BACKPACK HUNTING 101

This article is not a how to, because everyone does it differently (and that’s OK). This is intended to share some of my insight into backpack hunting in hope to inspire others to unlock their version of backpack hunting.

There are a few factors to consider before simply packing a backpack: season, weather, terrain, duration, target species, fitness level, hunting mate(s)

Season and Weather

The season and weather play a crucial role in not only what you choose to take on a backpack hunt, but where you plan to go. For instance, I can get away with a lot less clothing in summer compared to winter where warmth and comfort are essential. But, in summer, I may have to carry more water.

River levels during winter can present a barrier to crossing to the other side, particularly after sustained periods of rain. This is typically not an issue in summer. Checking local weather and river level data online before a backpack hunt is highly recommended.

For instance, I source rainfall and river level data from a variety of websites such as:

Some specific examples of data sources that I check before leaving Perth to fly over to Victoria to hunt sambar hunt in the High Country are provided below:

Terrain

The closer together the contours are on a map, the steeper it is. I would argue that the best terrain to hunt is big topography with loads of ridges, spurs, folds, kinks, bends, terraces and gullies, simply because it offers so much variety. Big terrain allows you to sidle in and out of lots of different habitat features and use the catabatic winds and/or prevailing winds to your advantage. Depending on the foliage cover, big country often allows you to glass onto opposite faces to spot your target species.

I purchase all my Vicmap topographic maps from Bogong Equipment (https://www.bogong.com.au). They’re only about $13 per map and they are brilliant for planning purposes.

Duration

This a simple formula: the longer you're out there the more food and potentially water you'll need to carry or source. For longer durations, this would typically involve dehydrated foods to save on weight. For any backpack hunts of more than five days, I would generally replace or supplement dinner meals with wild meat (i.e. heart, tenderloin, back steaks) shot on the hunt, so as to space out the packed food items for longer.

It is common for the weight of the backpack to reduce day by day as you eat your way through food rations. The upside of this is that it creates room for the hunter to pack out meat, trophy, cast antlers and so forth. A successful hunters' pack should always be heavier on the way out than it was on the way in.

Let's compare packing items and weights for two separate and unrelated backpack hunting trips to New Zealand in summer and America for Elk in Autumn. To do this, you first need to itemise all your equipment in a spreadsheet and weigh each item. Then once you start planning what items to take, you can easily calculate the weight. In short, the total pack weight for our NZ summer trip was approximately 21kg; versus approximately 29kg pack weight for elk in America. Then adding the items that will be carried on your person (i.e. rifle, binoculars, knife etc), the total weight altogether increased to 28.7 kg for NZ summer vs 37.5 kg for American elk.

This is important to know so you can train your body to be comfortable carrying those weights for hours or days.

Target species

The target species will sometimes dictate the season, terrain and the duration of the backpack hunt. For instance, hunting wapiti or red stags during the rut in the Fiordland ballot is a fixed period during autumn, with incredibly arduous terrain. The difficulty of the terrain warrants spending at least a week in order to provide the hunter with sufficient time to cover the difficult terrain in pursuit of a trophy bull.

Here's my calendar of options to consider when planning one or two backpack hunts per year.

Hunting fitness

Inner resilience and fitness go hand in hand, in my opinion. The fitter and more resilient the hunter is, the more options they will have on the mountain, especially when it comes to being able to find enjoyment in the pain, sweat and tears.

In fact, I would argue that inner resilience alone (without fitness) is more important than only having fitness (without inner resilience). The two together is an unstoppable combination! Then add a good dose of optimism and self-belief and that's the ultimate recipe...and not just for backpack hunting, you can apply that to anything in life!

I don't have a recommended training program for backpack hunting, just find what works best for you and keep grinding. My training programs have varied so much throughout the years but nothing quite beats hill fitness. If you can maintain your hill fitness by regularly climbing hills, that's the key.

Hunting Mates

Take into consideration who you choose to backpack hunt with. Ideally, you want like-minded mates; they don't necessarily need to have the same or better levels of experience, but they do need to be on the same page with the level of fitness, purpose or objective of the hunt, sense of adventure, reliability, and positive attitude. I find trips are more enjoyable when everyone is on the same page and have similar levels of mental and physical ability.

Lastly, and most importantly, when planning your backpack hunting trip, spend time talking things through with your mates and be considerate of all the different perspectives. The lead up to a big adventure is one of my favourite anticipations and it usually lasts ten times longer than the trip itself, so enjoy that process. With a bit of good planning and preparation, and a sprinkle of luck from the hunting gods, I hope to read about your next backpack trip soon.

Or maybe I may even just bump into you on some random ridge...

“Inner resilience and fitness go hand in hand, in my opinion.”