Letters To The Editor: October 2022

Mark Williams shares yet another method to getting a deer out of the woods. Through proper planning and packing, Mark takes the necessary tools to quarter up a deer or hog at the kill site and packs the meat out.

Another Way To Get A Deer Out Of The Woods

Dear GON,

In regards to “Deer Down! Now What?” in the August issue, the author told of some useful methods for getting a deer out of the woods. This was after highlighting the fact that the older he gets, the harder it gets. Those are facts, for sure! 

With that in mind, I have found the easiest and best way to get a deer out after the kill (when an ATV is not an option) is to field-quarter it and bring it out in a backpack. Not only does this allow the hunter to leave a lot of the weight behind, but it allows the meat to be evenly distributed on top of the hips and supported on the shoulders, making walking out with your deer an easy feat. Another bonus of this method is that most of your work is done by the time you get home following your day in the field. After dragging a grown deer several hundred yards, skinning one out on the hook can be dreaded chore. 

Field-quartering can be a little tricky the first time or two you do it because it’s new, but it will quickly become just as fast to quarter a deer on the ground as it is to do it while hanging on a gambrel. The only downside that I can attribute to the field-quartering method is that you will not have an accurate weight of your deer like you may desire. However, for an average-sized deer, this is rarely a priority.

It used to be in times past that a hunter was supposed to bring a whole or field-dressed deer to the check station to be weighed on a WMA bonus hunt, but the rules have changed and a quartered-up deer is now accepted at the check station. Just be sure to bring the head out with you for sex identification and aging. I keep a “meat pack” that contains essential items for field-quartering—a couple of knives, medical gloves, hand wipes, a battery-powered LED camp light, zip-lock bags (for my bloody gloves and wipes) and ice bags to put the meat in.

If you are not familiar with how to field-quarter a deer, there are a few YouTube videos that demonstrate the process. After hauling out a few quarters and backstraps on my back, dragging a deer out whole is a very rare endeavor. I recommend giving it a try.

Mark Williams, Blackshear

Love The GON Community

Dear GON,

The “Special First Fish” article on GON.com (and on page 88 of this issue of GON)  about 4-year-old Emmi Savage was extremely touching and powerful. It certainly makes me think about my blessings. I, too, have a 4-year-old (boy), and he loves to fish with me. I put myself in Emmi’s father’s place for a moment, but it is difficult for me to imagine the pain he has gone through watching his beautiful daughter battle cancer. Just seeing my kids fight a simple cold is hard enough for me to watch.

My prayers go out to this little girl and her family. I love the GON Community for their support and cohesiveness—it is easy to see that the mission goes beyond hunting and fishing. Thank you to GON for being willing to post articles like this; you never know how far it will reach. 

Andrew Curtis, Alapaha

GON Social

GON Facebook: Braeley Gay harvested this 143-inch, 9-point buck on Sept. 14 in Cook County with her crossbow. This buck had broke half his rack off mid season last year, and she was determined not to give him a chance to do that again this year.