Qinalugaaq(beluga) & Tugaalik(narwhal) defense thread ...

Otokiak

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So after reading some interesting, some fantastic and some funny hunting stories here I wanna know what my fellow Canadians think would be a good choice for rifle calibre to shoot & kill a qinalugaaq(beluga) and Tugaalik(narwhal)? Trust me when I say these are two completely different whales and hunting them is not the same. Let's hear your choices on calibre?! ;)

Otokiak
Rankin Inlet, NU
CANADA
 
belugas in tuktoyaktuk, 30-30 is the favourite, then 270, and 243 , one guy i know really over does it with a 7mm rem mag, i saw one last summer 17 shots with a 270 win with 130 gr winchester powerpoints
 
I have never eaten any sort of whale... just watched a video on native narwhal hunters it said the skin has a very high vitamin count.

What does the meat taste like? what is it similar to?
 
I've seen pictures of exploding tipped harpoons for whale hunting. I don't know how common or popular they are, but the idea of an impact fused grenade in a moving motorboat isn't my idea of safety.
 
Belugas have thin skulls, so a good hit with a high velocity bullet will be immediately fatal. But if you intend to use a high velocity rifle loaded with expanding bullets, the trick with belugas is getting a clean head shot; the head is clear of the water for a very short period of time. If the bullet hits the water, much of its velocity is lost and the bullet expands readily in the water, so the reduced velocity combined with the large frontal area for bullet weight makes penetration suspect. The problem then is not so much the target as the target's environment.

Although I've never seen a narwhale skull, and know little about them, they do seem to spy hop more frequently then belugas, presenting an easier target for the hunter armed with a high velocity rifle.

My approach would be a large caliber rifle loaded with heavy bullets loaded to a moderate velocity. I might even opt for solids, as there is less chance of these breaking up in the water. So my recommendation is a .458 loaded with 450 or 500 gr Barnes banded solids for both species as well as bowhead.
 
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For narwhal one guy i know here uses a .378 weatherby with good results. most guys prefer solids. I would go with a .458 win mag because there is actually a lot of available ammo here for it. wouldn't have to mess around with shipping ammo. saw a ton of narwhals the other day. its going to get really exciting in a couple of days.
 
For some unknown reason we have extra tags this year for Narwhal ... usually they're all gone as the guys would all catch ... guys are not catching this year ... weird! I read 3 guys from Arctic Bay up top of Baffin Island have caught 3 double tusked narwhals ... those lucky basturds! All my $$$ lately is tied up in side business's so unfortunately I can't make a trip up to Repulse Bay as there are guys catching there right now. Myself, I'd go with my M1 Garand 30-06.

Otokiak
Rankin Inlet, NU
CANADA

Here's just a picture I got off the net to show you what a double tusk looks like ... this narwhal had to be very big ... probably 16-20 foot or more.

narwhal-double.jpg
 
They look tasty.. Id love to try some.
Is it possible to ship a few pounds down to southern Ontario?..

Take some fat and chew on it for awhile or even better some shoe leather ... after chewing it til your jaw get's sore you can spit it out. HAHAHA I'm not a big fan of maktaaq(beluga/narwhal fat).

Otokiak
Rankin Inlet, NU
CANADA

p.s. just found out that the tags most guys get picked for were not all used up ... apparently alot of guys not being able to afford to go to Repulse Bay and hunt via boat as the cost of fuel, etc is just too much ... I'm off to Banff for a week but gonna see when I get back how much it would cost me to go to Repulses Bay with a friend and do some narwhal hunting me thinks ... :D
 
I have never eaten any sort of whale... just watched a video on native narwhal hunters it said the skin has a very high vitamin count.

What does the meat taste like? what is it similar to?

I had Beluga muktuk in Aklavik when I first went North. It's essentially natural Ex-Lax. I had a few small pieces and crapped, almost uncontrollably, for three days. I suppose if you're burning 10,000 calories a day living off the land then it's a great source of energy, but for this kid it was just too rich.
 
Personally I'd like a beluga skull for the trophy room. Interesting conversation piece. Haven't had any belugas near here for best part of 2 months.

Those double tuskers are impressive. That one must be best part of 7 feet of tusk.

I'd go with an M1A to hunt them. For defense I'd just walk further up on the beach.
 
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