How To Skin An Elk In The Field

Video How to Skin Moose in the Field One of the most common questions we get from readers here is “How do I skin an elk?” Well, I was lucky enough to shoot bulls in two different states this year, which offers plenty of opportunities to answer the question. There are probably as many ways to answer this question as elk hunters, but the method described below is the one that I know of. In this situation, we’re preserving the front half of the skin for shoulder support, but the basics apply whether you’re analyzing a bull, a raccoon, or a cow . Let’s start by rolling the elk towards you. Moose are large animals — a large bull can weigh almost half a ton, so crafting a carcass can be a huge undertaking. Having a friend (or three) with you to help is a great asset — if you don’t have a helper, a long rope or 550 Strings is a must. While one keeps the leg tucked up (a hunter alone can tie it to a tree with the aforementioned rope), the knife holder begins the process by making an incision under the skin in the patient’s pelvis. Moose. elk in the fieldThe cut continues through the genitals and a cut is made around the anus as if you were slicing an apple.Cut forward and expose the elk’s belly, being careful not to puncture the gut lining. Keeping your finger along the top edge of the knife and cutting from the inside of the skin to the outside is a good way to avoid puncturing the intestines.Then, a cut is made on the inside of the elk’s thigh, continuing to a point through the knee joint. A 360-degree cut is made around the leg below the knee, and a knife is used to peel the skin off the leg. This skinning process continues towards the abdomen and above the rump of the elk until the entire rear quadrant is skinned and exposed.Read more: how to recognize bad strawberries | Top Q&AAt this point, it’s time to separate the hind legs from the carcass. Starting on the inside of the leg closest to the body’s center line, cut toward the leg bone until it reaches the joint. Continue the cut around the circumference of the leg, following the natural line of the leg muscles. At this point, the legs should easily separate from the body — hang the legs in the shade where air can circulate around, cooling the flesh. Once the hind foot is removed, you can decide to move forward with the front shoulder or repeat the process with the other hind leg — personal preference or terrain may dictate the order in which you proceed. You can also choose to remove the quadrants if you plan to backpack the meat a long distance — in this situation, our packing distance is short enough that we don’t remove the meat from the bones.Now we will move on to the front legs. Remember we are skinning this elk for a mount. In doing so, we’ll make a cut that runs all the way down the trunk, about the lower half of the elk’s trunk — better than letting the classifier work too much leather isn’t enough. From this circumferential cut, we will draw the skin forward until the front shoulder is exposed. The forelegs are removed similarly to the hind legs but have no shoulder joints for competition. Lift the front leg away from the body and make a cut in the armpit of the elk. Continue this cut around the shoulder muscles until the front leg can be separated from the body. Hang the meat to cool and repeat the process on the opposite shoulder.You may notice that we have not removed the intestines, stomach and other internal organs of this bull — we are using what is known as the “gut method,” in which the animal processed without puncture the abdomen. If you want to harvest hearts or livers for cooking, by all means go in there and get it. Read more: reign over how to trick the devil | Q&A back to top We’re now going by the “good stuff,” belts and loins (also known as “hanging loins”). With this area skinned, we simply made a cut along the outside of the spine and along the line of the back wrap with the blade until it could be removed. With evisceration, we will now make a cut just behind the top of the rib cage and bring our hands inward to remove the loin. Unfortunately, we cut too deep at some point during this process and the intestines were forced to come out of this incision. If that happens to you, your easiest route is to cut the intestines of the animal and relieve the pressure on the intestines. After the bowel is removed, it will be a simple process to reach the top of the chest cavity and remove the loins.At this point, whether you’re done or not is entirely up to you. If you want to get meat from the ribs or neck, take your time and remove those pieces from the bones. If you’re going to attach the animal’s shoulder, you’ll need to continue the skinning process until the neck is exposed and you can separate the head from the body. With the skin removed as far from the neck as possible, use a knife to find the space between the two vertebrae and make a 360-degree cut. This can take a bit of work, and if you have a bone saw, now is the right time to use it. and two loin pieces. Wrap each of these parts individually in a game bag and get them in the fridge as soon as possible. If the air temperature is in the 30s or less, they can be hung in a barn or shed. I like to hang game meat above freezing for at least a week before cooking, but that’s a matter of personal preference and personal situations such as air travel may dictate your choice. I’m not much of a knife guy. For me, knives are tools – tools that I lose easily. I’m sure many volumes have been written about the best knives for chopping a moose. If you want a nice knife, get it, but it’s not a must to turn a moose into dinner. I fell in love with Havalon knives with their interchangeable blades but I flew in late the night before this hunt and forgot to put the peeler in my pocket before we headed out. door. I’ve been doing my skinning with a regular folding knife since 5.11 and it does the job well.Take your time, think before slicing, and cool the meat as soon as possible. One moose can provide over 100 pounds of delicious protein; Proper field care ensures that your meat is as safe and delicious as possible.