Saturdays moose hunt

[Lefty]

“Im a bit frustraded!” Im going hunting and will talk to you m
Monday, after I have time to think about it”
September 2nd I ordered enclosed trailer. Delivery was in to be in two, maybe three weeks. I called on the second week and the trailer order hadn’t been confirmed. The nest week it still hadn’t been ordered. Well it wasn’t the manager or salesman’s fault, do I dare say that the owners wife just shouldn’t stick her nose in business. With one more week of elk season my wife had plans of going on the last elk hunt and the moose hunts and sleeping in something other than a tent. The company put a rush on the trailer.
“It should be here the last week in September”. Well another delay: Stuff happens . I'm still OK
October 8th; “It will be here Wednesday” I un-pack all the tent stuff and park my ATV trailer behind the shed
Tuesday I get a call. It will be here on Thursday. Thursday morning I call. “ Its on the Truck and will be here tonight or Friday. While I'm not thrilled, But everything is in the garage ready to slide in the new trailer. Friday morning I call, ”It should be ready when you get here”
Friday 3 PM. I call ,.. The trailers is in Boise.
At home I pull the little trail from behind the barn, My wife makes sandwiches as I load the trailer.
We pull up the first Forest Service road and see a small bull moose. On to the next road. Some deer hunters tell us of a moose on top. The next group of hunters tell us it’s a ½ mile down. Then a couple fellows with a buck on a ATV turn and point,.. right there! 100 yards away. The bull had a unique look with front spoons and 4, 8 inch brow points coming out each spoon.
35” Wide. Ill shoot it with a bow,.. but after a truck stopped and looked at the bull, there was just something wrong about shooting a moose in the” road ditch”. Well it wasn’t a ditch, but I wasn’t going to shoot my only once-in-Life-time moose like that.
We stopped to visit with the guys on the ATV,.. The hunter with the deer said to his buddy ” I told you he wouldn’t do it “
Saturday morning glassing on the ridge at first light, I could just make out a moose nearly a mile away. He looked big and I knew the route for a stalk.
½ mile up the road it’s a bit lighter,.. “Look at the horn” as I pointed to the east and uncased my rifle,.. I'm not too proud to shoot a book moose with a rifle. Then I jokingly added “ unless that’s two moose”
Another ½ mile,.. its two moose.
I grab my bow and hustle up the hill, I see antlers, crawl 15 yards I check the shooting lane, clear! Range” the little bull 43 yards,, I move up another 5 yards, Stand to shoot the 40 inch bigger bull. Placing the 40 yard pin. Everything is right, pull the trigger, And I hear branches. A sage brush grabbed that arrow, I knocked an another arrow. Draw, more sage in the way, I cant let down and release the arrow into the ground. I turn towards my wife and shrug,.. Her arms waving , I turn as a third bull we hadn’t seen walks past at 35 yards. A 38 inch finger freak with 8 points on each side, each point 10-15 inches long, He turned his butt my direction to feed on some laural. Then moose-walked to his pals.
The bulls could not see me where Im walking

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Of course my wife's camera battery was dead, so all pics are with a phone
Full draw

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[Lefty]

Attempt # 2
Im in those trees somewhere

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I hustled ahead 800 yards to cut the three moose off. After a short stalk the little bull headed his own direction. Dead fall everywhere. Every branch pops. The two 40 and 38 freak bulls think Im their little buddy. 80 yards 70 yards 60, 50, 48. I need a plan. Not much cover, the low brush is thick with down fall.
The moose made their own choice. They see another bull 400 yards away and quickly trot off his direction.
I hike back to my wife, we then walk to the pick up. I see she has my sweat shirt,.. no way to find those arrows now. We get in the truck and head up the mountain side..
There they are on the nearest ridge, I drive further, sneak out of the truck. I suggest to my wife to walk to the quakies then walk to the ridge to watch. “wait at least ½ hour”
I catch up to the three bulls quickly, twenty minutes later I 40 yards from the new bull, a little 34 incher. Then he beds down. His bigger buddies are nibbling away just beyond him. The next 20 minutes I inch closer. Moving or holding brush to the side. Slow, Very slow, Balancing on one foot then the other. Then a crawl. The freaky finger bull is moving closer. He will pass between me and a tree at 25 yards. 20 yard pin,..
There is a tree between the bigger bulls and me. 43 yards. Every once in a while I feel a slight down drift across my neck. Sometimes the 40” will suck in more air through his nose, trying to get more scent. They are still at ease with me directly up -wind. A few times I puff smoke, yep the wind is going right to them.
The plan, if the 40 bull follows the freak I will wait for him. If they bed I will sneak on 40 . This is pretty cool. What a rush!!
Im glad my wife is staying put. The freak starts to lay down,. then gets up, he’s at 35 yards . Bouncing the range finger of the little guys right antler, 22 yards! And I have all day, This is so sweet,
220 yards, down hill to a trail. We can have him in the cooler by 5:00PM
I have all day, this is so neat,.. repeats over and over in my mind
If the finger freck comes my way under at 20 Ill shoot him.
Then the two standing bulls face south. The little bull stands and stares south,. 25 yards , sometimes 26 yards, other times 27 what a perfect shot,.. But not that small bull today.

When My wife took this pic she didnt see the other bulls to the left behind a tree, Im near the closest tree to the right

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What’s got their interest? A coyote? The freak starts walking , Well hes closer but on the other side of a tree. I range the 40,.. well his rear quarter is at 48 yards, way too far for me today.
Little guys starts walking off too.
Hes behind a tree I start to move in . And there is my wife just 80 yards out in the sage. She is a whole lot disappointed. I sort of chuckle inside.
My plan is in the wind. My wifes plan was to put a bull in the freezer,…
My new plan I get to do this all again next week!!!

[powderhogg01]

man that sounds amazing!!! and awesome pic, even if its with a cell phone. I have had a life long dream of taking a bull with my bow, ever since one lept over me in my backyard in utah...

[Lefty]

man that sounds amazing!!! and awesome pic, even if its with a cell phone. I have had a life long dream of taking a bull with my bow, ever since one lept over me in my backyard in utah...

I learned a lot of respect for moose in Utah, Two years in a row moose put me up trees above Mantua.
During the Utah deer hunt a small bull got a bit rutty with me . I stayed in a clump of maples until another bull called him off. I was ready to kill that one.
We had moose wander thru ,at that time little town of Perry.
One Christmas morning we had a small bull in our yard.
A neighbor had one end up going through their pool cover.
I left Utah with 7 points in the Ogden unit

[CurlyTail]

That sounds like a dream hunt for me. Thanks for sharing and don't stop until you get the job done!!! Of course we will want more pictures.

[WapitiTalk1]

Go get em Dennis! Wanna trade a pack of moose steaks for a pack of elk steaks? I haven't had any bullwinkle steaks in a loooong time

[ishy]

Great action so far, can't wait to hear the rest. I have some redemption needed with that species after taking a small bull with a rifle at the end of my Idaho tag. Might take a few decades of saving some $, and I thought nr elk was expensive.

[Lefty]

I saw 14 cows and calves and two bulls.
I was a bit disjointed my wife and her dad saw a huge bull,.." It was too far from the road" "And up high" she still thinks Im meat hunting
20 gallons of apples and this was all that was left from last Sunday
Lots of driving,.. one "stalk on a non existent bull

Bear pile

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Last Saturdays s pic of the finger bull

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[wawhitey]

Saw 3 bulls today so far, small, med and large. Unfortunately no tag. Ill try to chase em your way....

[Lefty]

I got a stalk in on a 42 " bull Saturday night. Light was fading, I hurried. I got busted by a little bull I didnt know was there. Got too close to a cow.
I looked up and the 42 was staring right ate me at 60 yards He trotted over to a cow.
The stalk looked savageable. With great sneaking trees. Im concentrating about being quiet and the wind,... The bull moved again and could see me plain as could be
Ranged him 40 yards out. He didnt like my looks, He left.

This Saturday Ill give him one last try before I turn rifle on him

I also gained an awareness Saturday during that hunt when I was in the middle of 5 moose, bull moose are big, big animals

[wawhitey]

I think i can help lefty, ill head that way and hunt whitetail. You just follow me around. I seem to run into nothing but moose when im hunting deer, so just stick close to me and youll get your bull.

[Lefty]

Not many white-tails in the area. But during the elk hunt down in the willows we saw a huge 3x3 , eight pointer eastern count that was pushing 140. Next year I will know who owns that ground.
Saturday and next Friday Sat and Monday are my last days . Im starting to get way nervous because were not seeing what we typically see. I believe Im the only guy left in the unit to take my moose

[wawhitey]

Not many white-tails in the area. But during the elk hunt down in the willows we saw a huge 3x3 , eight pointer eastern count that was pushing 140. Next year I will know who owns that ground. e

Lefty. Seriously get a gps that takes the hunt on x chips. Youll always know who owns everything. Out of all the stupid crap i buy, the one indispensable piece of hunting gear i own is that damn land ownership sd card!!! Everybody should have those!!

[adamds22]

I saw more moose this elk season in CO than I did elk or deer. I somehow found myself in the middle of a cow/her calf and a big bull from about 20 yards on each side. Sure did get the heart racing, especially since all I had was a bow.