Manosteel
WKR
Got this brute mid-morning while trekking 2 miles back to camp! I was drop calling all the way in valleys and low swamps.
After my buddy and I trekked in the morning darkness about 2+ miles from our camp we set up for a calling session about 40 mins before sunrise. It was a crisp cool morning which was a surprise since we had been getting unseasonable high temperatures for late September. About 10 minutes later I started moose calling. No immediate response but this was a good area and I knew there were bulls lurking around. After about 3 hours at it, and only getting coyotes to respond we gave up and decided to head back to camp for a lunch time snooze. Where we were hunting, there are a lot big hills, valleys with swamps (most dried up) and slews, great moose country.
So all the way back to camp, I would stop every 15 mins, or when I found a good low lying area with surrounding thick brush, to throw out some calls. I call this my “drop call” technique which my dad and gramps taught me growing up – mid-morning/mid-afternoon while you trek around you drop calls in low lying swamps and in valleys in hopes of bumping a bull out of bed. The idea being he will show himself while investigating your calls. Effective technique when the bulls are not being too vocal. If you try this just set up so you are down wind of likely bedding areas. Be ready because in my experience a moose will pop out when you least expect it and from the most unexpected places.
Half way back to camp I threw out a few calls on a trial between two lakes. I knew two twin moose about 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 years old lived in this area so we held tight for 20 mins. When we were ready to start trekking again this guy snuck out behind me about 55 yards. First he just stuck his head out on the trial to see what we were, wind was in our face, so we were good, we just froze. He took two more steps out onto the trial and I slowly ranged him at 55 yards bang on, he then took two more step all the way out onto the trail and was slightly quartering away when I drew and let the arrow loose in one fluid motion. Perfect pass thru, he went 30 feet after the shot and lay down. We could see him from the trial we were on, so we just gave him time to bleed out. Easiest tracking job of my life.
When we got him it was at 10;30 am and the sun was beating down hard, it was already +21 C (70 F) already so it was a race to get him field dressed and deboned. Flies were having a field day and it wasn’t fun. Of course we ran out of water but we couldn’t spare the time we were done and started packing just before noon, and it was +25C. We were thirsty and sweating buckets. We still had over a mile with easily 100+ lbs of meat in each back to get back to camp. It took us 2 trips like that. I was using the solid frame with bag that nearly did my back in, I’m sure I still have the red marks it made where a tramp stamp would usually go! Never again! I can’t wait for my Bikini Frame. My buddy used a Badlands 4500 and faired a lot better than me.
After my buddy and I trekked in the morning darkness about 2+ miles from our camp we set up for a calling session about 40 mins before sunrise. It was a crisp cool morning which was a surprise since we had been getting unseasonable high temperatures for late September. About 10 minutes later I started moose calling. No immediate response but this was a good area and I knew there were bulls lurking around. After about 3 hours at it, and only getting coyotes to respond we gave up and decided to head back to camp for a lunch time snooze. Where we were hunting, there are a lot big hills, valleys with swamps (most dried up) and slews, great moose country.
So all the way back to camp, I would stop every 15 mins, or when I found a good low lying area with surrounding thick brush, to throw out some calls. I call this my “drop call” technique which my dad and gramps taught me growing up – mid-morning/mid-afternoon while you trek around you drop calls in low lying swamps and in valleys in hopes of bumping a bull out of bed. The idea being he will show himself while investigating your calls. Effective technique when the bulls are not being too vocal. If you try this just set up so you are down wind of likely bedding areas. Be ready because in my experience a moose will pop out when you least expect it and from the most unexpected places.
Half way back to camp I threw out a few calls on a trial between two lakes. I knew two twin moose about 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 years old lived in this area so we held tight for 20 mins. When we were ready to start trekking again this guy snuck out behind me about 55 yards. First he just stuck his head out on the trial to see what we were, wind was in our face, so we were good, we just froze. He took two more steps out onto the trial and I slowly ranged him at 55 yards bang on, he then took two more step all the way out onto the trail and was slightly quartering away when I drew and let the arrow loose in one fluid motion. Perfect pass thru, he went 30 feet after the shot and lay down. We could see him from the trial we were on, so we just gave him time to bleed out. Easiest tracking job of my life.
When we got him it was at 10;30 am and the sun was beating down hard, it was already +21 C (70 F) already so it was a race to get him field dressed and deboned. Flies were having a field day and it wasn’t fun. Of course we ran out of water but we couldn’t spare the time we were done and started packing just before noon, and it was +25C. We were thirsty and sweating buckets. We still had over a mile with easily 100+ lbs of meat in each back to get back to camp. It took us 2 trips like that. I was using the solid frame with bag that nearly did my back in, I’m sure I still have the red marks it made where a tramp stamp would usually go! Never again! I can’t wait for my Bikini Frame. My buddy used a Badlands 4500 and faired a lot better than me.
