Volume 2 of the Alaska Field Care Manual continues where Volume 1 left off. Taken as a whole, it details all of the tools and techniques used in the Alaska big-game guiding industry for the field care of client meat and trophies. It starts with a detailed walk-through of how to process an Alaska big-game animal at the kill site, dealing with both meat and trophy collection, using methods employed in the guide industry for the salvage and preservation of client meat and trophies. This section also deals with how to handle unexpected meat contamination at the kill site, documenting the salvage of your game meat, and preparing your loads for packing back to camp. The next chapter is all about packing, including setting an interim camp at the kill site if needed, scouting your packing route, load sequencing, loading your pack, and dealing with problem bears that may show up at the kill or on the trail. There’s even a section on how to fall down with a heavy load without getting injured. The chapter wraps up with a discussion of how to pack hides and capes, and the proper way to strap antlers to your pack frame to keep them from hanging up in the brush while you’re packing. Chapter 3 walks you through all the details of maintaining your meat and trophies in camp. It includes how to set up different hanging systems for getting game meat off the ground, from ground meat caches to meat poles and meat lines, along with using deadfalls to create cool, breezy spaces near the river. There’s a section on boning out game meat, including the legal aspects of this and breaking down your meat rack. There’s a lot of detail on fleshing your capes and hides and completing the detail work of splitting lips and eyelids, splitting moose dewlaps, turning ears, and turning the feet on bears. The trophy care section also covers full body skins, including how to clean out hooves. The final sections deal with salting, including recommended quantities of salt for shoulder mounts, 3/4 mounts, and full-body skins on all species. There’s a chapter on the special aspects of field care on float hunts, including the dynamics of meat and trophy transport and care on various different types of inflatable boats, meat bag rotation, loading and unloading, and dealing with moisture issues. There’s an entire chapter devoted to mid-hunt meat haul flights, including how to connect all the dots so your meat arrives at the butcher shop in pristine condition. The book includes a chapter on weather-related meat and trophy issues, including a detailed discussion of the water cool method for rapidly chilling game meat at the kill site to prevent bone sour. The book goes on with all the post-hunt dynamics such as air cargo, baggage options, using trucking companies to ship your meat and trophies home through Canada, and doing it all yourself by driving home via the Alcan Highway. Canadian customs issues are addressed, with clear instructions and links to the relevant forms. There’s a special section on processing your own meat at home, including the tools needed, charts showing how to make the major cuts, a detailed description of all the major cuts, and instructions on wrapping or vacuum-packing your meat. The book wraps up with a special section on dry-aging your roasts and prime cuts for mouth-watering steaks and roasts that rival anything you’ll find in the finest restaurants. Includes links to how-to videos put together specifically for this book. The videos demonstrate how to perform the detail work on capes and hides, and how to set up a quick toggle system for hanging meat and taking it down without tying knots each time. This book contains a special shopping section with links to all the gear mentioned in the book for meat and trophy care. Pages:272 Photos: 145 Illustrations and maps: 9 Charts: 4
