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DIY: Anatomy of A Mobile Public Land Setup

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I cannot claim expertise in mobile hunting as this past year was my first season putting together a mobile setup in preparation for my drawn hunt on Hagerman NWA in Texas.

What I would like to share is the setup I took to Hagerman and breakdown how I’ve modified it since that hunt. Hopefully you can glean some ideas and learn from my mistakes as you tailor your own setup.

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I plan to focus this post on what I did, not what I think you should do…you will not find debates of stand vs. saddle, lock-on vs climber, etc… Frankly, there is plenty of that already out there, and I want to focus on what is working for me using a lock-on setup.

Walking Through My Attempts

The “Too Uncomfortable” Setup

Gear Summary

The foundation of this setup is the Hawk Helium Ultra Lite Stand, a great stand for someone just getting into mobile hunting. It’s a bit more bulky, especially when you include the seat cushion, and feels heavy. Much of this can be attributed to the stock straps used for carrying the stand on your back…they would work in a pinch, but not something you would want to carry on your shoulders very far.

While the stand was adequate, the major downfall of this setup for me was the lack of accessible pockets and compartments.

The Badlands Superday is a great pack, but it lacks enough easily accessible pockets for me to breakdown and easily organize the items needed for a public land hunt that requires one to be prepared for unknown setup situations.

The “Overkill” Setup

Gear Summary

Gear Mods

The jump from the “Too Uncomfortable” setup to this setup was the biggest change in the evolution of my system. I traded out the Hawk stand for a Lone Wolf Assault II which is a game changer in and of itself. The stand is just well thought out and easy to hang.

Additionally, I added a military-issue set of shoulder straps and hip belt that one could carry all day…the stock stand straps included with any stand, Lone Wolf or Hawk, just don’t compare.

Frankly, there really isn’t anything wrong with this setup and I will continue to use it when I feel I need to pack in more. The vastness of the pack is just given to “overpacking”. My goto setup needed to be leaner.

Finally, I traded out the Badlands Superday, for the Eberlestock X2 in an attempt to address my pocket issue. The pack has multiple well-thought out pockets, batwings that can assist in strapping bulky items to the pack and PAL webbing that allowed me to augment the pack with a stuff pouch for my aider and straps.

The “Just Right” Setup

Gear Summary

Gear Mods

This setup is currently hitting all the right notes. I traded out the Eberlestock X2 for an Eberlestock Bandit, a much smaller pack that is outfitted with plenty of PAL-webbing for expansion as needed. No one pocket is so deep it becomes problematic to find anything. It’s small enough to discourage excess, but large enough to meet basic needs.

Breaking Down My Setup

To allow better access to items needed while hanging a mobile setup e.g. extra lineman’s belt, aider, etc., I added to stuff pouches to the waist belt
I attached the shoulder straps high on the stand using Prusik knots that allow the load lifters to do their job
The attachment of the bow holder to the seat allows me to easily stow my bow while keeping it accessible
The Hawk Helium sticks are easily attached using sturdy rubber bungees. The Outpost seat becomes the shelf I sit my pack on which I can then attach with the backpack straps
The PAL webbing and compatible iPhone pouch, keep my phone and a battery backup accessible

Summary

I set out to find a more comfortable mobile setup that forced me to cut down on excess gear while also allowing me to pack in everything I needed.

I ended up identifying two setups, one for short trips, one for long…how is your setup working? Anything you suggest for someone relatively new to the mobile hunting world?

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