With September’s bugling bulls just a few short weeks away, the panic pack has begun! You know what I’m talking about. You pace throughout the house talking to yourself, stuffing anything and everything into your tote or pack that you think you may even remotely need during the hunt away from home. I take a few minutes and write everything down. This is my backpack list for whether I’m day tripping it, or bivy hunting with my pack on my back all day while wandering around trying to find an ornery old bull who wants to bugle back. I’ve found that I use very little of the gear that I carried in the past, so I have trimmed the list down to the essentials.

Day Pack: Full day trips

Kifaru Stryker XL backpack 15-20 lbs loaded including water

Kill Kit

• SHARP Fixed Blade knife
• Worksharp “pocket knife sharpener” 
• 50’ paracord
• Blackovis Meat sacks- *Includes: 5 meat bags, plastic drop cloth, 2 pairs of nitrile gloves, role of orange ribbon

Misc

• 3 extra Phelps Maverick elk diaphragms
• Anker battery charging pack
• LED Headlamp (Lithium batteries)
• Extra Lithium batteries
• Small LED handheld flashlight
• Matches
• Trioxane fire starter bars
• First-aid kit
• Super Glue (for cuts) 
• Benadryl 
• Ibuprofen
• Band-Aids
• Leukotape (for blisters and taping bandages)
• Steripen water purifier
• Sissy Stix brand trekking poles
• Firstlite Rain coat: Stormlight Ultralight rain jacket
• Firstlite Puffy jacket: Uncompahgre 2.0
• InReach Mini

Food

• Morning Hydration- 32oz Wilderness Athlete "Super Man" (Energy & Focus, Hydrate & Recover)
• Breakfast and dinner at camp
• Lunch in pack
• 2) Bagel/meat sandwich: 1 for lunch, one for evening.
• Protein bar
• Jerky & pepperoni sticks
• Wasabi Almonds
• Dried Mixed fruit (mango, blueberries, strawberries)
• Water: 3 liter Camelback reservoir
• Pistol & Bear spray in grizzly country
• Springfield Armory .40 S&W super compact

Bivy Pack: 4 days, 3 nights

Kifaru 44MAG backpack 45-50 lbs loaded including water. 

Sleep System

Kifaru Supertarp shelter

Stoneglacier 0degree Chilkoot sleeping bag - Big Agnes Q-Core SLX insulated sleeping pad - Klymit Luxe inflatable pillow

Kill Kit

• SHARP fixed Blade 
• Worksharp “pocket knife sharpener” 
• 50’ paracord
• Blackovis Meat sacks- *Includes: 5 meat bags, plastic drop cloth, 2 pairs of nitrile gloves, role of orange ribbon

Misc

• 3 extra Phelps Maverick elk diaphragms -
• Anker battery charging pack
• Super Glue (for cuts)
• Benadryl
• Ibuprofen
• Band-Aids
• Leukotape (for blisters and taping bandages
• Steripen water purifier
• Sissy Stix brand trekking poles
• Firstlite Rain coat: Stormlight Ultralight rain jacket
• Firstlite Puffy jacket: Brooks Down Puffy Sweater
• 1 pair extra Firstlite merino socks
• 1 pair extra Firstlite merino underwear - LED Headlamp (Lithium batteries)
• InReach Mini
• Extra Lithium batteries - Small LED handheld flashlight - Matches
• Trioxane fire starter bars
• First-aid kit
• Water: 3 liter Camelback reservoir
• Nalgene 32oz bottle to collect water for purification and storage.
• Pistol & Bear spray in grizzly country
• Springfield Armory .40 S&W super compact

Food

Breakfast x 4 days

• Oatmeal
• Bagel
• Morning Hydration- 32oz Wilderness Athlete "Super Man" (Energy & Focus, Hydrate & Recover)
• One packet Emergen-C (think electrolytes) 

Lunch x 4 days

• Protein bar
• Jerky & pepperoni sticks
• Wasabi Almonds
• Dried Mixed fruit (mango, blueberries, strawberries)

Dinner x 3 days

• Stowaway Gourmet, Freeze-dried entree