Do You Carry What You Need To The Woods With You?

I had a conversation recently with a fellow sportsman and like most conversations this time of year we discussed our current past time…. Michigan’s Archery Deer Season! Any autumn in Michigan is a wonderful time to be alive, but especially during deer season! The woods are filled with brilliant shades or orange, fire red, crisp yellow, sage green and brown. The air is cool and always has a fresh clean smell. Add to that the thrill of setting 15 to 20 feet in the air strapped to the side of a tree watching the leaves sailing to the ground on the breeze when out of no where a 10 point woodland prince comes walking down the trail, head held high, surveying his kingdom….. I had better stop now or I will end up grabbing my gear, hopping in the truck and heading out for a few hours of solitude in the woods. LOL

Most of the hunting I do here in Michigan is with in a 35 minute drive from my house and very familiar to me. So I have never really had to worry about getting lost while I am out there. As a matter of fact I can’t really get lost in the areas that I hunt. What ever direction I choose to go I will eventually hit a fence line, house, road, or a river, all easy to follow back to my starting point. Does that mean I should be able to lighten my hunting pack by leaving the survival items and compass at home? I think if we ask all the hunters we know we would get as many yes’s as we would no’s! I, for one, would like to weigh in with the no’s. Even though I know the area I am hunting very well, there is always the chance of getting stuck out there for the night or pinned down by inclement weather.

I am not saying that I would carry all the same items that I would for a 3-4 day backpacking trip, but I would definitely carry some of them and the ones I do carry change with the seasons. For example, if I were to shoot a deer and ended up having to track it for a while after dark (which happens to every hunter eventually) and after field dressing it I started to drag it out when I realized that in my following of the blood trail I had lost sense of the direction I had come from. Would I just drag the deer around in the dark until I eventually found my way out? Would I leave the deer, find my way out, then go back and look for it in the morning, hoping a coyote or some other animal does not find it first? Or would I pull the compass out of my pack and get a general bearing to head toward. What if, after wandering around the woods tracking that deer, field dressing it and heading out my batteries died in my flashlight or in tracking that deer I fell while crossing a stream? All good arguments, I think, for carrying some type of kit in your hunting pack or pocket.

What should you carry with you?

That is really up to you to decide based on what you are comfortable with and your skill level. I can tell you what I carry and you can add to it or take away from it as you see fit.

What I carry on my person:

• A fixed blade knife with a 3 ½” to 4” blade.
• A Swiss Army knife in my pocket.
• My cell phone turned off unless I need it (If not it will always ring about the time that ten point is standing broad side to you at 25 yards).
• A lighter.
• A quick snack (trail mix, cereal bar, candy bar, etc.) something to keep your stomach happy until you can get home.

What I carry in my pack:

• Matches in a water proof container.
• A Ferro Rod
• A film canister or zip lock bag with cotton balls covered in petroleum jelly & pencil shavings for tinder (the amount carried changes due to weather conditions. I always carry more in the winter months).
• LED head lamp or flash light.
• Extra batteries for my light (I have had it go dead in the woods, and if it were not for having someone else with me I would have wandered about until I found my way out or ended up staying in the woods for the night).
•  A large piece of plastic 4-6 mil (can be used as a shelter or tied around your deer to make it easier to drag out).
• A drag rope with a web strap (helps save your back if you have to go a long distance).
• 25’ to 50’ of 550 Para cord (like the old American Express commercial use to say “don’t leave home without it”).
• About 10’ to 12’ of duct tape.
• A quart sized zip lock bag with coffee / tea packets, 2 granola bars, durable snack foods, & an instant soup mix in case I do have to spend the night in the woods.
• Extra wool socks (depending on the weather).
• Chemical hand warmer packets.
• Plastic water bottle with a sport top to rinse out your game after field dressing it and cleaning up your hands and knife, or you have it as extra water if your tag went unfilled.
• A military style canteen with a canteen cup and stove to heat water for soup or coffee.
• A compass.
• Small first aid kit.
• A small note pad and pencil.
• A field dressing kit (rubber gloves, hand sanitizer, 2-3 paper towels and a few wet wipes)

I put a heavy emphasis on being able to start a fire if I need one. If you are stuck in the woods over night being able to start a fire could be the difference between making it back home and dying in the woods. Add to that something you can use as a shelter to hold the heat of the fire, block the wind, rain, or snow and your odds are even better (specially in the winter). Water is a given, you have to have it and with a steel canteen cup I always have a way to boil water to sanitize it or melt snow to replenish my supply. You could go a night without a hot meal but having some way to make a warm drink or something warm to eat helps keep your spirits and core body temperature up.

I carry this in a mid sized lumbar pack and usually have room left over for extras I might want to throw in like a book to pass the time, an extra layer if the temperature is suppose to drop, lunch if I plan on being out all day, rain gear, a warm hat, extra gloves, or what ever comfort item I may want this hunt. I know a few guys that use a larger pack so they can carry a wool blanket and a thermos of coffee. Whatever makes you comfortable and confident in the woods is the best kit for you. I would recommend that you at least carry the basics:

1. More than one way to start a fire.
2. A good knife.

3. Something to use as a shelter.

4. Extra water or a way to make water safe to drink.

5. Extra food.

Have fun this hunting season, stay safe in the woods, and good luck!
You can watch the Youtube video that goes with this post at the link below.

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