tomahawk
11-18-2014, 09:13 AM
It was already 15 degrees C as the sun broke over the second growth. It was unsually warm for a late Sept morn but the heat wasn’t slowing down the bull moose I had called in, he was beating the bushes just out of sight as he made his way towards me. It seemed like forever as I waited for him to show up, then suddenly his left antler come out of the thick undergrowth.
Back last July we had been fortunate enough to get a Shared Bull Moose LEH. 4 of us had crossed our fingers and got back our reward of 2 bull draws. I would be joined by my buddy/hunting/fishing partner of many years , The Sonoma, and 2 moose virgins , my son, aka Pal and his buddy who had never hunted big game of any type, aka Deaner.
The departure day finally arrived, Sept 22 and the first week of the rut peak for moose. Three of us left the Island in 2 trucks and my son stopped in Surrey to get Deaner and off we went. A nights beer and bullshit followed by a sleep in the Puddle at my brothers place and we headed for PG. By the afternoon our camp was set up, no need to start the wood stove in the tent because it was a toasty 26 C. Is this what they mean by "heat of the rut??"
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/SAM_3446_zps437d0fce.jpg
The Sonoma and I have hunted the area before and chose our fav spots to check and assisted the virgins on a choice of spots to check for the evening. We all came back at dark with stories of fresh sign, rubs and rutting activity that made us pleased that we would have some animals to chase around in the coming 2 weeks of our hunt. A hearty meal, several beverages and some bs finished off the warm evening.
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/SAM_3417_zps4bab65d9.jpg
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/SAM_3418_zps65aa8e02.jpg
The first full day of hunting started as daybreak filled the air again with unusal warmth. It was 12 C on the thermometer as we chose our spots for the morning hunt, turned on our radio's and away we went in 4 separate directions. My goal was to make my way into a different area then the previous evening and see whether the moose were still using it. I made it about 35 yds off the FSR through the tangled alders when I heard the unmistakable sound of a moose running out of the thickets just ahead of me. Busted!! But that’s cool cause it told me they were still using the area. I made my way through the tangle for 200 yds and into the more visually friendly tree filled meadow. It still showed promise but no bulls responded to the call. Content after checking the area I decided as the camp cook to head back out to the fsr and ride the quad around and get some grouse for lunch. 5 grouse later I checked another side road for sign and headed it back to camp as it was close to lunch time and our planned meeting to share info.
As I pulled into camp I looked down the skid road at the back of camp to see him frantically waving his arms for me to drive over and talk to him. As I drove past the front of the tent I could see a note hanging from the ridge pole and realized something had happened that morning. Deaner had followed my favourite trail into the thick bush. I had described the area to him and the tracks and sign I had seen and told him to walk slowly through the 4 km trail and where to stop and check for answers from bulls. He made it close to the end of the trail and into the best spot for holding cows and ultimately bulls but he had thought he had gone too far as the surrounding area looked dry for moose. So as luck would have it he turned around and started back on the same path he had walked in. Mid trail there is a creek crossing with a small meadow that gives the best vision on the trail, you can see less then 100 yds but it’s the best spot for seeing any distance. He called and within 30 mins or so Deaner looked up and this young bull was staring him down at about 60 yds at the edge of the forest. One shot through the heart and he was down.
He had no knowledge of field dressing so hiked back to camp after a few selfies, wanted to wait for some experienced help but remembered our talk from the night beofre about grizzlies in the area and left a note on the tent ridge pole and headed back to make sure his moose stayed his. The rest of the morning and early afternoon we skidded the moose out with the quad, dressed the moose, skinned it and hung it in the shaded trees high in the air. The rest of the afternoon and evening we broke open the 40's and a sack and celebrated the loss of his moose cherry.
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/SAM_3431_zpsc0890942.jpg
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/10711176_10154656478545593_1576425534_n_zpsa9e6279 2.jpg
TO BE CONTINUED
Back last July we had been fortunate enough to get a Shared Bull Moose LEH. 4 of us had crossed our fingers and got back our reward of 2 bull draws. I would be joined by my buddy/hunting/fishing partner of many years , The Sonoma, and 2 moose virgins , my son, aka Pal and his buddy who had never hunted big game of any type, aka Deaner.
The departure day finally arrived, Sept 22 and the first week of the rut peak for moose. Three of us left the Island in 2 trucks and my son stopped in Surrey to get Deaner and off we went. A nights beer and bullshit followed by a sleep in the Puddle at my brothers place and we headed for PG. By the afternoon our camp was set up, no need to start the wood stove in the tent because it was a toasty 26 C. Is this what they mean by "heat of the rut??"
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/SAM_3446_zps437d0fce.jpg
The Sonoma and I have hunted the area before and chose our fav spots to check and assisted the virgins on a choice of spots to check for the evening. We all came back at dark with stories of fresh sign, rubs and rutting activity that made us pleased that we would have some animals to chase around in the coming 2 weeks of our hunt. A hearty meal, several beverages and some bs finished off the warm evening.
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/SAM_3417_zps4bab65d9.jpg
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/SAM_3418_zps65aa8e02.jpg
The first full day of hunting started as daybreak filled the air again with unusal warmth. It was 12 C on the thermometer as we chose our spots for the morning hunt, turned on our radio's and away we went in 4 separate directions. My goal was to make my way into a different area then the previous evening and see whether the moose were still using it. I made it about 35 yds off the FSR through the tangled alders when I heard the unmistakable sound of a moose running out of the thickets just ahead of me. Busted!! But that’s cool cause it told me they were still using the area. I made my way through the tangle for 200 yds and into the more visually friendly tree filled meadow. It still showed promise but no bulls responded to the call. Content after checking the area I decided as the camp cook to head back out to the fsr and ride the quad around and get some grouse for lunch. 5 grouse later I checked another side road for sign and headed it back to camp as it was close to lunch time and our planned meeting to share info.
As I pulled into camp I looked down the skid road at the back of camp to see him frantically waving his arms for me to drive over and talk to him. As I drove past the front of the tent I could see a note hanging from the ridge pole and realized something had happened that morning. Deaner had followed my favourite trail into the thick bush. I had described the area to him and the tracks and sign I had seen and told him to walk slowly through the 4 km trail and where to stop and check for answers from bulls. He made it close to the end of the trail and into the best spot for holding cows and ultimately bulls but he had thought he had gone too far as the surrounding area looked dry for moose. So as luck would have it he turned around and started back on the same path he had walked in. Mid trail there is a creek crossing with a small meadow that gives the best vision on the trail, you can see less then 100 yds but it’s the best spot for seeing any distance. He called and within 30 mins or so Deaner looked up and this young bull was staring him down at about 60 yds at the edge of the forest. One shot through the heart and he was down.
He had no knowledge of field dressing so hiked back to camp after a few selfies, wanted to wait for some experienced help but remembered our talk from the night beofre about grizzlies in the area and left a note on the tent ridge pole and headed back to make sure his moose stayed his. The rest of the morning and early afternoon we skidded the moose out with the quad, dressed the moose, skinned it and hung it in the shaded trees high in the air. The rest of the afternoon and evening we broke open the 40's and a sack and celebrated the loss of his moose cherry.
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/SAM_3431_zpsc0890942.jpg
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj230/tomahawktom/10711176_10154656478545593_1576425534_n_zpsa9e6279 2.jpg
TO BE CONTINUED