Elk meat and cape question

[ShockValue]

My buddy and I are trying to figure out how many coolers to bring to Colorado in case we get lucky enough to get an elk.

How many big marine style coolers (100 quart) will it take for a quartered elk? Or do they have to be deboned?

What about the cape and or head? Do you worry about keeping cold if you are driving?

[Leftridge]

I took four (4) 100qt coolers for my trip last year. I put one quarter in each cooler plus trim meat. I did not debone the quarters but I did saw the legs @ the hock..I put my hide in a smaller cooler and did not ice it.. I wished I had iced it!

[bowhuntermac]

Boned out you can get an elk in two big coolers. My suggestion on the head would be to go ahead and completely head skin it and clean it up, put the cape in a trash bag to keep it dry and put it in a cooler to keep it cool so the hair doesnt slip.

[cosmiccowboy]

Also, unless it's really cold, get your elk skinned ASAP....Unlike deer hair, elk hair is hollow and is a great insulator...your meat can spoil in a matter of hours on an average Colorado fall hunting day...also, prop the chest cavity open with a stick as soon as you gut it to help it start to cool...

[Randy]

I put a whole cow into a 120qt with room left over to pack it really nice with ice. Only bone not in that cooler were the ribs.

I folded up her hide and put it into a freezer over night then carried it home in a 75 qt cooler.

[ShockValue]

Thanks guys. Good info!

[horseshoo]

Feederwatcher could really help out with this qeustion. Good luck with your hunt .

[Humper]

Boned out you can get an elk in two big coolers. My suggestion on the head would be to go ahead and completely head skin it and clean it up, put the cape in a trash bag to keep it dry and put it in a cooler to keep it cool so the hair doesnt slip.

Ditto....


my last 6 X 6 from montana I used two 120 qt coolers for the meat. I also used another cooler for the hide that i was going to ahve a rug made from. Do get the hide off qucik and let it cool. Maybe carry a few boxes of kosher salt for the cape/hide.

[Clint]

My next elk trip I'll carry a chest freezer and small generator.

[Bill]

My next elk trip I'll carry a chest freezer and small generator.

I hunted CO in 06 with Bloodhound from TBH and a friend of his Steve from Dallas, and that fellow had a chest freezer and generator built into a home-made trailer. Steve took a cow that year.

Looked home-made, but worked great. No points for pretty.

I assume TX does not have any regs on CWD and bringing elk brain and spinal cord tissue into the state? I can't bring the skull with antlers unless it was caped and the skull boiled-out and no brain material remains. Just another law here to comply with.

[orlybow]

Salt..

Ditto....


my last 6 X 6 from montana I used two 120 qt coolers for the meat. I also used another cooler for the hide that i was going to ahve a rug made from. Do get the hide off qucik and let it cool. Maybe carry a few boxes of kosher salt for the cape/hide.

I like this idea. Salting the hide would be the way I would go to preserve it for tanning. A 50lb. bag of mixing salt from your local feed store ($5) should do a couple of cow hides. Salt the hide heavy, roll up and hang overnight to drip. Next day, shake it off and salt again. You can then roll it up with the second salt and bag it up for transport. Do not place in a cooler with ice. You want to keep it as dry as possible. Any moisture will cause bacteria growth and hair slippage.

orlybow