Thanks guys! It took me quite a few years to peg 'er down like I do now. Once I called in my very first moose at 21 I tagged out every year and even managed to help a few friends and family tag out in the same area. The very first moose is now my fathers 3rd moose in a row after being skunked for over 30 years after moving to McMurray!
The last pic is a classic, first 3 hrs of our first hunt in the area September 23 in 2007 and we cruised down a fresh new cutline put in for Suncor surveying scouting the new areas. On our way back we saw one bull with just his hind end sticking out in the cutline. After watching for a bit he straightened out and we could tell he was sparring with a younger bull. Keep in mind we just passed by this area 5 mins ago! Warmed up the barrels with two shots in that moose and he ran off to a tree maybe 25yds in the bush, grunted and had the other bull step out into the cutline to warm up the other barrel, drop him right there filling the second tag just as quick! Lots of work, but was something else to fill two tags your first morning scouting!
Don't want to brag, but there are even a few more I chose to leave out as I figured I had enough in there to get people motivated to post. Never get tired of swamp donkeys that's for sure!
Thanks again Dale for the kind comments, you deserved all the help I gave you and it don't take long to see that either! Great guys you two are as well! I know how tough it can be, but remember guys, don't be foolish and move from an area when you see plenty of sign! Put in the time and you will have to stumble into the moose sooner or later wether they respond to your calls or not! Moose are quite the unique characters and don't believe the myths you hear all the time about them.
Things to note:
-Never shut your machines off if you run into them driving around, leave them run and pursue them ASAP-they get nervouse when you shut them off for some reason and the sounds cover your noise when you work through the bush to them...
-You can kill another bull right next to your gutpile from the day before, did this on many occasion, it don't scare them off at all whatsoever, if anything they get curious to the smell of the downed moose? Go figure? - Proven almost yearly on the same cutline!
-Talking in the bush can bring them out to you, calling can scare them??? My fathers bull came out while 3 of us were chatting at an intersection to check out what was going on at 12pm while having lunch. I could hear moose moving around in the same area a few days before and called and everything quietened up right away without a peep. Pressured moose hush up real quick when you try to play their game, let them come check you out if the calling ain't working... Break twigs and other small noises instead...
-If you know an area historically was good, don't leave cause of lack of sign... Some areas seem to kick in rut at different times as the moose move about. I've seen days with not a fresh track or old one to be found to be trampled the very next day or week later with fresh tracks in your tire tracks morning and evening!
---- Best of all, don't give up and loose hope, more time you spend in the bush, the better... You don't fill them tags complaining at home on the couch! Get out there and enjoy the weather, stay out there all day.
Most moose we've shot in this area is right around 11am-noon! Drive around scouting, shoot grouse, build bridges and clean up trails to keep busy...
Good luck guys, and hope my advice gets at least one other guy to tag out this season!
Moose Pics Galore!
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