This year I was lucky enough to draw the coveted moose tag for an Idaho resident. I was one of several who put in for just 5 tags that would be handed out this year for this particular area of the state. So I took two weeks of vacation and prepared for what was the greatest hunting trip of my life so far. It turned out to be very rewarding as you will see from the photos. Dad and I took off a day before the season opened to stay up at his lake place on Coeur d'Alene Lake. We headed out at 4:00 am to get up to the hunting area before the sun came up that morning. We hunted all day and didn't see a single moose until about 20 minutes before dark. I ended up calling and grunting with this moose until it was took dark to see him anymore. He was a respectable bull but gave me no chance to shoot. The second day of the season was pretty slow, we ended up seeing a couple of cows but no bulls (my tag allowed for me to shoot only a bull). The third day was the one! We were actually driving a logging road to head back to where we were going to hunt for the day when we came upon a moose along the side of the road. I hoped out of the truck and went sneaking off into the area where he/she ran. After a few minutes, I saw a cow, calf, and spike bull moose down in some thick brush less than 30 yards from where I was standing. I grunted a few times and the larger bull called back and started to come out of the brush. This battle between me and the bull went on for what felt like forever, but I could just hear him, not getting a good, clear look at the bull. Finally after about 20 minutes, the bull stepped out of the brush at about 20 yards for a few seconds, looked at me and then turned to head back to the thick stuff. At that time, I quickly decided he was small but would sure taste good. One clean shot and the bull was on the ground, and I was jumping up and down with excitement that I had just shot my first and only Idaho Shiras Moose. Below you can see me with my prize.
He ended up having a broken paddle on one side that I didn't know about until I got up close to him. With all the excitement and the way he presented himself, it wasn't visible. I was amazed at how large this animal was and had no real idea until I got up right next to him. I estimated his weight at about 700 pounds! Here is a photo showing the size of his hooves. There is no mistaking those tracks for a deer.
Since the bull was shot relatively close to a logging road and we had several hundred feet of large diameter rope, getting the moose into the truck was easier than I ever could have hoped. With the help of some fellow hunters, another truck, a very large tree, lots of conveyor rope, a snatch block and some work, we were able to load the moose into the truck.
The bull took up the entire bed of my full-size pickup with feet sticking out one end and head out the other. Dad and I took the bull back to his place and got it skinned and ready to take to the butcher. At about 9:00 pm that night, I was back home showing it off to Teresa. We now have all the meat processed and frozen and are enjoying the very lean, tasty meat. I had a very fun time hunting for the animal but it almost went by too fast. At least Teresa and I are able to share this with family and friends and be able to eat good meals all year! There was so much meat we had to rent a small locker at our local meat shop since our freezer was not large enough. This is a hunt I will remember for a long time and I hope to have others that are just as fun.
He ended up having a broken paddle on one side that I didn't know about until I got up close to him. With all the excitement and the way he presented himself, it wasn't visible. I was amazed at how large this animal was and had no real idea until I got up right next to him. I estimated his weight at about 700 pounds! Here is a photo showing the size of his hooves. There is no mistaking those tracks for a deer.
Since the bull was shot relatively close to a logging road and we had several hundred feet of large diameter rope, getting the moose into the truck was easier than I ever could have hoped. With the help of some fellow hunters, another truck, a very large tree, lots of conveyor rope, a snatch block and some work, we were able to load the moose into the truck.
The bull took up the entire bed of my full-size pickup with feet sticking out one end and head out the other. Dad and I took the bull back to his place and got it skinned and ready to take to the butcher. At about 9:00 pm that night, I was back home showing it off to Teresa. We now have all the meat processed and frozen and are enjoying the very lean, tasty meat. I had a very fun time hunting for the animal but it almost went by too fast. At least Teresa and I are able to share this with family and friends and be able to eat good meals all year! There was so much meat we had to rent a small locker at our local meat shop since our freezer was not large enough. This is a hunt I will remember for a long time and I hope to have others that are just as fun.
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