Traveling with your game

Discuss deer hunting tactics, Deer behavior. Post your Hunting Stories, Pictures, and Questions/Answers.
  • Advertisement

HB Store


User avatar
Sailfish_WC
500 Club
Posts: 2364
Joined: Thu Jan 11, 2018 4:39 am
Status: Offline

Traveling with your game

Unread postby Sailfish_WC » Fri Nov 22, 2019 4:02 am

Hopefully this isn’t a repost, I did try a search and didn’t find what I was looking for.

We’re driving to Central MI for a few days and we have a tag left we’re hoping to fill

Say we kill and then hang it in the shed (supposed to be 30’s) for a few days.

It’s a 2 day ride home.
I won’t be processing up there.
If I quarter it and drop it in the cooler....what’s the best method for travel?

Here we keep it on ice and drain everyday and reice
Would that be best? Or dry ice? Other?
Usually it’s processed but that’s not an option this time so I’m looking for options.

Thanks for any input.
Last edited by Sailfish_WC on Fri Nov 22, 2019 4:26 am, edited 1 time in total.


Sailfish_WC <-- Deer watcher
User avatar
milkweed-militia
500 Club
Posts: 571
Joined: Sat Aug 18, 2018 1:52 am
Facebook: Ross Brawner
Location: Tennessee
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby milkweed-militia » Fri Nov 22, 2019 4:10 am

I feel like you should be good. I've read where guys age their deer in the cooler with ice when the outdoor temps don't cooperate. Just be sure to keep it draining.

I know my brother in law has kept deer in a cooler, over ice, with the drain plug left open for quite a while with no problems.
User avatar
BRoth82
500 Club
Posts: 906
Joined: Thu Oct 11, 2018 9:00 am
Location: Southern MN
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby BRoth82 » Fri Nov 22, 2019 4:38 am

This is what I did with my deer from Nebraska, I quartered them and put them in coolers. I put a layer of ice blocks in the bottom of the cooler then but a tarp over the ice then put the quarters on top of the tarp. Drained the water daily and it worked great.
Buckshot20
500 Club
Posts: 1969
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2015 10:02 am
Location: Central Florida
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby Buckshot20 » Fri Nov 22, 2019 5:48 am

Hey sail, if you are bringing it back to Florida to process remember the new executive order that everything has to be deboned. Also, all deer must be fully caped. Skull caps only. No brain or spinal cord can be transported.

Just throw it in a cooler with bags of ice on it. Just leave the drain open so it doesn’t water log. If you can put the bags of ice down first but don’t sweat it too much. I try to prop the side of the cooler to help drain but sometimes it’s t can be futile
User avatar
Ack
Posts: 3030
Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2010 6:52 pm
Location: Michigan
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby Ack » Fri Nov 22, 2019 6:15 am

Not sure how you want to transport, but be aware of transportation restrictions, as much of central Michigan is in a CWD zone. And a heads up....CO’s have supposedly been stopping and checking vehicles on the highways.

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/emer ... 1215_7.pdf
User avatar
Southern Man
500 Club
Posts: 3827
Joined: Sun Feb 21, 2010 7:04 am
Location: Extreme Western Kentucky
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby Southern Man » Fri Nov 22, 2019 6:41 am

Ack wrote:Not sure how you want to transport, but be aware of transportation restrictions, as much of central Michigan is in a CWD zone. And a heads up....CO’s have supposedly been stopping and checking vehicles on the highways.

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/emer ... 1215_7.pdf


Yea same here. You can't transport the skull across state lines unless the brain is removed and it's "cleaned". No part of the spine can be brought into our state at all. Same with Tennessee I believe.

As far as keeping the meat in a cooler, I do that just about every year. I'll skin it and quarter it, then ice it down in a cooler for 3 - 4 days. Just make sure you keep plenty of ice in there. Works great.
You Can't Argue With A Sick Mind
User avatar
Sailfish_WC
500 Club
Posts: 2364
Joined: Thu Jan 11, 2018 4:39 am
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby Sailfish_WC » Fri Nov 22, 2019 7:51 am

Wasnt thinking about that.
I remember they just found cwd in gratiot.
I wasn’t bringing a skull even if he gets a buck.

Forgot the debone/state lines transport stuff ugh
That’ll just add a bit of time

Thanks!!

Cart before the horse...need to kill first.
Sailfish_WC <-- Deer watcher
Rich M
500 Club
Posts: 3980
Joined: Thu Feb 18, 2016 1:29 pm
Location: Sunny Florida
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby Rich M » Fri Nov 22, 2019 9:00 am

FL has new laws regarding game transport. Deer need to be boned, no bones or spinal/Brain tissue.

I kept muley meat on ice for 3 weeks before processing. Drain water am, pm and top off ice as necessary.

Have a great hunt!
User avatar
PK_
500 Club
Posts: 6894
Joined: Tue Nov 20, 2012 5:10 am
Location: Just Off
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby PK_ » Fri Nov 22, 2019 9:27 am

Just debone it and pack it with ice. A few solid froze jugs go a long way to keeping the ice.

If you are driving straight thru you should be fine to drain and repack with ice once you get home.
No Shortcuts. No Excuses. No Regrets.
Everybody's selling dreams. I'm too cheap to buy one.
Rich M wrote:Typically, hunting FL has been like getting a root canal
User avatar
Twenty Up
500 Club
Posts: 1885
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 1:06 pm
Location: Dirty South
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby Twenty Up » Sat Nov 23, 2019 1:24 am

Alabama had signs all over I-20 mentioning CWD and to not bring back whole deer from other states.

I think for packability de-boning would be the most efficient method anyways. I don’t think you’d be able to bring back a whole cape for a shoulder mount though.
Trust the Process~~ Lost Boys Outdoors ~~

YoutTube: https://youtube.com/channel/UC7TXknGut5WfZQ6CbddgqYg
User avatar
James
500 Club
Posts: 1530
Joined: Sun Feb 21, 2010 4:17 am
Location: Western WI
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby James » Sat Nov 23, 2019 1:36 am

State laws have all pretty much forbidden crossing the lines with any bones other than a debrained skull plate antlers and hide.

For Kansas we had our bucks butchered there. Sucks to pay for the processing but gives some revenue to the locals and I support it to keep the disease from spreading.
strehb18
Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Sep 14, 2018 12:34 am
Location: Eastern WI
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby strehb18 » Sat Nov 23, 2019 1:57 am

Pretty much everyone else touched on it, but to be as safe and legal as possible, you'll need to debone everything and clean and process the skull plate. If you want to Euro, you'll have to get all brain and spinal matter off the deer.

If you want some tips on keeping game in coolers, western elk guys have that type of thing down pat. Search some of those popular forums (Hunttalk, rokslide...) and you'll find more than you need to know.
User avatar
brancher147
500 Club
Posts: 1414
Joined: Wed Aug 16, 2017 3:46 am
Location: West Virginia
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby brancher147 » Sat Nov 23, 2019 4:01 am

Debone it. Put in 2 gallon freezer ziplocs. Put in cooler on ice. Drive home.
Some do. Some don't. I just might...
User avatar
Jackson Marsh
Moderator
Posts: 19547
Joined: Tue Aug 17, 2010 3:11 am
Location: SE WI
Status: Offline

Re: Traveling with your game

Unread postby Jackson Marsh » Sat Nov 23, 2019 4:07 am

brancher147 wrote:Debone it. Put in 2 gallon freezer ziplocs. Put in cooler on ice. Drive home.



X2!


  • Advertisement

Return to “Deer Hunting”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Dewey, Google Adsense [Bot], naternate and 60 guests