Public land essentials (deer)

You still over thinking the public land thing

I use my phone for navigation, it has a compass, maps (OnX) flashlight when in a bind. With that being said make sure to have battery backups to charge phone.

Over thinking is my worst enemy lol.


But my phone died in the middle of that ice storm last year right at dark. Navigating out was not fun.

Edit: portable battery broke that day

If I intend on being farther than 1mile from a buggy or truck/road I will pack.
20ft of para cord
Small lighter with duck tape wrapped around it
Water proof matches with case and duck tape around it.
Some quick clot
Some flagging and paper towels
Water purification tabs
Contractor trash bag
Spare batteries for my headlamp
Some fire starter
Multi tool
Small medicine bottle with some pain killers
It all fits in a small ditty bag that’s about the size of a Nalgene bottle.
And with it I can pretty much turn what would be a miserable night into not so miserable.
Get a Garmin watch it has a compass and you can use it for backup navigation with the gps .

I’m talking tools and such. How to hunt it I got down

A couple caffeine pills could make all the difference if you're like me.


I keep a couple 3-4 foil wrapped from the manufacturer in any bug-out or emergency kit.

Toilet paper is sssential.

Wipe your azz and also good for blood trailing

A good deer cart is worth every penny if you aren’t hunting swamp land in which a sled may be better

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Like a compass

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I keep a compass in every pack I use to make sure I don't forget.

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first aid,

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I keep a few band aids in my pack, I'm usually not far enough away to where anything minor enough to treat on my own will be an issue. If something major happens I'm screwed.

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multi tool

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Skinning knife in my pack and EDC knife on my belt.


I wouldn't get too carried away with it, you're going to end up looking like a gypsy merchant if you try to carry gear for every contingency. You're not going into the wilderness for 3 weeks, you're just making some day hunts. I'm prone to overthinking things as well, I'll get carried away sometimes and end up hauling way too much shite around the woods.

I just went through my pack yesterday, here's what I keep in it besides saddle stuff and specific items for if I'm rifle/muzzleloader/bow hunting.

Knife
Compass
Paracord
2 game bags
Fleshlight
Small limb saw
2 or 3 bandaids
Toilet paper
Extra orange vest to put over the pack if I haul a deer out

I'll add the appropriate amount of water and food before the hunt. Fully loaded for a hunt I'm at about 17 lbs.

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Extra orange vest to put over the pack if I haul a deer out

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Especially good advice. T baw and crew are itching to pull that trigger

Thermacel if the morning is 58-60 degrees. Firearm, Ammo, knife, Orange, Boots, Layers if cool. Cell phone On-X. snack in your pocket.

Keep everything else in the truck

If I was you I'd just learn how to clean a deer in the woods so you can just pack the meat out. Sounds like you are hunting by yourself. It will be a lot easier getting back to the truck with meat in your pack versus dragging all night. You should be able to take a deer from his last breath to packed up ready to roll within an hour (for a novice). Eventually you'll have it down to a 20-30 min process. That's less time than it would take you to walk back to the truck and get your cart.