Sling or No Sling Elk Hunting?

[Justin Spies]

First western hunt for me starting on the 25th. Torn between using a sling to carry my bow around or not. What do you prefer?

[wytex]

I have a small bow hook for my belt or pack strap that I hang my longbow on.
A sling comes in handy while glassing when still hunting.
Compounds are heavier so not sure my setup would work for you but another option.
Marsupial gear makes some for packs etc.

Sitka bow hook is what I use.

[myway]

No chance I would not have one packed. At minimum to protect my string on the long hikes. A few days of carrying it and your wrist will wish you had it.

[GARY]

I attach mine to my backpack for longer hikes in or out when I next prepared to be in position to shoot.

It can be a drain to carry it 24/7 when a lot of hiking is involved or you require or want to use walking sticks.


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[Jared.King]

I really like having one. Especially when hiking in the dark, just strap to the pack and go. I’ll have it on when it rains as well. You can take it off plenty fast in my experience.

[Hardware]

I use a sling to carry bow while elk hunting and have never had an issue that caused me to miss an opportunity.

[diamond10x]

My bow is either strapped to the back of my pack, resting behind my head on top of my pack, or in my hand. Slings IMO are just another item that sounds great but in reality just gets in the way and is an unnecessary extra item. If worried about protecting your strings from rain, just carry a cheap survival pancho.

[Lynn21]

Sling for sure. Primos makes a good one.

[BrianL]

I much prefer a sling. I had a pack that carried as well, but I used the sling 99% of the time. I could shoot with mine attached to the bow if needed.

[Chad_E]

I have a hook for my belt and really like it. Between a belt hook and a way to strap it to a backpack for long hikes, I don't see the need for a sling.

[texas shag]

No sling here. Its either in my hand or it is strapped to my pack for longer hikes when I am not expecting to be in elk.

[bboswell]

100% sling!

[Leonhogboy]

Here's my recent experience. If you are riding horses then hiking to locate/setup, I found the sling to work great. Once we tied the horses off, I was bow in hand, release on, and ready to pull an arrow from the quiver, when walking into our areas. I left my sling and pin cover in the saddle bag. Granted, we only hiked a few miles a day carrying the bow and didn't have to use hiking sticks. Just shifted the bow hand to hand for balance and navigating brush.

I was able to carry a smaller day pack than the Badlands 2200 I have. I could have strapped my bow to it with the batwings, but with the V3X 33" rode either high or low and wasn't horse or rider friendly.

For me, it worked out great. I only fell twice during the week and luckily, not off the horse or one of the steep side hills. Once into the alder bushes and once right in the middle of the trail. Right on top of the new Mathews. The bow came out unscathed, but the Hogboy is still paying the price in his ribcage.

Lessons learned, the sling worked well for how I used it and 68 year olds don't bounce well.

[Quackerbox]

I just got one from LocOutdoorz that seems pretty handy. I was using primos for a while but the elastic got wore out. This other will come off much quicker and can even be used while on the bow according to the directions. I stand hunt so it will come off but I think it will work for you

[Burnadell]

Sling