The Mobile Mule Deer Hunter

Big, old mule deer, common as jackrabbits 50 years ago, are now as rare as conservatives in San Francisco. To tag one (a mule deer, that is) you must get lucky, draw a limited entry tag in a trophy buck unit, hunt a huge expanse of private land or hunt deep wilderness. The last option may be your least expensive if you have the muscle and stamina to pay for it.

I won't kid you: Backpack hunting is hard. But it's also rewarding--not necessarily in producing the biggest bucks you'll ever see but in overall experience. This is real hunting in real mule deer country, true God's country. Big valleys, tall timber, deep canyons, sagebrush buttes, trout streams, waterfalls and snow-capped peaks. I consider backpack hunting the Rockies, Cascades and Sierras the modern version of what mountain men experienced 150 years ago.

From a backpack camp you literally can hunt from your front door, sitting on your sleeping pad and glassing while your breakfast water heats on a gently hissing stove. Now that's cool.

Here's how it works. The backpack hunter carries 40 to 80 pounds of gear into a pre-selected area, sets up base camp and hunts out from it--returning nightly and moving the entire camp only if he finds a better area or wants to look at new country. Camping just five miles from a trailhead (a two-hour trip) sets you up to hunt 10 to 15 miles from the trailhead easily, distances only horsemen can reach from the nearest road.

An alternative is what my friend Patrick Smith, designer of the Kifaru Long Hunter Packs and Rambling Rifles, likes to do: hunt as you hike, taking everything with you until you find game. With this tactic you can cover literally a hundred miles in a week of hunting. The downside is you might have to pack out meat and antlers for days. Not many can haul 50 pounds of gear and 70 pounds of meat 20 miles a day over hill and mountain, and this tactic places even more of a premium on planning and logistics.

Regardless of how you hunt, you need to have a plan. Just what will happen when you shoot a deer? First you reduce it to boned flesh, cape and antlers. Trim excess fat, eat as many steaks as you can in camp, and you should get total weight down to 50 to 70 pounds. If your pack is sturdy enough and your legs strong enough, you should be able to tackle it in one load. If not, you'll hike twice as far carrying everything out in two trips.

Most opt for the one tough haul. If you're a day's hike in and choose the two-trip haul, you'll have to divide camp and meat, carrying at least minimal survival gear. You can sleep in your vehicle at the trailhead, but what will you eat? After packing a heavy load all day, you'll be hungry and your stove will be back at camp 'cause you'll need it the next evening. The best bet is to leave a basic camp in your vehicle--stove, pot, water, food and a sleeping bag.

The later and colder the season, the more gear you'll need. If weather is nasty or threatening, you'll want an emergency tarp and sleeping bag in your pack at all times.