Caribou 2018 -now what?

[Rob Chipman]

So, the plan was to post this during the winter, but time flies. Now it's LEH time and bear season, so I guess I dragged my feet.

Anyway...me and my running buddies wanted to go on a moose hunt in a cool place, so we picked the Itchas. We all put in for moose, and as a second thought we put in for caribou.

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As luck would have it I was skunked. Again. So were all my buddies, except one, who got a caribou draw.

He wasn't impressed. It's a long way to go for one caribou between 3 guys he said.

I understand, I said. Younger guys, lots of job, kids and wife demands. I totally get it. We'll hunt spike moose in Region 3 instead.


But...you know...some guy in the States is probably willing to pay $20k for a hunt like this, and here we are, lucky enough to live here and just be able to go.

It worked. A couple days later he texts "OK, I'm in. Who else is going?"

Summer flies by and the next thing you know we're in Nimpo on the float waiting for the plane. We're stoked because we know that night we'll be sitting around a fire in the mountains.

Then we're in the plane and we're stoked because it's always a blast to fly around in a Beaver.

Then we get into the Itchas and we're seeing tons of goats from the plane, which is awesome. No, they aren't huntable there, but who doesn't like seeing goats?

[Rob Chipman]

We land and start walking away from the lake. It's a pretty easy trail and you can see where you need to go, so everybody is happy. We continue on past the cabin and start climbing up the hill.

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Before too long we're just below the tree line, so we set up camp, spend the night.

Next day we're up and out scouting. It's two more days before the season opens, but we need to find out what is what. It doesn't take long before we're seeing more and more goats, but we don't find caribou until....mid-morning. Not long after we see what we think might be a shooter, but far away. We've got time so we scout some more. We find another herd with a dandy.


We wear out a fair amount of boot leather and then go back down to camp. Next morning we load up a fly, water and essentials and go to set up a spike camp. Then we close down the scouting focus ring. We find a good looking herd with three good bulls. Two are legal but small, and one is a beauty. We watch them for several hours, and the two younger ones treat us to a long fight. The weather gets snotty, but we wait and put them to bed, ready for the next day. We go around the back of the mountain we're on, climb down and head home.

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[Rob Chipman]

At the bottom of the little peak we were on we look up the valley where the herd was and see something white.

"Look, there's another on of those goats"

"Wait, that's no goat. That's a guy putting up a tent"


We look through the glass and sure enough, three tents are going up right on the edge of the action we were watching all afternoon. Apparently the Beaver that flew over us earlier in the day wasn't empty.

Fair enough. Next morning we get up at 3:00, climb the hill in the dark, get on top of everything, arrive early, find a depression in the ground to lie down in as the cold pre-dawn wind whips over us, and we wait for some light. When it gets light enough to see a few feet in front of your face we creep down the sidehill to where the herd had bedded down and we wait.

I don't care if it's early September. It's colder than a witch's tit waiting for the sun to come up, but in the pre-dawn we start seeing either rocks or caribou bedded down. Soon we make out an actual cow, then another, but it becomes obvious that the herd is history. There isn't a bull to be seen.

The sun comes up and it's glorious, and with it come the three guys with the white tent flies. We go say hello, and surprise surprise, they're surprised we were there before them. They hadn't spotted our hiding place, so I guess it worked.

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We were a little bummed out. They told us that they had bumped the herd a little the night before (go figure). Oh well. That's why it's called hunting and not killing. We climb the hill to see what we can see.

[Rob Chipman]

At the top we split up, and before long we spot another herd way off in the back forty. We drop off the hill, into a fold in the ground and we start stalking. They're probably a mile or so off. We keep as low as we can and close ground.

And then the herd appears, rising up out of the ground. The wind is swirling and they must have caught our scent, but it's not clear where we are. They start running past us and in the middle is a bull big enough that you do't have to count anything. He's clearly legal.

My buddy is about 50 yars away and he's got the rifle up. You know what that's like. You watch the bull stop and think "Shoot him now".

There's no shot. The bull trots a bit more, the herd mills around, and I think "Shoot him", followed by "Shoot that bull man. What are you waiting for?"

They start running again and I think "Don't chase them" and then they stop one more time and my buddy lets fly. I can see he's hit him, and then he whacks him again. The bull is clearly hit, but keeps walking a little bit, and then tips over.

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The rest of the herd splits in two and circles around as we walk up, then they slowly split.
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The bull is a big boy, with a 6x7 rack in velvet. Just a beauty.

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He didn't shoot for the reason you'd expect when you think about it: there were either cows in front or a cow behind every time I figured he should shoot.

We start butchering and we see two guys coming up on horses. One is young, fitted out with high tech camo, and the other is older, with a blue jacket, cowboy hat and a smoke hanging out of his mouth. First words? "That's a nice bull!"

We chat a bit, talk about the bull, the hunt, their horse, etc. They're a father and son combo. We tell them that we think there's a good shooter over that way a ways, they thank us and away they go. Nice looking horses, too.

Then we start packing out, and we run into a another pal of mine from the city, Jenny (some of you know her). She's up there, second year hunting, determined to get a bull. We shoot the shit with her and her 2 partners, tell them how we found caribou, and agree to catch up later.

Couple or three trips of my least favorite work and we've got everything butchered, bagged and back at spike camp, and we crash. We wake up late afternoon and what do we see? The father and son combo riding back with a bull and before long Jenny and crew come down to see us again.

[Rob Chipman]

Next day we pack everything down to the camp, then the lake. The father and son combo are packing up to ride out and ask if we want them to leave some onions and potatoes. Having been on a mountain house and recently killed caribou diet we say "Absolutely". When we get into the cabin there is onions, potatoes, home made bread, and, oh yeah, a bottle of whiskey and some cubans! Gotta like that!

We also run into a couple of nice guys from Williams Lake, camped at the lake but hunting all over. We meet them again down at the lake and damned if they don't get a bull down there. The guys with the white tents were also successful, and they're at the lake as well. Only 2nd year tiny little female hunter Jenny is still up the mountain when we get snowed in.

We wait that night and the next day, hearing the plane fly over for a look see, but the ceiling is way too low. The next day we get out and head home, wondering how Jenny made out in the snow. When i asked her long she was staying she said "Until we get a bull".

You know what happened, right? They got their bull, and it was a beaut as well :-)


I'll try to post more pics. For some reason it says I'm over my quota.

So, what's next? LEH is coming up soon.

What are the recommendations? We're taking horses this year and either going in off the Alcan or the Stewart Cassiar. What's better? West Toad? Tetsa? Cry Lake? Eaglenest? We'll hunt moose, caribou, sheep. They key is a really cool place for a really cool adventure.

[albravo2]

Great thread Rob, nice work up there.

[LBM]

Long way to haul horses but you could try the Tat for dalls or the simpson for bighorn but its not as good as use to be.

[mooseknuckler]

Great hunt! Sounds like the seeds are being planted for 2019....

[warnniklz]

Huh, only the second time I've heard about goats in there. Always wanted to hunt cariboo back there.

By the sounds of it, I never will.

As always, looking forward to pictures.

[kennyj]

Sounds like an awesome hunt. I'm looking forward to the pics.
Thanks for sharing your adventure.
kenny

[ryanb]

Where's the money shot?

[Rob Chipman]

Jesus! I can’t believe I can’t figure out how to upload them!

[Rob Chipman]

Figured it out!

[ryanb]

Great pictures, and a very nice Caribou. Thanks for the great share!

[LBM]

wow great pics beautiful looking country and bull.

[CheesyLimper]

Wow, that is some amazing looking country, now I need to add the Itchas to the list. Great story and caribou too.

[Rotorwash]

That itcha LEH is closed now isn't it

[warnniklz]

That itcha LEH is closed now isn't it

That's what I was referring to in my post

[todbartell]

thanks for posting, beautiful country. A shame that the caribou hunt in that region is closed for 2019

[J_T]

Thanks for sharing. Well told story.

[Rob Chipman]

"That itcha LEH is closed now isn't it"

I've heard those rumours too - in fact I think that the COs who dropped in on us from a chopper (forgot to include that in the story - good guys and a good chat with them) - I think they mentioned it might be coming. However, I can't find anything online about that. Anyone have some hard info in that regard?

[Arctic Lake]

Great story Ron ! Really like the pictures !
Arctic Lake

[DeepJeep]

Thanks for sharing your hunt. Great pics!

[IronNoggin]

Great Tale, well presented, and a very fine Caribou!!

Nicely Done all round!! https://www.tnof.ca/styles/default/xenforo/smilies/Pozitive.gif

Cheers!
Nog

[Pioneerman]

Well done , thanks for sharing a great story

[Bugle M In]

Finally got to see the Boo you spoke about with me.
Nice job and thanks for posting...good job and nice pics.
Beautiful Country.

[JoeSixPack]

Nice pics and great bull! Thanks for sharing. Shame to see it shut down now.

[HarryToolips]

Great pics and bull, very nice country, thanks for posting...

[Rattler]

Great story thanks for sharing. Beautiful country!!

[gcreek]

"That itcha LEH is closed now isn't it"

I've heard those rumours too - in fact I think that the COs who dropped in on us from a chopper (forgot to include that in the story - good guys and a good chat with them) - I think they mentioned it might be coming. However, I can't find anything online about that. Anyone have some hard info in that regard?


It is closed now Rob.

[Rotorwash]

Also Rob that was a beauty of a bou. Crazy snow on your way out eh

[Rob Chipman]

Snow was always an expected possibility, but I was glad it came after we hit the lake, lemme tell you!

What group were you in?

[Bubbacanuck]

Great story and getting me excited for the upcoming season!

[Rob Chipman]

So, where's the summer go? It's almost time to pack up and hit the mountains again (ok, I was out in the spring for bear, but never got a chance at a bigger than the last one, although the dog brought a pretty big one back on the run - I couldn't;t believe how calm and cool the horses were :-) )


Anyway, we're taking horses in this time, either to Coldfish by the McEwen Creek trail or maybe to Cry lake.

Anyone know much about either route?

Any preference?

Any intel?

Any good stories to kill some time?

[Ali_G]

Inspiring!! Im looking forward to my first season hunting in BC. Stories like these are dreams of the future.

[Eastbranch]

Hell of a bull and you're lucky to have experienced that. It's a damn shame that herd was closed to hunting.

[msawyer]

Closing the hunt isn't surprising at all... That herd population has declined by ~ 86 percent in only the last 17 years. The herd is now ~ 385 animal and in just the five days of the described hunt 5 adult males where removed from that population. What is a shame is that (a) the season wasn't closed sooner, and (b) that we still do not public polices that protect habitat over industrial development. And that hunters seem to have drifted away from their conservation roots. Those caribou, and other herds, need our help.

[HarryToolips]

^^^Highly doubt hunting was the main cause for decline....are you actually a hunter or just a troll??

[msawyer]

Yes Harry, I am a hunter and not a troll. And no, I don't assume the issues with caribou are because of hunting pressure. In fact, the biological reasons for the decline are quite well understood - its habitat alteration from industrial logging, mining and oil and gas which in turns increases vulnerability of caribou herds to predation. Ergo, populations decline to the inevitable extirpation. Under those circumstances hunting related mortality, while not the cause, pushes the herds further towards extirpation. What I wonder is why hunters are not much more vocal about threats to habitat, for caribou or other sensitive wildlife, and why we accept, even advocate for continued hunting opportunities on threatened populations. And arnt so-called environmentalist actually potential allies in our efforts to protect wildlife habitat?

[CranePete]

There’s damn little oil & gas work in the Itchas...I’d even venture to say there’s zero.

[325]

There’s damn little oil & gas work in the Itchas...I’d even venture to say there’s zero.

Yeah, I’d say the absurdly high wolf population is the reason for the decline.

[gcreek]

Yeah, I’d say the absurdly high wolf population is the reason for the decline.

Although 15 years too late, that population was drastically reduced this winter. Including the wolves that the Ministry took out and from north of Anahim Lake to the Tatlayoko area, helicopter crew and locals have taken out a known to myself number of 116 wolves. A great start!

Now the Ministry needs to address the bear population that has also exploded in this area.

[325]

Although 15 years too late, that population was drastically reduced this winter. Including the wolves that the Ministry took out and from north of Anahim Lake to the Tatlayoko area, helicopter crew and locals have taken out a known to myself number of 116 wolves. A great start!

Now the Ministry needs to address the bear population that has also exploded in this area.

Exactly. Bears are a major factor in the decline of ungulates province-wide.

[HarryToolips]

Yes Harry, I am a hunter and not a troll. And no, I don't assume the issues with caribou are because of hunting pressure. In fact, the biological reasons for the decline are quite well understood - its habitat alteration from industrial logging, mining and oil and gas which in turns increases vulnerability of caribou herds to predation. Ergo, populations decline to the inevitable extirpation. Under those circumstances hunting related mortality, while not the cause, pushes the herds further towards extirpation. What I wonder is why hunters are not much more vocal about threats to habitat, for caribou or other sensitive wildlife, and why we accept, even advocate for continued hunting opportunities on threatened populations. And arnt so-called environmentalist actually potential allies in our efforts to protect wildlife habitat?
Good to hear your not a troll...

[msawyer]

No worries Harry.... One thing for us all to keep in mind when we want to point fingers at predators as the cause of the problem and yet these herds have coexisted with predation for hundreds, maybe thousands, of years and managed to survive and even thrive. So in my view it is highly unlikely that the predators are the direct cause of the decline in this caribou herd. So lets ask ourselves what has changed in that area since, lets say, 1970, that might explain the precipitous decline in the caribou population... Pick your flavor of choice, but it still always comes back to human activities, human caused changes to the habitat, and increased mortality from all causes directly or indirectly because of humans. The question I pose to you all is what are we hunters going to do about it?

[HarryToolips]

Well it ain't hunting for 5 pt Bulls imo, but it is human caused like you said..I would attribute it mostly, in the case of the caribou, to loss of old growth forests, which hold a lot of the crucial forage they require..but I'm not a biologist, so I could be wrong...

[msawyer]

Have a read of this article and let me know your thoughts.....

https://thenarwhal.ca/a-dangerous-road-coastal-gaslink-pays-to-kill-wolves-in-endangered-caribou-habitat-in-b-c-interior/?fbclid=IwAR0jUz2YDpuounUnLpNh4YOuATWEy6PRl2gRah1h Z3BxzLTd5d-Q2trxVC0

[gcreek]

Have a read of this article and let me know your thoughts.....

https://thenarwhal.ca/a-dangerous-road-coastal-gaslink-pays-to-kill-wolves-in-endangered-caribou-habitat-in-b-c-interior/?fbclid=IwAR0jUz2YDpuounUnLpNh4YOuATWEy6PRl2gRah1h Z3BxzLTd5d-Q2trxVC0


Interesting how the bunny huggers are blaming the Liberals while it was the current government that pulled the trigger. A wolf cull needed to be done. Regardless of all the armchair biologists and other experts opinions, it needed doing.

Harry, you need to venture farther away from pavement, parts of BC have no end of desirable habitat but for predators.

[gcreek]

No worries Harry.... One thing for us all to keep in mind when we want to point fingers at predators as the cause of the problem and yet these herds have coexisted with predation for hundreds, maybe thousands, of years and managed to survive and even thrive. So in my view it is highly unlikely that the predators are the direct cause of the decline in this caribou herd. So lets ask ourselves what has changed in that area since, lets say, 1970, that might explain the precipitous decline in the caribou population... Pick your flavor of choice, but it still always comes back to human activities, human caused changes to the habitat, and increased mortality from all causes directly or indirectly because of humans. The question I pose to you all is what are we hunters going to do about it?

During the 1950s there happened to be another major wolf cull paid for by the Federal government to "sustain and replenish" food animals for the native populations. It was done in the gold rush era also because they were competition,

This bullshyte about predators not being the cause of today's issue is why the game herds got so badly depleted. People can talk all they want about the industrial activities making things easier for wolves but the fact is still that they are too numerous. Most places in BC have all the habitat needed.

May I ask what your vocation and location is?

[Walking Buffalo]

Good to hear your not a troll...


Trust your instincts!
msawyer has a history here and at Alberta Outfoorsman.

Yet another sad side effect of the CCP virus, the trolls are bored and are revisiting old haunts.

[msawyer]

Walking Buffalo et al....

OK, I'm busted. So yes I have a strong environmental ethic and from time to time work against the interests of large natural resource companies (more often than not oil and gas companies but from time to time, the forest industry as well). I have a master degree in environmental science and have worked as a biologist for over 30 years, about half of my career for industry/government and about half for individuals/First nations and ENGOs who found themselves in conflict with the oil and gas industry. That experience gives me a somewhat unique perspective - I've been on both sides of the debate(s) and understand perspectives on both sides. Having said that, and before you all stone me or throw me to the lions, let me say that I have been an outdoorsman, fisherman, shooter and a hunters since i was less than 12 years old, over 50 years. When I was younger I have worked as a big game guide in Alberta and the NWT and still would but for a pair of tired knees... I am a bona fide hunter but with a long standing concern about how we treat nature and how wildlife species are being taken care of. I was taught at an early age that is what hunters do... That is what hunters stood for.. Personally, I want to be able to introduce my grandchildren, and if I'm lucky, my great grandchildren, to hunting and all that goes along with it. If any of you are so narrow minded that you want to ridicule me or dismiss me as "troll", so be it... But I for one, and yes there are many other hunters like me, that put significant personal effort into ensuring that the likes of you might actually have high quality hunting opportunities in the future.

Finally, if we cannot have intelligent, reasoned discussions, even debates, on forums like HubntingBc or Alberta Outdoorman, without calling each other names or impugning each others motives, what chance do wildlife and hunting really have?