Must Haves?

[FlushingSetters1724]

I’m always looks for ways to improve the trip.. So, for those of you who travel a ways to hunt and stay in hotels/airbnbs, outside of the essentials (gun, boots, good dogs, etc.) what are some items you bring with that have improved your trips?

For me bringing a good lawn chair and vacuum sealer have been great additions.. after shooting a few birds it’s nice to have a beverage roadside and sit on something other than the tailgate. And the vacuum sealer makes me feel a lot better about thawing out a bird 6 months later for a meal.

 

[gimruis]

vacuum sealer

I don't travel to bird hunt but I'll second the vacuum sealer. I use it on all my grouse and pheasants. I label it with a date, it saves space in the freezer, and there's no freezer burn months later.

 

[Wind River]

Our group brings our own waterproof bed spreads.
Older 9-12 cup percolator, great aroma in the AM.
Food sucker, but has limitations on a goose breast with an attached wing.
12 volt cooler with AC adapter, unless have a kitchenette room.

 

[BritChaser]

1. tasty dust cutter

2. a sheet to put over the bedspread so my dog, who insists on sleeping on the bed, does not get it dirty

 

[Mosby]

I always bring a good pillow. Motel pillows suck.

 

[Matt D]

If no good grill I travel with my portable Blackstone griddle. Can cook every meal on it.

 

[FlushingSetters1724]

If no good grill I travel with my portable Blackstone griddle. Can cook every meal on it.

I bought a tiny propane grill this year, should be a game changer.

 

[Goosemaster]

When camping, I always bring pancake mix and bacon!

 

[birddude]

A bifold full of money and credit cards.

 

[Mosby]

I hunt by myself most of the time and don't like wasting time cooking. Eating out in a lot of small towns sucks too along with the "free" breakfast.
I bring pre-cooked meals. Breakfast casserole, chili, pasta, etc., and heat up in microwave. If there is a Hy Vee in town, I have found they have a decent breakfast. I also have a trucker oven. I can bring burritos, breakfast sandwich etc., pre wrapped in foil. Put in the oven while I'm driving and they are hot in 30-45 minutes.

 

[Goosemaster]

A bifold full of money and credit cards.

Yep,hunting is expensive out of town.Hunt local.

 

[AKSkeeter]

An InReach device so I can text my family that I'm back at camp safe where there is no cell service.

 

[Mosby]

For my dogs I bring a skunk kit, fan and extra battery(warm weather), a water filter pitcher for their drinking water....to reduce chance of stomach issues and a couple different food toppers to encourage a tired dog to eat.

 

[Alaskan swamp collies]

A crib board for those days it just ain’t worth it.

 

[birddude]

Yep,hunting is expensive out of town.Hunt local.

Hunt what? Starlings?

 

[gps4]

My dog sleeps in the bed with me and I stay in cheap motels. So I bring a bedspread to put over the motel covers to keep her hair of their linens, and a pillow and sleeping bag for me to sleep in to ward of whatever may be lurking on the motel linens.

I also bring a thermos and mulling spices to mix with apple juice to put me in the holiday spirit.

Windshield ice scraper has come in handy several times.

I’ve also brought garbage bags and a tarp to lay on the floor in the motel room to keep feathers, entrails and such off the floors when we clean the birds inside instead of out in the blustery cold and dark parking lot.

Boot dryer comes in handy as well. Especially the electric ones with blower motors.

 

[AKSkeeter]

For my dogs I bring a skunk kit, fan and extra battery(warm weather), a water filter pitcher for their drinking water....to reduce chance of stomach issues and a couple different food toppers to encourage a tired dog to eat.

Skunk kit:
1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide
1/4 cup of baking soda
2 teaspoons Dawn dish detergent
Mix and apply to dog's coat, wait 5 minutes then rinse with lots of water.
Repeat the process.

 

[Munster927]

Skunk kit:
1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide
1/4 cup of baking soda
2 teaspoons Dawn dish detergent
Mix and apply to dog's coat, wait 5 minutes then rinse with lots of water.
Repeat the process.

There's also some de skunking shampoos that work well AFTER you've washed them a couple times with the solution you mentioned. That solution helps a lot in knocking down the worst of the smell. But the one time I've dealt with a skunky dog, they still had a hint of skunk on them a day later so I used some de skunking shampoo that seemed to help also.

 

[Munster927]

A "must have" for me on trips is a 5 gallon bucket with a toilet seat cover that's designed to snap onto the bucket and a few plastic bags. Nothing worse than being out in the prairie, without a tree in sight when nature calls. This prevents dumping mud near parking areas like Goose seems to love doing.

 

[gps4]

A "must have" for me on trips is a 5 gallon bucket with a toilet seat cover that's designed to snap onto the bucket and a few plastic bags. Nothing worse than being out in the prairie, without a tree in sight when nature calls. This prevents dumping mud near parking areas like Goose seems to love doing.

i had an experience a couple of years ago where i pulled up to the first field of the morning about 9:30 and the previous evening's dinner came calling. it was 18deg with a 25mph wind and there wasn't a tree in sight and there wasnt a ditch nearby to get out of the wind. i had so many layers on that the "catcher's crouch" wasnt gonna work for me. luckily i had my hitch-haul basket that gave me a suitable leaning surface at just the right height that i could get my feet well out in front of the situation, but dang that blustery wind was terribly cold on my hind pots....