Moose hunting with traditional gear is not for the faint of heart.
I fell in love with moose hunting a while back. In 2007 , I killed a nice three year old bull from 6 paces. It was my second trip for the biggest deer of North America.
I just returned again from another Moose adventure last weekend. I did not kill a moose this trip but if I rolled 30 years of hunting experiences in to just one, it would not come close to the excitement,thrills and scares last week held.
The hunt took place in northern Alberta just south of Lesser Slave Lake. Here is camp showing the guides tent/ kitchen.
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On day 1 my guide Dave called in a P & Y moose but the moose must have had his ass kicked recently because he kept looking over his shoulder for another bull. He departed coming no closer than 75 yards.
Dave, the pied piper of Alberta.
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Later that day we got into three different bulls all with cows. Down in an Alder thicket in chest high grass on the side of a beaver pond I thought for sure my life was over. On the drive up to camp I learned that there are indeed Grizzlies in this area of Alberta. Not many but enough that they are seen occasionally.
We had snuck up on a big bull and cow with calf and Dave had left me in a spot to try and see if he could get the bull to come my way. It was deathly quiet. Suddenly there was a very loud and menacing growl-bark and then a second. A bolt of adrenaline shot thru my body like never before. I had no idea what it was but was sure from the sound of it I was dead meat. I knocked an arrow.
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Dave came around the corner just then looking unconcerned. I nervously asked WTF that
sound was. He said the cow was about 40 yards away and she wasclearing her nose and throat of the black flies! Whew!
Later that day we were trailing a cow and bull moose. They were inthe thick stuff but we were following the sounds of the cow balling and the soft grunts of the bull. We were trying to get a visual of the bull. Unbeknown to us they had stopped in the bush along side the cut were walking on and we had closed the distance to a few yards. Suddenly a loud crack alerted us to how close we were to them. There was a bright spot in the cut ahead of us, Dave was going to try and
call the bull in to it. I set up 10 yards off of it and Dave ran in to it and gave a call.Instantly the bull gave a loud grunt and branches were being smashed. Dave ran out of the opening into the
thick woods so the bull wouldn't see him. We both thought the bull was running to us. He actually was. But instead of coming into the open, he ran at us to get between us and the cow he was following and then he herded her quickly away.
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The next day and the day after we went back to the same area where we had so much action. We got a few grunts in reply to our calls , but it appeared each bull was still with their cows. We did find several huge rubs.
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On Day four we took the four wheelers and the meat or meat head wagon depending upon who was riding in it to an area deeper in the wilderness. Four wheelers are used to retrieve game and get deeper in the woods. We did not hunt from them . They were always parked a mile minimum from where we would begin each days hunt.
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We didn't get into any bulls that day but did manage to shoot a few grouse and cook them for lunch.
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On Day 5 we drove back to the newer area since it looked so promising. It was only 5 Km as the crow flies from camp. But the only bridge that crossed the main river had washed out forcing us to make a
25 KM one way trip to get there. Dave kept talking about the big old bulls that lived back there. He wasn't kidding.
big moose live here
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That night Dave called in a B & C bull to a mere 24 FEET and I couldn't get a shot.
We had set up 100 yards down wind of a big beaver pond. At 7:05 pm were heard a distant grunt reply to Dave's balling cow calls. 35 minutes later after listening to him grunting the entire way. I heard him splash thru the beaver pond. Seconds later he finally crested the poplar ridge above me.
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As he ran down the ridge I couldn't believe how big he was. Holy **** I kept saying. I had set up on the bulls side of the cut in the forest. A
main game trail came down the ridge and split into a Y 30 yards before the cut and both legs of the Y dumped out onto the cut n the forest.
I was crouching just 6 yards down wind of the lower leg. The bull turned on to the upper leg of the Y and stopped as soon as he hit the cut. He was facing me at 22 yards. Dave had moved down wind about 75 yards , was calling and breaking sticks trying to sound like the cow was walking away. The bull took two steps forward, lowered his head swished his antlers left to right and then right to left thru the chest high grass and stopped. Dave called again. The bull took two more steps and repeated the head swinging. He was 16 yards away quartering at me and softly grunting.
Dave broke a stick or two. The bull slowly started to move forward. He was angling to his right directly at me. I was hiding behind my recurve and a single poplar not moving a muscle preparing for what I thought was going to be a point blank broadside shot.
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He was HUGE. At 10 yards the bull did the one and only thing that would prevent me from killing
him. He turned onto the bottom leg of the Y and stepped up onto the bank. He was facing me head on a 8 yards! He towered above me. He was a monster
standing so close he could have killed me by taking just 2 steps forward. He stood there just listening. His eye on the right side of his head seemed to be looking into mine. I could see red blood vessels in the white surrounding the dark brown pupil. I dared not move , I made my self not blink for fear he bolt forward and run over me.
He swung his antlers to the right. I knew he was turning the rest of the way onto the trail . I drew my bow but only got 1/2 drawn before the opportunity was gone. By the time I was full drawn he had turned so much all I had to shoot at was his butt. I watched him trot back up the ridge grunting the entire way.
We returned the next day and the day after but it wasn't meant to be.
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jim
Awesome!
Your story is breath taking.
Thanks for sharing.
God bless,Mudd
thats awsome, id love to do that someday, what was your setup?
great hunt jim
WOW,how much can a guy take.Very exciting hunt for sure.
sounds like one hell of an adventure! would have been fun to say the least.
Awesome story! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing that adventure and great pics
Thanks for sharing the story with us. I've also hunted with Dave and the crew and it's a first-class operation all the way. I'm sure you'd also recommend them to others. Welcome back...glad you had a safe trip.
:thumbsup: :thumbsup: Great hunt!!
Great story. Even reading it was not for the faint of heart.
Excellent!
Wow!!! Great story and told so well, I felt like I was there with you. Thanks for sharing, TRW.
What a fantastic trip Jim! Always nice to come home with meat, but more important to bring back memories like you did. Great stuff!
Thanks for posting.
QuoteOriginally posted by LITTLEBIGMAN:
I did not kill a moose this trip but if I rolled 30 years of hunting experiences in to just one, it would not come close to the excitement,thrills and scares last week held.
Wow, you aint kidding!!! What an adventure!
Thanks for sharing that with us.
Great story Jim I was getting excited for you and I was not even there.
Great story.
Thanks for taking us along, and glad you had such a great adventure. A Moose hunt has been a dream of mine for 15 years. One of these days I'll kick it up to the top of the priority list and make it happen.
Thanks for sharing! Awesome.
Getting that close to a bull would be amazing!
Thanks for posting the story.
Nice looking bow, do you mind me asking what it is and what are the specs?
Great story..I felt like I was right there....Sounds like an awesome hunt even if you didn't get a shot!Your memory of that moment will always keep you wanting to go back and try again...Thanks for a great story...
Ah my drem hunt ! Great story I was right there with you not blinking :)
Great story, makes me want to go chase some moose!
Thanks for sharing,
Huck.
:thumbsup:
Great story and photos, what an adventure....
Thanks for sharing a great story of your trip. I guess next time you'll take along some extra TP and a coupla pair of undees, eh?
Thanks for sharing a great story of your trip. I guess next time you'll take along some extra TP and a coupla pair of undees, eh?
WOW!! Thanks for the story and pics. Congrats on a great adventure.
Great recount of the trip. What an exciting time. Thanks for sharing the fun!!
WOW! I like how interspersed your story with pics. Made me feel like I was there! A moose hunt is a dream of mine too.
WOW! Sounds like an awesome adventure! Thanks for sharing....Ryan
wow, what an experience! :campfire: :archer:
Awesome story! Thanks for sharing the exciting read.
Yes...I love these non-whitetail adventures. Grass is always greener you know. What an experience having that big rascal that close. Steam coming out of his nose blowing in two directions and slobber dripping from his bottom lip. I can feel it.
Great hunt Jim. Thanks!
Thanks for the great read! It takes a lot to do these, it is very much appreciated! Well done :thumbsup:
Great hunt! Thanks for taking us along.
Nice story. I live in Edmonton, Alberta. Northern Alberta is beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
Richard
What a story :clapper:
Thanks for sharing.
Margly
oh I forgot to mention we named that bull LB short for Lucky Bastard!
Just wondering; What guide service/outfitter did you use? I am planning to hunt moose next fall. This one sounds great...
Thanks for sharing!! I'm headed for my first moose hunt in about a week and a half. Joe
Wow - That sounds like a great adventure. Hunting with David sure is fun and you were in a great location. I was lucky enough to be in the first group of hunters to help break in that site with David, Dean and Fred last year. We did get into some moose and I also tried to hide behind my recurve but came away without a shot. I spent thirty minutes within range of a beautiful bull, as close as 14 yards. But a B&C bull at six steps?! Sounds like you were a bit lucky yourself. Glad to hear you had such a good hunt. Thanks for the pics and memories. Maybe we can meet up there one day for another go at it....
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Sound like an adventure.
Cool hunt, thanks for sharing! Moose is definitely on my bucket list only question is when and where.
Heading for Lesser Slave Lake This Sat. for my 1st moose hunt. Needless to say your story has got me excited, thanks for sharing. Charles
Great story and pics! My dream hunt is a moose after seeing them during my bear hunt in Maine.
now thats hunting. Great story and pictures.
What an adventure to read over lunch.
Thanks for the great pics and story.
Thanks for the pics and story. Leaving for moose next week, hoping i get as many encounters as you.
Great adventure. Getting me fired up for a week plus from now.
I've had 3 moose experiences, all gun related however, but if I could hunt only one thing that would be it. Sooo big, comes to the call, the meat is great and lots of it. Thanks for sharing.
WOW! That would be some adventure for sure. I'd put a moose hunt on the top of my dream hunts. But way out of my price range unfortunately. Great pictures Jim.
Thank You for sharing
Glenn
It sounds like you had a blast. You are right about not for the faint of heart.Love it! Love it!!
JeanPaul Good luck. Let me know how you go.
Abe
Thanks for the story. I leave a week from tommorrow on my second moose hunt. The outfitter said the bulls are taering up the place which is a little early.
Glen, A moose hunt can be within your reach you may be surprised.
Great story and excellent pictures! Thanks for sharing your hunt with us!
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
Hi Abe, i'm off to the turtle mountains. I've never been there, so it's exciting to try a new area. i"ll let you know. jp
Area reminds me alot of some great moose areas I've hunted in Alaska. Thanks for the interesting report.
Phenomenal hunt.
Nice! :thumbsup:
Much obliged for the replay. My heart was pounding like I was there with P&Y Moose inside 10 yards. Thanks
How did I miss this post Jim great story and a fantastic hunt... What a beautiful place and what a rush :)
:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
What a great hunt. Appreciate your giving us a glimpse of all the excitement!
i think I relive it every day. still wishing I'd gotten that shot ! i heard from the outfitter they killed 2 moose the week after mine and one was a 160 inch bruiser. Mine was still quite larger from viewing the picture they sent
I'm assuming you hunted with David Bzawy and crew. I've hunted with him twice and consider him the best outfitter I've ever hunted with. Quality all the way. I to had a very close encounter, 6 yards, and came away with nothing. It can happen.
you are correct and i fully agree 100%
Great story, sounds like an awesome hunt. I'll have to agree, many of my most memorable and exciting hunts never found an arrow bloodied, nor loosed. THe excitement of close enounters with big wild creatures is the best part of hunting up close.
I remember, when I was a kid, Russell Annabel had a way of describing his hunts in Outdoor Life a way that made you believe you were right there with him. Your adventure took me far back to my youth. Thanks for sharing this with us is such a clear, exciting way...certainly makes me wish I could do that some day.
Seems as if these well documented hunts on TG surpass many of those published in magazines.
You have taken me on another memorable adventure.
Thanks for including me!!!!!