I now have a CO bull moose tag in my pocket after applying for 25 years so this will be my first moose hunt. I have watched a ton of archery moose hunts on YouTube. I have investigated the few moose decoys available. Also, have viewed a few moose calling videos and types of moose calls. Our CO moose season is Sept 7 - 30. As you might expect, I have been successful on many of the CO big game species.
Questions are. 1. did you spot and stalk into range with out calling?
2, did you call into range, a bull using a call, bull or cow call and/or use antler scraping?
3, did you use a moose decoy like the Montana or Ultimate Predator decoys in conjunction with the hunt, to bring the bull into range?
4. were you solo hunting?
5. did you have a back- up caller or antler scraper behind you?
6. time and date of your bull moose kill
Thank you and My best, Paul
Yeah I had the dream of calling one in and all that romantic BS …… but opening day proved to be awesome!
Killed him on opening day September 1
Finally I noticed a spot where all the moose crossed the stream and put up a stand in a clump of trees nearby, and on my last available day, the unlucky paddle horn bull fed past me and took my arrow thru the chest at 6 yards. I was very pleased with him, as it was a solo hunt on public land and I got him with my recurve.
I used an old white moose scapula on my recent AK moose hunt to good effect; you should not be without one on your hunt!
You don’t need a caller or a decoy. Fake antler can be helpful, but a dried-out scapula works great for raking in the brush and even holding up to imitate an antler. Moose are kind of dumb compared to other species you call. If they decide to respond, they come in and ask to be killed.
I would maybe hunt first day but don’t be horribly disappointed if you don’t kill one. Best hunting is during the rut. You can call by yourself just fine. Probably better to have a caller behind you though. Spot and stalk is OK but once you’re close, rather than spook him by making artificial noise, which he will hear, give a cow call or soft bull grunts. Even just rubbing the scapula on brush will attract him. I usually start with the softest least obtrusive calling and if it doesn’t work get more aggressive until I either kill him or he runs off.
I’ve not noticed Shiras being any different than Alaska Yukon or Canadian Moose. All about the same from my experience.
If, like me, you want one that meets P&Y minimums, don’t shoot one that only has a spike for a brow on one side or the other. To make minimum almost has to have at least a fork on both sides.
Nyati, yes, that was very helpful. Thanks Paul
Are they “stupid”, or just un-pressured???
They basically have no natural predators, and if it takes 25 years to draw a tag, it’s a pretty safe bet that they aren’t call-shy… Maybe I’m the only one who remembers reading magazine articles relating stories of very Large bull Elk being called in with .270 cartridges or by leaning on the horn of an old VW beetle??
I have vivid recollections of one morning when a nice Shiras bull locked up on my brother like a bird-dog on point as my brother knelt behind the barrel of a borrowed .58 Enfield….. That dude didn’t know or care that he was looking to kick some Human Ass — he was just looking for an ass to kick snd my brother’s was handy. He learned Nothing At All about being cautious around people because basically, we let him win that day. Probably not a unique experience for bull Moose in CO.
@ Paul — best of luck with that once-on-a-lifetime tag. May your shoulders allow you to hunt with the bow that (in the words of the counterman at Poudre Valley Rifleworks) “sings a song to your soul”….
Find a moose calling thread with Tao on it!! Read it twice!!!
I killed this Wy bull spot n stalk. Spotted him with a cow and made a big loop around their location and slipped into about 40 yards. At about 60 yards, I ran out of cover but still never had a shot. After waiting them out for a bit, and then trying some bull grunts as well as some cow calls with no luck, I finally just eased slowly towards them, with them watching me the final 20 yards. The bull turned broadside and looked back at me as I shot. I haven’t hunted moose a lot, but my experience is somewhat similar to Bob’s and others, in that, on average, I don’t think they are nearly as spooky as other animals.
There won’t be any trouble finding a bull moose.
There was a 65 yr old gentleman from AZ who we met earlier who had a moose tag and was by himself. One night after elk hunting on the way back to camp I saw his light on so I stopped. He was bummed he had shot a good bull that morning but couldn’t find it. I told him I’d be back in the morning to help look for his bull. We hiked in about 2 miles or more and he showed me where he’d shot the bull. He thought the bull went north but after I looked at the last blood it was heading south. I tracked him on my hands and knees for about 400yds finding little pinhead size blood drops and was getting the feeling he made a bad shot. He stated that more than half the arrow was in the bull right behind the shoulder. I found where the bull had laid down and there was a pretty good pool of blood where the bull had bedded. I was following the blood again and come around a spruce tree and the bull is bedded 3yds and see me stands up with horns down and charges I dropped my bow and jumped across a little water pool with him bearing down on me. The hunter Jim had a clear open shot I yelled shoot him again. He was shooting a Oneida barebow. He shot him in the dead center in the hindquarters and the bull veered off to the left of me and went down hil into the trees. Jim wanted to go after him and I said let’s wait about. 20 minutes he’ll bed down. We laughed about the bull charging me and stated it would’ve been a great video moment. We start tracking the bull and go about 80yds and the bull is bedded. He’s pretty bad shape but head is still up. Jim gets about 20yds and puts arrow fatal arrow in him. Jim’s first shot was behind the shoulder but hit the edge of the scapula and only got one lung. I helped him quarter it up and stated your going to have to get packer, because one of us will break a leg or shatter a knee crossing the river on the slippery rocks.
I’ve hunted elk in a lot of areas moose inhabit and I’ve snuck in on them to with 20yds or less without them noticing me. I’ve had the come into my elk calls.
You’ll get opportunities just stay downwind. In my experience there not hard to sneak up on.
You know, it's bowhunting. Adapt on the fly. That's what you know how to do.
“Hunter: This moose hunting is so easy it’s almost a joke!
Guide: Yeah, but after you shoot, the joke’s on YOU!”
Hope you’ve got your Packer lined up ;)
Silent, quiet as I could be.
Good luck, Robb
As for your questions...my Shiras bull was taken on a solo hunt in Wyoming on October 3rd, 2013...with a bow, three days into firearms season. Made the decision to hunt the rut versus early season and it worked out. If I had to make that decision again, not sure I would hold out for the rut? The weather was absolutely terrible and deep snow prevented access to several areas that I intended to hunt.
Did not use decoys and didn't call much...mainly due to all the grizzly tracks in that area. Located my bull using fresh tracks in the snow which eventually turned into spot and stalk of the bull with a cow. Cover wasn't the greatest, and the cow eventually got nervous, but I was able to get into easy bow range with soft bull grunts (same as mentioned by Bob for a rut hunt). The bull was down within seconds...less than 40 yards from the shot. Great memories!
Best of luck come September! Can't wait to see your photos and read the hunt recap!!
First thing is wear a black hoody, you can add a dark hat and black face paint, don’t call in thick woods, call in the open, and you don’t need a caller behind you. You are the moose and act like one. Don’t try and sneak up on them, they hear too good and most times you will spook them off.
Call from a distance and let them see you, move around, go behind a tree, walk out, pretend to graze, strip leaves off the branches. Have a relaxed body language, no crouching, no hiding. Once you have their attention just stand there, most times they will come to you or after 5 mins or so will let you meander right up to them, very rarely will they run away.
Short pleading cow and calf calls in quite fast repetition is best. Lots of them. If the bull grunts and starts displaying he’s a dead bull, he will focus on his displaying and walk right up to you, he won’t circle to get your wind and he will turn broadside to display his body within 30 yds. You can just draw your bow whenever he gives a good close shot, no need to shoot over 30 yds. Good luck!
Here is a primer for the hunt story. It involves a medicine bag.
Even though I haven’t hunted moose in Colorado, Mike above makes a lot of great points. It took me a full day to learn and listen for those soft, suttle grunts. Being quiet was a huge part of my hunt experience while calling and listening. Cant wait to do it again!
CCovey. That is one heck of a bull!
We were able to stalk in on 2 bulls on the day he killed his. He missed one and then we went after another bull that he killed at 18 yards. We had the noise of the creek to cover a lot of our noise on the one he killed. I'm hoping to get a chance at the one he missed!
CO Sept 10 Mid morning Archery Bull - Did primarily spot and stalk. Heard no calling. I tried raking and grunting and had 1 bull come in over 4 days. Weather was hot and sunny which kept the moose in the timber. Hunted with 2 other friends with no setback calling. Just help scouting and monitoring areas. No decoy. The moose were not very spooky.
ID Panhandle Sept 30 Morning - Called for 7 days and he was the first bull to respond or that we even saw. He came from half a mile away across a ravine ready to fight and I shot him at about 50 yards. Hunted with a guide and they said it was hardest and worst hunt they'd had. All the moose shut up and disappeared the week I was there. No decoy. We did a small amount of raking.
My limited experience and conversations with other hunters points to the Shiras rut peaking the first of October. Early-mid september bulls dont roam much and can be scouted and stalked reasonably. Calling gets better the closer you get to October and the bulls move more searching for cows.
Stoneman's Link
I shot bulls in Colorado and Wyoming. Spot and stalk on one, called in the other. I sometimes used a cow decoy and was using it when I shot my Colorado bull. I'm not sure the decoy helped. I called in a number of bulls, mostly smaller but it was very exciting. Feel free to PM me for more info. Good luck
A bull with just a few points on each paddle with deep valleys is a very young moose.
Like mentioned above, you’ll want at least 2 brow tines on each side to get higher score as that is one of the measurements (from the valley of the brow tines to the upper most valley of the top points)
Another thing to look at is the dewlap. An older bull has a tendency to have a shorter dewlap as it gets froze and isn’t as long as a younger bull.
The unit Paul drew is the original place the CPW transplanted moose back in about 1978 - in the Taylor’s Draw.
Since then, the CPW has taken moose from that area and started new moose populations in other places. (They have also accidentally dropped and killed a moose from a helicopter during the transplant process)
https://youtu.be/U7jgOB1HC40?si=RXONDXQhQFTHGlSy
Bowboy's Link
I hunted Wyoming in 2020. Shot my bull on September 8th. Found the bull scouting in the summer. Spot and stalked. Had calls and a decoy but never used them.
Moose are funny, they will spook, then walk right up to you standing in the open. Unlike deer or elk that will exit the county. They are big animals up close, and bigger still on the ground. Jim was with me and his help quartering the animal and getting it the truck was a huge help. Shot my bull at 15 yards. Made it 50 yards before bedding down.
Mine made P&Y with just spike fronts and is 47” wide, Marv’s made B&C with spike fronts. While I agree forked fronts are better than spikes, palm width, points, and overall width are important too.
You’re going to have a blast. But as easy as they can be, they can be difficult to find too. Buddy hunted unit 16 last year for 30 days and only found one 5” spike bull and ate his tag, so don’t take scouting for granted. Find your bull this summer and kill him opening day. I scouted8 days for mine and took him the first morning of my hunt.
Craig, Cool moose hunt video. Paul
If score matters to you he's some rules of thumb I've seen based on B&C scoring more than 2 dozen shiras bulls.
Top 3 things in order that I look for in a good moose. 1 - Split brows- Adds to to your palm length score tremendously which is the largest % of moose score by overall inches accounts for 24-40 inches long per side. 48-80 points of 155 B&C Min.
2 - Lots of points 10 per side with not a lot of longer points smaller points equals older bull with filled in paddles from what I've seen. Easier to count points vs guessing palm width. 20+ points in overall score.
3- Palm width - skinny palms means younger bull see # 2 above. varies but 10-14 inches per side. 20-28 points out of the overall score.
If all 3 above are met the bull will likely be at least 40 wide and have decent enough mass. I wouldn't worry about overall width unless its a deciding factor on your perfect bull. To summarize- A split brow bull with 10 points will likely make B&C min score of 140. Good luck! Sandbrew
But got lucky and drew a WY tag about 12 years into applying. Arrowed a WY bull spot and stalk, hunting solo way back in '92. Had called a bigger one in the night before but didn't get a shot at him. No luck calling until Sept 22, then shot a different bull the morning of Sept 23rd. He woke me up several times during the night horning in the willows down in the creek bottom below my backpack tent. Just moved in on him at first light.
I did find that moose have about the best hearing (huge megaphone ears) of anything I've hunted. Now what they do with the information....well let's say the bigger they are the harder it is too spook them.
I was about backpacked about 5 miles in, but had arranged packing with a wrangler from a dude ranch that came riding by my camp with a group of "dudes and dudettes" a few days prior. Heck, horse packing out the bull was icing on the cake of a successful hunt!
Good luck and I hope you get a great bull !
Dennis, yes , thanks for the decoy and yes, a photo op with the decoy for sure. Paul
