HowaHunter
Active member
PM coming your way.
Drew bull moose Idaho! 69-2
- Thread starter LopeHunter
- Start date
LopeHunter
Well-known member
By waiting, I should have someone with me to help glass and, of course, once have a bull on the ground. Have the phone number of a local who may be able to help if need to use ATV if rains and rains.
I am trying to be back when is dry for a few days and most likely will span the last weekend this month or first weekend next month. Perhaps drive over Thursday 10/27 so begin hunting on Friday and hunt until fill the tag.
sra61
Member
You can do it yourself if you have to. I had my last one completely skinned and in game bags in about 5 hours by myself. I don't think you have griz to worry about down there. In 2014 I had to do all of it by myself, of course I had my two old geldings for the packing. That season I ended up with a big 6x7 elk, a big muley and the moose all by myself, except for help with the loading of the moose onto the horses. My brother had finally gotten back from his project. You can do it yourself. I quit worrying about having anyone else around to help me. It is a great learning experience, and doing it truly on your own comes with a great sense of pride!
LopeHunter
Well-known member
5 hours sounds fast. I like that! Appreciate the report. My Wyoming pronghorn hunt was solo and I was 50 minutes from tagging the buck until was packing towards my SUV. My brother is now able to join me for the bull moose hunt and we will head over Nov 3. May have 3rd and even 4th person on some days. No horses though a decent chance the packout is under half mile to nearest 2-track road. Knock on wood for dry roads. I will update once have the hunt completed.
sra61
Member
Good luck! Take lots of pics!
LopeHunter
Well-known member
Well, in 72 hours will have completed the 13 hour trek to return to the hunting unit and will start hunting again as the sun rises on Thursday. Will scout more than hunt until my oldest brother arrives that afternoon. I have 6 GPS coordinates where mature bull moose have been spotted in the past 6 weeks by some very helpful strangers. These are all near roads I drove on my short hunt weeks ago when the muddy conditions plus more rain in the forecast led me to decide to return later rather than deal with the greasy roads that can be dangerous.
Is fitting my oldest brother will be on this hunt as he was instrumental on my first Western hunt long ago which was for a pronghorn buck in Oregon. We each got our first pronghorns that hunt. We each drew our first moose tags this year and he filled his Colorado tag a few weeks ago so now I will hunt hard until fill mine.
Am drastically scaling back my hunting applications for 2017 so unless draw a sheep, goat or moose this may be the last Western hunt unless do an easy-to-draw hunt with both my brothers at some point. The mountains finally have gotten a bit too tall, the air a bit too thin and the body wears out after a couple of days of real hunting.
Look for some pictures in a week or so.
Is fitting my oldest brother will be on this hunt as he was instrumental on my first Western hunt long ago which was for a pronghorn buck in Oregon. We each got our first pronghorns that hunt. We each drew our first moose tags this year and he filled his Colorado tag a few weeks ago so now I will hunt hard until fill mine.
Am drastically scaling back my hunting applications for 2017 so unless draw a sheep, goat or moose this may be the last Western hunt unless do an easy-to-draw hunt with both my brothers at some point. The mountains finally have gotten a bit too tall, the air a bit too thin and the body wears out after a couple of days of real hunting.
Look for some pictures in a week or so.
Last edited:
Joe Hulburt
Well-known member
Best of luck!
LandDiver
New member
Good luck! Will be eagerly awaiting your stories.
LopeHunter
Well-known member
What an adventure! All blue skies and zero rain this trip back to Tex Creek.
The story ends great this time. I did not end up tangled in harpoon lines as a victorious moose receded through the aspens.
Rented a club cab truck and ended up being Dodge Ram 1500 with 4WD. Nice ride and plenty of room inside for things I wanted to keep dry plus room in the back for moose. Downside: No CD player. I am addicted to detective novels on CD to make the miles melt away where radio coverage is spotty. Bluetooth connected my iPhone and played songs I had so that was almost as entertaining.
The drive from Portland to Idaho Falls is full of amazing views. I have driven along the road between Portland and points east many times and I always smile as encounter the first sagebrush about 2 miles into the drive. The Columbia River view is not too shabby, either.
The journey over was only 11 hours since this drive there was no heavy rain, active construction nor a road diversion due to a bad multi-car accident.
Checked into the motel (no bivvy tent this time) then headed to Walmart to get 2 big coolers plus some ice and breakfast and lunch items. Topped off the fuel in the truck. Four different people I met online had sent me information about recent bull moose sightings in the unit and I had those in my GPS but took a few minutes as wound down that evening to also mark them on my paper map.
Forecast was 10% chance of rains but stars in the sky as closed the room drapes. I would get 4 hours sleep as wanted to be in place well before the sun rose. Got up, drove through McD's as 27F glowed on the dashboard of the truck. I got to the first glassing spot and waiting 40 minutes for the first light to build to where could glass. Saw nothing so started the truck (yes, this is a road hunt which is not as interesting to me though you play the hand dealt) and drove slowly for 6 miles. Saw a cow moose at 759am so marked that on my GPS. Turned around and drove back so shadows reversed and saw 3 bulls with 1 cow. I did not expect that as the rut was a month ago and thought the bulls would not be near cows.
Glassed the bulls. They were on a ridge at about 300 yards on the far side of some aspens so that impaired my limited moose antler judging skills. My estimate was the biggest bull had paddles not much wider than my palm but twice as tall. The aspens had dropped their leaves and this made spotting and glassing the moose so much easier than the prior trip. Marked my GPS.
Decided to head to my 2nd target zone. Took about 90 minutes. Roads had improved so much. Were dry except in low spots. My nightmares of the prior trip with slick, muddy roads still haunted me.
Got to the destination and within minutes spotted a bull just beyond the creek in the aspens. Bedded. Woo hoo! A small bull but I like hunts where see animals. Cruised about a mile further and spot 4 bulls with 2 cows. One bull looks bigger than the others today. Keep driving and end up on a high ridge where can see several hillsides back to the west. Spot a bull, a cow with a calf, another bull and a bedded bull. Is around 11am. Skies blue. Temps now in 40Fs with slight breeze. Dang nice weather to hunt and pack out a moose.
I was going to wait until my brother arrived to shoot anything but his plans changed the prior night so I was solo on this hunt. Glassed another 20 minutes but saw no other bulls. None of these bulls seemed as big as the one down along the road.
Drove back off the ridge and headed to the bull. I caught something out of the corner of my eye. A bull. Bedded. Solo. About 300 yards from the road. I think that is what the big boys do. Bed away from other moose. Palms looked better than the other bulls but was bedded several yards back in the aspens plus some sage and brush were a factor as glassed from the truck cab. Made the decision to try and get closer to the bull. Loaded my rifle. I shoot a .338 Win Mag for most hunts. Do not hand load and have had success with tight groups using factory load 250 grain bullets. Have a .308 Win that is lighter to pack but this was a road hunt so shaving grams off my pack was not a factor.
The bull is angled away and remains bedded as I work closer using the wind to my advantage. At 147 yards the bull is now watching me so I set up my shooting stick, rack a cartridge in the chamber, flick safety forward and slowly squeeze. Is 1225pm. Boom swoop. I rack in another round as I shoot until animal is down. Bull stands and walks further in the aspens a bit uphill then turns downhill and walks out of the aspens. Not wobbly. I touch off the second round and bull drops. First round double lunged hitting offside rib. The bull just did not know that shot had lethal placement. Second round took out neck.
Amazingly, I had cell phone reception. I sent a text to the 4 guys I had met online and 1 was able and willing to drive into Tex Creek to help with the pack out. Music to my ears as I figured would be 10pm or so to get the moose cut up and packed out even with me being able to move the truck where was within 200 yards of the moose.
I had a come along and rope so hooked up to a sturdy aspen and one of the rear legs so could start cutting the quarter free. Took close to 45 minutes. Yikes. The front quarter was off in 15 more minutes so the panic ebbed. Was working on the backstraps when John, the local good samaritan, drove up. Man, oh, man that was when it got easy.
As the sun set we had the meat in the back of the truck. Thank you John!
I did not sleep much that night. Even with John doing 75% of the pack out, my shoulder blades ached from the cutting of the moose and the pack out. I started Friday morning with a couple of Excedrin. Checked in the moose at F&G. 36 3/4 inch spread which is right at the 35 1/2" average from last year in this unit.
Headed just down the street to drop off the quarters at Glenwood for processing. I like to process and vacuum seal my game but several hundred pounds of meat would take my wife and I years to eat even if had moose 2 meals a week. I am having the quarters made into strip jerky and will give as Christmas gifts to some of my hunting buddies. The steaks I am doing myself. Other than the backstrap and tenderloin John got to take home. That is his picture of the moose steak. He sent me the text of that photo as I was sipping coffee and eating corn chips on the drive back to Portland. Dang it, my mouth waters just looking at that steak.
So, did not finish up my big game hunting with my brother but he was on my Nevada pronghorn hunt a couple of months ago. I got to meet John in person. Am grateful for his generous offer to help with the pack out and hope to go catch some cutthroat trout with John next year. I am also grateful for the others who helped me prepare for this hunt and were willing to help if my schedule matched up with theirs. A big thanks to Scott who helped point me to where should encounter moose. If the roads had not been so muddy then would have filled this tag the first trip. By coming back a 2nd time, I got to see more moose so everything worked out perfect.
Could I have held out and got a moose with 3x the antler mass? Yep. Odds are would not have been that close to the road and not mostly downhill to the truck. Hunting solo is a tough way to hunt moose. Is tougher when you are a bit older and the body reminds you of the years.
Reached Portland after sunset Friday night, unloaded the rental and headed to the airport to pickup my son and DIL that were in town for the week staying at our place.
I crunched some numbers today. Odds are if I keep on applying for sheep, goat and moose in the same several states I have the past several years then should draw something every 5 to 10 years based on my rather good luck over the years. Stay tuned as someone has to draw those tags. I will have a guide on those hunts, though. Not as rewarding be in the role mostly of just being the shooter rather than being the hunter though playing it safe in the outdoors is getting tougher to do as I age. I need a sidekick and a guide fills the bill.
Good luck on your hunts! Stay safe out there and post some pictures for those of use that love the outdoors and are just not out there as much anymore.
The story ends great this time. I did not end up tangled in harpoon lines as a victorious moose receded through the aspens.
Rented a club cab truck and ended up being Dodge Ram 1500 with 4WD. Nice ride and plenty of room inside for things I wanted to keep dry plus room in the back for moose. Downside: No CD player. I am addicted to detective novels on CD to make the miles melt away where radio coverage is spotty. Bluetooth connected my iPhone and played songs I had so that was almost as entertaining.
The drive from Portland to Idaho Falls is full of amazing views. I have driven along the road between Portland and points east many times and I always smile as encounter the first sagebrush about 2 miles into the drive. The Columbia River view is not too shabby, either.
The journey over was only 11 hours since this drive there was no heavy rain, active construction nor a road diversion due to a bad multi-car accident.
Checked into the motel (no bivvy tent this time) then headed to Walmart to get 2 big coolers plus some ice and breakfast and lunch items. Topped off the fuel in the truck. Four different people I met online had sent me information about recent bull moose sightings in the unit and I had those in my GPS but took a few minutes as wound down that evening to also mark them on my paper map.
Forecast was 10% chance of rains but stars in the sky as closed the room drapes. I would get 4 hours sleep as wanted to be in place well before the sun rose. Got up, drove through McD's as 27F glowed on the dashboard of the truck. I got to the first glassing spot and waiting 40 minutes for the first light to build to where could glass. Saw nothing so started the truck (yes, this is a road hunt which is not as interesting to me though you play the hand dealt) and drove slowly for 6 miles. Saw a cow moose at 759am so marked that on my GPS. Turned around and drove back so shadows reversed and saw 3 bulls with 1 cow. I did not expect that as the rut was a month ago and thought the bulls would not be near cows.
Glassed the bulls. They were on a ridge at about 300 yards on the far side of some aspens so that impaired my limited moose antler judging skills. My estimate was the biggest bull had paddles not much wider than my palm but twice as tall. The aspens had dropped their leaves and this made spotting and glassing the moose so much easier than the prior trip. Marked my GPS.
Decided to head to my 2nd target zone. Took about 90 minutes. Roads had improved so much. Were dry except in low spots. My nightmares of the prior trip with slick, muddy roads still haunted me.
Got to the destination and within minutes spotted a bull just beyond the creek in the aspens. Bedded. Woo hoo! A small bull but I like hunts where see animals. Cruised about a mile further and spot 4 bulls with 2 cows. One bull looks bigger than the others today. Keep driving and end up on a high ridge where can see several hillsides back to the west. Spot a bull, a cow with a calf, another bull and a bedded bull. Is around 11am. Skies blue. Temps now in 40Fs with slight breeze. Dang nice weather to hunt and pack out a moose.
I was going to wait until my brother arrived to shoot anything but his plans changed the prior night so I was solo on this hunt. Glassed another 20 minutes but saw no other bulls. None of these bulls seemed as big as the one down along the road.
Drove back off the ridge and headed to the bull. I caught something out of the corner of my eye. A bull. Bedded. Solo. About 300 yards from the road. I think that is what the big boys do. Bed away from other moose. Palms looked better than the other bulls but was bedded several yards back in the aspens plus some sage and brush were a factor as glassed from the truck cab. Made the decision to try and get closer to the bull. Loaded my rifle. I shoot a .338 Win Mag for most hunts. Do not hand load and have had success with tight groups using factory load 250 grain bullets. Have a .308 Win that is lighter to pack but this was a road hunt so shaving grams off my pack was not a factor.
The bull is angled away and remains bedded as I work closer using the wind to my advantage. At 147 yards the bull is now watching me so I set up my shooting stick, rack a cartridge in the chamber, flick safety forward and slowly squeeze. Is 1225pm. Boom swoop. I rack in another round as I shoot until animal is down. Bull stands and walks further in the aspens a bit uphill then turns downhill and walks out of the aspens. Not wobbly. I touch off the second round and bull drops. First round double lunged hitting offside rib. The bull just did not know that shot had lethal placement. Second round took out neck.
Amazingly, I had cell phone reception. I sent a text to the 4 guys I had met online and 1 was able and willing to drive into Tex Creek to help with the pack out. Music to my ears as I figured would be 10pm or so to get the moose cut up and packed out even with me being able to move the truck where was within 200 yards of the moose.
I had a come along and rope so hooked up to a sturdy aspen and one of the rear legs so could start cutting the quarter free. Took close to 45 minutes. Yikes. The front quarter was off in 15 more minutes so the panic ebbed. Was working on the backstraps when John, the local good samaritan, drove up. Man, oh, man that was when it got easy.
As the sun set we had the meat in the back of the truck. Thank you John!
I did not sleep much that night. Even with John doing 75% of the pack out, my shoulder blades ached from the cutting of the moose and the pack out. I started Friday morning with a couple of Excedrin. Checked in the moose at F&G. 36 3/4 inch spread which is right at the 35 1/2" average from last year in this unit.
Headed just down the street to drop off the quarters at Glenwood for processing. I like to process and vacuum seal my game but several hundred pounds of meat would take my wife and I years to eat even if had moose 2 meals a week. I am having the quarters made into strip jerky and will give as Christmas gifts to some of my hunting buddies. The steaks I am doing myself. Other than the backstrap and tenderloin John got to take home. That is his picture of the moose steak. He sent me the text of that photo as I was sipping coffee and eating corn chips on the drive back to Portland. Dang it, my mouth waters just looking at that steak.
So, did not finish up my big game hunting with my brother but he was on my Nevada pronghorn hunt a couple of months ago. I got to meet John in person. Am grateful for his generous offer to help with the pack out and hope to go catch some cutthroat trout with John next year. I am also grateful for the others who helped me prepare for this hunt and were willing to help if my schedule matched up with theirs. A big thanks to Scott who helped point me to where should encounter moose. If the roads had not been so muddy then would have filled this tag the first trip. By coming back a 2nd time, I got to see more moose so everything worked out perfect.
Could I have held out and got a moose with 3x the antler mass? Yep. Odds are would not have been that close to the road and not mostly downhill to the truck. Hunting solo is a tough way to hunt moose. Is tougher when you are a bit older and the body reminds you of the years.
Reached Portland after sunset Friday night, unloaded the rental and headed to the airport to pickup my son and DIL that were in town for the week staying at our place.
I crunched some numbers today. Odds are if I keep on applying for sheep, goat and moose in the same several states I have the past several years then should draw something every 5 to 10 years based on my rather good luck over the years. Stay tuned as someone has to draw those tags. I will have a guide on those hunts, though. Not as rewarding be in the role mostly of just being the shooter rather than being the hunter though playing it safe in the outdoors is getting tougher to do as I age. I need a sidekick and a guide fills the bill.
Good luck on your hunts! Stay safe out there and post some pictures for those of use that love the outdoors and are just not out there as much anymore.
Last edited:
elkantlers
Well-known member
Congrats on the Moose and thanks for the write up. Good on John for helping out. Thats awesome.
sra61
Member
Good Job! Nice Bull!
Gerald Martin
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 3, 2009
- Messages
- 9,639
^^^^^^^ Couldn't say it better than this. Well done!
Joe Hulburt
Well-known member
Victory! Congrats LopeHunter!!
fishing4sanity
Well-known member
What a beautiful animal, congratulations! The world needs more guys like John, glad you met up with him and hope to see pics of you two with some cutthroat trout. Good luck on those upcoming hunts.
publichunter1
Well-known member
Congrats on the moose! Maybe one day it can be added to my bucketlist. Haha
