Semi Live Wounded Warrior Hunt!
Contributors to this thread:Moose
From: Mike Ukrainetz
08-Nov-17
Hey Bowsiters, we have a semi live Wounded Warrior hunt just starting at Mike's Outfitting Ltd in Alberta, Canada. The Warrior is Jeremy Smith from Richmond Virginia. Jeremy is a Purple Heart Recipient and an associate with Wounded Warriors where he volunteers his time.
The guy holding the camera is his guide Kyle Mudge. Kyle is my most senior, long term guide and they call him Eagle Eye for a reason, no moose will go unseen! They are just heading out for the first half day of the hunt. Hopefully they don't kill right away and make this a very short story.
The hunt is fully paid for at regular price by an anonymous, repeat hunter of mine who generously donated it. He's a great guy and I wish he was along on the hunt too! Wish these guys good luck!!
From: Mike Ukrainetz
08-Nov-17
Mike Ukrainetz's Link
Some more background on the hunt in the link. We normally do this hunt as a 2 hunters to 1 guide hunt but I hired an extra guide for a few days to give Jeremy the best hunt we can. It's a rifle hunt where we search a huge area, about 1200 sq miles, of farm fields and big woods or "bush" as we call it in Canada. They should see moose, elk, mule deer, whitetails, coyotes and maybe a wolf which keeps it interesting. It's usually a fun hunt.
From: Mark Watkins
08-Nov-17
Mike, awesome you are doing a WW hunt! We owe these men and women so much (more) for protecting our freedoms, our countries and our families!
Looking forward to this!
Mark
From: Charlie Rehor
08-Nov-17
As Veterans Day approaches may we honor all who served. THANKS!!
Jeremy we are all pulling for a great hunt! God Bless the our Warriors!
From: Brotsky
08-Nov-17
Looking forward to seeing Jeremy behind a big bull in a day or two! Thanks for your service Jeremy and enjoy your hunt!
From: Mike Ukrainetz
08-Nov-17
It might not be a big one too! We need the meat for camp since Jeremy flew in!!
From: dakotaduner
08-Nov-17
Best of luck for a great hunt. Thank you from our family for your service
From: EagleeyeKyle
08-Nov-17
Jeremy and I just finished up our first afternoon hunting together for Moose at Mike's Outfitting. We covered some great looking country trying to spot a bull cross or feeding along pipelines, cutlines or old oil field roads. In this picture you can see Jeremy glassing down a great cut that has provided us with several encounters over the years.
From: BigOk
08-Nov-17
Good luck, thanks for your service.
From: EagleeyeKyle
08-Nov-17
Scope bite!
Scope bite!
As the afternoon shadows were growing longer and with only a pair of coyotes and some fresh moose sign to show for our efforts we finally spotted our moose. As we climbed a hill after crossing a beaver pond there they were, up ahead 175 yards away feeding in the grass along the oil road. Instantly we could tell they were bulls, 2 of them. Jeremy met me up ahead where I had the sticks setup. As we looked the bulls over we knew the one on the right was a shooter. Nice wide pans, good fronts, and a width of roughly 40". Jeremy steadied the crosshairs and pulled the trigger. Whack! First shot connected a touch forward in the neck, the bull looked hit hard. After the shot a third bull stood up that was bedded out of sight beside a spruce, nice mid 30's bull. Jeremy quickly chambered a second round and whack again but this time it was both the bull taking a bullet and the scope hitting Jeremy in the eyebrow. Scope bite, it left a bit of a mark. We eased in closer to the bull who is now standing 100 yards in the trees. I spotted him with blood running out of his nose and Jeremy got on the sticks. By the time we got set the bull started walking away and never provided an opportunity for another shot. We gave him 10-15 minutes then we slowly walked the blood trail to the point where we last saw him. No moose laying in clear view so we backed out and will follow it up again in the morning. The blood looked good on the snow and with the temperature dropping down to -20 Celsius the bull should laying not to far away.
From: standswittaknife
08-Nov-17
That was quick!
From: Charlie Rehor
09-Nov-17
Hope it works out. Good luck!
From: sitO
09-Nov-17
Short work! Thank you for your service Jeremy, hope it's a short trail this morning!
From: Charlie Rehor
09-Nov-17
This is the hunt donated by a Bowsite member who developed cancer and could not go.
Hope it goes well for Jeremy and of course the amazingly gracious donor.
From: t-roy
09-Nov-17
Best wishes and thank you for your service, Jeremy. Good luck tracking tomorrow. Our thoughts and prayers as well, to the different type of hero who made this hunt happen for Jeremy.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
Sorry for keeping you all on the edge of your seats waiting to hear if we recovered Jeremy's bull or not. Our morning started with a short cruise around the bush roads looking for another bull moose for the other client in camp. We only spotted a cow and several sets of fresh tracks before we headed to pick up our blood trail. We geared up in warm clothes and started down the trail.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
We slowly followed the blood trail while always keeping our eyes peeled on the forest around us looking for any more sign of the bull. After roughly 250-300 yards we noticed a coyote track on our blood trail and that Jeremy's bull was starting to drag his feet in the snow. He's getting tired! 100 yards further from down the trail the bull took us into a thick new growth poplar patch growing out of an old cut area. Now there is several sets of coyote tracks weaving all through the brush around us. As we strained to look into the dense underbrush we noticed up ahead 30 yards in front was an antler. Laying there was Jeremy's bull. With the body of the moose still warm we knew that he not expired to long before we got there. Unfortunately the coyotes got there a short time before we did and helped themselves to little bit of the meat. As we know these moose are big critters and there is tons of great meat left for the table.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
The bull as we found him
The bull as we found him
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
Now for more pictures of Jeremy and his 40" Alberta Moose. Huge Congratulations Jeremy. One hell of a bull for one hell of a guy.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
Congratulations Jeremy!!!!!!!
Congratulations Jeremy!!!!!!!
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
Now the work begins or fun depending on who your asking. The snow sure helps skidding these big boys out of the bush.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
Sometimes a little extra weight is needed on the front of the ATV to keep us going in the right direction. Towards the truck.
From: t-roy
09-Nov-17
Congrats on your bull Jeremy! Is that a good bull for your area or above/below average?
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
Couple hours had passed from the time we left the truck to start tracking and the time we finished getting the bull loaded. The use of ATV ramps, plywood and a winch make for one slick way to load a moose.
From: Rth1229
09-Nov-17
Congrats Jeremy!
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
Here is a couple pictures that Jeremy took along the trail today.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
On the hanging pole back at Mike's Outfitting's lodge. Gives you an idea of how big these moose really are.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
With the hide knocked off and our bellies full with a hot meal. We reloaded the moose in the truck and headed to the butcher. Here is a picture from the famous Dunvegan bridge that crosses the mighty Peace River.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
A look at the bridge itself. It is Alberta's longest vehicle suspension bridge.
From: EagleeyeKyle
09-Nov-17
As Day #1 came to end on our trip back from dropping the meat off at the butcher. Jeremy was able to snap one last photo of the evening sky with heavy frost on the trees. What a great day had by all. Congratulations again Jeremy on your bull. This is only the end of Day 1 not of the hunt. Jeremy still has a wolf/coyote license in his pocket and is planning on coming along in the morning to help spot moose for a fellow hunter. Stay tuned for more of Jeremy's hunt tomorrow.
From: standswittaknife
09-Nov-17
Love it
From: Mike Ukrainetz
10-Nov-17
Thanks to Kyle and Jeremy for the great pictures! And hunt details. Big bull too!! Dam that's a good one for us. All of our moose hunts are not really trophy hunts. We do kill some great 40+ inchers, even killed a 53 this year but they just show up randomly and passing up anything over 30 inches wide puts a guy at a great risk of not killing one at all, especially if the weather turns warm and windy.
If it looks like a moose, has some paddles we tell hunters to shoot it! Only need 4 inches of antler to be a legal bull and if a hunter drove up and really wants the meat he can shoot a spiker if that's the first one you see. We have a great system for dealing with the moose and getting a nice clean carcass to our butcher. It is the only red meat we eat in camp and my family only eats moose at home too. Love the stuff!
From: Mike Ukrainetz
10-Nov-17
Jeremy killed a big bodied beast too from the looks of the picture! Hanging in front of Matt Rehor's awesome cooler roof. Matt built that for us back in 2006 when him and his dad Charlie Rehor came on a muley bowhunt with us. Both great guys.
From: expeditiontraders
10-Nov-17
Congrat"s and well done!
From: caribou77
10-Nov-17
congrats! Great stuff!
From: Charlie Rehor
10-Nov-17
And to read this on Veterans Day! What a great event! Have fun the rest of the week. Bowsite cares deeply about our Heros!
From: Mark Watkins
10-Nov-17
Congrats Jeremy, Kyle and Mike!!!
What a bull!!
Jeremy, thank you for your dedication and service to our country!!!
Mark
From: Mike Ukrainetz
10-Nov-17
Text message from the donor's wife, such great people!:
He is under hospice and has some good days and some bad days. Today is definitely a good day. He is as excited about Jeremy killing the moose as anything I have ever seen him excited about. As we read the first details from the first part of the hunt we were a little worried, but then it said moose is down and they will find him. Thanks so much to you and Charlie for making this happen. I don't think it could have worked out any better. If you provide a contact for Charlie I have a possibility of another hunt or two that could probably be made to work. Thank you guys and and the Bowsite family for making this work.
This is for Jeremy: last but not least there are not enough words to thank you for your sacrifice for our country. As a family of veterans my granddad, father, son and I, thank you from the bottom of our heart. As you and most patriots know finding people to stand the line are becoming harder and harder to find. We hope you enjoy the rest of your hunt and that your future works out well for you. And remember moose aren't always this easy to kill. God bless you and yours. Almost forgot, thanks to all the guides and other camp personnel for their efforts.
From: Charlie Rehor
10-Nov-17
To the donor: God never forgets the givers. This is a gift that will keep on giving. I've spoken with Jeremy about you and he feels a bond and debt of gratitude. It so matters that these Heros know we care. THANK YOU!
From: wooddamon1
10-Nov-17
Awesome! Congrats to all!
From: wooddamon1
10-Nov-17
Awesome! Congrats to all!
From: TD
10-Nov-17
That was pretty special. Many thanks to many people all around. Congrats to all!
From: EagleeyeKyle
10-Nov-17
Little bull, a big cow and her calf
Little bull, a big cow and her calf
Day 2 is now in the books.
This morning Jeremy came along as an extra set of eyes while myself and Joe another client hunted moose. As we covered some of the same territory that Jeremy's bull came from we spotted 4 moose in total, 1 small bull, 2 cows and a calf. The bull was a bit on the small side. Here is a picture of the bull.
From: EagleeyeKyle
10-Nov-17
While out hunting we spotted a beautiful great grey owl. Tough to see but these birds of prey are big.
From: EagleeyeKyle
10-Nov-17
A look at one of the big willow flats that we were hunting around today. Beautiful early morning sky that turned into another great day.
From: EagleeyeKyle
10-Nov-17
At lunch today Jeremy and I setup one of our insulated box blinds that we use for the late season whitetail hunts. The box is setup looking over the area that we put all of our animal parts from the critters we harvest. Jeremy saw 2 coyotes during the sit this evening and took a shot at one but unfortunately missed. Tomorrow is another day and there is lots of coyotes.
From: EagleeyeKyle
10-Nov-17
We shared a lot of memories and laughs together the last few days, here in Alberta. I know we will share plenty more in the remaining 4 days.
Morning of Day 3 is just a few short hours away.
From: EagleeyeKyle
11-Nov-17
As day 3 is coming to an end and being remembrance/veterans day I would like to thank all of the members of our armed forces past and present for their service. Thank you all very much.
This morning Jeremy jumped in the truck that was after mule deer and he had a great morning. During the morning hunt he was fortunate enough to witness the harvest of a beautiful mule deer buck. Here's a look at the deer and one of Mike Ukrainetz's daughters mascots she makes when she comes to camp.
From: Charlie Rehor
11-Nov-17
Nice Mule Deer!
From: Mike Ukrainetz
12-Nov-17
Haha, that's great. You have to be less than 12 years old to even begin to understand what the heck a mascot is. It's a Five Nights at Freddy's thing, some sort of odd app. The mascots are very creative though, all made of paper. Guide Josh and hunter Steve brought it along for good luck! Always good to have some goofy fun while hunting.
From: orionsbrother
12-Nov-17
Congrats to Jeremy and a thank you for your service. And a big thank you to the selfless Bowsiter who donated his hunt. I hope that all goes well for you and you're back in the field soon.
From: Mike Ukrainetz
12-Nov-17
Here's a better pic of Steve's deer, grossed 180, lots of character too, a great deer for us nowadays.
From: expeditiontraders
12-Nov-17
Very nice. Congrats on a great hunt.
From: Medicinemann
12-Nov-17
Jeremy, Congrats on your moose, and for giving the donor one of his better days in quite a while......kudos to everyone involved.
From: Ambush
12-Nov-17
A lot of Winners represented on this hunt!! Great efforts and outcomes all around. Congratulations to all!!
Love the matching stickers on that fine mule deer!
From: Habitat for Wildlife
12-Nov-17
Congratulations!
From: Mark Watkins
12-Nov-17
Awesome story all around!!!
Kudos to you guys!!
Mark
From: EagleeyeKyle
12-Nov-17
a pipeline that we glassed for moose
a pipeline that we glassed for moose
Day 4 came and went with Jeremy helping out spot moose with us. We spotted 16 moose total but no bulls today. Today was filled once again with lots of laughs and plenty of stories shared. Tomorrow Jeremy and I are going to scout for mule deer and chase coyotes.
From: EagleeyeKyle
12-Nov-17
An owl we saw today
An owl we saw today
From: EagleeyeKyle
13-Nov-17
Frosty foggy morning
Frosty foggy morning
The weather has taken a turn for the worse here on day 5. This morning we battled heavy low hanging fog which reduced visibility to 100-200 yards max. We spotted some mule doe groups but the big bucks were not in sight. We headed back out after a warm bowl of chili for lunch to find the fog was replaced by a blowy snowy mess of an evening. We still managed to see several deer today, got a coyote and saw a few moose. Was another good day had by all especially hunter Joe that took a moose this morning. More scouting is in store for tomorrow.
From: EagleeyeKyle
13-Nov-17
Little mule buck 3x3
Little mule buck 3x3
From: EagleeyeKyle
13-Nov-17
From: Charlie Rehor
14-Nov-17
Enjoy the ride Jeremy!
From: Mike Ukrainetz
14-Nov-17
Joe Gillespie with his moose. This is Joe's 3rd big game kill in his life, he killed 2 bears with us in the spring. He just decided to take up hunting at 62 yrs old, and his wife booked the 2 hunts for him off her internet research. It's never too late!
From: EagleeyeKyle
14-Nov-17
Day 6 is in the bag and end of Jeremy's hunt is in sight. Earlier today he came along to scout for mule deer. We located several doe groups with a handful of smaller immature bucks but still no sign of the big boys. This young buck could turn into a stud in a couple years.
From: EagleeyeKyle
14-Nov-17
After the morning scouting trip it was time to get packed up and get squared away to head to town. We cut the moose skull in half to be able to get it on the plane safely with out any damage to the rack. The cut is made like a puzzle piece so the skull will fit back together nicely when the mount is done.
From: EagleeyeKyle
14-Nov-17
With the truck loaded and moose meat picked up from the butcher Jeremy and I headed off to Grande Prairie where he had a hotel room waiting. Unfortunately Jeremy has an early morning flight so we had to say our goodbyes tonight. We did however take a group picture of the 3 guys in camp before we left. Good looking bunch................of antlers.
From: EagleeyeKyle
15-Nov-17
In Grande Prairie now at the Holiday Inn with a cooler full of great tasting moose meat, box with a tremendous set of moose antlers and the memories and friendships made that will last a lifetime. Jeremy has a short night ahead of him before he has to catch his flight out in the morning back to Virginia and his family.
From: Charlie Rehor
15-Nov-17
First Kyle: You did a great job on Jeremy’s hunt and your Semi-Live hunt was terrific. It is special getting to know these modern day Heros.
Jeremy: You got to see some great country, animals and of course the wonderful folks of Alberta. GREAT Moose and thanks again for all you do!
Donor: You sir made it all happen and we all wish you the best. This was a very special gift to all in the Bowsite community.
From: EagleeyeKyle
15-Nov-17
Thank you Charlie for the praise but the donor and Jeremy deserve all the recognition for their selfless acts and courage. I just talked to Jeremy and he has landed back in Virginia and is currently on the finally stretch to his house. I am sure his kids are anxiously awaiting their dad to tell them the story of his trip. I know I had a great time this week with Jeremy and look forward to getting together in the future and continuing this friendship we made.
For the donor: Thank you for generously giving this experience to such a honorable foundation/man. It was a special gift to everyone involved. I feel privileged to have been a part of this and wish you the best. Thank you.
Thank you again to all involved in this making this hunt a success.
