Kinda dumb question but thought I'd ask the pros here.. when you are out and you quarter up an animal, what do you use to pack the meat in to get it back? On hunting shows it looks like pillow cases or some type of breathable material? Thanks in advance!

Those "pillow cases" are actually game bags...... just a light cloth bag like cheese cloth that allows the meat to cool and air to circulate.

https://www.amazon.com/Alaska-Game-Antel...words=game+bags

If we're deer hunting and refrigeration or ice chests are close by I just keep a couple of heavy duty contractor trash bags in my pack and use that to get the meat back to a cooler.

If your hunting something big like elk or especially moose.....

The game bags make it easier to break down the meat to manageable size pieces and then hang them from a meat pole or tree to let them cool..... if its going to be a couple days or if the weather is turning warm you can give the meat a light dusting of plain black pepper before you put it in the game bags - this helps keep flies away and acts as an anti bacterial.

Thank you so much! For now it's just to get it packed out of public lands but wasn't sure if you have some texas heat on how it would affect the meat. So trash bags are okay if it's just a few hours?

trash bags will restrict air flow and will probably not be the best idea if heat is an option.

..... Agreed!

When I mentioned trash bags, I only use them if I am able to get the meat in an ice chest or refer within an hour. If your packing meat out of public lands and it may take hours in heat, I would definitely skip the trash bags and go straight to game bags with a light dusting of black pepper.

2-3 game bags and a small bottle of black pepper is really cheap insurance and shouldn't weigh more than a pound or so; and I would bring a heavy duty trash bag so you can split it down the side and stake it down with some sticks for a clean surface to lay the meat out on as you quarter and de-bone it.

Just my opinion but I find it easier to gut, skin, quarter & de-bone all the meat at the kill site and carry out only meat.... if throwing the whole carcass in the back of a truck and hauling it to the barn is not an option.

I've put them in a 48 quart Igloo ice chest.. I take the tenderloin our, bone the back straps, then put the hams and shoulders in there. Room to spare.

Okay, I understand now.. I would rather ask and look stupid than ruin it all you know? I expect it to be quite a haul out of where I'll be hunting and know texas weather, you just never know what to expect. I think it would be better to do it all right at the kill site as well, and yes it would be minimal extra for the pepper and such in the bag.. I appreciate your time guys.

Trash bag spread out is a good idea as well!

This.

I knew a few guys who never gutted then. They simply skinned then, took the backstrap, and legs. I treasure the tenderloins too much for that.

not hard get the tenders out without gutting. i dont have much use for the ribs or guts. i dont normally gut mine unless i am having it processed and they weigh the carcass to see what percentage of meat you will get back.

if you hang them by the rear legs on the spreader, you can get every bit of the tenderloin out with a 6" cut and there is no mess. At large camps I pay attention to this and when people leave the tenders in, I "volunteer" to take the carcass to the bone yard. Pretty drive in the pasture and a couple of tenderloins in a ziplock on the way back to the camp and no more mess than a bottle of water and a couple paper towels can't clean up.

Yes the tenderloins are the best cut on a deer just like on a beef....