Well, I'm going against the grain here. Never drew a hunt but have been a helper on two. My cart saved the day and brought out three whole. If your cart isn't rated for at least 500 lbs, leave it home.
A guy from Duncan Ok half my age and I brought out a cow from the top of a hill. Probably a 400' drop down steep rugged terrain. At the top he had some nylon sheets of plastic called a deer sled. Had grommets around it, and we used two, lacing them together to make elk size, wrapping the cow and dragging it. The shooter was a professor of natural history at OU and wanted to preserve the animal for a full mount. The elk slid so easily down the hill that we had to put a person behind with a rope to keep it from overrunning us in front. Once we got it off the hill, we put it on the cart, and pulled it right out to the road. Lots of rocks on the path but we just had to pick our way through them.
Another hunter had a bull down 500 yards or so from the road, so again it was just picking a way through the rocky terrain.
My buddy killed a nice bull, and we did the same with almost 1/2 mile on the cart through the rocky terrain below the steep slopes. He shot his below the steep rocky terrain where the cart can't be used.
A cart can be used in some areas, not all, and its danged difficult but not impossible.
A guy from Duncan Ok half my age and I brought out a cow from the top of a hill. Probably a 400' drop down steep rugged terrain. At the top he had some nylon sheets of plastic called a deer sled. Had grommets around it, and we used two, lacing them together to make elk size, wrapping the cow and dragging it. The shooter was a professor of natural history at OU and wanted to preserve the animal for a full mount. The elk slid so easily down the hill that we had to put a person behind with a rope to keep it from overrunning us in front. Once we got it off the hill, we put it on the cart, and pulled it right out to the road. Lots of rocks on the path but we just had to pick our way through them.
Another hunter had a bull down 500 yards or so from the road, so again it was just picking a way through the rocky terrain.
My buddy killed a nice bull, and we did the same with almost 1/2 mile on the cart through the rocky terrain below the steep slopes. He shot his below the steep rocky terrain where the cart can't be used.
A cart can be used in some areas, not all, and its danged difficult but not impossible.
