Alberta gopher hunting questions.

sniperelite

sniperelite

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I have been invited to the Edmontonton area in June/July and the idea of shooting some Gophers has been mentioned.None of the people invovled are hunters and we have never shot Gophers.Hopefully you guys could answer some questions for us.

1.Do you need a C.O.R.E. to shoot gophers?
2.Where would one go to do this in the Edmonton area?
3.How do you find a place to shoot?
4.What are the do's and don'ts?

Sorry for the newbie questions but we all have to start somewhere.
 
Well first things first
1. DO NOT HUNT on anyone's pasture without permission.
2. You will have to get a county map of the area. This enables you to see quater sections of land and whom they belong to and where they might reside.
3. BE POLITE! There is nothing worse than a truck load of people that show up and only one person gets out to talk.
4. BE CONSIDERATE!! Once you gain permission, leave the area as you found it. Close any gates, pick up your wrappers and bottles, DON"T START FIRES ETC....
5. Be aware of any livestock in the area. If you are using .22lr's, it can still injure/maime an animal quite seriously.
6. Good luck finding an area around Edmonton. You will have to travel at least a 1/2 hour in any direction of the city.
7. What the heck is a C.O.R.E. ??
 
Ormachek said:
Another important thing to remember. We don't hunt gophers here in alberta. We just shoot em.
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x2. if you hunt them, you got to eat them. thats why we just shoot them.:)we just drive around and ask farmers, be polite and safe. most of the farms
we shoot on have had people shoot their tractors and live stock, kinda ruins it for everyone. it takes a long time to build their trust, and only one mistake
to loose it. and please clean up after yourself. sorry for the rant.
 
stefK said:
Well first things first
1. DO NOT HUNT on anyone's pasture without permission.
2. You will have to get a county map of the area. This enables you to see quater sections of land and whom they belong to and where they might reside.
3. BE POLITE! There is nothing worse than a truck load of people that show up and only one person gets out to talk.
4. BE CONSIDERATE!! Once you gain permission, leave the area as you found it. Close any gates, pick up your wrappers and bottles, DON"T START FIRES ETC....
5. Be aware of any livestock in the area. If you are using .22lr's, it can still injure/maime an animal quite seriously.
6. Good luck finding an area around Edmonton. You will have to travel at least a 1/2 hour in any direction of the city.
7. What the heck is a C.O.R.E. ??
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Good to know. Good common sense stuff. As far as C.O.R.E. goes I'm not sure if you are being sarcastic but in B.C. it's a hunting license but like I said I am not a hunter.
 
sniperelite said:
We have planned on being atleast 40 minutes outside of Edmonton.Any hints for good areas to start looking?
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Usually most of the good gopher action is east of Edmonton, 40 to 60 minutes should get you in some OK areas. For a lot of guys a good gopher patch is something most fellows don't want to share, You'd think they were WT deer or something.
You need a sunny day to make it worth while. FS
 
Fassteel said:
Usually most of the good gopher action is east of Edmonton, 40 to 60 minutes should get you in some OK areas. For a lot of guys a good gopher patch is something most fellows don't want to share, You'd think they were WT deer or something.
You need a sunny day to make it worth while. FS
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I live in the lower mainland as long as it isn't raining i'll be happy.
 
sniperelite said:
I live in the lower mainland as long as it isn't raining i'll be happy.
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He means if it's cloudy you'll just be going for a walk. Gophers come out in numbers on calm sunny days.

Your best bet is to go as far south as you can. The best way to do things is to drive gravel roads. Plan on going at least 20 or 30 minutes off the highway to be sure you don't see anybody else. Bring binoculars with and start looking for rats. Just because you see a few on the side of the road, that doesn't mean anything. Look for numbers in the fields. When you find a good spot look for the nearest house, and keep a cell phone on you. Go to the house, introduce yourself. Don't have your pants hanging off your ass, your hat sideways or a cigarette hanging out of your mouth. Don't have crap music thumping from your car as you pull up and dress normal. (Yes, appearances do mean that much around these parts.) Just because the house your at is on the land doesn't mean their the land owner. The people could just be renting, ask for a contact number.

If you did as I said, act normal and polite and simply ask for access to shoot gophers, I have never, ever been turned down. Farmers hate the little bastards and will happily let you on their land. Use proper hunting etiqute and if they tell you not to drive here or there, don't drive here or there. Most will let you drive on their fields, some won't. Do as they tell you and they will happily point you in the right direction on where to go. Good luck and stay safe.
 
pharaoh2 said:
He means if it's cloudy you'll just be going for a walk. Gophers come out in numbers on calm sunny days.

Your best bet is to go as far south as you can. The best way to do things is to drive gravel roads. Plan on going at least 20 or 30 minutes off the highway to be sure you don't see anybody else. Bring binoculars with and start looking for rats. Just because you see a few on the side of the road, that doesn't mean anything. Look for numbers in the fields. When you find a good spot look for the nearest house, and keep a cell phone on you. Go to the house, introduce yourself. Don't have your pants hanging off your ass, your hat sideways or a cigarette hanging out of your mouth. Don't have crap music thumping from your car as you pull up and dress normal. (Yes, appearances do mean that much around these parts.) Just because the house your at is on the land doesn't mean their the land owner. The people could just be renting, ask for a contact number.

If you did as I said, act normal and polite and simply ask for access to shoot gophers, I have never, ever been turned down. Farmers hate the little bastards and will happily let you on their land. Use proper hunting etiqute and if they tell you not to drive here or there, don't drive here or there. Most will let you drive on their fields, some won't. Do as they tell you and they will happily point you in the right direction on where to go. Good luck and stay safe.
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All good info here except the part about driving south, you'll be better off from Edmonton by going south east on Hwy. 14.
Let me know exactly when you are coming, if I have time perhaps I can scout out a field for you. You won't get much shooting time in if you have to scout and shoot in the same day. FS
 
Just a hint for all its worth....I approached the head of a Indian reserve...and was awarded an open invitation to shoot. Only small numbers of shooters allowed but lots of critters.
 
I was scared s**tless to go up to a house and ask permission but finally got the balls to do so and it was worth every drip of sweat. Open invitiation to come back, all I need to do is call before I come so they know what car I am driving just incase there is another one in they field they aren't expecting the can tell them to leave.

The only other request I have had is not to smoke out in the field due to the potential of starting a fire.
 
Bull's-Eye said:
I was scared s**tless to go up to a house and ask permission but finally got the balls to do so and it was worth every drip of sweat. Open invitiation to come back, all I need to do is call before I come so they know what car I am driving just incase there is another one in they field they aren't expecting the can tell them to leave.

The only other request I have had is not to smoke out in the field due to the potential of starting a fire.
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Most of us that live out in the country don't shoot on sight when people pull into the yard. A little politness and common sense and above all be friendly and most landowners are happy to have you shoot the little buggers.
 
Fassteel said:
All good info here except the part about driving south, you'll be better off from Edmonton by going south east on Hwy. 14.
Let me know exactly when you are coming, if I have time perhaps I can scout out a field for you. You won't get much shooting time in if you have to scout and shoot in the same day. FS
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Very kind of you,thank you. The dates have yet to be arranged but as soon as I know I will PM you if that is o.k.? Thanks again.
 
I saw the last ones of the season by Saskstoon november 30th!! Couldn't believe it, nobody else believed me either so I had to shoot one and show them.

I've shot them between westlock and thorhild at the start of the Ft Mac 500 race-trac. Hwy 2 and 18 if you are heading north. Not the best area though.
 
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