Protecting Your Prize
By August Healy
Editor’s Note: In the last few years
the cooler or ice chest business has
changed. The advent of the heavy-duty
rotomolded ice chests is now promising
longer periods of time that the contents
will be kept cold and fresh. Manufacturers like Yeti, ORCA, Engel, Pelican and
others, plus new names every year, are
finding their way into your hunting vehicle, whether it is just for a hunting trip to
the Sierras or a longer drive to Wyoming.
If you have considered a rotomolded
cooler, you already know that they are
not cheap — I mean in price! But if you
have purchased one or are thinking of
purchasing one, August Healy has some
tips to help you get the most out of your
purchase and protect your game meat at
the same time.
Taking care of the game we kill
is essential, and the tools we use are
critical to preserve our efforts.
I used to haul game back in an
old ice chest that had some sentimental value, but other than that not
much else. It would keep my game
cold, but the ice melted quickly so I
had to burn the roads up to get home.
I’ve recently caught on to the rotomolded ice chest craze.
Are they really worth the money
you spend on them? I would answer
with a resounding YES! My 75-quart
ORCA Cooler is a lifesaver. I’ve
hauled ducks back from local ponds,
an elk and two bears back from
Canada, and this deer was surely going back home in this thing.
There is some work to be done
before just throwing a critter in the
ORCA, though. To do this rotomolded-cooler thing correctly, it is important that you follow proper steps to
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California Deer
ensure your trophy is safe for the duration of the hunt and the ride home.
Prepping the ORCA
It may sound funny to cool the
cooler, but it will help you in the long
run. Place the cooler in the coolest
place you can find or place two bags
of ice in a couple days before you plan
on leaving. Drain the water from the
cooler before use. When you are ready
to use the ice chest, remove any water
and ice from the cooler. Replace any
ice in the cooler with fresh ice that is
truly frozen and is not in the thawing
process. Ice that is already dripping
water won’t last long in any cooler.
The Harvest
More importantly than prepping
the cooler is how you care for the tasty
morsels that you’ve shot. Refrigerate
and/or freeze as many of the items
as possible that you plan to put in the
ORCA cooler before actually loading
the cooler. This makes the ice last
longer and helps the cooler to better
do its job.
Ice and Pack
I typically use whatever ice is at
the local convenience store, which is
cubed. That is great for shorter trips,
but for longer trips look at using dry
ice or even block ice. Dry ice is the best
option for extreme trips like the one I
took to Canada. Thirty-five hours in
the car will do a number on meat if it
isn’t cooled properly.
Packing the game in the cooler is
pretty simple. It is essential to start
with block ice in the center and pack
the items or meat that will be last out
around that. Cover those items with
cube ice and then add another layer
of items; add another layer of ice and
so forth until you fill the cooler to the
top. If you run out of layers, just go
ahead and fill the cooler to the top
with ice — dead air space is a cold
killer and will cause ice to melt much
faster than it normally would.
Other Cooling Tips
I learned this one from an old
butcher up in Canada… When
transporting your game back in your
ice chest, keep a couple of spare 2X4’s
handy in the vehicle. Place them
under the cooler before loading it up.
These boards will keep air flowing
around the cooler and the heat from
the road and truck won’t melt the ice.
Your father probably told you
more than once while you were
growing up to shut the door in the
summer because he didn’t want to
cool the rest of the neighborhood.
It’s the same with a cooler. Keep the
lid to your cooler shut and latched
as much as possible. The ice in your
cooler will last longer, often days
longer, by using this simple tip.
Drain the water as ice melts.
While the water may feel “ice cold,”
it’s not or it would still be ice. Drain
it and your ice will last longer.
One misstep on the hunt might
ruin the chances at a trophy, but
that kind of stuff will happen on the
hunt. However, once that trophy is
obtained, don’t you owe it to yourself
to ensure the meat gets to the table
safely?
It doesn’t matter if you are 15
miles or 1,500 miles from the house.
You owe it to yourself to invest in
the proper tools to get your trophy
home safely and one tool to consider
adding to your hunting equipment is
one of these rotomolded coolers.