much better when i comes to really hauling the weight.
 
#25
ya that why quit making the bikini a few years ago. now on the second gen of the duplex hunter frame. Unless you are getting the bikini used i dont know where you would buy one now, They have a couple gens of belts updated since the bikini also. The new power pulls on the belts are awesome
 
#26
so here is my next question, when you drop something in the field and you are going to hike it out. do you just do the hams and straps or how would you get all of the meat with something like an elk?
 
#28
Look up the gutless method on you tube. You quarter the animal and take the straps and tenderloins and there is alot of neck meat and on elk but some states dont require that. Figure you will get roughly 30% yield so if you shoot a 1000 pound elk you get 300 pounds of meat. with two bad ass guys it can be one trip but for regular people it will take more. if you listen to pod cast listen to the Gritty Bowmen Brian Call and Aron Snyder are great help. Aron is the head guy at Kifaru and knows his shit. Another is the Rich outdoor Cody Rich is another solid guy. All i know is being in shape and training with a heavy pack 60 plus pounds will make western hunting way more enjoyable if going in deep and spiking out. I am getting jacked up to head back to Idaho just talking aobut it.
 
#29
30 cal., unless you make a masochistic habit of hauling 100+ lb. moose quarters for miles, your Bikini frame will likely serve you very well. I've hiked plenty of miles with 40-60 lbs. on my Bikini frame while training for fall hunts, and have not felt compelled to change/upgrade for lack of comfort, or hauling ability...

Same applies for elk. Do you plan on taking 100+ lb. loads of meat off a mountain, or up out of a nasty canyon as a matter of regularity? That is ALOT of weight to pack, and requires a certain level of fitness and body size to manage, safely.
The Kifaru silnylon meat baggie I use fits 75-80 lbs of boned out meat, and holds it in a cylindrical shape that makes it easy to strap on a pack's meat shelf. (Boned out meat goes in a TAG bomb bag, then slips into the meat baggie) Combined with another 10-20lbs. of gear in your pack + gun/bow, cape/antlers, etc. that adds up to all the weight I care to carry in one load out.

Just sayin', keep your physical capabilities in mind when selecting gear. If you're truly planning on hauling >80 lbs. as a matter of course, then the Duplex frame might do better for ya than the Bikini frame...
 
#30
If he hasnt bought the bikini yet the duplex is the only option now as Kifaru does not sell the bikini any more . Which bag are you running as i thought the reckoning they just came out with was the first meat shelf they have designed in a bag.
 
#31
I read that he already had the Bikini frame, just hadn't put it to good use, yet.

I use the Kifaru meat shelf in between Bikini frame & Highcamp bags: [IMG2=JSON]{"data-align":"none","data-size":"full","src":"http:\/\/www.kifaruforums.net\/attachment.php?attachmentid=11122&d=1357163747"}[/IMG2]

Right now, I have a Mountain Rambler bag on my Bikini frame.
That bag has a meat shelf integral to the pack, itself: [IMG2=JSON]{"data-align":"none","data-size":"full","src":"http:\/\/i1065.photobucket.com\/albums\/u387\/AronSnyder\/AronSnyder040\/_DSC0394_zpsu656vsy4.jpg"}[/IMG2]

Kifaru sure seems to enjoy obsoleting their own gear...
 
#32
i dont have any of this equiptment yet. me and a buddy are going to be geting into some diy hunts and i wanted to know what gear i was looking at so i knew what i was getting myself into.

 
#33
I bet the mountain rambler comes back once eberlestock cant sue kifaru for using the rifle scabard design that is why that bag got discontinued. They also dont have the meat shelf any more but would be easy enough to make on like that. I am torn on if i like the meat shelf or just putting the meat in the bag but having options is always better. I know one thing the new belt with the power pulls is worth looking into for upgrading the belt
 
#34
Yep, I heard something about the Rambler 'issue'. The scabbard & meat shelf were exactly why I got it, over just rockin' a simple Highcamp bag.
I prefer to keep meat on a shelf. Not only does it keep any 'drippage' away from your gear, it also positions the heaviest load closer to your back. That helps with comfort & stability...

Bear, if you can find a used Bikini frame in your size for a fair discount, I wouldn't hesitate to grab it. Assuming again, that you'll not be hauling triple digit loads with regularity?
And, don't forget the EXO 5500. The latest iteration looks excellent!
 
#35
Sounds good and thanks for all the advise. i am a big boy so i would like to try some of these on before spending that kind of money but i know it will be a kifaru.
 
#36
as for the meat shelf, that is what i want. i love the idea that it is seperate from your gear and closer to your body. but it will also be used for other items as well during different adventures.
 
#39
sheepdog697 said:
how many days are you planning to live out of the pack, and what are you wanting to carry rifle wise?
Click to expand...

I am still getting everything together so i cannot accurately answer this. i would probably be going for 3 days at first but would like to be able to do 5+ if needed.

Rifle would be my savage 10 in a 260 rem. its a little heavy for a carry gun but i am a big guy that can handle some weight.
 
#40
As others have mentioned, you'll need a sturdy frame pack to haul out the meat if you're successfull. Best I've found is the bullpac. I love a good day pack, where you can stash all your gear, but they're just not useful once you have something on the ground.
 
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