Every sheep hunter’s pack is different.
This isn’t meant to be the definitive list of what you should carry into the mountains. It’s simply the system I’ve built through years of backpacking and one successful Alaska sheep hunt.
My priorities are reliability, durability, comfort, and versatility. I’m willing to carry a little extra weight if an item consistently proves its value, but I work hard to eliminate anything that doesn’t earn its place.
For my 2026 fly-in Alaska sheep hunt, my goal is to begin the hunt at 65 pounds or less, including food, water, rifle, and optics. That’s considerably lighter than my first sheep hunt, but still heavy enough to support a ten-day hunt with enough nutrition to maintain performance.
As with every hunt, this list will continue to evolve.
Backpack
- Stone Glacier Sky Guide 7900
- Rain cover
Shelter
Spike Camp
- Stone Glacier Skyscraper 2P Tent
- Rainfly
- Tent stakes
- Stone Glacier tent stuff sack
Base Camp
- Argali Absaroka Teepee
- Argali half liner
- Argali wood stove
- Stove pipe
- Bear fence
Sleep System
- Stone Glacier 0° Sleeping Bag
- Waterproof compression sack
- Nemo inflatable sleeping pad
- FlexTail ultralight air pump
Clothing Worn
- Stone Glacier Chinook Merino Hoody
- Stone Glacier De Havilland Pants
- Injinji toe liner socks
- Hollow heavy wool socks
- Lowa Tibet GTX boots
- Stone Glacier gaiters
- Mechanix gloves
- Baseball cap
- Garmin Fenix 8 Solar
Clothing Packed
- Stone Glacier Helio mid-layer
- Stone Glacier M5 rain jacket
- Stone Glacier M5 rain pants
- Stone Glacier puffy jacket
- Stone Glacier puffy pants
- Stone Glacier Graupel fleece gloves
- Stone Glacier Glassing Mitt
- One extra pair Stone Glacier merino boxers
- One extra pair Injinji toe liners
- One extra pair Hollow wool socks
- Crocs camp shoes
Rifle System
- SIG Cross (.308 Winchester)
- Leupold Mark 4HD riflescope
- Banish Backcountry suppressor
- ARCA rail
- Tripod interface (no bipod)
- 15 rounds of ammunition
- Gun oil wipe
Optics
- Vortex 10×52 binoculars
- Stone Glacier bino harness
- Leupold SX-2 Alpine spotting scope
- Leupold tripod
- SIG KILO 4 rangefinder
- Razco holster attached to bino harness
- Phone adapter/pocket
Water
- MSR Bag-to-Bag gravity filter
- GSI Microlite bottle
- Water bladder
- Emergency iodine tablets
Cooking
- MSR WindBurner stove
- Integrated pot
- Two MSR Mini fuel canisters
- GSI camp cup
- GSI thermos
- Titanium long-handle spoon
- Mount Hagen instant coffee
Food
Approximately:
- 2–2.5 pounds per day
- ~3,000 calories per day
- ~210 grams of protein per day
(A complete breakdown of my food system is covered in a separate article.)
Kill Kit
- Outdoor Edge replaceable blade knife
- Game bags
- Contractor bags
- Paracord
- Harvest ticket
- Hunting license
- Pen
Medical Kit
- Tourniquet
- Bandages
- Moleskin
- Medications
- Fire-starting supplies
- (See dedicated medical kit article for complete contents.)
Electronics
- Garmin Fenix 8 Solar
- Garmin inReach
- Cell phone with offline OnX Maps
- Three battery banks
- Charging cables
- Fenix HM65R-T V2.0 headlamp
- Backup headlamp
- Spare batteries
Protection
- Taurus Tracker .44 Magnum
- EasyLoader speed loader
- Wife: Canik Mete SFT 9mm
- Brother-in-law: Glock 10mm
Toiletries
- Toilet paper
- Dude Wipes
- Toothbrush
- Toothpaste tablets
- Dissolving soap sheets
- ChapStick
Repair & Fire Kit
- Extra lighter
- Lighter wrapped with electrical tape
- Cotton balls coated in petroleum jelly
- Small multi-tool with tweezers
- Extra headlamp
- Spare batteries
- Spare charging cords
Luxury Items
- Book
- Deck of cards
- Small cribbage board
Base Camp Supplies
- Extra food
- Extra clothing
- Extra toilet paper
- Additional battery bank
- Emergency supplies
- Extra fuel
Still Being Evaluated
Every hunt is an opportunity to improve.
Some items in this year’s pack are new additions that still have to earn their place, including the FlexTail sleeping pad pump and several changes to my rifle system.
Others have years of proven performance behind them and have become staples that I don’t expect to replace anytime soon.
I’ll update this list after the hunt with what worked, what didn’t, and what will be changing before the next season.
Because if there’s one thing sheep hunting teaches you, it’s that your pack is never truly finished.
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