Seeking Moose advice for a youth hunter

[Junmity]

My 12 year old son is taking the CORE at VGC next week and has been studying up so I think he'll do fine.

He is really interested in moose hunting so I thought I'd put it out to see if you folks could point us in the right direction.

My moose hunting experience is limited to LEH bull in region 7....

we were considering a youth only hunt in 7-32, 7-33 or 7-34 calf. Can anyone speak to the area and if a calf hunt is significantly harder than a bull moose. The time frame for those LEH is Aug 15-sept 30 and oct 16 - 31 (also any advice on best time)

if he got it, we thought we would drive up from Richmond, scout the area in the summer and come back in the fall to hunt.

PM's also welcome

Thank you

[guest]

Can't speak on the area but often calves stick so close to the mother it's hard for any one to get a shot never mind a new hunter, they are often joined at the cows butt to the calves front shoulder. That could pressure your new hunter which you don't want. Earlier born calves will move away from the co was the season or their age grows, they get more comfortable. Take all advantage you can of LEH. There are many helpful hunters on here and getting new and youth hunters into our recreation is huge. Good luck to you. Good luck to the young fella

[Junmity]

Thanks! If you were to rate the difficulty of bull vs calf, which would you consider more challenging? He will be hunting with a 270.

[Jagermeister]

Junmity, the most challenging part of harvesting a calf is getting a clear shot on it without hitting the cow. Patience is a virtue. In this case a clear shot at a calf when it is in front of the cow will most assuredly pass through and strike the cow. That is were the patience comes in, waiting gor that shot that will take out only the animal that is sought. This generally is hard for a novice hunter to do because of the adrenaline rush they experience.
The difficulty is no more or no less, the animals are going to react to the presence of humans and most likely will try to distance themselves.
As for the 270, if he is a confident shot and can handle the firearm, then that caliber is sufficienct.
If it is your desire for a calf hunt go for it. Early season the animals are a little dozy as they have had limited pursuit. Calves will be smaller and in general harder to see because of foliage on the trees. Late season calves will be larger in size and easier to see because the leaves will be or have dropped. The cow may be not eager to leave her calf after it has been shot and may take a defensive stand. An angry moose can inflict severe damage to oneself.

[835]

I have shot calves as well as have helped other kids shoot calves.
Put in for an LEH Bull in whatever area you like or know well. Hunt it the first 2 weeks of October if you get the draw... Get the kid to learn to call. it isnt hard to do he can "You tube" it and learn in a couple hours! lol Moose are very easy to call. Try to stay before any Calf open season, this will make sure there isnt 5 million other guys there with you. Find a good spot to sit and call untill 10 am then road hunt and look for sign (and shoot grouse!) you will be able to find new places to call and maybe see an area with better movement... Then in the evening go back to calling. You dont need to be way off a road either, secondary roads,, skid trails etc.... Bring a dip load of rope and a bloc...

now,,, early season youth hunts i am not familiar with. Shooting calves, i have done and like people have said just make sure it is clear and make damned sure the cow is gone before you go anywhere near it.... Cow moose are more dangerous then a Grizz when it comes to calves....

The .270,, i have shot alot of animals with mine, and i have owned it since i was 17... prior to that it was a .284Win... which is similar.
There is alot of "Boiler room" to a moose and they usually hang around, especially if they have responded to your call.... Do not worry about the 270 it works just fine.

lastly,,, keep shooting untill its on the dirt.....

[sawmill]

I have shot calves as well as have helped other kids shoot calves.
Put in for an LEH Bull in whatever area you like or know well. Hunt it the first 2 weeks of October if you get the draw... Get the kid to learn to call. it isnt hard to do he can "You tube" it and learn in a couple hours! lol Moose are very easy to call. Try to stay before any Calf open season, this will make sure there isnt 5 million other guys there with you. Find a good spot to sit and call untill 10 am then road hunt and look for sign (and shoot grouse!) you will be able to find new places to call and maybe see an area with better movement... Then in the evening go back to calling. You dont need to be way off a road either, secondary roads,, skid trails etc.... Bring a dip load of rope and a bloc...

now,,, early season youth hunts i am not familiar with. Shooting calves, i have done and like people have said just make sure it is clear and make damned sure the cow is gone before you go anywhere near it.... Cow moose are more dangerous then a Grizz when it comes to calves....

The .270,, i have shot alot of animals with mine, and i have owned it since i was 17... prior to that it was a .284Win... which is similar.
There is alot of "Boiler room" to a moose and they usually hang around, especially if they have responded to your call.... Do not worry about the 270 it works just fine.

lastly,,, keep shooting untill its on the dirt.....

^^^^ This.

[ElliotMoose]

835 pretty well nailed it. Pay close attention to the cow after you shoot the calf! I know of more than one occasion where friends of mine have been charged by the cow after shooting her calf.

[358jess]

I would recommend avoiding 7-32 the Moose population is down and a lot of people hunt it. Not a lot of road access so jet boat on the parsnip River is popular there.

[358jess]

And you definitely have a pissed off cow when you drop her calf. Had to send a few warning shots by one last year before she would leave.

[BRvalley]

when you drive up to scout 7-32 shoot me a pm, be happy to show a new hunter a few spots, cheers.

[markomoose]

My son & I both shoot magnums hence the shoot-em till they drop mentallity.We don't ruin meat unless you enjoy ribs!

HAPPY HUNTING-CHEERS MARK

[Cub Driver]

Saw numerous calves in Oct and several bulls in 7-34. Calf season is closed first to weeks of Oct. PM me if you are coming up to scout.

[Junmity]

Thank you all so much for the help!

And I will definitively take up offers on a scout!!

I should have given my experience as a base.

Just hunted last year in 7-17 Sept 18-Oct 2 for moose and was fortunate to be the one to spot the moose but it was actually a little lucky.... we called for an hour before sunset and as we were heading back on the atv I spotted a bull (about 150yards from where we were calling) down a deactivated road, heading right for us.

I didn't have much to compare it but the guys were saying that the area was so overgrown since they started hunting there 20 years ago and things have changed....

I always saw lots of sign and whenever the weather temp dropped, I would see a pile of new tracks only to have everything slowwwww way down when the temp spike up and it got sunny.

When I got home a couple weeks later, I took my son up to 3-12 penasak lake and 5 minutes after setting up camp we went for a drive and bam! a big cow jumped onto the road and back into the bush. That was it, my son was hooked!!

I've been consistently reading up and watch videos online but I seem to get more clarity when I talk to experienced folks.

So to summarize....

Avoid the calf hunt with my son, not because they are hard to find but because there's added pressure to avoid the mom before and AFTER to take the shot.

It was just so tempting as the LEH odds were 1-1 for youth hunter...

I'm leaning towards LEH 7-17 (odds 1 to 7) or going to 5-4 (1 to 3) have a friend who gave me a pile of GPS markers from his 20 + years hunting the area and he may even come with.

Couple more specific questions:

1. Best time of the season to hunt bull moose (october 1-15?)

2. if during the rut, calling is the best method?

3. most action is first and last couple hours of the day and the rest of the time is spent scouting sign on the roads?

4. should you always look to call close to water and young willows?

5. do cows respond to calls as aggressively as bulls?

6. I bought 4 trail cams, are they useful for moose or best for deer?

7. when focusing on cow calf, is your strategy any different than bulls?

8. when we hunted last year, we typically drove to a spot walked in and called for an hour then moved on.... is this typical or are there times that one would just wait patiently for several + hours and try to intercept a moose going about their business?

Thanks again for all your great responses!!

[358jess]

I would agree that first week of October is the best for calling in Moose. I like to call in a spot until dark and then sneak in before light to the same spot and call again. Sometimes the far off Bulls will make their way to your spot over night and it doesn't take long for some grunts to come your way.

[Jagermeister]

Couple more specific questions:

1. Best time of the season to hunt bull moose (october 1-15?) Anytime is the best time. More hunters afield during the rut.

2. if during the rut, calling is the best method? Yes. I like it when they come to you

3. most action is first and last couple hours of the day and the rest of the time is spent scouting sign on the roads?

4. should you always look to call close to water and young willows? Not all moose hang near swamps. If September is warm and dry, moose this side of the great divide will stay at elevation to avoid flys and near “pocket water”.

5. do cows respond to calls as aggressively as bulls? Not in my opinion. Cows will bellow to attract a bull to them. I cow call to attract bulls, sometimes you have to add a grunt or two after cow calling. Not all bulls will answer a cow bellowing. Throwing in the bull grunt at the end of the cow bellow sequence will hurry a bull if he is interested.

6. I bought 4 trail cams, are they useful for moose or best for deer? Neither if you live a long distance from where plan to hunt. Trail or game cams are useful for determining animal movement in the area you plan to hunt. You have to check them frequently

7. when focusing on cow calf, is your strategy any different than bulls? Moose are moose, you find them where they are, regardless of sex. Bulls tend to move in greater areas, cows tend to be more territorial and typically stay close to a square mile in area. Of course they migrate when the depth of snow makes foraging too difficult.

8. when we hunted last year, we typically drove to a spot walked in and called for an hour then moved on.... is this typical or are there times that one would just wait patiently for several + hours and try to intercept a moose going about their business? Ever notice the size of the ears on a moose? They can hear at long distance. When you walk in where you think there are moose and want to call, settle yourself down and remain quiet for at least 20 minutes before attempting to call. Keep your ears open for unusal noise, like sticks breaking. Make your cow calls in one direction for about 20 minutes at a time with 3 or 4 minute intervals. Then stop for 10 to 15 minutes before repeating the process again. Nothing is guaranteed.

[835]

7). Totally different. Calves are not horny bulls... When you call, it is only bulls that come.
Calf hunting is still hunting,, that calf story I told you was a coincidence, it was not coming to my call.

8). I get to my call spot before light, I wait 20 mins or so and start to call. I call easier in the early morning because sound carries far when it's crisp. I call until around 10,, bull winkles come out around 9-11,, they come quiet, you won't hear them,, they sneak in to avoid attention from a big bull,, I road hunt from 10-11 until 3 I like to be in call spot at 4'm then call to dark,,,

100% cow call, all the bull bashing calling you see on tv is for big bulls only. You are trying to sound like a badass so the bigger badass gets pissed you are there,,, cow calling you get everything,, Immies to big bulls,, when you want to close the deal and get that bull from 300 yds to 100. A quick soft bull grunt will turn that thing to go mode.
as it comes you call to the ground to sound further off. So he has to go through you to get to the bull..

[M.Dean]

when you drive up to scout 7-32 shoot me a pm, be happy to show a new hunter a few spots, cheers. I've shot lots and lots of Moose, and the best advise I can give you is find out what this Gentlemen drinks and buy him a few bottles of it, then sit down and listen carefully to his every word!!! It normally takes a few visits to get to know a area and where the animals are, so this is a very worth while offer!!!

[Junmity]

For those of you who took your 12 year ish old kid hunting... How many days do you typically go for?

I had suggested a week to my wife.... She thought it was long, I thought it was the minimum but what do I know?

How long do you go for?

What at challenges have you come across?

I keep emphasizing to him that I don't want to pressure him into this cause I'm so enamoured with the idea of hunting with my boy! But I don't want to turn him off.... And I'm keenly aware that the fact that he gets alone time with dad (he's the oldest of three kids) is a big+++

ii ii don't want to over think this but....

Any insight is appreciated!

[Junmity]

As for drinks for my friend! Absolutely! He offered to take me scouting next week and we are going for several days next week!

maybe I'll try to get me a bear....

[835]

For me,,, I do not have a 12 year old. But i do remember being one, as well i have helped kids...


10 days should be fine ( 1Week and 2 wekends ) But you need to not posess yourself by hunting unless the kid is loving it.
Bring fishing rods and a tin boat if you can
Bring a shotgun for grouse, or a .22.
if you have a good dog get a Duck liscense, or a boat to recover the ducks.

there is a million things a kid can do in the right spot, you need to inundate him with different things. Stop for every grouse and get hin to shoot it. Then take then to camp and eat them. Cuz you will get more!
Fish in the afternoons, explore places in the truck. But biggest of all dont push the kid if its slow. If its too cold for him then just road hunt, if he cant sit still long enough to call untill 10 then go for a hike... You know your son we dont, when i was a kid i would be happy if dad just kept me out there, i love hunting and always did,,,i would stay for a month if i could, and im not saying that as how i feel now. but that is me, if you kid is more city then he may want to keep it shorter... as well,,, you can always go home early you know! you dont have to stay the whole time if he gets board!

bring a can of alfreado sauce and some noodles,,, Grouse alfredo is awesome.
zip lock bags t store them in the fridge,, the little sandwitch bags hold the brest and legs and a wing nice.

if your son likes camping fishing and hunting...... the length of time we always go for will be fine,,,,, just keep the pace up.

[358jess]

As for drinks for my friend! Absolutely! He offered to take me scouting next week and we are going for several days next week!

maybe I'll try to get me a bear....

Haha there will still be three feet of snow around tacheeda right now. It's a serious snow belt there. Probably no bears out right there.

[David]

For those of you who took your 12 year ish old kid hunting... How many days do you typically go for?


Well, you got a day driving each way, right?
I'd also say think about early Moose (Aug 15th) as I haven't seen to many people talk about it:
The good:
Any bull - if it has horns you can shoot it.
No too cold - no freezing your ass off.
The bad:
Calling won't work - still in the felt.
Nothing else open - can't use the old .22 on grouse etc.

How important is it to get a moose?
IMO I'd go up for early moose and work in some fishing, berry picking, etc.

David
Oh,
And whomever offered to show you around. TAKE THEM UP ON IT.

[358jess]

disregard my comments on the area i thought it said 7-23