Utah’s general-season any legal weapon buck deer hunt runs October 17 to 25 this year, and the general-season muzzleloader elk hunt follows from October 28 to November 5. Confirm your unit and dates in the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources guidebooks before you go. Every fall, the week after opening day brings the same pattern into our Logan clinic: hunters who felt fine on the mountain and could barely get out of bed on Monday.
This guide covers why pack-outs are so hard on the spine, how to prepare in the days you have left, how to lift and carry smarter in the field, and how to tell normal soreness from a back pain problem that needs attention.
Key Takeaways
- Most hunting back injuries happen during field dressing and packing out, not during the hike in.
- Heavy loads on uneven, downhill terrain stress the lower back far more than the same weight on flat ground.
- Splitting meat into more trips is the single most effective way to protect your spine.
- Bending and twisting at the same time, especially while lifting a quarter off the ground, is the movement most likely to cause a strain.
- Pain that travels down the leg, numbness, or weakness after a pack-out should be evaluated rather than waited out.
Why Packing Out Is So Hard on Your Back
A hunt combines nearly every risk factor for a lower back strain in one day. You are tired, cold and often dehydrated. Hours of sitting still while glassing leave muscles stiff, and then you suddenly ask them to handle the heaviest load of the year.
Field dressing adds its own problem: a long stretch of bending forward from the waist, often on a slope, while rolling a carcass that can weigh several hundred pounds. That sustained bend fatigues the muscles that stabilize the lumbar spine before the pack-out even begins.
Then comes the carry. Downhill travel with a loaded pack is especially demanding, because your back and leg muscles brake every step, and one slip on frosty rock can load the spine suddenly and unevenly. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons lists lifting injuries and sudden awkward movements among the common causes of acute low back pain, and a pack-out delivers both.
Getting Your Back Ready in the Days Before the Hunt
With opening morning days away, you will not build new strength, but you can arrive better prepared.
Load Your Pack Before the Season
Walk a few miles with your actual pack and a realistic load, ideally on the foothills above Logan or the lower Logan Canyon trails. You can fix strap and hip belt fit before it matters. Our guide to hiking Logan Canyon without back pain covers pack fit in more detail.
Wake Up the Hips and Core
Short daily sessions of bird dogs, glute bridges and side planks train the muscles that share the load with your lower back. The 5 exercises for lower back pain relief we give patients work well as a quick pre-season routine.
Do Not Ignore an Existing Problem
If your back has been bothering you, a pack-out will not fix it. A first visit evaluation before the hunt can identify restricted joints or muscle imbalances while there is still time to address them.
How to Lift and Carry Smarter in the Field
Most of the strain happens in a handful of moments: rolling the carcass, lifting quarters off the ground and hoisting the loaded pack onto your shoulders.
Field Dressing Without Wrecking Your Back
Kneel instead of bending from the waist whenever the terrain allows. Switch sides often so you are not twisting the same direction for an hour. If a partner is with you, roll and position the animal together, working with the slope rather than against it.
Lift Quarters the Right Way
Bring the quarter close to your body before lifting, bend at the hips and knees, and keep your back in a neutral position. Avoid lifting and twisting at the same time; pivot with your feet instead. The principles in our guide to lifting without hurting your back apply on the mountain too, with the added challenge of uneven ground.
Getting the Loaded Pack On
Never deadlift a heavy pack from the ground onto one shoulder. Set it on a log, rock or tailgate, back into the straps and stand up with your legs. Tighten the hip belt first so your pelvis carries most of the weight, then snug the shoulder straps and load lifters.
Make More Trips
The best decision for your spine is a lighter load carried more often. An extra round trip costs time. A strained back can cost weeks. Trekking poles also add welcome balance on loose, steep descents.
Common Hunting Back Injuries We See After the Season
Most post-hunt back pain falls into a few patterns.
Muscle strains and spasms are the most common. The lower back tightens, and bending or standing straight becomes difficult. Our article on what to do in the first 72 hours of a back spasm walks through early care.
Sacroiliac joint irritation often follows a slip or a long downhill carry, producing pain low in the back on one side, near the dimple above the buttock.
Disc-related pain can be triggered by heavy lifting combined with bending. When pain travels down the leg, a nerve may be involved, as explained in our sciatica guide and our article on herniated versus bulging discs.
Neck and upper back strain from pack straps and long hours behind binoculars is common too. Our neck pain page explains how we approach it.
What to Do When You Get Home Sore
For general muscle soreness after a hard pack-out, stay gently active rather than resting in bed. Short walks, light stretching and normal daily movement usually help more than lying still, an approach consistent with guidance from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Not sure whether to reach for an ice pack or a heating pad? Our ice or heat guide explains when each one makes sense.
Most simple strains improve noticeably within a few days. If yours does not, the problem may be more than tired muscles.
When to See a Chiropractor and When to Seek Urgent Care
Book an evaluation if your back pain lasts more than a few days, keeps you from working or sleeping, or returns every hunting season. At Cache Chiro, care for these injuries may include spinal manipulation and adjustments, myofascial release for tight, guarded muscles, and a stretching and strengthening plan so next season’s pack-out goes better.
Seek urgent medical care, not a chiropractor, if you have numbness in the groin or inner thighs, new trouble controlling your bladder or bowels, rapidly worsening leg weakness, or pain after a significant fall. MedlinePlus offers a helpful overview of back injuries and when to get help.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much weight can I safely carry on a pack-out?
There is no single safe number; it depends on your fitness, pack, terrain and distance. The safest load is one you have trained with. Your first heavy carry of the season should not be a steep downhill pack-out in the dark.
Is it better to bone out meat in the field?
Boning out reduces weight and lets you make lighter trips, which is easier on your back. Check current Utah rules on carcass transport and evidence of sex before you go.
Can a chiropractor help with a sore back after a hunt?
For mechanical back pain and muscle strains, chiropractic care combined with soft tissue work and exercise can help restore normal movement. Dr. Misustin will tell you honestly whether your symptoms fit chiropractic care or need a different provider.
The Bottom Line
The animal on the ground is the reward, but the pack-out is where most hunting back injuries happen. Prepare with your loaded pack, lift close without twisting, make more trips, and listen to your body when you get home.
If this season left your back sore, stiff or worse than it should be, book an appointment or contact Cache Chiro at (435) 753-2840. Dr. Misustin will examine your back, explain what he finds, and build a plan to get you moving well before the next hunt. First-time patients can also ask about our new patient special offer.
Cache Chiro | 1415 N 400 E Ste A, Logan, UT 84341
Open Monday through Thursday, 8:00 AM to 12:30 PM and 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM. Serving Logan, Smithfield, Providence, Hyrum and all of Cache Valley.