Field Dressing Elk

[Swede]

How do you skin and carve up your elk in the field for transport to your truck, camp or wherever you plan to take it?

Over the years and in different situations my process has varied. I have drug them down the hill and loaded them whole after gutting only.
I have gutted, skinned and quartered them. BTW: quartering an elk amount to cutting them into four nearly equal parts. I know that sounds like a duh statement to a few, but some think that means removing the hams and shoulders making four quarters and the rest I guess walks out on its own. lol
Over the last few years, I have gone with the gutless method more. That way I pack out less weight and don't give up much in meat.

[7mmfan]

The first 2 elk I dealt with growing up, we gutted and drug or put on a cart. Once a friend showed us the gutless method, I never looked back. So much so in fact that this year when I killed my mule deer in a spot I could get a vehicle to, I decided to just field dress it, and it took me forever and I made a horrible mess of it. Gutless all the way for me. The only modification that I do to the standard removal of front and back legs, is to keep the neck meat and flank meat attached to the front quarter. It achieves what you described earlier Swede, of trying to make 4 somewhat equally size pieces of meat. There is still backstraps, tenderloins, rib meat, etc... that needs to come off but the bulk of the meat is in 4 nice equally sized pieces.

[Swede]

I packed out a Whole half of a skinned mature cow elk without the head one time. It was the front half with the shoulders still attached. The hike was about 1/2-mile up hill. It was totally awful, and I would not even consider such a ridiculous thing again.

[Jhg]

Guiding we could get 4x4's to the down animal it was full quarters as Swede described. I went gutless in the woods. I de-boned my bull this fall because I was solo but I must say given the spot he fell/skidded/rolled to, his body mass etc it was the toughest job I have ever had getting any animal into game bags.

I prefer gutless and will go with that every time in the woods. (I do not enjoy dining on liver or heart).
I try to trim all I can from ribs. Besides amazing flank steaks slow cooked (24hrs) trimmings can be quite tender and flavorful.

There is so much more meat on a bulls neck than a cow. If the bull is not a crusty old leather like some of the contributors who frequently post here, neck meat is also very good table fare.

Flank steak.

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[Lefty]

Ive had horses drag out my elk
gutted elk , loaded up on ATvs Or a bunch of us drag an elk to a trail or vehicle access.
This year we did the gutless method. on Andrews bull, boned then back packed meat only out, Processed freezer weight was #253
My cow,.gutted, loaded on the ATV, loaded into the ATV with he elk still tied up into the RV, Drove home , tied the head to the snatch pulley. Drove the ATV out from underneath the elk to skin.

This elk ,,, drug the elk to where we could drag it out to a ATV trail , Put the elk on a travois, drug to an ATV trailer , towed the elk and trailed to a FS road.

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[saddlesore]

I have done the gutless for several years.One thing I found out is when you cut that back strap away from the bone before it goes into and out of rigor, it is the toughest meat on the elk.
The gutless method was started because of CWD so you never have to cut thru the spine. Here it was advised to not go very far up the neck so you don't get into the lymph glands which is another CWD contamination source.

Early days, we would split the spine with either two hand axes or a saw and wind up with four quarters cutting the the half just in front of the last rib. I probably won't ever kill another elk, but if i did, I would gut it and then use a cross cut /miterbox saw and cut along the ribs one each side right at the bottom of the loin.Thereby keeping the bone in the entire spine from the front of the pelvis bone to the neck would ride dead center on top of the pack saddle,with a quarter in each pannier.

If not far and I had a stout horse or mule and snow on the ground , I have drug a few elk whole out to the truck. Besides maybe carrying quarters a short distance when I could not get a pack animal to the elk I never and would not even think about packing one out on my back.That is why God invented pack saddles

[Jhg]

I used a chainsaw to quarter a moose once... not exactly a tidy method but it is really fast. Drain the oiler first though!

I did not know about the backstrap rigor/tough if off the bone. I do know that if you cook any meat that has not been allowed to go through the rigor in and out cycle the meat will be tough. I age my elk in a dedicated fridge up to a week.

I know you all will agree how you handle the animal in the woods can really affect the meat quality. Especially when its hot. I think hot temps make the meat more sensitive to how its handled but I could be off track on that I have no proof. I don't baby an animal when I am getting it out but it seems wise to have an eye on care as you go along.

Another boring photo of organic free range low fat elk protein.

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[7mmfan]

I have heard that if the meat goes through rigor off the bone it is extremely tough. I can say that I've been doing gutless for years and there have been zero complaints about tough meat. I also let my meat age in a meat fridge for about a week before cutting.

[>>>---WW---->]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4kJIrW1IDM I'm not as quick as Fred is on this video but it is still the quickest way I know of to get your elk ready to pack out. I've tried just about every way possible, and this is by far the cleanest and quickest way there is .

[saddlesore]

I have heard that if the meat goes through rigor off the bone it is extremely tough. I can say that I've been doing gutless for years and there have been zero complaints about tough meat. I also let my meat age in a meat fridge for about a week before cutting.

Meat won't go thru rigor if it is cut off the bone before it does. Cooling meat too fast, also gets cold shortening which also makes it tough. Aging a week aging will help.Two is even better .Let it on the bone until after it relaxes,you will see a difference

[Indian Summer]

I wish we could post videos!

[Jhg]

I use two knives, whatever method gets chosen. I did not forge them. Just bought the raw but unfinished blades.
They both have been bloodied many times.

My main knife- everything from animals to woodcraft

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The shorter, tenderloin knife. It is also a very capable woodcraft knife.

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[saddlesore]

Is that birch on the 1st photo? Very nice

[Jhg]

Not sure. That came from the firewood pile but it was not really species identifiable. Pretty sure it was from a cultivar or something meant to be bush type for landscaping.
I prefer to make my own handles. Then the hand fit is just how I want it.

This one I made for my wife. A fellow arborist took down a big maple and all the wood had this kind of figure. The sad part is thye gave it to someone for firewood. I only was able to save a couple small chunks.
I estimate there was enough to produce about a thousand knife handles ($5 each on ebay you do the math).

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The leather for the sheaths comes from leather soft sided briefcases or similar we find at thrift stores. One will make several knife sheaths.

[Indian Summer]

Before I could afford horses.

[Jhg]

OMG! ROTFLMAO