Prince George Region

[Bullmoose]

Just heard an interesting bit of news from a reliable source that I would like to have confirmed. The word is that the head CO in Prince George has left his job and that unofficial estimates place the moose population in that area in trouble (down approx 60%) Has anyone heard anything on this. If this is true this area will probably follow MU 5 and go to a very restricted season.

[Big Blaze]

I was in 7-26 last week for about 10 days and the CO's up there said there was a 35% winter kill, and I believe every word. We only saw one spike bull, and a full mature that walked right into out camp the first day(no draw :x) So from my point of veiw and they guys I went with who have hunted there for quite some time say numbers are way down.

[bruin]

That's been the story all season hopefully they act quickly to help them restock.

[The Hermit]

I was up 7-16B trompin around adn didn't see any game of any kind, no real fresh tracks, no droppings, no rubs, no nothin. Spoke with a bunch of other guys some of whom had been there a week and they hadn't seen diddly squat either.

[BCrams]

7-16 huh ?? I've seen a couple nice mature bulls in there right off the road without trying to look for them ! Including one with a drop tine off his palm on one side. Not giants but nice 40 inchers.

[kootenayelkslayer]

Just heard an interesting bit of news from a reliable source that I would like to have confirmed. The word is that the head CO in Prince George has left his job and that unofficial estimates place the moose population in that area in trouble (down approx 60%) Has anyone heard anything on this. If this is true this area will probably follow MU 5 and go to a very restricted season.


Well the head CO is my landlord, and he certainly hasn't told me that he's left his job. He's still out there plugging bears and working hard.

[Schmaus]

7-16 huh ?? I've seen a couple nice mature bulls in there right off the road without trying to look for them ! Including one with a drop tine off his palm on one side. Not giants but nice 40 inchers

don't let anyone fool you there are lots of moose around pg. The only people that aren't seeing moose are the ones that aren't looking hard enough. I have seen at least ten bulls in 7-16 the last three weeks and lots of calves. You don't see moose if your not out and about.

[Nails]

I was hunting 7-25 at the end of sept for eight days. We hunted hard and saw one cow. My brother is lives in Fort St James and he said it has still been a slow year. He also told me one of the outfitters had sent two hunting parties home empty handed. Last year we got two Bulls

[Caveman]

We just got back from east of PG. Saw moose everyday, cows, bulls, cow calf pairs. Actually saw more, more frequently than in other years. Four animals down in 6 days, All taken the last two because that's when the draw opened. Immatures were open prior to that, which we didn't see. Seemed like a healthy population to me, but the rumors are flying.

[Krico]

There are lots of moose around. I think the pitfall a lot of guys fall into up here is they come back and hunt the exact same spot year after year. Well guess what? Every year there are countless new cutblocks which begin attracting moose with the open terrain and second growth to feed on. The older blocks grow thick and gnarly, making them less attractive and more difficult to see in/hunt in. My uncle has shot more moose than anyone I know, and every year he spends a ton of time out scouting for new "moosie" areas-on foot, driving and from his plane. Usually a good spot is only that way for a few years, so you've always got to be looking for new areas if you want continued success.

[BCLongshot]

U gotta get off the road.

Kill wolves every chance you get !

[dunbartr]

We hunted 6-09 South of HOuston during from the 1st to the 8th. Only saw One Bull, 2 Cows and A Calf. Saw a fair amount of fresh tracks, but couldn't get them to respond to calls. The guy next to us, had only seen a cow, and the Nadian Lake guide/outfitter had seen no moose when we saw him. Very unlike previous years. We have talked to lots of guys who have had a poor year moose hunting. I believe the winter kill and tick theories. Also heard many (>1000) were killed on the railway too.

[BCrams]

The older blocks grow thick and gnarly, making them less attractive and more difficult to see in/hunt in.

You are half right. Older blocks are definately more difficult to see in/hunt in. The visibility factor has gone down the tubes.

However, older the block, the more attractive it is for moose. Peak 'use' of cutblocks utilized by moose will occur when the block is between 20 and 30 years old!!! It only gets better and better up until that point! We have a lot of cutblocks fitting the bill as far as habitat goes for moose.

[Krico]

[quote=BCrams;196806] Peak 'use' of cutblocks utilized by moose will occur when the block is between 20 and 30 years old!!! quote]

Interesting. I would've guessed somewhere between 10 and 15 years.

[ianwuzhere]

ive seen less moose this year then any other year ive hunted around pg.

[elkdom]

Krico, congrats on having a BRAIN! I agree, how can these guys give these estimats, 30% loss, 60% loss in order to give that kind of ratio they have to count the game this season and they would have had to have done meticulos game counts the previous 5 years, in all reality the only info recent years the FW has to go by is hunter return cards and mandatory inspections etc, now if everyone goes home because it was wet and cold and they got no game then that means there is no game right?

[pitbell]

I've seen a fair amount of Bulls this year. What worries me is the lack of cows and calfs. I finally bumped a cow and her calf yesterday evening. As much as I need the moose meat, I could not with a good conscious take the calf.

[tooty]

Moose pops. are down in George.Lots of wolves,habitat loss,ticks.I don't think the calve season is helping much right now.It might be a good idea to let a few more calves grow up for a few years.

[Maverick]

One has to keep in mind the kind of hunting pressure that has occurred in the area recently as well as the weather to some degree. It seems to me that reports are all over the place this year. With some having seen few moose/deer to those that have had no trouble getting their quarry.

Personally, I haven' t had much opportunity this hunting season and when I did I covered alot of ground on foot and by way of fsr's and still did not see much in the way of game. On the other hand in the Pre season saw all kinds of game. Just have to put in the time and try to find areas where they have received a little less pressure. Some of the deer I saw were on the fly as soon as I laid eyes on them and others were content with me watching them graze.

Just my 2 cents.

[Belle]

Just got back from 7 11 & 12, we filled our LEH tags and collected a couple of calves. From what we saw, a hunting party of about 12 people the numbers are down from last year but with the wet summer there is more feed in the bush then ever before and that is where we saw lots of sign and the animals. The loggers and the CN crews we spoke to made mention that there was a higher then normal winter kill with the sudden snow that occured in October last year. Didn't any wolves over the 10 days we trudged around out there but a record number of Bears, big and small. You have to also factor in the amount of logging that has happened and that alone will push the animals to other areas till the slashes build up again. Any way a cow, calf and a mulie filled our list for the two of us that went up this year. I just have to wait for January for the LEH on the cow elk to open up in the Peace to finish filling the freezer.

[Browningmirage]

we saw the majority of our moose in a very recent cut (read equipment still there)

Cow moose in our party was shot in a clearcut just like that.

No shortage from what we saw

[elkdom]

As usual the guys that got moose seen moose, the guys that didn't get moose think their moose got eat'n by tics or wolves, amazing logic here!

[Krico]

As usual the guys that got moose seen moose, the guys that didn't get moose think their moose got eat'n by tics or wolves, amazing logic here!

X2:lol::lol::lol:

[elkdom]

X2:lol::lol::lol:

ar,ar,ar,ar,ar

[curt]

i talked to the co's at a game check by pink mountain and they said just that 60%

[scottgreen]

just got back from area 7. harvested a cow but only saw my cow, a nice 11x12 bull + only saw 1 set of calf tracks! no material calfs :O! horrible winter kill. not even very many chickens

[Schmaus]

I just got back from 5-13 didn't see a deer all day. I think they should shut down deer hunting there because all the deer must have been killed by wolves and ticks.:(

[browningboy]

U gotta get off the road.

Kill wolves every chance you get !

Funny, we pounded the bush and seen many animals but the only shooter was on the main road! Go figure!:-|