Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Fanny pack for wilderness day hunts

I’ve always used a small backpack for day hunts into the back country. 1-2 pints of water, a lunch, rope, fire starter, space blanket, and small miscellaneous items as well as maybe scents or a rattle bag. Two things I don’t like about the backpack. 1. You have to take it off to get anything out of it. 2. The straps being padded, are not real helpful to a good stance if you are shooting your rifle wearing it. They add a lot to the length of pull. A Fanny pack seems like what I’m looking for, one without shoulder straps. Reading reviews I’m not seeing much good out there. I’m thinking a good padded hip belt will be desirable. I never had much of an ass to begin with, and I lost 20 pounds this past year. I’m thinking it might be a challenge to keep a Fanny pack around my waist. What have you all had luck with?

I have a mountainsmith day. It works pretty good. I don't use it for hunting though. I use it for short hikes and fishing. It works great until you start adding alot of weight. Let's say you have your day gear and 2 liters of water....can get heavy on the waist and bouncy. It has side straps that let you pull it in tight to your waist and helps stabilize the load.

It has plenty of room for you I would think. Not expensive either. Some people just use the shoulder carry strap as an additional load stabilizer. Wear it cross body opposite of your shooting side. The shoulder strap allows you to swing it to your front without taking it off as well.

I will say I did purchase the "strapettes" for it. I always found I was loading it with more than I liked to carry on just my waist. The straps are pretty low profile and worth every cent IMO. Plus I can unbuckle the waist and swing it around front if I need to...without taking it off.

Another great option is a sling pack. It only goes over 1 shoulder. It is designed to be able to rotate it to your front and be in perfect position to access your gear. I have a maxpedition Kodiak gearslinger. It has enough room for day gear and has a water bottle pocket. It also has a stabilizer strap that you can connect which will keep it stable regardless of how you move.Very simple to use. If you are a righty it goes over your left shoulder leaving your right shoulder free and clear. There are several models out there. Some are even ambidextrous if you are a lefty or want to be able to shift it from side to side.

Regardless it will take a little playing around to see if you can use either the way you want. Good luck!

This.

miguel, I use a sling pack for exactly what you're doing.

I'm sure there are better sling packs but this one does pretty well and can be adjusted to move the strap to either shoulder.
https://www.tenzingoutdoors.com/shop/hunting-packs/sling

That looks interesting!

I use either a fanny pack with shoulder straps or a sling pack. Can't keep the fanny in place without shoulder straps. Never liked a backpack for day use.

Scott, that looks really interesting. Thanks Everyone for your suggestions.

I'm in the same boat so far as lacking an ass. I'm pushing 60. I've also lost 35 pounds this year. I have enough trouble just keeping my damned pants up so I don't look like some punk-ass skateboarder. I also haven't had a lot of luck with shoulder bags. Where I grew up hunting there's quite a bit of water .. sidehill, miles wide, miles high slide-ish area with gullies that hold a small trickle year around. Though I grew up just drinking from the stream, I no longer do. Before she died mom had a bout of giardia and it didn't appear to be much fun. I don't really like drinking face down, feel vulnerable. My answer for that area is to carry a collapsible cup and a life straw to drink through. Takes away most of the need to carry any weight of consequence. The rest I can address by wearing a vest with big pockets.

Maybe a bird vest would do what you need.

I haven't had a lot of success with sling packs. I've got a couple from 5.11 Tactical which fit the gear I carry but otherwise I hate 'em. They never ride where I want. Smaller sling .. call 'em pouches maybe .. like a Mystery Ranch forager .. seem to work pretty well. I have two for fishing, one for spin gear, one for fly gear .. including the reels for each, so I just grab a rod, a pouch, and go. And fishing high mountain streams, just like where I grew up hunting, a collapsible cup and life straw will meet the need.

Among day packs, I've got a Mystery Ranch "In and Out 19". It is not meant for loads, just maybe clothes you're shedding plus a bottle of water. It only has a bottle holder on one side. The shoulder straps are flat rather than padded and it has no waist band. I use it mostly when I'm walking creeks fly fishing. It doesn't interfere with casting. Might be worth a look.

I hesitate to suggest something I haven't tried, but I'll throw one on the table. Could be that a Hill People Gear prairie belt and appropriate pouches might do the trick.

https://www.armynavyshop.com/category/military-butt-fanny-packs.html



Also, check EBAY, etc.

I have a first gen Badlands Monster Fanny, it must be 25 years old. It's been alot of places and has a few patches and scars. I like it well enough but it doesn't hold enough stuff for me. The Tenzig sling pack Scott posted looks real interesting. I tried a couple sling packs for fly fishing and found they moved around too much. The Tenzig may have solved that issue.


Another option is the Hill People Gear Tarahumara pack coupled with their chest rig. That's my current inclination for day/scout/turkey/fly fishing set up.

For day hunts, I still wouldn't hunt with a pack of any kind that isn't capable of hauling meat

I actually like that scott, hate a daypack strap over my right shoulder while “huntin”. Rifle doesn’t fit even close to right with a strap on your shootin shoulder. Missed a damn nice whitetail several years ago for that reason

If I don't want to tote a regular daypack, I use
a regular Versapack, or a haversack.
Moving up some I'll use a hunting vest or a
Cabelas Safari vest or a dove belt I sewed
ALICE LBE straps on. If that's not enough
capacity, a regular daypack is pretty much a
given ( to me) I can't see using a large capacity
sling pack. If I feel the need to hump a goodly
amount of gear, might as well skip on to a
proper frame pack , my old Kelty or med ALICE
or LC LBE basic load, buttpack and pouches etc.

Probably just have to do like everybody else
does and buy and try different things until
you find the diamond that suits you and put
your chunks of coal online for the next guy

Good Luck

Couple options on here. You need the official uniform to hunt those Big woods. 😂
Fanny packs

I went for a simple solution. I bought an inexpensive daypack and removed the padded portion of the right shoulder strap. My wife sewed in an unpadded nylon strap to replace that part. Problem solved.

Can a fanny pack carry the first 90lb load of meat out?

i used fanny packs they suck and back pack is always better believe me at 69 years of age hunted many years in the mountains and woods don`t waste your money on a fanny pack.

Maybe if I were a minimalist still hunter a fanny pack would make sense, but I learned long ago that I'm too clumsy to catch up with much that way, so I'm a scout and sit kind of hunter and for that, more is better. You can put a little in a back pack, but you can't put a lot in a fanny pack. Having it and not needing it sure beats needing it and not having it. The shoulder strap thing never entered my mind because the pack comes off when I get to my stand. Your method of hunting might be way different than mine.

I would like to give the HPG buttpack a try. That and a chest/bino rig would cover a lot of bases.

https://www.hillpeoplegear.com/Products/CategoryID/3/ProductID/68

My HPG buttback arrived yesterday along with the prairie belt. I'm looking forward to giving it a try in the next few days.

Occasionally I'll use a fanny pack along a HPG kit bag. I usually only do this when it's raining and I'm wearing rain gear. It works well for that. I much prefer a backpack if it's not raining.

The couple of muzzle loader hunts I go on each year I have the powder, sabot/bullets, and primers in a small fanny pack I wear forward for quick access.

While out for the day in wild country, I used to wear a back pack for all my stuff and as the OP mentioned if you want access you have to take it off. One day at a garage sale I bought a used H.S. Strut turkey vest. The only modification I did was remove the padded seat.

I practiced off hand shooting with it to get the feel of the padded straps.

One late afternoon hunting elk I got caught in a snow squall and complete whiteout and spent the night on the side of the mountain between a Arcturus survival blanket and a space blanket.

I should clarify, when wearing a HPG kit bag and fanny pack in the rain, they are under the rain gear vs a pack that would be outside.

I was dressed like that before it was cool!!

If I need a fanny pack, I use a Kifaru Daystalker lumbar pack. More comfy and holds more...

One to avoid is the Browning Billy 1500 lumbar pack.

Marsupial Gear has a great system that you can customize...
https://www.marsupialgear.com/collections/modular-belt-system/products/modular-hip-belt

I use the Alps Outdoorz Big Bear expandable fanny pack. It does have shoulder straps but if you adjust the waist well you can keep a lot of the weight off your shoulders. I love the expandable part for hauling out boned out meat or storing a jacket as it warms up. I don't like having a full day pack on because my back gets too hot as I hike. I just ordered a new one that has the ability to strap my bow or rifle to it.

https://alpsoutdoorz.com/expandable-day-pack-pathfinder.html

Chest rigs work well.

If you don't carry too much stuff, a Gamehide Mountain Pass vest might be worth a look. A vest distributes the weight across your shoulders. I bought one of these, but haven't worn it afield yet.

I have a Kelty waist pack that works extremely well for hunting. It has a frame to add some rigidity to keep it from flopping around. I used it a lot in Colorado since I was wearing blaze orange when public land hunting. At times I would wear a Cabelas pack vest which worked rather well as well.

Rumor has it Mystery Ranch will have a new fanny back in the Fall of 2023.

Take a look at the Big Woods Bucks wool fanny packs. The large size will hold a folded up Hyperhight Stuff Pack which will carry out your first load of boned out meat while still wearing your fanny pack. The BWB packs are made of wool so quiet. The large has shoulder straps that aren’t padded so easier to shoot a rifle with, nice lining as well. I’ve carried a regular pack while hunting for years. The wool fanny pack is quieter in the brush and makes it easier to sneak through the thick stuff. One man’s opinion.

I’ve used a fanny pack for over 25 years. PA whitetail and bear hunting.

Keeps the shoulders free for jump shooting and weight off the shoulders. Holds my knife, small saw, dragging rope, broke case extractor, cleaning rod, lighter, extra shells, lunch, and a bottle of water.

We don’t “pack out” in the east. We drag out.

With a backpack, you’ll just bring more stuff you don’t need.

I have a Fieldline Dwight Schuh fanny pack with shoulder straps that I have used for several years. I much prefer a fanny pack for day hunting. Not sure if they are still available.
Here is a site with reviews of several:
Best hunting fanny packs with shoulder straps

I’m just curious what you consider a “small backpack” that you’ve been using?

I use a back pack. I couldn't fit every thing I needed in a fanny pack,especially gear if I had to stay out all night

Dana Designs Bomb Pack. Designed for ski patrol avalanche busters toting dynamite for controlled avalanche initiation. More narrow profile than backpacking packs to avoid catching on trees. Don't know if it is currently made.

I also have used Dana, Mountainsmith, and Badlands fanny packs. Toted knife, few extra rounds, gloves, small water bottle, snacks, drag rope/sling, hat...not much more.

If one is going to have shoulder straps you might as well use a backpack. But it's very easy to put too much stuff in it and overload yourself for maneuvering through heavy cover and along steep slopes. My bomb pack was succeeded by a Badlands pack which had provisions for a spotting scope/tripod and the rifle.

🤣🤣

Since he was outed, it's almost laughable when you read his post's.

All depends on how far I’m going in or I plan to stay. 4-6 hours will be my bingo harness and a Kifaru Rogan fanny pack. All day will be a daypack and still possibly the bino harness. Over night and longer or anything requiring a pack out will be a Kifaru full sized backpack. If I walk in and back out for a morning or evening it’s typically just the bino harness.

Another option that I use for drives when I don't want to carry a pack is a blaze orange molle Vest:

https://www.canadahuntgear.com/collections/9pc-package-deal

I didn't buy all the pouches for mine and it easily holds enough stuff for a morning hunt. We normaly do drives on smaller walk in hunting areas, so it's quite a bit of in/out of the truck. Makes it easier just to slip on the vest. It has a bladder carrier and I just run a couple straps up the back to strap down my jacket when it gets warm. The back will easily support a buttpack sized pouch.

Most of the time hunting I carry a backpack. Here in KS with our temp swings during rifle season I end up packing a lot of outer wear in and out.

Thanks for the suggestions. My wife got me the sling pack from tenzingoutdoors and it looks like it is just what I needed.

Cool. I hope it works out for ya.

Another member has one listed in the Classifieds if anybody's thinking of one. https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbt...canada-hunt-gear-blaze-orange-molle-vest

I used the alps Lil’ bear last season and was impressed. I find my self carrying too much stuff even with a day pack and not having my back covered keeps me a lot cooler while hiking. It’s perfect for water, snacks, a couple extra shells, a knife, TP, game bag and some cord. Our deer around here aren’t huge by any means and I’ve been able to quarter one out and throw everything in a game bag over my shoulder and pack it out but I prefer to bring em out whole to hang and butcher them. I hunt a lot of public land and can’t drive back to pack a deer out so I prefer a game cart or jet sled over quartering honestly.

Here’s a left shoulder bag.

Patagonia sling

Tried several different Fanny packs…..always came back to my day pack. More comfortable and more gear options! memtb