Favorite things to put in your day pack?

[Aught-SixGuy]

We all have our favorite things to have in our day packs. What is your must-have packing list for a day of elk hunting? Here's mine:
Frame pack with day pack attached
Map, lensatic compass
Pens
Spotting scope, rangefinder, binos
Tags
Warming layer
Snacks, water/Gatorade mix
Extra ammo
Processing knives, game bags
Fully charged phone (for pics and emergencies)
Fire starting kit
First aid supplies
Headlight/flashlight
Wind indicator

What say you? What are your must-haves?

 

[RoosterKiller]

I have everything you have except.
No binos. I have the spotting scope and thats enough. I'm not sitting on ridges looking for elk. I already know where they are.
Also I keep a new in the package tarp I use to sit the meat on. I bone mine out where it drops. I keep also a 30' climbing rope.
Many uses for the rope. I keep a small camo blind.Also what I keep that you don't have on your list is a GPS. I also have a small digital camera besides my phone. The phone battery always runs down.

 

[sagebrush]

Add GPS and camera. A phone is useless where I hunt. I also bone where they lay but use the rib cage for my butchering table, so I leave the tarp behind nowadays. I also pack a good lunch each day and 2 liters of water instead of gatorade. I stay warmer when I have plenty to eat and, hot or cold, you need a lot of water to stay hydrated. I drink a quart of water with breakfast and have a quart with dinner at night. I carry a waterproof bag and parachute cord for lashing the meat to my backpack. I put the meat in muslin bags to cool and drain, then into the waterproof bag for the hike out. The water proof bag keeps the blood off my pack and makes for a nice, tight package to lash on my frame. Once back at camp, the meat gets hung to cool back down and then into the cooler.

 

[Aught-SixGuy]

I just use the phone for pics and occausionally google earth prior to going in where I don't have service. I always carry a good topo map and a compass. Never steers me wrong. GPS someday when I'm not too cheap to buy one lol. I did forget to mention I carry a poncho both for rain/snow and to lay meat on. The water/Gatorade mix is partially for flavor, and partially for electrolytes. I use 1/4 Gatorade to 3/4 water in my camelback and canteens. I stay well hydrated anyway, I drink about a half gallon to a gallon daily. I can't say I know exactly where the elk are, I hunt 800 miles away from home with no time to scout so my optics help me find elk. I don't bone mine out all the way, I keep bones for stocks/soups. Plus I hump out the hides for leather.

 

[AZ Jim]

Add Elk calls, marking tape, glow sticks, multiplier pocket tool, nitrile gloves, T.P.(many uses :smile-yellow: ), folding saw, knife sharpener, and a 2 way radio to what everyone has said so far.


AZ Jim

 

[inchr48]

I need a bigger pack.

 

[Aught-SixGuy]

Add Elk calls, marking tape, glow sticks, multiplier pocket tool, nitrile gloves, T.P.(many uses :smile-yellow: ), folding saw, knife sharpener, and a 2 way radio to what everyone has said so far.


AZ Jim

Good call on the multi-tool and TP. I usually keep that in my truck anyway, and I do actually keep flagging tape in my pack as well. Forgot about that. Another thing I carry is a small rifle cleaning kit. I took a dive into a soft hillside and put the barrel of my rifle right in the dirt. Luckily I had cleaning gear so I was able to fix that. I try to plan for almost any possibility that can come my way. I also keep spare socks as well. You would be surprised how good a change of socks can do for your feet on a long hike through the woods. And some gloves for colder weather. I keep remembering other things I usually carry lol.

 

[FTTPOW]

In addition to most everything mentioned, I also carry extra ammo and an emergency sleeping bag. It only weighs a few ounces and folds up about 3"x2"x1". I've never used it, but I'm thinking it's a one time use. It would be tough to put Jeanie back into the bottle.