back my truck up to them, gut them, drag them on the truck! once in a while the kawasaki SXS comes into play. no dirt, no dragging, only 62 but have done all the dragging I care to. in 1996 I dragged a good buck 1.6 miles, never again!

same for me

Sometimes gut it in the woods depending upon the season, day, temperature, weather, and if I want to continue hunting or go back to the garage.

Otherwise, use a large sled and 4 wheeler or side by side to take it back to the garage. Gut into the sled. Rinse and hang. Prop open to cool. The guts are taken somewhere that I can sneak in and not disturb the hunting. A trail camera is set at the pile.

There is no way I would sacrifice the inner tenderloins.

I don't know about you guys but in my area if you shoot a good deer 3 to 4 hundred yards of the road you are going to quarter it

What maybe called a decent buck in IA is closer to a deer of a lifetime in PA where I live In 1997 I spent 3 days in IA pheasant hunting One morning we saw a good buck with a doe feeding in a soybean field . They where working their way towards a brushy draw It appeared to be an area of reverting pasture ground . The doe was bigger than most buck where I hunt and the buck was something you would see on a magazine cover About 2 hours later we where nearing the aera that the deer we saw earlier They both flushed for their resting spots and where about 20 yards away as the bound of to some where else The doe was larger then what many hunters in my area consider a good buck. And as the buck thundered off it sounded as if it was a herd of Clydesdales once they get up to full speed .I am no good at field judging a trophy rack It was and still is the biggest dee I ever saw alive and in the wild in my life .And I have spent , a many day chasing them .As several have mentioned the size of the deer ,access with a tractor, truck, or 4 wheeler Ang age is even more important as far as how we will be getting it back to home of

Gutless here. I do mine right on the tailgate. Split from head to tail down the back. Remove both quarters , neck, and tenderloin. The tenderloin is easy. Use the back side of your hand to push the gut sack away ro the spins
One end is attached where the first log Rib is. The other is back towards the hip.
Once the meat is removed fold the hide back up and flip the carcass and repeat.
I harvested a bb a couple weeks ago. 8:30 it was tagged . By 12:30 everything was washed and the meat was in the freezer.
No worries about urine or stomach fluids on the meat.
Cools down much faster without the hide.
If pressed for time just wrap the quarters in a bed sheet and place in a fridge.

Gut where they drop or within a few yards.

I'm 57 not 83
So I'm sure things will change as Age sets in. I already use a deer cart or 4 wheeler to get them out.

My dad quit gutting deer about 10 years ago, he has me do them all for him.

mine also , he shoots and calls then walks and drives the truck down

I prefer it that way if he tries to drag them he won't be out hunting the next day because he hurts to much.

when we were doing drives a lot more I got very fast at gutting I could be done with 2 before they could get the truck.
that way it was no waiting on to the next drive.

Sounds like most here hunt deer on farm land or close to roads. Where I hunt in the Adirondack Mountains and the Tug Hill plateau, where it’s common, for a buck to dress weight 180-225 lbs. , and killed several miles from any road, we field dress.

Squash I hunted in the Adirondack Mtns. one year Yes it is a beautiful place to hunt BUT I do not know many men or women that would remove a deer with it's guts still intact that are in that area When I hunt the hard to get to spots I am looking to reduce lbs anyway possible And that for sure would include intestines . And to go along with the weight there are soe rocy areas that would be even more difficult .