Help in determining hunting/living location

[silu]

Hey all,
Hoping a few people would be able to help me determine a location in the province that offers “full package” hunting options. I’m looking at moving to BC for work (profession - wildlife biologist) and want to peruse some locations that offer a wide variety of hunting availability. If some of you could direct me to some of the hotspot or best locations within BC, it’d help me greatly with my decision!

Thanks in advance, you all rock!

[Bigchief]

Vancover....

[dakoda62]

North of Prince George.

[Ride Red]

Hey all,
Hoping a few people would be able to help me determine a location in the province that offers “full package” hunting options. I’m looking at moving to BC for work (profession - wildlife biologist) and want to peruse some locations that offer a wide variety of hunting availability. If some of you could direct me to some of the hotspot or best locations within BC, it’d help me greatly with my decision!

Thanks in advance, you all rock!

Just a question, but wouldn’t your profession dictate where you’re stationed first? Anywhere besides the lowermainland would be a start.

[mpotzold]

Vanderhoof the geographic centre of BC.:-)

Rich Hobson the world famous outdoors author moved to the Vanderhoof area in the 40's & lived in the area for the rest of his life.

Close to some of the best big game hunting in BC & the area is very scenic.

[adriaticum]

Anywhere in Northern BC.
Particularly
Smithers, Terrace, Kitimat

[HarryToolips]

Just a question, but wouldn’t your profession dictate where you’re stationed first? Anywhere besides the lowermainland would be a start.
No way, I think he should definitely go with Surrey....

[ACE]

Where are you coming from . . . . ?
Prince George north.

[Bustercluck]

Anywhere north of prince george

If you’re not afraid of the cold I would say fort Nelson.

[S.W.A.T.]

Anywhere in Northern BC.
Particularly
Smithers, Terrace, Kitimat

He said he was looking for game

[bigredchev]

Bulkey Valley for me. Unreal in September

[338win mag]

Kootenays, east or west.

[Wild one]

Peace or forget BC and go western Alberta

[walks with deer]

wouldnt a wildlife bioligist be able to figure it out anyway..lol

[srupp]

Hmmm Big Lake or Horsefly..best flyfishing in BC..black bears..40 % are color phased in that area, mule deer, whitetail deer , california bighorn sheep..short run to Spenses Bridge for rocky bighorn, lots of goats..short run to Hixon for elk..although we have 600 elk herd..but keep getting trimmed by...
Lynx, cougar, wolves, coyotes, lots of grizzly currently for viewing, grouse, hares,
Even Spotted Owls..tasty in stews
And some big sturgeon..best cooked poached..lol
Ducks, geese....
Cheers
Srupp

[Farm Giirl]

I’m willing to argue you will figure it out! Lol. What might be ideal for you might not be ideal for another person!

[northof49]

weird first post.....would think a wildlife biologist would be able to figure that out pretty quick.....hmmmmm

[lakelander]

Hmmm Big Lake or Horsefly..best flyfishing in BC..black bears..40 % are color phased in that area, mule deer, whitetail deer , california bighorn sheep..short run to Spenses Bridge for rocky bighorn, lots of goats..short run to Hixon for elk..although we have 600 elk herd..but keep getting trimmed by...
Lynx, cougar, wolves, coyotes, lots of grizzly currently for viewing, grouse, hares,
Even Spotted Owls..tasty in stews
And some big sturgeon..best cooked poached..lol
Ducks, geese....
Cheers
Srupp

"Even Spotted Owls..tasty in stews" ??????

[Drillbit]

north western Alberta

[markomoose]

weird first post.....would think a wildlife biologist would be able to figure that out pretty quick.....hmmmmm
Exactly what I was thinking??

[MontyLake]

With moose on LEH in most of the province there isn't much point in thinking of moose populations as far as hunting opportunities, though the farther north you go the closer you are to the rare general open season areas.

What do you want to hunt. Want lots of waterfowl opportunity? Vancouver/Richmond/Surrey/Delta is probably the best place in BC for quick easy waterfowl hunting opportunities.

Black bear? Just about anywhere.

Deer? Hit and miss. Mulies or whitetail? Kamloops or the Kootenays. GOS elk?

Listen to Rupp. He probably knows more than any 6 others combined.

[quadrakid]

First you need to decide what you want to be hunting. If sheep and access to open season moose then you want to look in the northern part of the province. Smithers would be my choice,nice town, As for the southern half,there are open seasons for elk, whitetail mule deer,black bear, LEH Moose and sheep.Kootenays are nice.

[moosinaround]

Peace country for sure!! Generous open seasons, hours from sheep and goats, deer, elk, moose, bears, all at your doorstep. Mountains at your doorstep, fishing at your doorstep. Peace country for sure! Moosin

[Muliechaser]

Just a question, but wouldn’t your profession dictate where you’re stationed first? Anywhere besides the lowermainland would be a start.

I would think so aswell . Cant just move somewere and hope there is a job position in that field of work

[Muliechaser]

weird first post.....would think a wildlife biologist would be able to figure that out pretty quick.....hmmmmm

Yup! I think its a troll for hunting areas but thats just me .

[RackStar]

Hope b.c

home to some of the best moose and white tail hunting

[albravo2]

Really, you can't go wrong. I think PG is very central to every kind of hunting. Nothing you can't hunt if you're willing to drive 8 hours.

I like Smithers-- good town to live in.

[Stone Sheep Steve]

The further north you go the better the hunting....but the shorter the summer. It’s all about lifestyle choices.

SSS

[Huntingtyler123]

Anything besides Vancouver area. Even though I’m on the north shore and it’s a nice spot you’ll get stuck in the rat race here. I’d look into anything at least three hour drive from Vancouver to move. Myself looking at the interior at least. Not for hunting but peace of mind

[srupp]

Hmmm did I miss caribou..?
Srupp
Further north..as has been stated correctly shorter days..and colder winters..later springs..more expensive to live..less amenities. .
Hmm we are 3 hrs 15 minutes to Kamloops..3 hours 15 minutes to Prince George 5 hours to the ocean at Bella Coma...
Srupp

[IslandWanderer]

Just a question, but wouldn’t your profession dictate where you’re stationed first? Anywhere besides the lowermainland would be a start.

This is what I was thinking too. It seems a specific profession, and one where a person would be employed by the Province.

[mpotzold]

Hmmm did I miss caribou..?
Srupp
Further north..as has been stated correctly shorter days..and colder winters..later springs..more expensive to live..less amenities. .
Hmm we are 3 hrs 15 minutes to Kamloops..3 hours 15 minutes to Prince George 5 hours to the ocean at Bella Coma...
Srupp

:confused::confused:

[walks with deer]

something fishy

[Islandeer]

Clearly a player, no response from all the suggestions?

[GEF]

Hey all,
Hoping a few people would be able to help me determine a location in the province that offers “full package” hunting options. I’m looking at moving to BC for work (profession - wildlife biologist) and want to peruse some locations that offer a wide variety of hunting availability. If some of you could direct me to some of the hotspot or best locations within BC, it’d help me greatly with my decision!

Thanks in advance, you all rock!

Seems like you are more into fishing ?
Looks like you got a few .

[markomoose]

Hmmm did I miss caribou..?
Srupp
Further north..as has been stated correctly shorter days..and colder winters..later springs..more expensive to live..less amenities. .
Hmm we are 3 hrs 15 minutes to Kamloops..3 hours 15 minutes to Prince George 5 hours to the ocean at Bella Coma...
SruppI remember seeing that spray painted sign years ago heading outta Williams Lake going to "Bella Coma" steelhead fishing

[HarryToolips]

Clearly a player, no response from all the suggestions?

Lol like I said Surrey would be a great place for him, surprised no one else mentioned that hotspot

[elknut]

Why wouldn't the poster just phone his Biologist friends in BC ...Certainly the Brotherhood would inform him...Me thinks this post is fishy....Dennis

[srupp]

:confused::confused:

Bella Coma..poor attempt at humour..sorry
Steven

[silu]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions, and sorry for the late reply, was in the bush for the past few days Whitetail hunting in MB. Am not looking to scam anyone for hunting areas or just picking a spot to move for strictly hunting and fishing, but was more asking for suggestions to explore those areas for job opportunities. Yes the ideal location may vary from person to person, but I was just hoping for some input for locations that would provide me with some fun weekends out looking to fill the freezer. I’m from Nunavut so no worries about the cold and harsh winters... been experiencing that my whole life haha! Again, thanks to everyone for their input, the research begins!

[100MileGord]

Our province is a big place. Be prepared to drive.

I would suggest the centre of the province as a short 12 hour drive gets you to the northern border, south eastern corner, Pacific Ocean, or back to Saskatoba.

Burning a bit of diesel might piss Greta off, but will give you something to hunt 11 months of the year.

[Cordillera]

As a biologist the work opportunities will be best in the major regional centres. Williams lake, Prince George, Fort St John, Smithers, Cranbrook. They all have some good opportunities. I’d say that Fort St. John has has the best overall opportunity for wildlife close by as there are multiple species (elk, mule deer, moose, whitetail, stone sheep, goat and even bighorn sheep) close. There are great work opportunities there I can give you names to contact if you PM me.

However FSJ has certain charms that some love and others don’t. Being situated in the oil patch housing is a little more expensive than some of the other locations and it’s just a little different socially. For me, I’ll never regret the decision to move to Smithers from a community perspective but I have to admit I wish we had real deer hunting here (it’s marginal most deer are on private land). My choice of a community is influenced by what I do when not hunting. Smithers has great mountain biking and skiing of all sorts, so wins out from a multi interest perspective Cranbrook would have probably been my second choice. Sorry Williams lake and Prince George, great hunting (and biking) but I personally like mountains.....

[northof49]

^^^having lived and worked in all of these locations over the years (no am not a bio), I would say this is a good assessment. Pick where you want to live for 95% of the year based on the other things you like to do when not hunting, and travel to the areas you want to hunt. Consider what is important to wife/children if relevant...as the saying goes happy wife..happy life. Region 6 (Smithers/Terrace) is the better choice if you also want to spend time fishing the rivers for steelhead/salmon, but the communities are smaller. If mostly into hunting then the Peace Region would be the better choice. Prince George is central to it all as mentioned already and has good services and reasonable house prices and best opportunity for travel in any direction. A good employer and steady reliable work will be the most important....without that you can’t afford much of the other things including hunting. Good luck!

[silu]

Thanks again everyone, I really do appreciate all the information that you are sharing! Sounds like the northern BC area may just be my next area of residency... :smile:

[Piperdown]

This is what I was thinking too. It seems a specific profession, and one where a person would be employed by the Province.

An oxy moron

[JSaw]

All the suggestions on here have been great. I moved up to PG almost 3 years ago and didn't know what to expect.... the biking here is far better than my last home (okanagan) and the fishing is pretty incredible if you're after BIG bull trout. Little known secret about PG is the mountains are closer than you think.... You can day trip to the alpine, there are multiple cabins from different rec groups in the alpine that cost almost nothing to hike up and spend a night. If you ski tour there is a fairly large community for that and climbing as well. It's central to everything, has cheap real estate comparatively, amenities, good restaurants and pubs/breweries, costco. Anyway all the suggestions on here have been on point, your choice!

[pro 111]

Atlin ..lol
hey all,
hoping a few people would be able to help me determine a location in the province that offers “full package” hunting options. I’m looking at moving to bc for work (profession - wildlife biologist) and want to peruse some locations that offer a wide variety of hunting availability. If some of you could direct me to some of the hotspot or best locations within bc, it’d help me greatly with my decision!

Thanks in advance, you all rock!