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Help me to check my boxes for my elk hunt this year
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<blockquote data-quote="Muddyboots" data-source="post: 2219424" data-attributes="member: 63925"><p>Establish with outfitter how often they are going to check in on you and whether you have a means to contact them immediately for emergencies.</p><p></p><p>Link to previous comments on CO elk hunting that may help. Attached is a compilation of comments in a previous LRH thread on Survival and First Aid etc.. One good comment I saw in another thread is something I have added to my pack is to carry a variety of zip ties. Amazing what you can do with them from first aid splints to repairing a tent pole.</p><p></p><p>Arrive at least 3 days prior to hunt at the altitude you plan on hunting to acclimate to altitude. Altitude sickness can hit anyone and getting there early will help alleviate the potential risks enormously. You are hunting the dream, why not maximize its potential by getting better adjusted to the altitude? Age has nothing to do with altitude adjustment. I saw runners that were in unreal condition get sick at altitude. Had to get him off mountain, lucky we had an outfitter that checked in our drop camp and was able to take him out. He recovered fast at lower altitude but if he hadn't gone down, not sure of consequences and glad we didn't have to find out the hard way. Be ready to recognize altitude sickness (read up on symptoms) and make the hard RIGHT decision to get off the mountain ASAP. Don't underestimate the seriousness of this. You cannot play around with altitude sickness, it can be deadly fast. It can kill easily when off grid.Only solution is to get down in altitude ASAP. Usually if down around 5K ft it subsides but be prepared to seek medical help if it doesn't. They know how to deal with it fast.</p><p></p><p>+1 on trekking poles. No matter your age, they will help navigate tough terrain and if successful will give you 4x4 like stability hauling your quarters out. The poles reduce the effort of climbing or descending a lot and help manage your energy. </p><p></p><p>Hydrate every 2 hours at altitude is basic recommendation.Carry twice as much and drink twice as much as you think. You really need to be urinating about every 2-3 hours if fully hydrated. Bring electrolyte packs such as Gatorade (also some carbs in them). You lose hydration due to the extreme dryness of air and dehydration is one of the triggers of altitude sickness. DO NOT assume water is safe to drink at all. Make sure you have drinkable water wherever you plan on camping. Water is one of the most critical requirements to hunt at altitude.If cramping you are not hydrating enough and or need electrolytes ASAP. Carry dried banana chips as added protection for dehydration cramps. Some take magnesium OTC as well.</p><p></p><p>Carb up like crazy in morning for energy and repair body at night with proteins meals at night. Buy more RTE meals than you think you will need. Mountain House RTE Meals - I use them and they are pretty good. But buy the 2 man packs, you will need more calories at end of day. Pasta type meals for dinner are great. I brought quite a bit of oatmeal packs with dried fruit as well. Eat all day to maintain energy. You can burn 4-6,000 calories a day easily.</p><p></p><p><strong><u>BEAR proof your camp is mandatory. </u></strong>NO food or other materials like toothpaste <u>i</u>n tent. Hang food up at least 75 yards away in plastic bag in duffle at least 15' off ground between 2 trees. I have had bears wreck tent just because they could. No food there but their curiosity can still be pain in ***. I've left the tent fly open and they go thru side of tent just because they could. But if you leave food around camp and are sloppy with everything they can be a real problem to your hunt so bear proof and take away some problems. Don't eat in your tent unless absolutely need in bad weather, even then take out food scraps, bury them far from tent. Brush teeth as far from tent as possible. Bears like toothpaste. Put toothpaste in the bear bag as well. Bear spray maybe good idea for multiple trips to your kill site as well. Hang your quarters up as high as you can if getting back to site is over couple days.</p><p></p><p>Bring a really good heavy duty sharp tweezer than has serious gripping power. Everything from slivers to ticks will be easy. First aid kit should include foreceps, sutures and butterfly strips at minimum. Everyone in your group should go over basic first aid to insure decent response to a medical emergency. CPR would be nice. You are going off grid and you are the response. If anyone in your group has a specific health concern, it should be shared so you can respond appropriately if the need should arise. </p><p></p><p>Hard to maintain hygiene on pack in hunt. Bring non-scented baby wipes to "refresh" your really important areas. OK, you can guess where. I took them out of their container and put into zip-locks. Amazing what a baby wipe bath can do to raise your spirit.</p><p></p><p>Lastly, pack everything up and weigh it, the weight will scare the dickens out of you. Then start looking over your gear with objectivity and realistic expectation of carrying how much weight at altitude. You cannot carry as much as you think at altitude and sustain good hunting. See what your buddies are carrying and share what you can to eliminate duplicates. Small compression bags are great to reduce volume in pack. Once you squeeze air out of bag, amazing how small it becomes.</p><p></p><p>Bring a nice compact digital camera if you can to capture some of the best scenery in the world. Smart phones are NOT equivalent in photographic capability but do somewhat ok in pinch. The photos alone will last a lifetime and will bring a smile whenever you peruse through them later in life.</p><p></p><p>If you have never hunted CO, you really need to understand the license and tagging requirements. CO's will not give you any slack on these requirements at all. Hunters were cited camped adjacent to us in 2019 for bringing head out first. When you break down the animal evidence of sex must stay attached to meat. So boning out an animal MUST meet this requirement.</p><p></p><p><strong>LRH Thread LINK:</strong> <a href="https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/colorado-elk-hunt.264276/post-2138207" target="_blank">CO Elk Hunting</a></p><p></p><p>THE TOP 10 MOST COMMON HUNTING VIOLATIONS IN COLORADO:</p><p>This is from 2021 Big Game brochure - See number 6 :</p><p>6. Not showing evidence of sex. Be sure to leave evidence of sex naturally attached to the carcass. Evidence includes the head, the vulva or the scrotum. See "Evidence of Sex" on page 16 for more details.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Muddyboots, post: 2219424, member: 63925"] Establish with outfitter how often they are going to check in on you and whether you have a means to contact them immediately for emergencies. Link to previous comments on CO elk hunting that may help. Attached is a compilation of comments in a previous LRH thread on Survival and First Aid etc.. One good comment I saw in another thread is something I have added to my pack is to carry a variety of zip ties. Amazing what you can do with them from first aid splints to repairing a tent pole. Arrive at least 3 days prior to hunt at the altitude you plan on hunting to acclimate to altitude. Altitude sickness can hit anyone and getting there early will help alleviate the potential risks enormously. You are hunting the dream, why not maximize its potential by getting better adjusted to the altitude? Age has nothing to do with altitude adjustment. I saw runners that were in unreal condition get sick at altitude. Had to get him off mountain, lucky we had an outfitter that checked in our drop camp and was able to take him out. He recovered fast at lower altitude but if he hadn't gone down, not sure of consequences and glad we didn't have to find out the hard way. Be ready to recognize altitude sickness (read up on symptoms) and make the hard RIGHT decision to get off the mountain ASAP. Don't underestimate the seriousness of this. You cannot play around with altitude sickness, it can be deadly fast. It can kill easily when off grid.Only solution is to get down in altitude ASAP. Usually if down around 5K ft it subsides but be prepared to seek medical help if it doesn't. They know how to deal with it fast. +1 on trekking poles. No matter your age, they will help navigate tough terrain and if successful will give you 4x4 like stability hauling your quarters out. The poles reduce the effort of climbing or descending a lot and help manage your energy. Hydrate every 2 hours at altitude is basic recommendation.Carry twice as much and drink twice as much as you think. You really need to be urinating about every 2-3 hours if fully hydrated. Bring electrolyte packs such as Gatorade (also some carbs in them). You lose hydration due to the extreme dryness of air and dehydration is one of the triggers of altitude sickness. DO NOT assume water is safe to drink at all. Make sure you have drinkable water wherever you plan on camping. Water is one of the most critical requirements to hunt at altitude.If cramping you are not hydrating enough and or need electrolytes ASAP. Carry dried banana chips as added protection for dehydration cramps. Some take magnesium OTC as well. Carb up like crazy in morning for energy and repair body at night with proteins meals at night. Buy more RTE meals than you think you will need. Mountain House RTE Meals - I use them and they are pretty good. But buy the 2 man packs, you will need more calories at end of day. Pasta type meals for dinner are great. I brought quite a bit of oatmeal packs with dried fruit as well. Eat all day to maintain energy. You can burn 4-6,000 calories a day easily. [B][U]BEAR proof your camp is mandatory. [/U][/B]NO food or other materials like toothpaste [U]i[/U]n tent. Hang food up at least 75 yards away in plastic bag in duffle at least 15' off ground between 2 trees. I have had bears wreck tent just because they could. No food there but their curiosity can still be pain in ***. I've left the tent fly open and they go thru side of tent just because they could. But if you leave food around camp and are sloppy with everything they can be a real problem to your hunt so bear proof and take away some problems. Don't eat in your tent unless absolutely need in bad weather, even then take out food scraps, bury them far from tent. Brush teeth as far from tent as possible. Bears like toothpaste. Put toothpaste in the bear bag as well. Bear spray maybe good idea for multiple trips to your kill site as well. Hang your quarters up as high as you can if getting back to site is over couple days. Bring a really good heavy duty sharp tweezer than has serious gripping power. Everything from slivers to ticks will be easy. First aid kit should include foreceps, sutures and butterfly strips at minimum. Everyone in your group should go over basic first aid to insure decent response to a medical emergency. CPR would be nice. You are going off grid and you are the response. If anyone in your group has a specific health concern, it should be shared so you can respond appropriately if the need should arise. Hard to maintain hygiene on pack in hunt. Bring non-scented baby wipes to "refresh" your really important areas. OK, you can guess where. I took them out of their container and put into zip-locks. Amazing what a baby wipe bath can do to raise your spirit. Lastly, pack everything up and weigh it, the weight will scare the dickens out of you. Then start looking over your gear with objectivity and realistic expectation of carrying how much weight at altitude. You cannot carry as much as you think at altitude and sustain good hunting. See what your buddies are carrying and share what you can to eliminate duplicates. Small compression bags are great to reduce volume in pack. Once you squeeze air out of bag, amazing how small it becomes. Bring a nice compact digital camera if you can to capture some of the best scenery in the world. Smart phones are NOT equivalent in photographic capability but do somewhat ok in pinch. The photos alone will last a lifetime and will bring a smile whenever you peruse through them later in life. If you have never hunted CO, you really need to understand the license and tagging requirements. CO's will not give you any slack on these requirements at all. Hunters were cited camped adjacent to us in 2019 for bringing head out first. When you break down the animal evidence of sex must stay attached to meat. So boning out an animal MUST meet this requirement. [B]LRH Thread LINK:[/B] [URL='https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/colorado-elk-hunt.264276/post-2138207']CO Elk Hunting[/URL] THE TOP 10 MOST COMMON HUNTING VIOLATIONS IN COLORADO: This is from 2021 Big Game brochure - See number 6 : 6. Not showing evidence of sex. Be sure to leave evidence of sex naturally attached to the carcass. Evidence includes the head, the vulva or the scrotum. See "Evidence of Sex" on page 16 for more details. [/QUOTE]
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