Posted on: June 24th, 2010Fast and Light Hunting: Back 40 Style
I’ve long been fascinated with the “fast and light” modus operandi of some of the units in the American military. The Navy Seals, Recon Marines, Green Berets, and especially the Army Rangers. My grandfather was a member of the Army Rangers during the Normandy invasion, and visiting the battlefields of the Normandy Coast only fueled the fire to learn as much as I could about these brave fighting men. In my studies, the one thing that pops out at you is the utter mobility of these units. Utilizing these tactics and light gear, I’ve applied some knowledge to the animals I hunt.
My approach boils down to using the lightest, best, and least amount of equipment to get the job done, for whatever species I am hunting. Whether it is whitetails, turkeys, or plains and badlands mule deer, my equipment choices have been honed by trial and error, and an enormous amount of money spent in search of it! I hope you can glean a bit of information to improve your next hunting trip or season.
Let’s start off with everybody’s (or most everybody) favorite animal, the majestic whitetail. We know that to be consistently successful with whitetails, we must employ many tactics and consistently try to stay one step ahead of these wily creatures. Here is my “fast and light” equipment system that enables me to do this:
Lone Wolf Tree Steps
Ambush Tree Saddle
3 Screw in Steps
Grunt Call
“Can” Call
Rattle Bag
Small knife
Small Realtree Bow Hanger
Small saw (for limbs and branches)
Binoculars
Range Finder
The Tree Saddle is rolled up and stuffed in a Badlands 2200, while the tree steps are lashed to the outside. The screw in steps, calls, sundry items and range finder are stuffed in a cheap fanny pack which is also stuffed into the 2200, while my binoculars hang around my neck. This is a nice, easy, and fast package that allows me to hunt whitetails from September to January without ever changing the contents of my pack. I can hunt literally any tree big enough to hold my weight, and can move according to what the deer are doing. All I have to worry about when I want to go hunting is dressing for conditions and what area I want to hunt!
Next on the list is the venerable thunder chicken! Again, fast and light equipment are paramount to bow hunting these sharp eyed birds. As we all know, turkeys can be here today and gone tomorrow, so it is paramount that we be flexible in our game plan to get one on the ground. But what equipment choices can we make that strays from the typical 3 decoys, ground blind, calls, bow equipment, etc. that often accompany us on our turkey hunts? Here is my fast and light list for pounding a thunder chicken:
Primos/Double Bull T2 Blind (just right for one or two medium size guys)
Double Bull Tripod Chair (though I am looking for a lighter replacement)
Two Montana Decoy hen turkey decoys
1 “Crystal Thunder Dome” crystal slate call (it’s old, but it’s killed a ton of birds)!
2 different strikers
1 pack of 5 various diaphragm calls
This equipment is either strapped to or stuffed inside the venerable Badlands 2200 pack. All in all, it weighs about 20 pounds and is a snap to set up and move around with. This set-up has significant weight savings over my previous equipment choices, which easily topped 40 pounds. Many times, I would actually stay in an unproductive spot because I dreaded the thought of packing up and moving a mountain of equipment. Those days are long gone with the ‘fast and light” system above.
Last but not least is the plains and badlands mule deer. I cannot speak with any authority on chasing mulies in the alpine, as I have yet to hunt them above 7,000 feet. But with several “lowland” hunts under my belt, I have developed a “fast and light” equipment system that enables me to hunt hard and stay with the deer as needed.
My equipment for a 2-3 day hunt is as such (lack of fresh water limits my stays in the territory I hunt)
Badlands 2200
North Face Cat’s Meow Sleeping Bag (sleeping bag and bivy in the same stuff sack)
Cabelas Bivy Sack (the one that weighs 15 oz)
Thermarest Z-Lite Sleeping pad (may upgrade to inflatable to save some space)
Jet Boil
2-3 Mountain House Meals (I have gone with the MRE equivalent in some cases)
4 Wilderness Athlete Drink Mix packets (2 Energy and Focus and 2 Hydrate and Recover)
4 Wilderness Athlete Performance bars
Sitka Gear Clothing (appropriate for conditions)
Spyderco Folding knife
2 Alaska Game Bags
2-100 oz water bladders (I take them full, as there is little potable water where I hunt)
Swarovski 10×42 binos on my neck
For this type of quick strike hunting, I take very little extra clothes. Usually it is what is on my back and feet, with one extra layer for my upper body in the pack. I love penetrating the areas I hunt 2-3 miles and hunting the deer I find there. As usual, the further I can get from the road, the better the hunting. 2-3 miles is about max in my territory, as if I go further than that I get diminishing returns (close to a road on the other side).
You will notice a common thread of the Badlands 2200 pack. I feel it is perfect for purposes of a daypack-3 day bivy pack. It can comfortably handle 25-35 pounds all day, with enough suspension to pack around much more for short distances. Also, while I didn’t mention it much, a good clothing system is paramount to quick strike hunting. The days of me fumbling through a mountain of gear to find what I need is over with the advent of the Sitka Gear system. From Wisconsin whitetails to Nebraska turkeys to Idaho Mule deer, the components of the Sitka Gear system has served me well. Of course, with our brutal Wisconsin winters, the Sitka Gear has to stay on the shelf when conditions dictate the wool and Thinsulate. But using the quick strike method the past few years, I haven’t had to worry about the cold weather too much, as I’m usually tagged outJ
Good Hunting!!
One Response to “Fast and Light Hunting: Back 40 Style”
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