gamehunter6o
11-01-2008, 10:49 PM
My wife and I arrived in Vancouver on the 8th of Aug. having booked our flight from New Zealand just 3 weeks earlier. We’d just retired from 33yrs farming deer [red deer/ elk cross] and were looking forward to a long holiday, touring BC’s vast wilderness areas. My wife and I live and hunt in NZ and were keen to see and enjoy the wildlife we have seen so often on TV. We stayed the first week with a relative in central Vancouver Island and it was fantastic to see the deer walking thru gardens eating what ever they like. In NZ we have 7 species of deer but they are hunted 12mths of the year and are virtually never seen from the road, preferring to be near nocturnal and living in the bush. Because deer were introduced into NZ they have been classed as a noxious animal for about 70yrs and it is only this year that the status of deer has changed to that of “Game”. It’s been along battle for the hunters to have them classed as a resource.
In the 3 weeks prior to leaving NZ I’d emailed 5 outfitters trying to book a moose hunt in the Yukon or an elk hunt in BC. The only reply I got was from a Yukon outfitter saying he was fully booked but if he had a cancellation he’d let me know.
To this day the other 4 have never replied. I new I was late trying to book a hunt but surely someone could fit in an experienced, uncomplaining, older hunter.
So in desperation, I searched ”white pages Alberta” and rang a guy I’d met in the bush in 1986 when I was last in Canada. He said “bring your rifle and give me a ring when you arrive in BC. I’ll get a hunt for you with someone”. And so it was, my 10 day elk hunt was in early Sep. in northern BC. [outfitters name withheld]
My wife and I bought an older Mazda van and “took off”, up the island then over to Prince Rupert and on into BC’s great outdoors. It took a bit of getting used to driving on the right hand side of the road [NZ drives on the left] and I apologise to the two drivers I scared. Forty five years of driving on the left is a hard habit to break. The most memorable encounter we had with the various wildlife we saw was with a lone wolf, lying in the sun off the side of the Alaska Highway. We spotted him but were going too fast to stop so did a u turn, stopping across the road to take a photo. While doing so I howled at him and you could just about see his brain working, trying to figure out what’s going on. I then slowly got out of the van and with my hands at my side and head tilted down so I could just see under the peak of my cap I slowly crossed the road towards him. He started growling at me but then I’d give him a howl. As I kept approaching he’d start to move away, but then I’d give another howl and he’d stop. After a few starts and stops I was at the edge of the road and he was peering over a rise just 25m away. Traffic was coming so I left with him still peeping. That encounter was a real buzz.
My wife headed off back to NZ and I got down to the serious business of shooting myself a reasonable elk.
The outfitter picked me up in town the day before the hunt was due to start and a few hours later we arrived at the tent camp, complete with double row electric fence to keep bears out. The camp was done over by a bear in the spring. I was introduced to my guide whom I’ll call “Jim”. Just the two of us were going to be in camp for the duration of my hunt and that suited me just fine. The first evening was spent driving around logging roads looking for elk sign. Not much elk but plenty of moose and to me they don’t appear to be the smartest critter in the bush. Day 1 hunting we saw 11 moose, 4 mulies and no elk. Day 2 we came across a guy with a camera on a tripod and a shotgun across his back wanting a lift back around to his truck 5kms away. This guy doesn’t hunt he just films grizzlies in his spare time. He had some amazing footage. He told Jim that he’d seen a big 7x7 elk in the riverbed of the end of some road last year. It was so impressive he tried to film it but missed out. That evening we were in that area looking over some clear felled areas and fresh elk sign. An elk bugled down in the river bed ˝ hr before dark, so at first light we were back there but got no answer so headed off down into the river. It was steep but we made fairly good time, not bugling until we were on the downwind end of the river flat. Despite there being elk and moose marks everywhere we saw and heard no animals. Elk were obviously crossing the river but it was just a bit too deep for us to cross. The river flat bush on our side was full of rubbing so we settled down to give the odd bugle or cow call.
At about 1pm we started to head off up the 320m [GPS] climb when a bull answered from across the river and it was all on. We hurried out thru the bush only to realise that we would have to get him to cross the river 200m downstream
as the river bank opposite had a big drop into deep water. Downstream we went and climbed a bank about 50m from the river and tried to break branches for a shooting position and the bull was closing fast. The next 15 minutes is why I hunt. The bull reached the river edge opposite where we had been upstream and a bugle from Jim brought him down toward us just inside the bush edge. Thru my binoculars I could make out this cream and brown shape, head down low, weaving his way to an easy crossing point. “He’s not a shooter” I say in disappointment, but then I remember my flash new video camera in my daypack.
The bull stopped in a clear spot opposite as I got the camera on him, he then beat hell out of a tree for a while, then came down an incline and into the river, stopping midway for a drink, a look around and a couple of bugles. He slowly waded his way across, water half way up his side in one place and all the time my camera was rolling. On our side at 30m he stopped and started winding and I knew he must be able to smell where we had been upstream and upwind. He stood there for 4 minutes. A cow would have bolted but a cow call from Jim kept the blood running low in the bull instead of in his brain and up he came to 15m. Because of the bank he had to go downwind to find a way up and in the end I lost him from camera shot and not wanting to have him catch our wind I gave him a “ho ho, piss off” and away he went. He reached the other side but was reluctant to leave as Jim was giving him all types of calls and he was totally confused. Eventually he headed back in the bush and Jim and I shook hands and laughed at what we’d just experienced. Now that was a buzz. He was a 5x5 and just 3yr old I reckoned. There were prints on the sand bigger than his along with cows but despite dropping back down there 4 more times in the next week we saw or heard nothing but there were fresh marks of a very big bull with cows.
I got a 2yr old come up just as close on a cut line bugling for the camera but that was all for my 10 days.
If you asked me “did I have a good hunt?” I’d say yes, I had a bloody good hunt.
As you get older you discover that a good hunt doesn’t always require a kill .........................but I’m coming back next year to get me an elk.
http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk14.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11093) http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk25.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11094) http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk34.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11095&limit=recent)http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk43.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11096&cat=500)http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk52.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11097&cat=500)
In the 3 weeks prior to leaving NZ I’d emailed 5 outfitters trying to book a moose hunt in the Yukon or an elk hunt in BC. The only reply I got was from a Yukon outfitter saying he was fully booked but if he had a cancellation he’d let me know.
To this day the other 4 have never replied. I new I was late trying to book a hunt but surely someone could fit in an experienced, uncomplaining, older hunter.
So in desperation, I searched ”white pages Alberta” and rang a guy I’d met in the bush in 1986 when I was last in Canada. He said “bring your rifle and give me a ring when you arrive in BC. I’ll get a hunt for you with someone”. And so it was, my 10 day elk hunt was in early Sep. in northern BC. [outfitters name withheld]
My wife and I bought an older Mazda van and “took off”, up the island then over to Prince Rupert and on into BC’s great outdoors. It took a bit of getting used to driving on the right hand side of the road [NZ drives on the left] and I apologise to the two drivers I scared. Forty five years of driving on the left is a hard habit to break. The most memorable encounter we had with the various wildlife we saw was with a lone wolf, lying in the sun off the side of the Alaska Highway. We spotted him but were going too fast to stop so did a u turn, stopping across the road to take a photo. While doing so I howled at him and you could just about see his brain working, trying to figure out what’s going on. I then slowly got out of the van and with my hands at my side and head tilted down so I could just see under the peak of my cap I slowly crossed the road towards him. He started growling at me but then I’d give him a howl. As I kept approaching he’d start to move away, but then I’d give another howl and he’d stop. After a few starts and stops I was at the edge of the road and he was peering over a rise just 25m away. Traffic was coming so I left with him still peeping. That encounter was a real buzz.
My wife headed off back to NZ and I got down to the serious business of shooting myself a reasonable elk.
The outfitter picked me up in town the day before the hunt was due to start and a few hours later we arrived at the tent camp, complete with double row electric fence to keep bears out. The camp was done over by a bear in the spring. I was introduced to my guide whom I’ll call “Jim”. Just the two of us were going to be in camp for the duration of my hunt and that suited me just fine. The first evening was spent driving around logging roads looking for elk sign. Not much elk but plenty of moose and to me they don’t appear to be the smartest critter in the bush. Day 1 hunting we saw 11 moose, 4 mulies and no elk. Day 2 we came across a guy with a camera on a tripod and a shotgun across his back wanting a lift back around to his truck 5kms away. This guy doesn’t hunt he just films grizzlies in his spare time. He had some amazing footage. He told Jim that he’d seen a big 7x7 elk in the riverbed of the end of some road last year. It was so impressive he tried to film it but missed out. That evening we were in that area looking over some clear felled areas and fresh elk sign. An elk bugled down in the river bed ˝ hr before dark, so at first light we were back there but got no answer so headed off down into the river. It was steep but we made fairly good time, not bugling until we were on the downwind end of the river flat. Despite there being elk and moose marks everywhere we saw and heard no animals. Elk were obviously crossing the river but it was just a bit too deep for us to cross. The river flat bush on our side was full of rubbing so we settled down to give the odd bugle or cow call.
At about 1pm we started to head off up the 320m [GPS] climb when a bull answered from across the river and it was all on. We hurried out thru the bush only to realise that we would have to get him to cross the river 200m downstream
as the river bank opposite had a big drop into deep water. Downstream we went and climbed a bank about 50m from the river and tried to break branches for a shooting position and the bull was closing fast. The next 15 minutes is why I hunt. The bull reached the river edge opposite where we had been upstream and a bugle from Jim brought him down toward us just inside the bush edge. Thru my binoculars I could make out this cream and brown shape, head down low, weaving his way to an easy crossing point. “He’s not a shooter” I say in disappointment, but then I remember my flash new video camera in my daypack.
The bull stopped in a clear spot opposite as I got the camera on him, he then beat hell out of a tree for a while, then came down an incline and into the river, stopping midway for a drink, a look around and a couple of bugles. He slowly waded his way across, water half way up his side in one place and all the time my camera was rolling. On our side at 30m he stopped and started winding and I knew he must be able to smell where we had been upstream and upwind. He stood there for 4 minutes. A cow would have bolted but a cow call from Jim kept the blood running low in the bull instead of in his brain and up he came to 15m. Because of the bank he had to go downwind to find a way up and in the end I lost him from camera shot and not wanting to have him catch our wind I gave him a “ho ho, piss off” and away he went. He reached the other side but was reluctant to leave as Jim was giving him all types of calls and he was totally confused. Eventually he headed back in the bush and Jim and I shook hands and laughed at what we’d just experienced. Now that was a buzz. He was a 5x5 and just 3yr old I reckoned. There were prints on the sand bigger than his along with cows but despite dropping back down there 4 more times in the next week we saw or heard nothing but there were fresh marks of a very big bull with cows.
I got a 2yr old come up just as close on a cut line bugling for the camera but that was all for my 10 days.
If you asked me “did I have a good hunt?” I’d say yes, I had a bloody good hunt.
As you get older you discover that a good hunt doesn’t always require a kill .........................but I’m coming back next year to get me an elk.
http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk14.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11093) http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk25.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11094) http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk34.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11095&limit=recent)http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk43.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11096&cat=500)http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/thumbs/Elk52.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/showphoto.php?photo=11097&cat=500)