Lugging base camp into the backcountry...

Off topic though I've never really followed the use of this statement...

Why - TF have a cake if not to eat? Haha!

We all want, it's what we are wiling to do to make it happen. One foot in front of the other and any cake is present to want - and eat.
I love cake, I just know that when I eat it I have exhausted the possibility of saving it. 🙂
 
I would personally find a better spot to elk hunt closer to the road. I bet you’re passing up some unhunted ground off the trail and away from the trailheads. Just hike downhill.
 
Alcohol has the opposite effect on me. Can’t sleep at all after a few drinks 🤷‍♂️
I'm the same way with alcohol. I need to plan well to make sure I sleep well in the back country or at base camp. I'm 6'4 and sleeping on standard size pads used to kill me. I switched to a two person Tarp Tent, the XL Big Agnes Q-Core, a good pillow and a bag that fits me well and it's helped out quite a bit. My system is heavier than it used to be but it's well worth it.

Maybe there's some upgrades you can make to your sleep system to make it more comfortable. I also need to make sure I'm eating as well as possible while I'm out there.
 
I have the opposite problem, I can't sleep well on a cot. I have been in camps with cots and ended up ditching the cot. For me I make a bed out of pine boughs 10"-12" thick. Throw a small tarp on top with a foam pad and down bag. Except for the first night ( opening day excitement) sleeps just as good as my bed at home. Might try it out before the season and see how it works for you.
 
I’d just scrap the idea completely of setting up base camp closer to where you hunt. You’re hiking that many hours because you’re obviously getting into elk. About the time you set up camp closer you may bust them out of there, or maybe not?

Every year I seem to cross paths with an outfitter or two who are setting up a wall tent a few miles in for their mid September hunters. Almost every time they are putting everything in a spot that I’ve called elk into over the prior week and after that camp is up the elk are long gone.
I just personally wouldn’t set up any closer. I’ll put in the extra time and miles to know they are there.
 
my research showed me that it is legal to get dropped in wilderness as well as landlocked states sections as long as the skids dont touch. The kicker is no charter company will agree to drop you in that manner. The only way I found to make it happen is if you had a buddy who was a helicopter pilot and was willing to hover while you jumped, but I don't.
As a helicopter pilot for over twenty years, most of those in Montana and nearby but with some in Vietnam "wilderness", I have a couple of points about such a wilderness drop. First, USFS "requests" that aircraft remain 2,000 ft above ground level (ground level being construed as highest terrain of overflight). In areas where that "request" has been consistently ignored, such as Yosemite and Grand Canyon, then regulations have been enacted to charge and fine violators. Charter companies would prefer to avoid that, so aren't apt to violate even the "request". Secondly, although I'm not certain you are correct in distinguishing a two-foot hover from a "landing" in Wilderness, it has likely not been taken to court, so it would be highly discouraged.

Having stated that, anecdotally I can point to a certain US Army warrant officer known to me who had dropped his hunting camp in wilderness utilizing the Army's workhorse Huey helicopter during an authorized "training flight". Unfortunately for him, an active duty US Army Colonel (with a sore arse from being in the saddle all day packing in with an outfitter) spotted the Huey and reported the tail number. The warrant officer hunting camp flyer subsequently was cited, appeared before a flight evaluation board and was grounded. It became a widespread NO-NO rule for the rotary wing aviation world. The point being that there is enough traffic even in Wilderness that such infractions are likely to be observed. It's better to follow the "requested" 2,000-ft rule and to avoid the NO-NO or even an uncertain infraction such as jumping a hunter from a hover. (After all, hunting elk shouldn't be like dropping into an LZ from a hot running helicopter in the Nam!)
 
Circling back to offer additional options.

Lead a scout backpacking day hike where you load up each scout with an additional camp item the week before your hunt. Drop the gear a quarter mile away from your camp just over the ridge in a different drainage and move it to your final camp when you go in to your hunt.

Start dating a horse girl and tell her you want to go trail riding and want to take a pack horse for a romantic picnic.

Build a Trebuchet and launch your camp to where you want it.



.
 
Circling back to offer additional options.

Lead a scout backpacking day hike where you load up each scout with an additional camp item the week before your hunt. Drop the gear a quarter mile away from your camp just over the ridge in a different drainage and move it to your final camp when you go in to your hunt.

Start dating a horse girl and tell her you want to go trail riding and want to take a pack horse for a romantic picnic.

Build a Trebuchet and launch your camp to where you want it.



.
I like the last option. but the horse girl is a bad idea.
 
PEAX Trekking Poles

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