Planning my first moose hunt, a few questions.

cereal83

cereal83

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Hey all,

Well since November is getting closer, I am starting to plan my hunt. Basically I have never hunted before. I just need some basic help. Basically I haven't bought anything except for guns and ammo but tell me if I have a good idea on what I should get and stuff I should/shouldn't do while hunting.

- 1st off, I was going to buy a 4 season Tent good to like -20, a -20 sleeping bag with extra comfort to put underneath.
- 2nd I was going to bring lots of warm clothes and buy a hunter orange jacket and a hunter orange hat. Since we have to wear hunter orange, I don't see a point in buying camo gear.
- 3rd I was going to spend about $150-$200 on a pair of boots, whatever feels comfortable to me.
- 4th Food and cooking supplies - IS there any special food or drinks I should bring? I was just thinking alot of water?
- 5th Enough ammo and gun cleaning supplies, guns.
- 6th a First aid kit
- 7th GPS, maps, compass, satelite cell phone, digital camera
- 8th knives, ropes, other dressing supplies.

Is there anything else major that I really need and should be bring with me? What about scent cover or attractant? Do they work or are they a waste?

Now onto when I am at the camp. Is it ok to blast away all day at targets if I am going to be hunting about 3-5 km away? Or will the noise make everything run away? I will also be hunting grouse with a 22 so will this be ok? What about shooting off the shotgun and 30-06? Guns go away when the booze comes out, safe enough?

Basically any tips you can give would be great. Anything major you think would be good to add, go ahead.

Thanks for your help.
 
How are you going to deal with your moose from getting it out of the bush to the butchers? ATV's, chainsaws, come alongs, pack frames, trailers, black pepper, etc. You give a butcher garbage, you'll get it back - wrapped in freezer paper. :eek:

Don't even think about sleeping on the ground. Get a decent cot with a Thermarest type mattress for extra insulation and comfort.

How will you keep things dry and dry off as well?

Our gang doesn't like to shoot around camp in any season.

Good luck.
 
Hi there! First post for me on a new forum - hope I can offer a bit of advice as a hunter myself.

I think it sounds like you have a lot of your bases covered so far - between you and (hopefully) your partners you'll get the bases covered. Just a few things that I can think of off the top of my head quickly:

Your boots: you can NEVER spend too much time or money getting a good pair of boots. If you buy boots lower than mid-thigh, get gaiters for the deep stuff. Get GOOD gaiters. Better than this, get some mid-thigh boots which are -100°C rated (for example, MilSurp Canadian Army Arctic boots) or get some work boots from a place like Mark's Work Warehouse which have an air-insulated sole and a steel shank. Believe me, your feet will thank you at the end of the day when you've been humping all over hell's half acre after moose.

Socks: the first layer of socks (next to skin) should be a spandex-style sock which will draw moisture away from your skin AND allow other socks to slide over your skin without pulling at it and blistering if/when your feet get sweaty. Carry at least one extra pair of socks in a ziploc bag under your jacket to keep them warm and dry - same goes for your gloves. If your socks feel wet, change them.

Your first aid kit: include two days' rations, a long-burning firestarter and extra water with the kit (or at least a metal cup so you can melt snow next to a fire). Go to a local MilSurp store and ask about MRE's or civilian duplicates - ACTUAL US surplus MRE's are technically illegal to sell, so any ACTUAL US military MRE's you see may be past expiry or smuggled. Expect to pay about $8-12 for good eats like this, but believe me that two MRE's next to you will be a great comfort if (God forbid) you bust a leg down in the suck chasing after a (God forbid) wounded animal. Moose, for some reason, will go out of their way to find THE nastiest and boggiest place to lay down if they get more than five steps after they're shot.

Survival kit tips: stack matches in a waterproof case along with a striker strip, and stack them half-up and half-down in case water DOES get in one side (so not all the heads would get wet). Include a signal mirror, a few types of adhesive tape - e.g. black hockey/white medical/hockey sock, extra boot laces, gauze, sutures and anaesthetic if you can get them, antiseptic wipes/iodine/mercurochrome, painkillers, pen and paper, compass, single-edged razor blades, and some sort of multi-tool which includes pliers/knife/saw. All of this (possibly minus the multi-tool, which you can carry separately anyway) can be packed into something just larger than a sardine can if you really economize your space. If you're really off the beaten path - and especially if you're going on this trip alone - some sort of aerial signal like a flare pen would be prudent.

As for the rest, looks pretty good - I especially like your point about putting the guns away when the booze comes out. Very responsible and wise of you, IMO.

Finally, regarding a cover scent/attractant - I find it useful and have had great success by rubbing my legs and chest/arms lightly with droppings that I find along the walk into the hunting grounds. I know it sounds disgusting, but I've had freezers full of meat year after year to back it up when others who've spent hundreds on scents have been (pardon the pun) 'skunked'. Think about it - this stuff is there already and is a "comfortable" smell for your quarry - why not use it to your advantage? If you're trying to disappear, your best bet is to look, smell, and act like the wallpaper - in my opinion, of course.

Best of luck with the hunt!
-M
 
We've slept in tents in northern BC, with a good pad and a good sleeping bag it can be comfortable. Are you going with some buddies? Because like Fall Guy said, you need to get the moose out and moose are big! If you don't have any motorised help would will need a few friends to even budge it. Besides that, your list has the basic covered.
 
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we always stay in a tent. A coleman tent heater is a must for us as we quite often dip to -10 and the tent heater makes it very comfortable. A chain hoist is a good thing to have along as well makes the cleaning alot easier than doing it on the ground. Good luck.
 
dont shoot around camp or you wont see anything to shoot later
get some DANNERS dry feet are priceless if you dont believe me you will
you can go with a really good 3 season tent if you dont get to much heavy snow and rain (they are way lighter and cheaper) I just use a northface roadrunner
if you know where you are going maps and gps cell phone are extra baggage and expense. you should already be scouting for the big one and know what the land is like
how far are you packing in and how long are you planning on staying
make the best base camp you can cuz after all the work youll be looking for some comfort
buy some DANNERS
 
Bring lots of rope,a come along and get some good boots-I like my Danners but also bring along a pair of the rubber boots with the removeable felt liners.
Make sure you have a camp where you can get/remain dry.We have kerosene heaters in our camp.Bring friends with strong backs or an atv to get your moose out.(fun is over once the gun goes bang!)
Good luck!
 
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Hey all,

Well I think I will only being going with 1 other person. Maybe 2. We won't have an ATV as I don't have a truck yet and probably won't in time for the hunt.

As for cutting up the moose, I was just gonna bring a few sharp knives and a saw to cut through bone. Is a chainsaw really needed?

Boots, I can look at some Danners but I just have to find out who sells them. I have a pair of normal cheap rainboots. Are these good enough or should I spend the extra $$$ and get the better ones that have the insole and all that?

I have never been where I am going to hunt. I would go now but my friend who knows where the hunt camp is away on vacation, when he returns, I will probably go. He has a proper hunting camp but he wants $500 for the week to use it. I would rather use a tent and save the $500 for other supplies. I was thinking of going for 5-7 days.

I didn't get a Bull tag, only a calf so I am sure it won't be all bad.

Thanks for the tips guys. I am going to go out tonight and buy a few things. I just want to make sure I have the basics and see if I was missing anything. I am going south east of Sudbury about 30 minutes so I won't be in the middle on nowehre. I still get normal cell reception there I was told. Those tips on the first aid kits are also great thanks.

If there are any other little secrets of the trade, anything would be great to know.

Thanks again
 
Nothing like the first time, do yourself a favor and make sure to take someone along who has knowledge of field dressing and care of game meat, will save you some hasstle. Also, begginers luck is real, you will never have an easier hunt than the first! Good luck to ya.
 
Cutting up a calf won't be as bad as a bull.

A chainsaw can be handy, fill it with canola oil. Moose is a thick boned animal, sawing can get very tedious. A lot quicker than I ever thought.

IN the past we have used a regular bone saw, a small Kershaw folding saw (it was the cat's ass), and a sharp hatchet that we hit with a hammer. It is good to split the backbone.

Don't be unprepared for the bone, this is no deer and a pile more work.
 
Well I think I will only being going with 1 other person. Maybe 2. We won't have an ATV as I don't have a truck yet and probably won't in time for the hunt.

As for cutting up the moose, I was just gonna bring a few sharp knives and a saw to cut through bone. Is a chainsaw really needed?
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Well - you're going with 1 or 2 guys, you've got no atv, and i'm hearing you say you don't have a truck ... will you have any kind of 4x4? You've got to get the animal out, and unless it's close to somewhere you can get your vehicle into (and unless your vehicle it a 4x4 your going to have trouble getting very close unless it's near the road) that may be tough.

Plus, unless you've got a trailer it's pretty hard to stuff a half a moose in the back of most SUV's.

So there's a very good chance you MAY need to quarter the animal - it's pretty hard for 2 guys to pull out half a moose over any kind of rough terrain unless you've got some gear to do it. A chainsaw will be a huge benefit at that point. You can break a moose in half with even just a knife if you need to - but hand sawing down the spine of a moose to quarter it is a lot of work. And seeing as you're not likley to be speedy gonzalez when it comes to gutting and skinning your first time out, you'll likely appreciate the time savings :)

We always found mineral oil to be a little better than vegitable oils - not during the cutting but it doesn't gum up quite so much between seasons.
 
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No truck, no winch, no field dressing experience, not even hunting experience...:eek: this is gonna be a fun trip. Good luck! Be prepared to take at least 2 to 3 days to pack a cut up moose out of the bush, and get some carton boxes from any supermarket. If you have racks on your vehicle, you might want to use it, well if you will be able to get a moose. :rolleyes:
 
Wow - I don't like your chances of getting some good quality meat out of the bush, but we all had to start somewhere. You can listen to the advice on this forum, or you can just go out and do it. If you are alert, reasonably clever, and not afraid of a little hard work, I am sure you can do it.

And after the first trip, your list of 'necessities' will increase by a factor of ten!!! ;)
 
A calf moose is not such a big deal for a couple of young guys with strong backs. ;) Just make sure it is a calf and not a young cow before you pull the trigger! :eek:

The chainsaw was for trailblazing to get to and from an animal for gutting and then the ATV's - if required. As well, we have had windfalls down across our access to our hunting areas and trails before and during the seasons.

We still quarter the old fashioned way - with meat saws but some buddies I know use a cordless sawzall.
 
Pathfinder said:
Put off the hunt until you have some real gear - You could still go out partridge hunting and have a good time. Leave the moose for people who wont' spoil the meat.
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Umm how about NO. We all start somewhere.
 
cereal83 said:
As for cutting up the moose, I was just gonna bring a few sharp knives and a saw to cut through bone.
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Since you are buying all your gear for the first time I would recommend you buy 2 good quality knives, a good sharpener and learn how to sharpen them properly.

A good sharp knife will make your skinning job a lot easier than several poor quality ones that dull quickly. Remember you don't need a Rambo knife to skin an animal;)
 
Well thanks for the tips all. I guess I should give you guys a bit more detail.

The 1 dude that is coming for sure owns a camp within 5 km of where we are going to be camping. I don't have a truck or a atv but thats ok. I talked to him about it a while ago and he said, all we have to do it quarter it up. I do have a little trailer that goes onto my car. At his camp, there is a ATV year round as long as you pay for gas. If we really need help, then we can go and get the ATV from his camp. My friend has also been going up there with his dad for several years, every year for the moose hunt. They never get Bull tags so all they ever kill is calf. He has got calf many times before and has dressed them so he doesn't know everything, but he knows alot more then me. I think we will be fine. I was suppose to go hunting with a old fella but he is unable to make it this year because of his age and his body isn't in as good of a condition as last year or even 3 months ago so I am SOL having a old timer show me how to do things.

About the bone. I would love to bring a chainsaw but I don't have one. There might be on at the camp but I am not sure. I think a saw and 2 23 year old should be fine cutting through some bone. It might be hard and take some time but I am a tough person and don't mind doing a little hard work.

I know all you guys might be worrying a bit about a noobie hunter but don't worry. I should be fine.

As I said, I am going shopping tonight to pick up a few things. Hopefully I will get most of the stuff I need. I can't really think of much more that I need. Maybe a heater or something because my friend said it does get cold at night up north.

Well thanks all again for your tips and keep them coming if you have any more.
 
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