To drag or to carry? That is the question!

[Mt Al]

Interesting to hear how you do it in the UK. I've used most of the options above other than an ATV, illegal to use where I go! Distance, surface and size of critter all matter, but I've been amazed at how easy it is with one of the spendy packs (Kifaru, Stone Glacier, Mystery Ranch, etc.) where you move the bag out from the frame and put the animal or quarters betwixt both. I've used any old pack for years and they all work, but every.single.time I've started to drag a deer I wish I would have quartered/boned out in the field.

Getting old/back back isn't any fun!

 

[Pete6.5]

This is what we do but not sure it would be easier than your sled. My mate bolted a length of ratchet strap to the barrel so we can both pull it. Also got a capstan winch for when there's a tree to attach it to.

It would be interesting to use a set of scales on the drag rope and then use different methods to see the force needed to drag a deer.

 

[nun_hunter]

Interesting to hear how you do it in the UK. I've used most of the options above other than an ATV, illegal to use where I go! Distance, surface and size of critter all matter, but I've been amazed at how easy it is with one of the spendy packs (Kifaru, Stone Glacier, Mystery Ranch, etc.) where you move the bag out from the frame and put the animal or quarters betwixt both. I've used any old pack for years and they all work, but every.single.time I've started to drag a deer I wish I would have quartered/boned out in the field.

Getting old/back back isn't any fun!

If I didn't like to hang the deer I eat for a couple of weeks before butchering them then I would seriously consider quartering in the field and if selling to a gamedealer here then its not an option.

 

[Pete6.5]

But I definitely find all the different flat bottomed sleds you can get a nightmare because of the massive surface area increasing the friction. Plus between me and a mate we have broken them all

 

[nun_hunter]

It would be interesting to use a set of scales on the drag rope and then use different methods to see the force needed to drag a deer.

Also factor in the time and energy taken to go back get all the gear and return then drag it out vs just carrying it out one way.

 

[Pete6.5]

Also factor in the time and energy taken to go back get all the gear and return then drag it out vs just carrying it out one way.

That's why quad is god for me. Instead of carrying one out just keep stalking and shoot more and I leave them whole and gralloch them suspended to get a perfect carcass.

 

[HonestJohn]

Long and short. If you don’t have extraction equipment such as quad or Argo, you will be dragging it, it will hurt, but that’s the price you pay for taking it’s life. Simple as.

If you can’t do it, don’t shoot it

 

[Too Deer]

Other than the blue drum option, I can't see me trying dragging again and I'm too tight to buy a quad/Argo/Polaris (hence the username).

So, I think I'll be taking a look at suitable packs in the near future, starting with the Eberlestock that @nun_hunter mentioned as they do decent gear in general.

Any other recommendations for brands/models?

 

[Danny25790]

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One of these

 

[devon deer stalker]

I will try and remember to take a picture next time

No picture it never happened

I have, and still do use my game cart, but it is heart attack stuff wheeling out a red stag in wet Devon mud, so sled and capstan winch is the only way to go with heavy deer

Cheers

Richard

 

[devon deer stalker]

Other than the blue drum option, I can't see me trying dragging again and I'm too tight to buy a quad/Argo/Polaris (hence the username).

So, I think I'll be taking a look at suitable packs in the near future, starting with the Eberlestock that @nun_hunter mentioned as they do decent gear in general.

Any other recommendations for brands/models?

The other option, and I have done this lots of times, take a large framed rucksack, butcher on-site and walk it out

 

[SussexSteve]

One of these. If the jimny can't get there then sled to get the deer or carry. I much prefer to carry out in a ogdens sack rather than the sled

 

[bullet chucker]

It has to be a GARRON?

BC.

 

[Monarch Country Products]

Below one of our Sika Sack's with 3 Roe in, or the "Blue-Barrell" option also works a treat - had big reds in this recently

 

[Tim.243]

Below one of our Sika Sack's with 3 Roe in, or the "Blue-Barrell" option also works a treat - had big reds in this recently

How do you stop it rolling as any camber and weight change and it will be on its side like a landy mounting the pavement

 

[Rake Aboot]

Drag harness head first.
No way would I carry and I hate quads.
Big reason I cut back on hill stalking was the pain lol

 

[8x57]

But I definitely find all the different flat bottomed sleds you can get a nightmare because of the massive surface area increasing the friction. Plus between me and a mate we have broken them all

I get your point but I've found my Jetsled to be a godsend on the ground where I shoot (fallow). It was even better last week on the snow though I did have to hold it back when it tried to overtake me once or twice when I got to a downhill slope. The dead fallow actually got back to the car before me.

 

[angusb1]

No picture it never happened

I have, and still do use my game cart, but it is heart attack stuff wheeling out a red stag in wet Devon mud, so sled and capstan winch is the only way to go with heavy deer

Cheers

Richard

This is our situation too. You can get a used capstan winch for a fraction of the price of a quad or argocat and you can use it to pull a 20 stone red in a sled/barrel out of places you couldn't get a quad or argo. For us it's a safety issue as much as anything. Trying to carry something that weighs more than I do over muddy steep ground covered in stumps and brash is asking for a nasty accident a long way from a hospital

 

[Monarch Country Products]

How do you stop it rolling as any camber and weight change and it will be on its side like a landy mounting the pavement

Hi Tim

Depends on the ground being dragged over somewhat (relatively flat..), however if beasts are tied in well and the barrel pulled slowly it works well.

With a ramp on my tailgate the barrel slides up and into the pickup (sometimes using a rope/pulley set up to assist).

R

 

[Too Deer]

Below one of our Sika Sack's with 3 Roe in, or the "Blue-Barrell" option also works a treat - had big reds in this recently

I may just have to get both!

I'm liking the blue barrel option more and more. We have a few sleds and Can-Ams on one of the areas I work on and the tailgate & ramp combo works a treat.... Mainly because the off-road ability of the Can-Am minimises the need for dragging