Cell4soul

Contact Hunt for Heros through the Arizona Elk Society. I believe Tom Wagner runs the program or is heavily involved. He is in this forum, I think he goes by Liv2hunt, but can't remember for sure.

My stepson and I were doing a trail cleanup out by 4 Peaks. We were loading a refrigerator into the bed of my truck to haul to the dumpster. We lost our grip while loading and the fridge dropped to the ground. A rattle snake came crawling out of the bottom of the fridge as soon as it hit the ground. The snake lost it's head shortly thereafter. We took the snake home and placed it in my dining room with nothing but it's chopped off head sticking out of the doggy door. Then, we waited patiently. My wife eventually got up to fetch some wine from the fridge and about lost her sh!t when she saw the snake. She REALLY lost her sh!t when my stepson proceeded to go pick the snake up.

I just took my Kifaru Nomad with Camp Bag on it's first hike today. I loaded it with all my gear as though I was going on my hunt later this year (all overnight gear and 3 days supplies). The loaded weight was a little over 40 lbs, which included 8 liters of water for a little added weight (I'll be purifying on my backpack hunt, so won't need to pack that much normally). The pack handled the weight incredibly. Prior to this I was using an Eberlestock Just One pack. The Kifaru absolutely blows the Eberlestock away. They aren't even remotely in the same class as far as how comfortable they are when loaded with weight. I only put in about 4 miles round trip and was at about 6,000' elevation to prepare for my hunts....the pack did better than my legs. It was about 96 degrees out, so the heat was the biggest challenge.

Nothing wrong with your Outdoorsmans pack, be happy with your decision and go enjoy your hunts.

Chupacabra

I agree with Smitty. I bought a set of Turtle Skins. http://turtleskin.com/snake-gaiters I hope I never need them, but you can bet I'll be wearing them when in the back country. Something like that Garmin InReach looks like a great way to communicate an emergency as well, especially considering I am planning a solo back country backpack hunt this year.

Just copy and paste. https://www.rokon.com

I would look no further than the Yamaha TW200. Here is a link: https://www.yamahamotorsports.com/dual-sport/models/tw200 I've seen these bikes perform in some nasty Idaho terrain and they do great. You can purchase a lot of different accessories for these bikes, including scabbards and racks for hauling meat. These are really popular in Idaho where there is a lot of really steep single track trails. There is a TW200 forum where you can get a lot of info on the bikes and their accessories. Another option, although it is a trail only bike, would be a Rokon.

Nice rifle

Hydrogen Peroxide works great to clean them.

Anyone have a hunt during the rut and looking for someone to help them pack out meat? I have never hunted the rut, but would love to experience it. If anyone has a hunt during the rut and would like some help packing out meat, I would love to tag along on the hunt so I can experience a rut hunt. In exchange, I can help pack out meat or any other help you may need. Either way, I am probably gonna head up to check out the rut this year, but figured I might as well see if someone would let me tag along. Thanks.

Nice. What are the dates and I'll plan for it. I leave for Wyoming on 9/29 for my hunts up there, hopefully dates work out.

Thanks for the feedback. I am looking forward to trying it out. I am running 3,199 FPS out of my 7 SAUM.

Have you used that 145 LRX on any game yet? That is what I'll be hunting with this year, but haven't tried it yet.

The NeoAir Xtherm is the pad I went with. Sea to summit has a nice one I almost purchased that inflates separately on both sides, but it doesn't have quite as good of an R factor and weighs more.

I just bit the bullet on a Kifaru backpack set up. I went with the hunter frame with lightweight composite stays, the Nomad II, the Camp Bag, a Nalgene bottle holder, a couple of belt pouches and a game bag. This system was over $900 and I still need to purchase their scabbard that is designed for the Nomad II when it comes out. dang expensive, but from everything I have read, Kifaru is among the very best and I am pretty sure my shoulders will thank me for it when hauling out meat and gear this year.

Very nice!

I get the whole bank account thing. I am pretty drained now, but all of my purchases except food are done. Good luck on your hunts. Don't forget water purification. I went with the MSR Guardian. It is REALLY expensive, but will purify for all bacterias and viruses and it pumps really fast. The base of the MSR Guardian screws directly on to Nalgene bottles or MSR Dromedary bags. I picked up a Nalgene bottle that I plan to have on my waist belt (it is the Kifaru Nalgene pouch). I will use electrolyte powder in the Nalgene bottle. Then I have a 2 liter dromedary bag with a drinking hose for hiking and a 4 liter for back at camp.

Enjoy. I just went through the process of updating and upgrading ALL of my gear, including my rifle, in preparation for my first backpack hunts this year. In October I'll be packing in with a buddy in Wyoming to try killing him a big buck (I don't have a tag in the unit). I'll be packing solo in 24B for the early December Coues. I am not much help as to what will work, because this is a first for me as well. i was carrying 8x32 binos on my neck and 15x56 in my pack. I switched to 12x50's only and shaved some weight there. I shaved 4lbs off my rifle/scope. I upgraded to a Kifaru pack. For clothing I went with Ice Breaker base layers, Kryptek Dalibor pants and jacket and the Helios shirt. I also have a Kifaru Lost Park Parka and Kryptek Poseidon rain gear. I should be able to layer to the weather with this combo. I know the December hunts can have huge temperature swings and I think warmth and comfort are key, while minimizing sweat. My plan for the hike out is nothing on my upper body except the base layer to minimize sweat....this worked well last year on my day hunts, even when temperatures were in the teens; my body movement kept me plenty warm without getting any of my layers wet from sweat. Have you already worked out your sleeping gear (tent, pad, sleeping bag)?

I ordered a piece of AR500 steel and built a target stand using cast iron pipe. I'll just have to keep my bullets off the pipe because I am sure the cast iron won't take a hit well. It'll be pretty easy to swap out any of the cast iron pieces if I do have a mishap.

If you want to magazine feed, wouldn't it make sense to do another ladder test with the rounds loaded to feedable max magazine length? i am heading to San Diego this weekend for my dad's 70th birthday, but planning on shooting steel the following weekend if you are looking for someone to shoot with. I just picked up a 24" x 30" piece of AR500 and built a target stand. Hard to pass up on that node where the 3 shots are touching, may be worth single feeding.

I am going to be doing a backpack hunt in Wyoming this year. I didn't draw deer, but gonna hike in with my buddy and help him try to put down a big buck. Wyoming weather can change quickly. Last year we hunted 90 degrees one day and two days later we were hunting below freezing with sleet and snow. Winds were blowing about 30-40 mph. So, I am looking at a 4 season tent. I think I am willing to sacrifice a little weight to know I have a tent that can stand up to all that can be thrown at it. My research has brought me to the Hilleberg Suolo or possibly their Unna model. I am leaning towards the Suolo because it will give me a dry place to keep wet boots or gear outside of my sleeping quarters. Does anyone have any other suggestions for a lightweight 4 season tent? For sleeping bags, I haven't started searching much, but I have read some good reviews on the Kifaru Slick Bag in either the 0 or 20 degree model. I am looking for bag suggestions as well. I would like to go as light as possible on my backpack gear, but don't want to sacrifice my comfort when the weather turns (trying to sleep when you are freezing cold is not fun). Thanks in advance for your input. Top pic is Suolo, bottom pic is Unna.

I didn't find published data for the 7 SAUM with H1000 other than Hodgdon's website, none of my reloading manuals have load data. I can tell you my groups tightened up quite a bit going from H4831sc to H4350. I think the H4831sc is a little slower than the H4350, so I am guessing the H1000 would not work as well as some other choices. I am surprised that 7 STW hasn't sold. I wanted to build a 6.5 SAUM also, but already having the 6.5 Creedmoor I went with the 7 SAUM. I will eventually build one, I am sure. My next rifle will probably be something in the .308 chambering, leaning towards the tried and true .300 Win Mag, but also considering .300 Norma Mag and 30 Nosler. I may have a rifle built in the hunting "off season", but thinking I may save that money to do an Audoad hunt or possibly an Alaska hunt.

Do you plan to use the H1000? Wouldn't that powder have too slow of a burn rate? I doubt you'd be anywhere close to compressed if you were only loading to Hodgdon's max charge weight. Their load data in the pic below shows their COL was only 2.825. Are you planning a 7 SAUM build?

I was at Sportsman's today and saw a great deal on this rifle, thought I would pass it on. Regular price $750, on sale for $500 after manufacturer rebate.