First moose hunt any advice?

My wife got drawn for moose here in NB.
Neither of us have ever been on a moose hunt. Any hunting advice for us?
The man who is second gun has gotten a moose 4 years ago and has some experience.
Practical advice we are looking for.
What calls should we use?
Scent blockers and laundry detergent yes or no?
Stick to the roads or go through the brush?

The area we will be hunting in has about 30 acres that were cut 15 years ago. the rest is a cedar swamp. Lots of moose sign.
The trails there are overgrown so I will be going through with a clearing saw sometime in the next month to open it up for the 4 wheelers.
Some basic advice would be:

1) Learn to call. Start practicing now. Electronic calls are okay I guess, but mostly they're crap. It's not hard, and you'll be more successful if you do your own calling.

2) Soaps and detergents are a gimmick. They might help across a cut or swamp, but you leave a scent that lasts hours or days everywhere you walk, breathe, piss, touch a tree branch, etc. The moose knows you're there no matter what kind of deodorant you use - normally bulls won't care, and might even be curious enough to come check you out. If you're cow hunting smell is a bigger factor - hunt into the prevailing wind as much as possible, and don't move around where you don't have to.

3) Be patient and don't move around too much. If you hunt where the moose are, sooner or later one will either make a mistake or come out to a call.

4) If you're hunting in a party, ideally only one person will be calling - the rest of the party is waiting for a shot.

5) Try to hunt when there's little or no moonlight at night. Anytime they can go nocturnal, they will.

Lastly, don't be afraid to make a bit of noise. There's good noise and bad noise. Breaking a stick, raking the bush, letting out a few grunts, etc. at a the right time can be REALLY effective. Practice these things over the summer.

HAVE FUN AND GOOD LUCK!!
 
My first time I was told ‘don’t wear dark brown walking the edges of fields.’
The first time I almost shot a moose was doing that.
Bear season. It rushed out of the field towards me until it was only 12' away. When saw how close it was I took my rifle off safe and we eyeballed each other for a full minute before it turned and went into the woods.
 
Two words, Rack Man.

I saw him the other night I was at the pub drinking a few pints and he showed up looking at us like we were from an other planet… we were speaking French of course so maybe he thought he was the only one up here speaking the French dialect lol!!
 
Hey did anyone bring up necessities like proper boots, etc? The best places to try spotting and stalking or still hunting are usually wet. Isolated little waterholes can be like unwrapping a gift from Mother Nature. In northeast AB for example there’s frequently small (100-200 yard diameter) ponds surrounded by poplars and willows. Wading through the rings of trees that conceal these little honey holes most often means that in order to get to a good spot to stand, listen, glass or call you’ll be standing in a few inches of water as your boots sink even a little. Wet feet makes the day drag on uncomfortably. I’m a Danner Acadia Goretex fan-old-boy. They were uniform boots I bought 25+ years ago and rolled the odometer over on them by now. Still waterproof and a little polish and I’m gone dancing lol.

Those old boots fit like moccasins so I bought another pair a few years ago a half size bigger to wear warm pure wool socks in heading into late October. If you’re young guys taking up hunting, buy the best boots that fit properly you can afford. Or save up for.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DGY
Back
Top Bottom