Drew a coveted Black Hills rifle season buck tag. Been wanting to blood this new Marlin t'irty-t'irty, so I am a little excited.
I am already going through gear bags and boxes trying to decide what all is going in the backpack with me.
-Very low likelihood that I will have to overnight, but a space blanket weighs little to nothing, so that is an easy choice.
-One small, narrow bladed knife, and one medium sized knife...both sharpened to a frighteningly sharp edge.
-A very small hatched honed enough to shave with, of course.
-It goes without saying that a ziplock baggie inside another ziplock baggie with half a roll of high quality buttwipe. I am not a total savage. Plus, one can use squares to mark blood trail.
-A couple short thongs of leather and a hank of paracord wound into a ball always comes in handy.
-Then there is the "oh hell" canvas bag with some limited first aid gear in case things go pear shaped. Included items: stainless steel referee's whistle, two small compasses, several glow sticks and I always carry three forms of firestarting plus osage shavings soaked in the leavings after processing beeswax. (A beeswax coated curl of osage is mighty firestarter kindling, my friends). The three forms are usually a bundle of strike-anywhere kitchen matches in a waterproof container, a zippo lighter, and a flint and steel set with plenty of charcloth.
-A two oz stainless steel flask with good scotch to be used sparingly in case of dire emergency and/or celebration.
Water bottles and a large and varied lunch will be packed daily, subject to change based on what is available in cupboard and fridge.
What things not listed do you consider necessary?
