Sitka Gear Optifade Cover

A Summer of Moose and Mosquitoes

Ha! Ross sure does like that heart...

Thanks for the awesome pictures Travis, and thanks for the help.

The scenery in the unit was pretty stellar, your pictures did a great job of catching that.
 
This has been a great thread with a well deserved ending. Glad all your friends could be along for the experience and of course the pack out!
 
Well done, Randy and Co.! You know how to get the most out of a limited license. Really appreciate you sharing the journey.
 
Outstanding!
Congrats Randy and kudos to the great men that got to share/help in the experience.
Thanks for taking us along...
 
Just curious, I think everyone following along was completely confident you'd be getting a moose, were you just as sure?

I honestly wasn't sure how it would go. I knew that if I wanted to lower my standards on age of bull I'd be able to fill the tag, but I really wasn't sure what that standard was to begin. I knew that summer scouting was going to be an uphill battle, but I still expected to see SOMETHING considering how many days I spent over there.

Once season (and the rut) started, It became obvious that I had a pretty good tag, and my standards went back up. I definitely did want to kill one this week though, so even if this guy was half the size I probably would've tried to kill him.
 
Man it is hard to get back into work today!!

While I am not near the photographer Gerald and Travis are, this is amplified because I get so wrapped up in the experience I forget to even get my camera out. Regardless, I will throw a few in and share some of my thoughts on this hunt.

Moose are pretty awesome animals, the young ones look like gangly, awkward teenagers, and the mature bulls look like bulldozers. They exude an attitude of fearlessness, and proved at least a couple of times on this hunt that they can be pretty aggressive.

Before I even arrived last Sunday it was clear that Randy was getting pretty pumped up with how many moose he had been seeing, and when I got there we were in the action right away. That first night we had the encounter where we got "pursued". When Randy called that bull in and it was clear he was passing, I was stuck about 100yds off to the moose's right, and was sure that as soon as I moved in the blowdown and regrowth lodgepole, the bull was going to mistake me for the love struck cow. The rest involved a bunch of yelling, cursing, and stumbling in hopes that the bull didn't take out his frustration on us.

The next few days included a lot of walking and waiting for the temps to cool off for the moose to come out of the timber.

Randy glassing while we were on our way into the spot where he had hoped to test out his experimental catnip scented long underwear. long story short, they work great. They are to the lion hunter, what bacon pants are to the bear chaser.
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The second night sitting on the meadow where we found the other big bull, he showed again, but it would be the last time we saw him. Coldsmoke does a great job cutting the dust of the trail....
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Saturday morning. Reinforcements arrived the night before, and we were prepared to pack a moose out of just about any hell hole on the mountain.
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Glassing from the rocks over looking a socked in drainage that had five moose in it the morning before.
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Randy was the master of all that he surveyed, unfortunately this morning it was just one small cow.
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In the end it was one of the best hunts I have been on. I am a little disappointed that we didn't recreate one of Randy's spirit animal poses, but drinking Jeff's beer and watching Randy pack out a moose head and cape that might have weighed as much as he does, surely made up for it.
 
Congrats Randy, and the rest of the gang involved, job well done, it was fun following along. Wished I could have been there, I'll plan better for your next Lucky tag you pull (which is getting ridiculously every year)!
>>>-------> I will be looking forward to moose burgers on the fire at bear camp in the spring!
 
I love it when you draw good tags. You excel at engaging the Hunt Talk audience. Congrats on a great hunt that did great service to the tag you drew. And thanks for taking us on a great ride.

Thanks to your crew, also. The quality of your crew is testament to the manner in which you bring joy to the hunt.
 
I always enjoy following your hunts and seeing your success Randy. This one was no different. Congrats on a fine trophy and the memories that were created. Cheers!
 

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