Meat cooling in the back country

[Bubba]

When hunting in the back country how long can you leave your meat? What are some good cooling measures and tricks? This would pertain to early season elk hunting.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

I just try to get all of the meat off the bone as quickly as possible. Hang my meat bags in the shade, if I can get them in a nice crosswind all the better. If temps dictate I will put a meat bag in a trash bag and submerge in a river/creek, or even bury them in a snowbank.

 

[Fullabull]

The meat in a trash bag is a great idea!! also getting it off the bone as a lot of heat is held there. But most important is getting is skinned asap and exposed to the air!

 

[Kmbingham92]

This is why I like to debone on the spot and distribute the meat into game bags. I also put the meat in a garbage bag to pack out but as soon as I get to camp I get it back out of the garbage bag because it will hold the heat in and spoil. I lay it out in the shade to cool until evening and then hang it up ina tree at night. Haven't spoiled any meat so far. Left hanging for a couple days before packing out depending on time of season and daytime temps.

 

[Bullhunter]

I debone the animal and place it in game bags.  If i have to hike the meat out then i will hang what is left to cool it.

 

[Niemo.Mt]

I have worked my bum off and thought everything was done right and got a little bone sour so any doubt, bone it out!!!  I like a cloth game bag!!  Plastic bags don't seem to let the meat cool!  Pick a cloth that will stretch but not separate so flies don't ever touch the meat!!  I'll separate the front shoulders from the chest even if I can get a vehicle to it and get it out whole!!  Best luck I have had when cooling meat is to get as much surface area exposed to air so it can cool from all sides if you have to leave it hang for any amount of time!!

 

[Bubba]

Thanks for the info guys, I have packed out deer but never an elk. Possibly being solo and 3 to 5 miles in the backcountry worries me a little bit. I have no intentions in letting an animal spoil and will spend every second trying to get the animal out before spoilage. But its easy to say on this side of the computer when your body is not spent and your exhausted.... Thanks again

 

[nclonghunter]

I placed deer quarters that had the hide removed in plastic garbage bags and they went bad in just a few hours. That was years ago and I will not do it ever again. IF your meat is cold first, then the garbage bag is okay.

Last years elk, we quartered and deboned then put small chunks of meat in several bags. I had 4 and my friend had 4 so we did not load up the bags even though we could have. We then picked trees about the size of my wrist or a little bigger, that were 15-20 feet tall. I had to actually climb up the tree a little to get them bending, but we pulled the tops down, then tied the bag to it. Let go of it and they would spring back up with a little slant in the tree. This got them up high and allowed air to circulate around the meat. Worked out great.
Didn't need to try and tie a meat pole high enough to hang the meat on. Didn't need extra string because the bags were long enough to tie with.  It also spread the meat bags out,  because good trees were not all standing beside each other. We did it in the dark and I imagine in daylight it would be a lot easier. Try the "spring tree" method, it works.

 

[COLOelkman]

One thing I learned the hard way was to not overload any bags.  Smaller pieces in more bags is best to cool the meat as fast as possible.  Another tip I'd heard from a very knowledgeable author was to put meat in a river or stream if available and if temps are real warm.  He said that any dirt or stream sediment will not cause bacterial growth.  I can't say I've had to do that but I would if I could not get it back to my truck within 2 days max.  I alway pack big coolers in the vehicle with frozen ice jugs.  The bigger the jugs, the longer the ice lasts.  I also cover the coolers with blankets, sleeping bags, etc to help insulate them.  I have a Suburban so usually have lots of room for several coolers.

 

[nclonghunter]

COLOelkman, I have put many deer into cold ponds and creeks to get them cooling faster (15-20 minutes). I have never had any problems doing it.
I would have to believe a clean cold mountain stream would be great to cool the meat. Just not sure how long I would leave them in the water before I would hang them. Probably just an hour or two at the most, unless the meat was cold, then put them in a garbage bag and leave them in there for as long as needed.

 

[COLOelkman]

NC - I would agree with you that probably an hour or two would be all that's needed.  However, I've heard you should avoid garbage bags for any long term storage as it's best to have circulating air around the meat rather than trapping the moisture in.  I don't think there'd be any problems using garbage bags to pack it out if you wanted to keep a back pack cleaner inside but I don't think it'd be good to leave them in the plastic any longer than necessary.  Although I don't think it would hurt the meat significantly if they were in overnite and the weather was very cool but that be just my guess.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

The only way I put meat in a trash bag is when I am submerging it in water. It does trap heat pretty effectively otherwise, and without an external source to cool it will hasten the spoiling process.

There has been an occasion where I have lined my backpack with a trash bag or a non breathable game bag, but only after the meat has cooled well and I am confident I can get the meat out without spoilage.

 

[Mountain Bowhunter]

yeah I probly wouldn't put meat in garbage bags because there is no air flow.  that's what we have game bags for.  Don't think it would hurt to dip it in a creek

 

[mtndone]

I posed the same question to a meat cutter a couple of years ago while on a Moose hunt and his reply was to not put the animal in water to cool because you introduce bacteria and off flavors to the meat as well as losing alot flavor- his recommendation was to get the hide off first and get it in the shade and get cool air moving over it, also if its cool enough in the evenings then in the morning cover the meat with old blankets to insulate it from the heat - tried it and it does work -

 

[Fullabull]

I would never put meat in water without it being in a trash bag first. That will keep it cool  if you have a long way to go between packs

 

[nclonghunter]

I would never put a chunck of meat in water rather still or moving, however my friend routinely puts skinned quarters of deer in a cooler with ice,water and vinegar. He says it helps the flavor, but I still will not do it. I have put skinned deer quarters in a cooler then bags of ice, which the cooler was tilted up to drain any water. You can actually age the meat for several days in a cooler if it is draining all water. Not as good as a meat locker, but still doable.
When I menioned on an earlier post about putting deer into water it still has the hide on and the only contact is with the interior cavity of the deer and outside hair. It helps to cool it from the inside then once the deer is hung the water begins evaporating and has an additional cooling effect. 
ONLY IF THE MEAT IS COOL or preferably cold would I put it in plastic. It would have to hang and cool before I would put it in plastic.

 

[COLOelkman]

Several opinions posted on the water thing.  I'm certainly no expert but I did find a great book mostly focused on meat care and cooking.  Photo is attached as I posted this in the General Elk Hunting forum.  The author says that cooling the meat is by far the most important factor in better tasting meat.  So, I think it certainly depends on the scenario as to what would be the best way to do that.  I hunted a muzzy season many years ago and it was in the high 70's or perhaps higher and nights just did not get cold at all.  We were back in 4 hours 1 way and 2500 ft of elevation.  We had a deal setup for horses but the day before our hunt, the owners horses had a major problem and were unavailable.  Long story short, by the time we got everything out, it was the worst tasting elk I've ever had.  We hung it in the shade but it just was too warm.  Had I known about the water cooling thing, I definately would have done it, bags or no bags.  Anyway, the book is a great read if you want to learn about "the science" behind game meat and I really learned a lot.

 

[nclonghunter]

Thanks for the book idea, I found it on Amazon for 9.99, so I will order it...

 

[Mountain Bowhunter]

that makes since about water introducing bacteria.  I may have to check out that book.  Looks like good kitchen book material

 

[COLOelkman]

He does discuss bacteria and water and essentially says it is in most cases a very minimal risk.  The main bacteria in water of concern would be giardia and is required to be in water to survive.  Thus when the meat dries, the bacteria dies.  Anyway, it is a very good book to learn about lots of details regarding everything from when you pull the trigger to when you put it on the table...thus the title of the book!