Calling moose from islands
Moose
How big is the lake? Calling from a canoe while paddling along is a good way to hunt lakes. Cover several miles, then come back doing the same from very close to shore so you have time to set up if you get a response.
Hopefully, Tao will respond to this thread....
The thing that concerns me about that is the likelihood of having a moose die in the water. I try to avoid that if possible. All I can see is that picture of T roys bull nuts deep. Ugh!
Butchering a moose in the water is far easier than on land, if you know what you are doing. I've done it a handful of times, with little to no help and it's very easy to move them around. Willie is right, that's great news as well!
Water water isn't as big a problem as swamp or muck. If you remember the video from my brother and my's hunt we called two different bulls across a fast flowing river roughly 500 yards wide. Moose swim like they're born to it. We have many small lakes here in Manitoba and moose swim just as easily as walking. Don't worry at all about making them cross water to you. Floating them around is also easy if they are floating. Getting good pics is really tough if they're in the water. My archery moose under my trophy pics died in the middle of the river. Pictures are super important to me so we spent a heck of a time getting him mostly out of the water for pictures. If you're handy with a knife and have diced up a lot of critters you don't need to see where your hand is to know what you are doing. Just go slow and careful. Just fyi if you let the air out of them it is possible to sink them.
Mule.........I didn’t mind at all!!!
Bruce, on the other hand ;-)
Solo hunter + dead moose + in the water = no bueno.
Moose are related to Michael Phelps. No issue taking to the water ;)
That’s what I’m thinking Kevin. I’ll take dry land unless I’m fishing boating or swimming.
I had a bull standing broadside at 15 yards last September. His front hooves were in the edge of the water and I elected to pass the opportunity. But that's me.
Any concern about the bacteria in the water?
t-roy's looks like something somebody from Iowa would do! ( I haven't gotten over it yet! Troy knows what I'm talking about) Nice moose though!!
There’s always next year, Chuck;-)
Meat is usually better when you marinate it!
Tradmike.....I never had any issues at all, from eating the meat. Like Nick alluded to, it wasn’t too bad quartering the bull up while in the water (one side of it at least) We did a very good job of keeping it clean, and for the most part, completely out of the water after skinning the right side of the carcass. We skinned half of the bull as we worked our way back, pulling the neck meat, front shoulder, loin, and then the hind quarter, working from front to back on his right side. We then gutted the bull to make him lighter, then pushed and floated the remainder of the carcass as close to the bank as we could. We positioned the bull’s head on the shore and, basically used his antlers as a lever by getting behind and pushing on the backs of the palms, pushing his chin and brows down into the mud. We leveraged him up onto the shore, a foot at a time, until we had him completely out of the water. A come-along would have been a major help.
I have been guiding since 1990 and some of my favorite set ups are islands...Richard's Island on Borel Lake was my first very successful island setups....with 7 harvested bulls off it in the 11 years that I was there....you could hunt it with any wind..... the island on Beaver Trap Lake was another.....I always have a island set up
I called in a Bull from Richards island on Borel, but we didn't get a shot. very cool watching the set of antlers swim across the lake
I know I am still impressed be the memories of how readily a moose walks into the water without hesitation and swims.
