Just some observations

[skeet]

Getting ready for elk hunting again. and collecting the gear. The thread about range finders got me thinkin.

As I posted a good pair of binocs is necessary. Not the 1000 dollar and up ones. Usually the ones we can afford are not quite as good but with tight money a 400 dollar pair will be enough for us every day hunters. Spotting scopes..wow. Every body says get a very expensive one. Well unless you are hunting Alaska the Yukon or upper reaches of BC and Alberta..I don't really think they are necessary. If ya hunt with a reputable guide..he'll have a set..and KNOWS what to look for. again a 3-500 dollar one is more than adequate.. I will explain in a minute or 2. Adequate clothing is a necessity in the mountains. When you are hunting at 10,000 ft it gets colder than you think.and of course the wind does blow.... a decent fitting day pack is a GOOD thing to have..stressing the decent fitting. You can carry all this "necessary" gear in it. A good scope on the rifle is also a necessary. In my opinion a Bushnell Elite or better is what you should have. My hunting partner uses Trashco and Simmons scopes or used is a better word. He has had 2 go belly up in the mountains. We hunt at 10-11000 ft. He's had 2 fog so bad they couldn't be used. Air pressure must have something to do with it as well as extreme temp changes. 15 below at night to as much as 70 above on the same day is tough on people and scopes. He did go to an Elite 6500 for this season. A Good knife is an essential. You see all those guys out there with the big knives on their hips..Must be playin Rambo or sumpin. I carry a Buck folding hunter. Keep it sharp and it'll do most anything ya need out of a knife. A small hatchet is nice to have if you are after big critters. Not needed for deer. Oh and I do carry one of those screw together sharpening steels/hones. Really nice to have halfway through the job of workin over an elk.
Now we come to rifles etc. To be honest I am a Wood and Blue Steel guy. That said I think it is probably better to have a (gag) plastic stock and almost as bad..stainless rifle. Guns take a LOT of abuse climbing around them thar hills. If you don't worry about a nice stock getting dinged up no big deal. But I'm a bit particular about my guns so use ones that have little value to me mentally. I won't use the rifle that my mom gave me a little before she died..at least not in them thar hills. I do use it for deer and antelope. LOL.

Now if you can afford all that other very expensive stuff..then go for 'em You'll probably never need to buy any thing else. But toting big heavy expensive gear by mare's shank is hard on the ol aging body. You do know you ain't gettin any younger, don'tcha?? If you hunt by horseback it may be different but still an awful lot to be a carrying. You don't see a lot of game sitting on a horse.

Now as to my reasons for these recommendations.. In most of the lower 48 you aren't gonna be traveling 8 miles to try to sneak up on a big ol bull. It's hunting season..there are a lot of people in them thar hills. Considering. By the time ya get to where you saw that big ol bull of the woods..he's moved been scared outta the country shot by another hunter or eaten by a wolf. And not only that..the getting to em at a long distance may take all day or more. It's tough terrain.

There are a lot more items that are needful. These are just a start..Post what you think is necessary and your reasons why. We might all get a lot outta this...and it is "That time of year"..Yippee

[Mr. 16 gauge]

GREAT post, skeet!

On my first trip "out west", I couldn't figure out why I had a headache every blasted day.....then it dawned on me: WE WERE UP IN THE MOUNTAINS!!!! Even though it didn't look like we were in the mountains, the elevation was significantly higher than what I was used to at home, and the oxygen was thinner, hence, the headaches. After a few days, my body got used to it and the headaches disappeared, but I would have killed to have some aspirin, tylenol, motrin with me on the trail.
I think a small (and I do mean small!) personal first aid kit is a must! By small, I mean something that can fit neatly in your pack or on your belt that won't take up more space the size of a box of ammo or a couple of decks of playing cards. I've seen the ones that they sell that have the scalpel, suture holders, hemostats, ect. Here is a news flash for yah, Trapper John.....If you need that crap, then you really need to be medivacd out of the bush! First aid is just that.....FIRST AID! Yah don't need to be doing brain surgery in the woods.
Items I would recommend: chapstick or lip balm, asprin or some other type of nonsteriodal antiinflammatory (motrin, tylenol), peptobismol tablets (cures a host of G.I. complaints), Lomotil, some triple antibiotic ointment, some band aids, cough drops, throat lozenges, some cold or sinus tablets, a couple of 4x4 and 2x2 gauze sheets, some tape, some steristips (butterfly dressings), a pair of tweezers, & moleskin. Nothing worse than being on a hunt only to have diarrhea or a bad head cold come on you while your on the trail.
And remember: These items (even the tape) have expiration dates....change them YEARLY!

I would also like to suggest that if you have any health problems, i.e. asthma, heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, ect, that you inform your outfitter ahead of time so that they can better plan and prepare for your hunt! You don't what to be an outfitter and have a huge buck be on the other side of the mountain, start off with hunter in tow, only to find 200 yards out that he is having an angina attack.

I would also like to suggest to hunters with angina who are taking nitroglycerin tabs: don't keep your pills in those little vials that hang around your neck. Heat will degrade the nitro in those tablets, and they will become useless. As you are working up a sweat chasing that buck of a lifetime, you could be destroying the meds that you might need to save your life.

A good scope on the rifle is also a necessary.

Almost lost a good mule deer because of poor glass. It was getting dark and I just had a real difficult time seeing that buck across the meadow (but I did get him). Afterwards, I noticed that all the guides in camp had Leouplds, to a man. I asked to take a look through one and WOW!!! What a difference! All my bolt actions now carry good quality glass.....if you are going to spend any money on an item for a trip, I would suggest a good scope rather than a new rifle or something else. It might be a once in a lifetime trip....you don't want to come home empty handed because the scope didn't hold it's zero or fogged up.
Good binos are a help, too....even though my guide had a good set (as well as a spotting scope), he told me "there's no reason you can't look, too. Who knows, you might spot something I didn't see". It also gave me something to do while the guide was glassing....I wasn't kicking rocks around waiting for him to 'find me something to shoot'.
I'll also add that if you're doing a fair amount of walking, a spare pair of socks in you pack can be a godsend, and I don't know how many times I have used my multitool to save the day tightening a loose screw or filing some sharp edge down, ect.

Again, skeet.....great post (timely, too!

[skeet]

Originally Posted by Mr. 16 gauge

GREAT post, skeet!

On my first trip "out west", I couldn't figure out why I had a headache every blasted day.....then it dawned on me: WE WERE UP IN THE MOUNTAINS!!!! Even though it didn't look like we were in the mountains, the elevation was significantly higher than what I was used to at home, and the oxygen was thinner, hence, the headaches. After a few days, my body got used to it and the headaches disappeared, but I would have killed to have some aspirin, tylenol, motrin with me on the trail.
I think a small (and I do mean small!) personal first aid kit is a must! By small, I mean something that can fit neatly in your pack or on your belt that won't take up more space the size of a box of ammo or a couple of decks of playing cards. I've seen the ones that they sell that have the scalpel, suture holders, hemostats, ect. Here is a news flash for yah, Trapper John.....If you need that crap, then you really need to be medivacd out of the bush! First aid is just that.....FIRST AID! Yah don't need to be doing brain surgery in the woods.

Wow..Something That I shoulda posted about. We do take one of those first aid kits that has the suture kit etc in. I have done a little suturing in the hospital when I was working as a paramedic and sewing up the critters on the farm.. so have some background in it. Otherwise we would just have to do a credible job until we can get out. Seriously.. not that hard!. Where we hunt there is no Medevacing out of the mountains. No phones and we really don't carry radios of any power. Some of us carry those little family service radios to talk with each other..especially if we have the good fortune to bag an animal. An Elk is a large animal and if you haven't ever quartered an animal out it really is not an easy one man job. I can do it as I used to kill our own beef hogs etc. so have some background it it. But the idea of having those OTC meds is a very good idea.. Altitude sickness is something that is painful and may not go away entirely so having pain meds is a necessity. Heck we live at 4200 ft. When we moved here my wife thought she was sick for the first month..and she was... sorta..We lived at 60 ft in Maryland. Big change for her. I on the other hand had very little problem with it as i was outdoors doing stuff all the time. And I did some exploring right after movin here. We have ice caves in the Priors(mountains right across from the house). Only 20 miles or so and only about 7500 ft at the most. Good post Mr 16..Lets here some more

[Mr. 16 gauge]

Skeet;
Suturing up a minor laceration is, in itself, not a big deal....but how you gonna do it on yourself if there is no one around to hep yah?....esp. if the laceration is on your hand? In all the years I've been in the medical field, if you can't stop the bleeding with butterfly sutures, you've got more worries than just a skin tear! Plus there is always the worry about such things as nerves, tendons, ect. being cut as well.......

As for the OTC meds: I prefer to carry just enough; don't need big bottles of the stuff. You can usually get aspirin, ect, in the individual doses from the 7-11, gas station, ect. Lomotil & other drugs come in blister packs, so just tear off what you think you need and keep the rest of the box in camp, ect. If you don't have those options, you can always find those pill containers at the dollar store.....just make sure you label what is in each spot.

[Jack]

Very good point on the first aid kit!
If you're looking for a small, basic first aid kit that you can carry with you, look in backpacking supply stores. There are lots of big complete first aid kits out there, too, but they don't do you much good if they're back in the truck or at camp.

[Rapier]

We used to carry a good bit of stuff on patrol and in the mountains of Northern NH and Maine, where the population gets thin. A couple of things that go with me and always have. A wide sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil about 2 feet long, folded into a small square, slipped into a front pocket. It is amazing what you can do with a little bit of foil. The next thing is modern, a Food Saver vacum sealed pack. Just cut a small V notch in the edge near the top edge for a tear strip and all of your "must be dry" stuff stays dry. You can put anything in the dry packs and make several of them. They work well for matches and lint lighter or other fire starter material and are magic for your meds, put a ticket inside and they are dry plus you know exactly what is inside. Did anyone mention wax charcoal lighter sticks?
Ed

[skeet]

Rapier..a very good idea with the food saver thingie/
. A friend carries a few birthday type candles and a cheap butane lighter in a zip lock bag with a bunch of drier lint too. Starts fires very easily. Shoot guys..I thunk I had this down pretty good and I be learning more all the time. as far as the first aid kit..I do carry a couple of ace bandages. Wrapped right they can even help nasty cuts as well as sprains. We even use 'em on horses when necessary. I don't like horses! but they do come in handy for carrying out the game..if ya get any

[Rapier]

The Food Saver is used by the guys in Pararescue for individual med packs, Trauma, Burns, Suture Kits, etc. I use them for reloaded ammo packs and handguns in a rough situation, like saltwater exposure or submersion. A boat gun is kept dry and ready for action, load it, oil it, seal it and cut the notch, walah ready with a zip for a shark, snake, gator, etc. Your ammo stays bright and shinny and with a tag, inside you know exactly what the load is.

I stumbled on this while trying to keep small parts for gun shows clean, oiled, visable and without having to wipe the stuff every day. Told the son who is a CRO and head of reserch now, so every pararescue outfit has a half dozen or so machines in their load-out rooms. They work great for many, many things.
Ed

[buckhunter]

The idea of taking a just enough in a pack is the idea I always used. Fire and fire starter are a must. Small first aid kit. Socks.

As far a clothing. Make sure you have a goretex jack therefore saving carrying a rain coat. Gortex boots and gloves. 'Trim it down. No need for 6 pairs of socks 2 or 3 will do. Plan your clothing so you don't have to take a lot of extra stuff like 2 shirts, one heavy and one light. One pair of pants. You can always dry them off at night if necessary. Much the same idea as tin foil is a space blanket. Don't go crazy with ammo. Usually 1 box is more than enough. Simple gun cleaning kit. I carry a rod, a few patches, rag and oil. Enough tools to fix your gun should something happen. I have a BAR that requires a 9mm wrench to take off the swivel. That goes. Multitool's are good. Think oz's and the pounds will follow.

Then again if you can drive to a lodge, hell take it all.