Best pack for mountain hunting

I bought a Kuiu pack and a bunch of accessories, I like it. I bought the Ultra pack, I believe, when they were discontinuing them about a year ago. Screaming deal! I used it in Montana this year to haul three deer out for myself and buddies. Worked great.
What version?
 
Stone Glacier or Mystery Ranch make some of the best packs out there. Would highly recommend going that route if you can spare the extra $$$. I have an Eberlestock M5 "Team Elk". I've ran it for the past 5 years in multiple states. Its fully functional and there isn't much it can't do. However the the MR and SG packs do it all more comfortably in my opinion.
 
Hello DV,

The best pack for light weight mountain hunting is dependent upon a number of different variables. You could help us all out by giving us a few parameters related to the nature of your entry into the area where you will begin packing. Secondly, this will also include variables based upon the number of days you expect to spend hunting. Thirdly, it would be useful to know which animals you are hunting so that not only volumetric considerations are given for our opinions. While I have a number of different backpacks they are each best suited to a different application. If you want a purely, "One pack for everything," that'll winnow down the number of packs available to you. New technology is opening up a host of options to achieve that objective.

I use a Barney's Sports Chalet for long hunts without regard to species, for moose hunts without regard to length/packing distance, or for winter hunting without considering ANY other pack.

For my light weight option I am currently running a Stone glacier Sky Talus. There are a number of packs similar enough to this design concept that comfort and expandability are not exclusive to this manufacturer. Try on a bunch of them to see what works the best for you. Shared up your experience so we know which options were most attractive.

Cheers!
 
Exactly what Iceking said. Depends on your hunt duration. I am also running a Barney's pack for my longer hunts. Very comfortable and can help distribute weight for long duration trips.

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I've been using the Kuiu Icon Pro since 2018. I got the 3200 and 7200 bag along with the suspension. I normally just have the 3200 bag on and I do like it. It is nice because you can pack game bags/quarters in between the pack and suspension. I used the 7200 bag on my Mtn goat hunt and I worked fine. It's a lot of bag when just packing camp in it, things tend to move around a bit. Coming off the mountain with full cap, head and camp was sure nice though.

Everything I've heard and seen from EXO MTN is top notch. I plan on trying one out for my next mountain hunt.
 
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