What makes a good Ontario bull moose?
- Thread starter buckchaser
- Start date
The first year Ontario tags came out, a buddy of mine shot one that measured 67 1/2 inches tip to tip. By far the largest bull I ever saw. Tried to plut the head on the hood of the truck (as was the custom in those days). Had to take it down - the antlers stuck out about 4" on either side, and you couldn't see a thing out of the windshield. I can't remember how much meat there was or if it was any good. Before the tag system, we always shot cows for the meat.
I have arrowed several 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 year old bulls over the years and cannot distinguish any difference in texture or flavour... at 3 1/2 years, it depends on when it is shot, some 3 year olds are allowed to breed (cow's decision), and at the very least they are trying hard, which means they are covering lots of ground and not eating and drinking in normal patterns, they are also pretty cheeky, not having had their butts kicked much yet, I have seen some 3 year olds challenge some pretty darn big bulls... they only do that once... but it can Jack up the lactic acid in their muscles. If you get the 3 year old pre-rut, they are every bit as good as a yearling, but they can get rank during the rut and for 2-3 weeks after... we have taken 3 and 4 year olds up on the ridges in November and they are excellent eating.
A quick question: A group has asked me to replace one of his member (injured at work) and won't able to participate in the group adult moose hunt (they have two cow tags) however if I purchase a moose license today it will be a calf only tag and season won't open for calf until Oct.19 while their hunt is between Oct 12 to the 17th.
Obviously I am not on their group when they submitted the draw but if I party hunt with them between the 12th to the 17th with a calf only tag am I consider hunting out of season even I hunt with them as a group for cow with two cow tags among them?
Obviously I am not on their group when they submitted the draw but if I party hunt with them between the 12th to the 17th with a calf only tag am I consider hunting out of season even I hunt with them as a group for cow with two cow tags among them?
Thanks for the insight...Nov 1 is moose season in the area I was drawn...going for a trophy the first few days but come Day 4 or 5 it’s the hunt for the runt...lol
Cameron SS
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Ground Zero
A good bull is seriously the first one that is kind enough to walk past... lol.
Be careful with that... the old saying is very true... "Don't pass up on the first day what you would happily take on the last day."
Having said that, if you are ok with going home empty handed, there is nothing wrong with pursuing whatever standard you have set for yourself. I don't consider myself a trophy hunter by any stretch, but have on many occasions decided to pursue a larger representative of whatever species that I am hunting... usually to prolong the hunting experience, or because the freezer is full and we are not desperate for wild game meat. If you do desire a large specimen, for whatever reason, it is tough to accomplish without passing up many smaller animals, unless you get very, very lucky. I always ask clients what their expectations are for an animal, and revisit that question as the hunt progresses, and believe me, 95% of the time the answer changes the deeper we get into the hunt. Good luck, hope you bag the big one!
