Yellowstone herd numbers out

[The Hedgehog]

mdunc8, I can check the draw odds - I suspect they were pretty tough to draw, tougher than today. Back then, people actually wanted to hunt moose there. Today, my guess is only somebody who doesn't know better, or a glutton for punishment would want to burn a decade of MT moose points on a permit in the Taylor's Fork.

 

[Drake4]

..or the Spanish Peaks.

 

[shoots-straight]

or the West Fork of the Bitterroot,

 

[shoots-straight]

...or the East Fork of the Bitterrooot

 

[shoots-straight]

Or the North Big Hole.

 

[shoots-straight]

Or the South Big Hole.

 

[shoots-straight]

Or the Pioneers.

 

[shoots-straight]

Bitterroot range.

 

[BuzzH]

I'd take another tag in the big hole.

 

[Big O]

I guess ignorance is bliss. I never got to hunt the wolf free Montana so I don't know what is used to be like. I can't imagine having a much better time than I've had the last two years, but I'm sure I would feel differently if I had been here for the last twenty years.

Ditto-

I applaude all you guys for giving a rip AND doing something about it, way to go. I always thought the MT agency had it's chit together compared to Wash., but maybe not so much. Fighting the same but differant battles ourselves. Keep on em!

 

[Ben Lamb]

I'd take another tag in the big hole.

That's what she said...

 

[shoots-straight]

Those districts I related as going down hill, aren't just the result of wolves. Lions, and the native brothers have also had an impact.

I'd take another tag in the big hole.

Buzz, when did you have a Big Hole tag? Pictures are a must. There's a lot less moose than say 15 years ago.

 

[BuzzH]

I had a tag in 1994-95...saw lots of moose, but I drew a tag I didnt want to get. I had the late tag and some of the moose were already dropping their antlers, plus getting around down there in the snow was a real pain in the ass. I shot this one, just happey to find one with both antlers:

I think Dad drew a cow permit in 1998 and we found this one in about 2 hours of hunting:

In 1999 my Dads buddy drew a cow permit in the same area and shot this one the first day we hunted, I think it was about the 5th or 6th we saw that day.

My brother Matt drew a permit the same year my Dad drew his Sheep permit, 2006 I believe. He drew the same unit I hunted in 1995 and I think they hunted maybe 2-3 weekends. I know they saw moose every day and Matt shot this one:

Then in 2007 Dad drew another cow permit in the same area Matt and I shot our bulls in, and shot one I believe the 3rd day they hunted. I know they saw some bulls prior to Dad shooting his cow. I dont have pictures of that one, but it was a 1.5 year old cow.

I dont know, maybe just got lucky, admittedly the bulls Matt and I shot werent that big...but we saw a lot of moose every time we hunted there.

 

[mdunc8]

Wow Buzz. That's some pretty good luck for your family. Were cow tags pretty easy to draw back then? Here's my buddy's moose from the Gallatin two years ago. That was my first western hunt. He called in an elk for me the first evening. Didn't have a clue what I was doing and blew it. Probably didn't deserve to shoot a bull after only being an elk hunter for only a few hours. We saw a few cows every day, but this was the only bull in four days of hunting.

 

[WV Hunter]

I had a tag in 1994-95...saw lots of moose, but I drew a tag I didnt want to get. I had the late tag and some of the moose were already dropping their antlers, plus getting around down there in the snow was a real pain in the ass. I shot this one, just happey to find one with both antlers:

Is that you sexy dead moose pose

 

[BuzzH]

Thats funny...better than these pictures:

Although I do like the rifle in the first picture...kind of badass.

 

[The Hedgehog]

I'm too sexy for this moose, too sexy for this moose, toooo seeexxxyyyy...

 

[BuzzH]

Greenhorn...I was kind of thinking something a bit different...more along the lines of fat bastard:, "I aint kiddin' I'm dead sexxxy."

 

[BuzzH]

Thats the fun part of these threads...they can head south fast...HAHA.

 

[tjones]

Funny you say that Buzz, I did the same thing. I was checking the odds and didn't give a thought to the moose dropping. I had the same tag in 1996. After elk season I started hunting moose and saw plenty, most had shed. One tanker bull the size of my jeep right off HWY 43 and big ol rubber bumpers where his antles use to be. I shot one finally about like yours. Only bull I saw with head gear.