Here is a simple style of pack that has served me well.
If you have to constantly put stuff in your pack and get it out again this design is not the best one available. But if you appreciate simplicity and economy these things are brilliant.
The first models of these I was aware of were simply made out of a hessian sugar bag and a bit of rope. The ends of the rope are fastened to the bottom of the sack by putting a round object in each corner and tying the rope around it. Some folks would suggest that it is a good idea to stick a small potato in one corner and an onion in the other so at least you have something to eat if all else fails.
The opening of the sack can be closed and tied with a simple loop made in the rope if you want to have just one continuous rope on the bag. Or you can use two ropes and tie them together maybe 18 inches from the top. You then use these ends to tie the top of the bag.
The green bag in the picture was given to me by a professional sailmaker. The straps are made out of some fairly wide nylon webbing (seatbelt?), but the adjusters at the bottom of the bag and the top fastening are both made out of bits of braided cord. This is a strong bag. I once boned out a whole stag I shot I managed to squeeze all the meat into it. It was very heavy.
The other sewn bag is something I recently made from polarfleece fabric which was on sale. I guess the actual fabric used cost less than six dollars. But the webbing strap, eyelets and sewing thread cost quite a bit in comparison (well maybe another seven bucks). This fabric stretches quite a bit in one direction, so I cut the bag to ensure that the least stretch occurred vertically. I pretty much copied the green bag.
Both sewn bags have eyelets around the opening where the fabric has been folded over to form a wide hem. Generally the eyelets arent necessary, but if the bag is really full, you have to thread the top fastening cord through the eyelets to hold things securely.
I made the polarfleece bag for two reasons. The colour was less obtrusive and less easily seen than my various other backpacks. The other reason is that it is one of the quietest fabrics to take through the bush. Many fabrics make quite a scraping noise or a whoosh when a branch brushes past them, but polarfleece is almost silent. It is also incredibly strong, easily repaired and cheap. But heck it is easy to melt it with a stray spark from a fire or whatever.
Wide straps are good, but not essential. Mostly I dont have much of a load in my sack pack (or pikau as some locals call them) so the straps dont pull on me much anyway. The bags generally become heavy once Ive shot something. But because I have used just a simple rope so many times, a one inch wide web strap is a comparative luxury.
These bags are simple and safe to wash. You just untie the straps and put them aside and throw the bag in the washing machine. I like to have a few clean plastic bags inside my back pack for putting the meat into, but I guess the meat could just go directly into a clean sack pack. Whether you use plastic bags or not when you go hunting, it doesnt take long to soil your backpack with blood or dirt .
I took my new polarfleece bag out this morning when I checked my traps. I used it to carry my jacket and hat once I had warmed up (it was below zero C here when I left home). To carry my trapping items like my bags for fur, my club, and my retreived snares I had a simple shoulder bag which Id made from the same polarfleece material as the sack pack. This is a good setup. Previously I had carried everything in a small commercially made backpack, but it was a bright colour and potentially attracted too much attention. Also it was necessary to take it off and unzip it every time I set or retrieved a snare. My clothing in the bag made it slow to find the things that I wanted. So hopefully now I will save some time when I set or retrieve a line of snares. I only got one possum this morning.
The sack pack is a good option. If you just use an old feed sack and a bit of scrounged rope it will cost very little.
If you have to constantly put stuff in your pack and get it out again this design is not the best one available. But if you appreciate simplicity and economy these things are brilliant.
The first models of these I was aware of were simply made out of a hessian sugar bag and a bit of rope. The ends of the rope are fastened to the bottom of the sack by putting a round object in each corner and tying the rope around it. Some folks would suggest that it is a good idea to stick a small potato in one corner and an onion in the other so at least you have something to eat if all else fails.
The opening of the sack can be closed and tied with a simple loop made in the rope if you want to have just one continuous rope on the bag. Or you can use two ropes and tie them together maybe 18 inches from the top. You then use these ends to tie the top of the bag.
The green bag in the picture was given to me by a professional sailmaker. The straps are made out of some fairly wide nylon webbing (seatbelt?), but the adjusters at the bottom of the bag and the top fastening are both made out of bits of braided cord. This is a strong bag. I once boned out a whole stag I shot I managed to squeeze all the meat into it. It was very heavy.
The other sewn bag is something I recently made from polarfleece fabric which was on sale. I guess the actual fabric used cost less than six dollars. But the webbing strap, eyelets and sewing thread cost quite a bit in comparison (well maybe another seven bucks). This fabric stretches quite a bit in one direction, so I cut the bag to ensure that the least stretch occurred vertically. I pretty much copied the green bag.
Both sewn bags have eyelets around the opening where the fabric has been folded over to form a wide hem. Generally the eyelets arent necessary, but if the bag is really full, you have to thread the top fastening cord through the eyelets to hold things securely.
I made the polarfleece bag for two reasons. The colour was less obtrusive and less easily seen than my various other backpacks. The other reason is that it is one of the quietest fabrics to take through the bush. Many fabrics make quite a scraping noise or a whoosh when a branch brushes past them, but polarfleece is almost silent. It is also incredibly strong, easily repaired and cheap. But heck it is easy to melt it with a stray spark from a fire or whatever.
Wide straps are good, but not essential. Mostly I dont have much of a load in my sack pack (or pikau as some locals call them) so the straps dont pull on me much anyway. The bags generally become heavy once Ive shot something. But because I have used just a simple rope so many times, a one inch wide web strap is a comparative luxury.
These bags are simple and safe to wash. You just untie the straps and put them aside and throw the bag in the washing machine. I like to have a few clean plastic bags inside my back pack for putting the meat into, but I guess the meat could just go directly into a clean sack pack. Whether you use plastic bags or not when you go hunting, it doesnt take long to soil your backpack with blood or dirt .
I took my new polarfleece bag out this morning when I checked my traps. I used it to carry my jacket and hat once I had warmed up (it was below zero C here when I left home). To carry my trapping items like my bags for fur, my club, and my retreived snares I had a simple shoulder bag which Id made from the same polarfleece material as the sack pack. This is a good setup. Previously I had carried everything in a small commercially made backpack, but it was a bright colour and potentially attracted too much attention. Also it was necessary to take it off and unzip it every time I set or retrieved a snare. My clothing in the bag made it slow to find the things that I wanted. So hopefully now I will save some time when I set or retrieve a line of snares. I only got one possum this morning.
The sack pack is a good option. If you just use an old feed sack and a bit of scrounged rope it will cost very little.
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