A few moose photos from last year.
Moose
I took this photo of a little ratty bull in mid spring while up seeing my son on his Idaho bear hunt.
I took this one about 24th or so of July in Colorado.
Another Colorado July bull.
Many of these Colorado moose came from Utah in a transplant trade. The area in which Utah got most of the moose that went to Colorado, was an area I bow hunted for many years. So I am sure I saw the grandparents, or great grand parents of some of these moose, when they lived in Utah.
As a side note, that area has never been the same, and moose population is not near now what it was in those days. It does''t take much to up set the moose dynamics, so you Colorado moose hunters better make hay while the herd is still spreading. Soon the tables will turn and things will change big time! I have seen this in moose populations over and over again.
Here's a photo of a moose, whose photo I took in the summer preceding the transplant (the transplant was done in the fall). I got up early and went up and sat at a waterhole, to take some photos and this boy came in. He most likely is related to quite a few Colorado moose.
A yearling cow from last summer's Colorado trip.
Headwaters of the Colorado River.
Then last September, I headed back to take primarily take elk photos, but it was at the time of the torrential rain storm and the roads I need to get to where I wanted to be, were all closed. So I hung for a few days and just spent most of my time looking for moose. These next photos came from that trip.
This a small bull with nice bull behind him. Just as I got ready to take this photo, the bigger bull began to feed. You can see his brow tine between the small bulls front leg.
Here's another photo of that little bull and you can see the blurred antlers of the bigger bull in the back ground.
Here's the bull that was behind the little bull in a couple of the photos above.
Man some of those moose are nearly black! Much darker than those in Alaska.
Great photos as always: thanks for sharing!
I was watching four bulls and the largest walked over in some timber and laid down. So I made my way over, set up my tripod and started taking his photo. I heard a noise right behind me and turned to see two bulls, not 4 or 5 yards from me. Heres a photo of one of those bulls. Notice he is just loosing his velvet, and its dropped by his eye and nose.
I just got a call and have to run but I will finish this sometime tonight. So come back there area a couple dandy bulls if you like moose.
Have a great bow hunt. BB
And with Wyoming still a month away...Sigh!
Awesome photo's as usual Bill...
I love moose.
(right up until they die)
And here are a couple of he bull that laid down.
Have a great bow hunt. BB
And good luck to everyone who applied and extra good luck to those that end up drawing. They are a very fun animal to hunt with a bow, or with a camera.
Cool pix BB, thanx for sharing...
Question - that little guy with the buttons on the 8th picture up hanging with the bigger hard horn bull. Is he around months old, and if so, why isn't he with mama rather than hanging with the bigger boys?
Zbone, he is months old but about 16 months old. He most likely got kicked out when his mother had her 2013 calf in late may or early June. He then picked up with some of the boys. Those photos were taken around the middle of Sept of last fall. On the evening I took the bull that was laying down, there were four bulls running together. The next morning I found the bull that was laying the night before, several miles away with a cow. It was just the time when the moose were heading into the early part of their rut.
This is a poor photo, as it was really late, and so the shutter had to stay open for too long to get a crisp photo, but you can see in this photo the big bull is starting to feel it.
Thanks for the comments and thanks for looking. Have a great bow hunt. BB
Awesome as usual BB ! Thanks
Hmmm.... That is why I ask BB, at that age I figured he'd be a little paddle horn rather than a button.... So I take they have to at least be 2-1/2 years old before small antlers, rather than 1-1/2, because they look more like button to me than antlers at a year and half???
Zbone, there are a number of factors that determine the size of the antlers of a yearling bull. One of course is the genes they receive through genetics. That plays a very important part,on the size of the antlers, both the first year and in subsequent years. Feed also plays a big part. In years a good feed the antlers develop better, and in scare food years they can suffer. But most likely what played the largest part in that bulls stunted growth, is that its mother most likely was bred very late in the year and he was born a month or two later than normal and just didn't have the extra time he needed in maturation.
Here's a photo of a calf elk that is about 3-1/2 months old. You can notice the size and age difference when compared to the little bull you are referring to.
I will post anther photo after this one, of the small bull that had the velvet coming off his antlers that will show the size of his paddles a bit better.
I found that same little bull a few days later and took this photo. He's really a very small paddle horn bull too. If you look close you can see he's cleaned his antlers off but you can still see a blood smear on the antler. So the reason this one might be so small might have some to do with a bad hard winter and then combine that and late birth and that well could be why the little bull is just a button bull.
Have a great bow hunt. BB
BB how do you get them to hang around you to get great such great photos!? Are you calling? Stalking? Waiting?
Julius K
Fantastic as usual BB! Thank you for sharing! The eyes in some of the photos definitely look like they are squaring you up.
TODDY
You know when BB posts photos, they're going to be great!! I especially love why you post moose photos. Such cool animals.
jkoenig04 I have bow hunted for over 50 years and in that period of time I learned a lot about getting close to critters. Most likely the greatest thing I learned bowhunting is the art of patience and persistence, and that I have. I also learned a lot about a lot of different animals and I use those things, in combination with a good lens to get my photos, along with a ton of LUCK!
I have called in many moose, elk, deer, etc through the years, but none of these photos were taken by calling. I mostly just found the critters and then made my moves or waits on them. Some took hours, but I learned patience pays big dividends. I am glad you liked them.
Here's a moose whose photo I took way back in 2007 while hunting mule deer in Utah. He came into a waterhole I was sitting and I took some photos of him. While he was there, a pretty nice buck came in and tried to water, but this bull chased him off. The buck stopped about 25 yards from my stand and I shot it. When I hiked out of the canyon where I had shot the buck, to make a cell phone to my wife and let her know I would be late because I shot a deer, I ran right back into this bull and got some other photos. So luck plays a big part of anything I get be it a critter or a photo of a critter.
Here's a photo I took of that mule deer as he tried to come in that evening.
And here's another photo I took just after the bull charged him and he ran off. But he made the mistake of stopping at about 25 yards, and I put my camera down, picked up my bow and shot the buck.
And here the bull is once more, when I ran into him when I went to make the phone call.
And here's the buck I was lucky enough to get that night. But the moral of the story is patience and persistence pays big dividends. I do have both.
And I might add, that many of you would be amazed at the enjoyment and satisfaction a camera can bring into your life. And its taught me a lot that has helped me become a better bowhunter too!
Have a great bow hunt. BB
BB,
As usual, great pictures! I am particularly impressed with the bull that is facing to the left, and appears to have a road in the background just above his back. The antlers are impressive, but it is the size of his body that leaves me shaking my head......
I catch myself thinking of the number of trips required to pack him out, instead of his rack!!
As usual, incredible photos, thank you very much for sharing
Thank you for sharing... always look forward to your posts! Mike
Another to my 'favorite' thread folder...
I admire a man who can make the most of whatever is in his hands, whether bow or camera. Phenomenal images. Thank you!
Thanks for the info BB. You are very good at getting close!
Julius
Awesome pics BB!!! Thanks for sharing them!
Jake, in the photo I think you are referring to, it's not a road, but rather a dead fallen tree.
I have been fortunate enough to have had five moose permits in my life and I have been on twice that many other moose kills. I have packed out tons of moose, and in every case, it was when I was younger and most stupid, and all we did was quarter them up, put them on a pack frame and carry them out. No wonder I just had two knee replacement this year!
But if you think they are heavy and hard to handle, you better think again, cause I bet that elephant you and Pat are going to get will make them look like feathers! Ha Ha
Thanks again to all of you who have posted such nice comments. I truly appreciate it. And I truly like to take and share my photos.
Here's a bull whose photo I took a few years back when I went up to check on one of my water holes.
And of course if it wasn't for the lady mooses we wouldn't have any bull mooses, so here's the to all those lady's.
Have a great bow hunt. BB
Incredible, nothing short of incredible! Thanks a million for posting Bill!
mark
Great shots as always - I just got lost in your pictures for a while... Thanks for sharing.
Bill, great photos. Your great bowhunting skills have translated well into your new passion/hobby. I was talking moose with a bowhunter at the PBS banquet last weekend and he was remembering your excellent thread "The hunt for Bullwinkle" a few years back on Bowsite. I was proud to tell him that I know you and I was lucky enough to spend a day or two with you on that hunt. That was one on my favorite hunts that you documented so well with stories, information and photos. Keep up the good work.
ps - I am hunting Wyoming and Utah this fall, maybe we can meet up?
Great photos! Keep 'em coming...
Great photos! I have recently bought a NikonD5000 and plan on taking it on my hunting trips this year.What lens do you suggest.
Here's the link to the "The Hunt for Bullwinkle" thread mentioned by Jeff Holchin. Exceptional photography and a gereat story. I add my thanks BB.
Oops.
http://forums.bowsite.com/tf/bgforums/thread-print.cfm?threadid=341784&forum=15
Thanks again BB for sharing!! Takes time to put the pics on bowsite but we enjoy them so much. I really loved that story of the buck and bull where you shot the buck. What a night!!
Awesome photos, as usual. I especially enjoy the ones where you're getting the "stink eye".
Thanks for posting BB! Not sure how I missed this one hte first time aorund. Moose are awesome critters! Beautiful pictures as always! Have a great summer!
Bill
as always, your threads inspire me to take more pictures....
Thanks
