A few years ago I put out the first version of my backpack sheep hunting list, after a few more trips and miles on the trail I’ve upgraded some gear and refined the list a little more. This list isn’t the be-all-end-all of sheep hunting gear lists but it’s a good start, I may have missed a few items and will add them over the coming weeks if thats the case.
The total weight for all the gear on this packed up and ready for the trail is approx 60lbs. My partner usually packs the vestibule, saw, and our 3rd partner packs the stove and water filter bringing the total pack weight, including rifle down to about 54-56lbs which is a very respectable pack weight for a 7-8 day backpack hunt. Adjust your food accordingly for a longer duration trip.
| Sheep Hunting Gear List 2012 | Weight Lbs | Weight Oz | Notes: |
| Preferred Pack: Mystery Ranch MR NICE 6500. | 9lbs | 8oz | This is a great pack for all of your backpacking hunts. Lifetime warranty too. MR 7500 or Barney Hunter/Yukon are also great choices. |
| Pack Cover: Integral Designs Silcoat (X-LG) | 3oz | Handy item to keep your pack dry. | |
| Boots: Hanwag Trapper Top Elites 12.5US. | These boots are awesome. Read my review. | ||
| Sleeping & Shelter | |||
| Valandre, “Bloody Mary” Down Sleeping Bag | 2lbs | 6oz | This is a high quality, very lightweight and warm down sleeping bag. Perfect for 3 season sheep hunting. Read My Review. |
| Exped Downmat 7 | 1lbs | 13oz | Twice as thick as my Pro Lite 4 and nearly twice the insulation value, yet only weighs a few ounces more. Read My Review. |
| Siltarp II | 15oz | This 8’x10′ tarp is a must have in any backpack hunters pack. They make a larger version. Read My Review. | |
| Hilleberg Allak 2 Man Tent | 7lbs | 6oz | This is an expensive 4 season tent but has two side doors with vestibules making it very convenient for two guys. |
| 2 Industrial Size Black Garbage Bags. | We use these as ground sheets for our tent. Not to mention many other uses. | ||
| Food, Water & Cooking | |||
| JetBoil Stove (Cooking Cup, Burner, Drinking Cup & Lid) | 14.6oz | Hands-Down the best stove solution for a backpack hunter eating freeze dry meals. Read My Review. | |
| 1 Large (230g) Jetboil fuel canister | 12.8oz | My partner carries the other one… Between the two we have plenty of fuel for 8-10 days. | |
| Katadyn “Vario” Water Filter | 1lbs | 4oz | This little filter always comes with us now. Read My Review. |
| Mnt House Meals 7 Dinners 7 Breakfasts | 4lbs | 1.4oz | I prefer Pasta Primavera, Beef Stroganoff, Stew, Lasagna, Sweet Sour Pork, Chicken Breast W/potatoes. |
| 8 Clif “Builder” Energy/Protein Bars | 1lbs | 4oz | Buy a case at Costco for $20 |
| 1 Spork | Sporks are awesome. If you don’t have a spork you will fail. | ||
| Snacks, Chocolate, Jerky, Trail Mix etc… | 4-5lbs | I usually have a snack at lunch and then a couple more throughout the day. Adjust accordingly for you. | |
| 10-12 Emergen-C Drink Packets | These little drink packets are packed full of vitamins/minerals/electrolytes and are handy to have. Get at Wal-Mart or Drug and Health Food Stores. | ||
| 1, 1.5 liter nalgene (w/carabineer) |
Use the carabineer to clip on the bottom of your pack shoulder strap. I can easily grab my water bottle this way, and you’ll never know it’s there. | ||
| 2 1 liter platypus water bladders. |
I only fill these if we need to store some water, otherwise they stay tucked away in my pack. | ||
| Clothing | |||
| 3-5 Pair Thorlo Level III Trekking Socks (approx 4.6-5oz each pair) |
1lbs | 5oz | These are the best socks I have ever worn in the mountains. They are thick, so make sure you can still fit in your boots. |
| 1 pair merino wool liner socks | I only throw these on if I develop a hot spot. | ||
| Hiking Underwear (willy wickers – 2 pair) | 5.4oz | To prevent chafe you want a light-weight, highly breathable synthetic underwear. Gold Bond Helps. | |
| Thermal long-underwear (1pair) | I wear these to sleep in at night. | ||
| Sitka Timberline Pants. (1 pair total) | 2lbs | 4oz | These pants are fairly light, have a built in belt and suspenders and lots of pockets. They also come in open country camo. Perfect for mountain hunting. |
| Wick-a-way t-shirt (2 t-shirts total) | 9.6oz | Just a light moisture wicking base layer t-shirt. | |
| FirstLite Or Ice Breaker Merino Wool Shirt (2) | 12.5oz | I like to take 1 or 2 mid weight merino wool sweaters. | |
| Mid-weight Fleece | 11.4oz | Just a “North Face” mid weight polar fleece. | |
| Sitka Mountain Gloves | 5.79oz | After a few miles scrambling through rock and scree your fingers will be raw. Wear gloves. | |
| 1 small pack towel | 2oz | This straps onto my pack and I use it to wipe away sweat when hiking and trying to glass. | |
| Rain Gear | |||
| Integral Designs Thru-Hiker eVent Jacket | 13oz | This jacket is light, 100% waterproof and breathes better than most others on the market. Canadian Made too. | |
| Integral Designs Thru-Hiker eVent Pants | 12.4oz | Same as above, but these are pants. | |
| Light Weight Gore-Tex Gaitors | Any will do. They really help for bustin’ brush and crossing creeks. | ||
| Light Weight Gore-Tex Hat | Handy for keeping out the sun/rain. | ||
| Camera/Optics/Gun | |||
| Canon 110S Digital Camera | An OK digital camera with 10x optical zoom. | ||
| Zeiss 85mm 20×60 Spotting Scope w/eyepiece | 3lbs | 13oz | This spotter comes in really handy. Heavy, but it makes up for it by saving you lots of walking. |
| Swarovski 8×30 Binoculars | 1lbs | 9.3oz | Great, light weight set of binoculars, W/Crooked Horn Binocular Harness Attached. |
| Manfrotto 718 SHB Tripod | 2lbs | 11oz | This tripod is fairly light but lacks the sturdiness for the larger 80-85mm spotters. If you buy make sure you get the metal locking plate, not plastic. |
| Tikka .270 Lite S/S w/Bushnell 3200 Elite | 7lbs | 1oz | Very happy with this gun/scope combo. |
| Safety Gear | |||
| First Aid Kit | 5oz | This is just a standard first aid kit to take care of sprains, breaks, cuts, bruises, burns, blisters and pain. It includes: Bandaids of assorted sizes, Gauze, Moleskin, Antiseptic, Ibuprofen, Nail Clippers, Emergency Blanket, Eyedrops. |
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| SPOT satellite tracking device. | 7.3oz | This is an absolute must have for any backcountry hunter. It could save your life one-day. Read My Review. | |
| Garmin 60csx GPS | 7oz | Great GPS with mapping, altimeter etc.. | |
| Myo XP Headlamp w/3 AA batteries | 6.4oz | Very powerful headlamp… There are smaller/lighter ones available but this was a gift. | |
| Laminated Google Earth Maps | These make a great compliment to your GPS and give you a visual aid when hiking around the mountains. | ||
| Trophy Care | |||
| Salt (NOT Course Salt) | 1.5lbs | 1.5 pounds for a shoulder mount that’s been well caped out. Use your own descretion as to how well you can cape, and how fast you can get it to a taxidermist. | |
| Havalon “piranta” skinning knife | 3oz | This knife will be replacing my handmade knife. It’s light weight and features interchangeable blades that are always razor sharp. | |
| 12 Havalon 60XT Knife Blades | 1.2oz | These are the easily changable knife blades for the Piranta skinning knives. They are incredibly sharp. | |
| 2 Game Bags | 6oz | Just two quartering bags will be sufficient for a deboned sheep/goat. | |
| Misc Items | |||
| Gold Bond Powder (you’ll thank me) | When you start sweating you know where, Gold bond comes to the rescue. A trick from my Rugby days. | ||
| 2 Packs Baby Wipes (you’ll thank me) | Toilet Paper will cause a rash, especially if you are sweating lots. Baby Wipes help. | ||
| Small Container Sunscreen | self explanatory | ||
| Small Container Lip Balm | self explanatory | ||
| 50′-100′ of rope (many, many uses) | Set up your camp, tie down tents/tarps, hang meat, haul meat, retrieve game… It’s handy, bring it! | ||
| Extra waist buckle for pack | It would suck to break one out there and not have a replacement. | ||
| Extra Boot Lace | It would suck to break one! | ||
| 1 small roll tp | I try and take a 1/2 roll from home, along with my baby wipes. | ||
| Trailblazer buck saw | This light but sturdy saw is very handy if you are camped low enough to have access to wood. It also works well for cutting the antlers/horns off of your skulls. | ||
| ZIP Fire Starter (few chunks) | I buy this at safeway. It’s very light, burns good but stinks really bad. Double bag in ziplocks. | ||
| 2 bic lighters | 1.4oz | An essential survival tool. I have one in my pack, one in my pocket. | |
| Travel Tooth Brush & Tooth Paste | 2oz | Brush your teeth after meals. Mountain House likes to stick around. |
Impressively comprehensive list! Thanks!
Thanks Scott! I appreciate the feedback!
Carl
Thanks for the great list, just wondering what was a better tent, integral design or the Hilberg? I plan on buying one of these soon and am not sure which one to buy. How was the integral design on a hot day? Lots of condensation?
thanks
Hi Richard,
Thanks! After using both extensively I’m going to say Hilleberg hands down. I prefer the “allak” which has a door and vestibule on either side. The ID tent did collect more condensation as it’s a single walled tent. The ID tent was faster to setup though.
Carl
Thanks for putting this together. Huge help for us. Good luck
Thanks Dennis, Glad you found the list helpful! Packing for my own annual sheep hunt now too.
Carl
Been loading up my pack and checking off my list – funny how you can forget some of the little things here and there. I was scrolling over your list and had a couple items jump out at me that I forgot to add to my list.
Hi Tyler,
Cool. Good luck to you this year! I’m supposed to be leaving in a few weeks for my hunt.
Carl