The most sought after wild game
For a good number of years the same groups would return each fall for another week of tromping around in the woods or was it for the all night poker games which would carry on throughout the week, until one person ended up with IOUs around the table, essentially paying for everyone’s trip. Either way it was great fun at the time. Some of the more memorable events over the years would include a couple of brothers from Luseland area who had never hunted moose before. We set them up in an area where we knew moose to be and they were successful, dropping a mature animal. The location was close enough to the edge of the field so we said we would go for the front end loader rather than struggling to load it on the truck. Upon our return the boys had cut a trail in for the truck and by themselves had the moose loaded. Both Ken and I were flabbergasted at what we saw. This was a good example of the effect excitement and adrenaline can have on people, giving them strength they didn’t know they had, no doubt going home with stories their neighbours and friends may find hard to believe On another occasion Larry and his group from Kerrobert decided to splurge and hire Clarence, a First Nations guide. Clarence was one of the first local people I had hunted with. We spent a good number of days together exploring the bush around Ministikwan Lake. I had come to know his hunting methods and was confi dent he would put Larry onto a moose. Early one morning off they went heading for one of Clarence’s favourite spots. They were in the woods a short while when Clarence pointed across the slough, “there’s a bull.” Perhaps there were some willows in the way I am not sure. I do know that no lead left a rifle that morning and Clarence claimed that these fellows were going to drive him to drinking. Their hunt carried on into the afternoon when they spotted another bull. Unable to get a shot, the chase began following the tracks, trying to get another sighting. At one point they were very close and could hear the moose crashing through the woods. It wasn’t long until they came across a horn lying in the snow. A short way up the trail laid the other side. The moose had cast both horns, likely brushing them on the trees, as he escaped the pursuit. Although mid November seems a little early for animals to cast their horns, it does happen and on this hunt Larry and his crew were happy to take home the horns along with some embellished stories of chasing the horns right off the moose to driving their guide to drink. If you are a meat eater and have never tasted moose, it is by far the most sought after wild game. You can experience nothing better than a roast cooked slowly in a wood stove, producing the most succulent, yet savoury flavour, for your pallet. |
