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Thread: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
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    Vancouver
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    Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    Reflections on 2017 hunting season

    As the season draws to a close for me . . . am reflecting back on the past years of my BC Hunting adventures.

    This is now the 4th year I have hit the BC wilds hunting since being transplanted here 5 years ago. Have had disappointing results to say the least, and am trying to assess the reasons for that.

    Other than a few grouse and rabbits, been hitting blanks on connecting which is unlike me youthful self so may moons ago.

    Please humor me and review my logs and see if something is popping out to you. I think I have not been able to focus on one region and learn it, but not sure that is my issue.

    Sorry for the long post, but hope to gleem some insights.

    Cheers, VFX

    Year One:

    Outing 1*: First day out and right off the bat, missed a nice broadside 4x4 because I stupidly didn’t test shoot my hunting buddies back-up gun he loaned to me [until mine could be imported from California]. Was walking up the edge of a cut and he had just came out along the edge. Picture perfect, but not [I don’t miss - haha]. Test fired it later at the quarry and it took 3 shots to get the correct position scope/eye alignment and was hitting bullseyes -- the first two went wide left, so shot in front of him.

    Later in the week, had 4 does walk up on my ground berm stand. Knew the buck was there since they kept looking back. But he somehow caught sight/wind of me and bolted. The Doe’s never cared and bedded down about 50 yards from me as night fell.

    Found a great spot that had lots of bedding sign and another hunter had seen a monster buck there the day before. He was big, but it was our last day -- we would return.

    Outing 2: Was to a new spot near my buddies off grid cabin in a different MU. Did some scouting and found some promising rubs and scrapes in WT habitat. BOUGHT a used rifle since I was still waiting for mine to arrive -- silly me, it was a .30-30 exactly like my uncles that I had shot 2 WT with as a youth. I should have gotten a .30-06 to be my backup and match my arriving rifle.

    Decided to give my 2 rookie hunting buddies the spot I had picked out, since I felt my .30-30 would not have the range to accurately hit at 300 yards and I headed into a brushier area. Meeting back up, turns out they watched the WT buck and doe dance around in the cut for quite sometime. They couldn’t pull the trigger they said . . . o-what-the-!%&$?

    Outing 3/4/5: Tried a few other spots and saw nothing

    ----------- End season one ------------

    Hunting technique: Slow driving into cut areas, then slow walking and/or ground blinds once game was detected.

    Year Two: Back to the same hunting area [*outing one], with new inisight and my own rifle in hand. Returned to previous years activity and nothing was found over a few days. More road scouting and we spooked a small herd on the bend of a very old and rutted logging road -- was so brushy we could not see then very well when the moved into the roadside timber [Note: The Elephant Hill fire engulfed that area, so at least it’s been managed]. There was one buck with them, but no go.

    Wasted a day getting back to the monster buck spot - went the long way around [but faster] to get to the spot. We showed up at first light, only to see someone had set up their camp on the game trail. Not left or right of it - directly on it and only 100 yards from “The hot spot”. There is a reason that spot [trail] was clear of brush you morons.

    Now it’s Nov. 1st and the any buck season is wrapped. Tried a new areas and saw 4 deer on the edge of a cut about 200 yards out. Could tell the one was a buck, but could not get a clear view to count the tines. He stood motionless watching us from behind the brushy tree for 15 minutes. Was getting impatient and dropped my guard - then he moved - yep was a legal 4x4, but no time to react.

    The Outing two hunt area had been burned out by a fire a few months earlier and my schedule did not allow me to hunt it. Our ground blind was toast and the ridgeline was exposed now.

    Hunting technique: As before, slow driving into cut areas, then slow walking and/or ground blinds once game was detected.

    ----------- End season two ------------

    Last edited by VFX_man; 11-20-2017 at 03:42 PM.

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  3. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Location
    Vancouver
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    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    Year 3: My first hunting buddy moved over to Princeton area and was not able to travel to our former hunting grounds. So that meant new scouting and trying to get the feel of this land. Definitely different logging techniques near Princeton. Huge huge huge cuts with small isolated clumps of timber refuge. So covered a lot of miles on this trip.

    Found a promising spot that I felt was on a good trail and built a debris stand near it. Hunted it a few days with no luck, took a break and met my buddy for lunch down the road. On the way back to my stand in the truck, low and behold . . . there was the buck and two does exiting and crossing the road right where my stand was just as the sky opened up and dumped heavy rain. Lost them in the brush as I trailed after them.

    Met another guy to hunt with this year and hit the Boston Bar area. Not much luck there, too many hunters and then we got snowed out. Decided we were not compatible hunting buddies, so that ended that.

    Tried a few other Lower mainland fringe areas, but not much luck either - too much pressure.

    Couldn't make the off-grid cabin area work this year. Did re-build a tree stand on his property and started putting up trail cameras in the summer. So was getting to understand what was there. No real repeatable pattern, but there was game there.

    Hunting technique: As before, slow driving into cut areas and scouting, then slow walking and/or ground blinds once game was detected.

    ----------- End season three ------------

    Year 4: Now to this year 2017 -- Got my LEH for moose and Mule Doe and decided to focus all energy on getting to know the MU [the off-grid cabin location]. Deployed 15 cameras and scouted over 3 different holiday weekends up there.

    Week one of the hunt: Went in early for the Any buck season and rolled into the Moose Nov 1st opening. Nothing seen except 3 cow elk and 3 WT doe’s. Did some cross country trekking and saw a little sign, but nothing moved when we were still hunting.

    Snow fell and no tracks after 2 days - full moon and wolves heard in the valley. Went high 4,500 feet and low. Nothing. Cameras showed most activity had fallen off after the middle of October.

    Went back to the burn area near the cabin late in they day, and as I travelled very slowly up the ridge road to the ridge, a WT buck was spooked and snorted as he retreated - never saw him. Think I was winded.

    Hunted the tree stand and no movement either - deer were nocturnal on the cameras with the moon.

    Weekend two: Long weekend, snow had fallen again. Travelled more of the MU looking for sign. The top peaks were snowed in and we thought they might get pushed down. Found the Elk herd and a big bull elk. A few moose tracks around that I tried to track, but they headed into the river or the thick timber up high.

    Saw a small WT buck 325 yards out, but he was a smaller 2x3 and decided he needed to grow some more.

    Last weekend: Decided to take one more trip up - a solo one at that. Saturday, heavy snow up high, but the one road had been plowed, but it was deep snow and I was concerned about snowshoeing back in the brush solo looking for tracks near the lakes. Yeah, that might have been what I needed to do, but with the amount of snow falling . . . I was more concerned with my life I guess.

    Sunday morning, got flagged down by the C.O. as I left the cabin [he heard me call out on the FSR radio]. Nice guy. We talked for a bit as he checked my all of my tags -- he laughed and said good luck on that Nov LEH Moose - and you’ve not filled any of these tags? Sadly no I replied. He had been in there in October moose hunting and had no luck either -- this from a guy who had been up for the aerial moose count. They are here he said, but holed up high after the rut in a 500 foot area eating and sleeping until the snow drives them down. This took the piss out of my already deflated moral.

    Started up high again, and the road was getting pretty sloppy so I stopped and had a hard think about life. It was time to pull the plug and head home. My spidey sense said the trip home could be bad and I should be on the Coq before dark [At least that was right - missed the closure by a few minutes it seems].

    As I headed back down the mountain towards the cabin, something made me pause at a T junction. LOL, here came a small WT running around the bend and down the road. Glassed him, I swear it was the same one I had passed on the week before. He stopped, looked at me, then kind of casually slinked into the timber as I laughed - don't worry, that's two you owe me little guy. Laughed even harder as a raven rounded the bend behind him softly calling. I yelled at it as it circled -- since I had been letting them know I was there FOR THEM if they helped me - steaming guts buddy, steaming guts.

    Saw one final WT doe when I was almost to the cabin. Should have just stayed near there and not burned so much fuel. The wife made a point of saying when I got home, “so you spent about $1,200 in fuel for this years moose hunt?”. I didn't point out that it was the Mulie LEH Doe Tag I had that ate up the fuel, not the moose.

    sign

    ----------- Probably End season four ------------
    Last edited by VFX_man; 11-20-2017 at 03:48 PM.

  4. #3
    Join Date
    Nov 2017
    Posts
    1

    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    Hello VFX_Man, where is your draw for Mule Doe? I am having the same issues - LOL.

  5. #4
    Join Date
    Nov 2015
    Location
    Armstrong
    Posts
    480

    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    I feel for ya! I'm in the exact same boat. 3rd year, haven't harvested a big game animal yet and unsuccessful with my Nov leh moose to date. Moose leh is for the exact same reasons as you. I'm in 8-23. Don't lose hope. I've seen your posts and the pics you've posted and I think you're doing a great job so far. You're seeing more than a lot of people have and you're putting in a lot of work. It will pay off eventually.

  6. #5
    Join Date
    Aug 2015
    Posts
    1,275

    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    Brotha its tough. ..been a while since I have gotten anything....sometimes due to my own pickiness....been hunting 5 years for my first blacktail....keep at it bro all I can say

  7. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    In the bush near a lake
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    7,198

    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    The best advice I can give to anyone not seeing the results they want is gain knowledge

    Dont go chasing where others hunt and get to learn spots intimidatly. Hunting is not about miles it's about yards. The reason you find hunters who are always successful is small pockets within a large location and timing.

    Some of my best deer pockets are in locations many think are poor hunting. But I know where the overlooked spots are that go unhunted.

    I can honestly say 2 days tops I can be successful on a bt meat buck in region 2 yet most would tell you bt and region 2 are tough deer hunting. I can do this from knowledge of the species, area, and I stopped looking where others hunt

    Be your own hunter, find your own spots, and don't chase where you hear others shot something that animals dead

  8. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2005
    Location
    Vancouver
    Posts
    3,912

    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    Hey. Don't feel bad.

    My 48th season and I've got tag soup after four long trips.

  9. #8
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    Sea-to-Sky
    Posts
    115

    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    It's called hunting for a reason. Friend shot his first back in year 5. It happens. It is a lot of luck as well... being at the right spot at the right time. Of course, experience goes a long way. But it takes time.
    I have seen more bucks this year than ever before and have not been able to get a shot on a single one of them. Stick with it, find a couple of spots that hold deer. Study them in spring, summer, fall... I only now feel that I am confident in what I do in the bush hunting. I seem to hit the right spots and areas. I have been going at it for 5 years. The first 2 years I got nothing....

  10. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    In the bush near a lake
    Posts
    7,198

    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    There is a reason only a small portion of hunters run high success rate on some species and most of these are not good with all

    You can listen to the majority or try to rise above them

  11. #10
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Region 0-1
    Posts
    1,489

    Re: Sad, but not giving up yet . . . Need advice :/

    This will be my 4th year in a row with no antlers as given the weather this week I know I am doomed...had an 8 year run prior to this. Sounds like you have had chances so keep at it. I have not seen anything with more than 3 pts in 4 yrs and have been having thoughts of calling it quits after this season for where I reside at the very least...

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