Montana Wolf - The waiting is over!
- Thread starter Big Fin
- Start date
thecrittergitter
Well-known member
well.........................Randy is better at the write ups, sure he will get an update soon
npaden
Well-known member
Hope that wink means there's is one less wolf eating elk this winter!
FishN4Eyes
Well-known member
well.........................Randy is better at the write ups, sure he will get an update soon
You bastard! This better be good!
Lawnboy
Well-known member
Confounded!! We need an update.
Lawnboy
Well-known member
Dont you live next door? You could run over and see what has happened
Not quite but I'm about to head over hopefully he's not getting some "welcome home smooches"
I had the update posting, but the new Qwest DSL line is a piece of junk. It drops the connection about every ten minutes and when I hit "Post Reply," it timed out. I am about ready to choke the nest Qwest person I see.
Sorry for these delays.
Sorry for these delays.
Bowhuntrben
Well-known member
You're killing me, Smalls!
The Hedgehog
Well-known member
My guess is a wolf came around, hungry for a recently advertised salami.
Brandenbowhunter
Well-known member
well....what happened...I like my verizon!
JohnCushman
Well-known member
the suspense is killer...lol
gman82001
Member
- Joined
- Aug 13, 2011
- Messages
- 357
Thank goodness the kid had her tonsils out and I don't have to work tomorrow..lol
Summitthunting
Well-known member
Watch football, hit refresh, watch football, hit refresh, repeat as necessary.
This day started like the last four. Up at 4:15 am, pick up Loren at 5:15, Critter at 5:30 and head to the hills, returning around 7:30 pm each night. Long days, and I will admit to being pretty worn down after this week and this season.
When we got to the trailhead, it was much colder than past days. -7F when we left the truck. I dress very light, even when it is this cold, when I know I will be lathered up from a long hike. Had a Zip-T Merino Wool top, a Traverse Zip-T, topped off with a vest. Was very chilly while standing around packing and loading my gear for the day. After abotu five minutes on the trail, things were heating up just fine, though my cheeks were about ready to freeze.
We headed for the same spot we saw the five wolves on Friday. Just seemed like the best place to be away from the road traffic and given the amount of wolf tracks through that drainage, was the best idea we could come up with.
As we got close to the ridge top, we stopped to catch our breath. I though I head some howling to our west. Loren heard the same. Critter thought it might be another hunter. Then, all hell broke lose. There were four or five wolves howling at all times, sounding like they were on the ridge we climbed the first day, only to be fogged out by poor visibility.
It didn't take us long to decide we would give back our elevation and cross country over to another ridge that would give us full view of those hillsides and cover the escape landes they might take if they headed east, southeast, or northeast. If they headed west, NW, or SW, we would have no chance. A 50% chance is very good odds when talking about wolf hunting.
We got there before the sun crested the eastern ridges. We were lathered up now. So much for taking it slow and trying not to get any sweat. I tried my best to glass as the half moon in the clear sky illuminated the snowy hillsides. The perspiration coming up from my vest collar kept fogging my binos. Very frustrating when you are confident the wolves are not too far away.
We glassed until the sun was up and fully hitting those hillsides. The wolves had howled hard for about ten minutes, then shut up. They had howled long enough for us to get a good bearing on them, but they seemed to have moved off.
There was the standard fare of road hunters right at daylight. In the far distance you could hear the whine of vehicles, slamming of car doors, and noises general associated with motorized travel. Whether that is what shut the wolves up, or if they decided to quite down after daylight, I don't know. Whatever the reason, they were not howling, and had stopped howling before we got to this ridge that gave us such a good glassing vantage.
We stayed on the glass for an hour, sure they would be moving. Then, thinking they may have bedded in a patch of timber, we decided Critter should try a howling sequence. He did. No luck. No replies and no wolves moving about. He did spook away a cow/calf moose pair and a couple of bull elk. Guess they thought he sounded like a wolf.
This is only a guess on my part, but I suspect the wolves moved west, a direction we would never see them. There were far more elk to our west and if they were hungry, that seemed like the best direction to move. And, it took them further away from the traffic of vehicles and snowmobiles. Who really knows? I do know they were not on those ridges when we got there. We had laid some heavy glass on those hills, and if they were moving through, we would have caught a glimpes of one of them.
Given the benefit this location provided, we decided to set up shop there for the day. It gave us view of these ridges and the two big drainages below us, one of which was plastered with wolf tracks earlier this week. And, it allowed us to keep an eye on the hillside where we saw the five wolves on Friday.
Since it was much colder this morning, I announced the fire would get started right away. Given how Critter looked pretty chilly, he was quickly gathering dead sage. When we had gathered what seemed like a coupel cords, I pulled out the Trioxane and my lighters. In short order we had a good fire going. Amazing how much a fire helps the mind and body when you know you will be out for the entire day in tough conditions.
Around 10:30 we realized that moving wolves was unlikely at this time. They were probably bedded. Given we had a ton of TV stuff to crank out, we spent the next three hours doing interviews, sponsor clips, and capturing shots on the "Shot List."
We saw one other hunter in this travel restricted area. He may not have been a hunter, as we could not see a rifle at that distance. But, I am at a loss for what else he would be doing out here. The steady stream of vehicles and snowmobiles could be heard, but not much of a concern where we were at.
We sat there all day. We glassed until our eyes could stand no more. We would take turns on firewood detail, while the otehher watched the hills for moving wolves. All in vain.
Finally the sun dropped behind the western moutains and with it went any chance of us capturing a kill on film. We stayed until it was way past shooting light, heading back to the truck with headlamps.
This was a learning experience for all of us. We had no previous wolf hunting experience. We are going with the "trial and error" approach. Given we saw wolves on two of the five days, it was a better outcome than I expected.
It gave me an appreciation for just how challenging these wolf hunts are going to be. How much work it will take. How much country there is to find the few packs that are around. And it showed me just how much fun it can be.
We worked very hard. A little luck can go a long ways on a hunt and I think that luck will go a very long ways on a wolf hunt. Good luck has been hard for us to find this season, but we worked as hard as we can.
With this hunt, another episode ends with no kill on tape. And with this hunt ends the most difficult season of the four seasons we have filmed. We have had most anything you can think of happen this year. It will all be a learning experience that will help us overcome the challenges that arise in future years.
Almost thinking of putting together a "Worst of OYOA" to show how many strange things can go wrong when cameras are invovled. Seems it would be a fitting twist to the normal "Best of" episode. Guess when it airs next year, with all the warts and bumps, we will see how important the kill shot is to our viewers. Whether they are intrigued by the story and struggle, or if an animal must die to provide them a reason to watch a hunting show.
Thanks to all of youf or your support and encouragement on this hunt and this season. Thanks to Matt and Loren for making this hunt a great episode.
I think this one will be a good one, regardless of a kill or not. Critter and I both intend to hunt wolves until the season ends or quotas fill. When I go, I will have a camera with me. I doubt I will capture a kill shot, but is so lucky to take a wolf, I will use it to talk about the stalk and film the recovery. And, show you how excited I will be to punch my tag.
A few pics from another day in the wolf woods.
I need to say no more.
The sunrise was so cool with the hoarfrost on everything, I had to take a couple minutes from glassing to take a few pics.
A first class fire that anyone would be proud of. The sun was setting and the chill was coming our way. The fire helped us hang out for another twenty minutes.
The sun setting on a great hunt with great guys. More wolf hunting to come in a week or so.
When we got to the trailhead, it was much colder than past days. -7F when we left the truck. I dress very light, even when it is this cold, when I know I will be lathered up from a long hike. Had a Zip-T Merino Wool top, a Traverse Zip-T, topped off with a vest. Was very chilly while standing around packing and loading my gear for the day. After abotu five minutes on the trail, things were heating up just fine, though my cheeks were about ready to freeze.
We headed for the same spot we saw the five wolves on Friday. Just seemed like the best place to be away from the road traffic and given the amount of wolf tracks through that drainage, was the best idea we could come up with.
As we got close to the ridge top, we stopped to catch our breath. I though I head some howling to our west. Loren heard the same. Critter thought it might be another hunter. Then, all hell broke lose. There were four or five wolves howling at all times, sounding like they were on the ridge we climbed the first day, only to be fogged out by poor visibility.
It didn't take us long to decide we would give back our elevation and cross country over to another ridge that would give us full view of those hillsides and cover the escape landes they might take if they headed east, southeast, or northeast. If they headed west, NW, or SW, we would have no chance. A 50% chance is very good odds when talking about wolf hunting.
We got there before the sun crested the eastern ridges. We were lathered up now. So much for taking it slow and trying not to get any sweat. I tried my best to glass as the half moon in the clear sky illuminated the snowy hillsides. The perspiration coming up from my vest collar kept fogging my binos. Very frustrating when you are confident the wolves are not too far away.
We glassed until the sun was up and fully hitting those hillsides. The wolves had howled hard for about ten minutes, then shut up. They had howled long enough for us to get a good bearing on them, but they seemed to have moved off.
There was the standard fare of road hunters right at daylight. In the far distance you could hear the whine of vehicles, slamming of car doors, and noises general associated with motorized travel. Whether that is what shut the wolves up, or if they decided to quite down after daylight, I don't know. Whatever the reason, they were not howling, and had stopped howling before we got to this ridge that gave us such a good glassing vantage.
We stayed on the glass for an hour, sure they would be moving. Then, thinking they may have bedded in a patch of timber, we decided Critter should try a howling sequence. He did. No luck. No replies and no wolves moving about. He did spook away a cow/calf moose pair and a couple of bull elk. Guess they thought he sounded like a wolf.
This is only a guess on my part, but I suspect the wolves moved west, a direction we would never see them. There were far more elk to our west and if they were hungry, that seemed like the best direction to move. And, it took them further away from the traffic of vehicles and snowmobiles. Who really knows? I do know they were not on those ridges when we got there. We had laid some heavy glass on those hills, and if they were moving through, we would have caught a glimpes of one of them.
Given the benefit this location provided, we decided to set up shop there for the day. It gave us view of these ridges and the two big drainages below us, one of which was plastered with wolf tracks earlier this week. And, it allowed us to keep an eye on the hillside where we saw the five wolves on Friday.
Since it was much colder this morning, I announced the fire would get started right away. Given how Critter looked pretty chilly, he was quickly gathering dead sage. When we had gathered what seemed like a coupel cords, I pulled out the Trioxane and my lighters. In short order we had a good fire going. Amazing how much a fire helps the mind and body when you know you will be out for the entire day in tough conditions.
Around 10:30 we realized that moving wolves was unlikely at this time. They were probably bedded. Given we had a ton of TV stuff to crank out, we spent the next three hours doing interviews, sponsor clips, and capturing shots on the "Shot List."
We saw one other hunter in this travel restricted area. He may not have been a hunter, as we could not see a rifle at that distance. But, I am at a loss for what else he would be doing out here. The steady stream of vehicles and snowmobiles could be heard, but not much of a concern where we were at.
We sat there all day. We glassed until our eyes could stand no more. We would take turns on firewood detail, while the otehher watched the hills for moving wolves. All in vain.
Finally the sun dropped behind the western moutains and with it went any chance of us capturing a kill on film. We stayed until it was way past shooting light, heading back to the truck with headlamps.
This was a learning experience for all of us. We had no previous wolf hunting experience. We are going with the "trial and error" approach. Given we saw wolves on two of the five days, it was a better outcome than I expected.
It gave me an appreciation for just how challenging these wolf hunts are going to be. How much work it will take. How much country there is to find the few packs that are around. And it showed me just how much fun it can be.
We worked very hard. A little luck can go a long ways on a hunt and I think that luck will go a very long ways on a wolf hunt. Good luck has been hard for us to find this season, but we worked as hard as we can.
With this hunt, another episode ends with no kill on tape. And with this hunt ends the most difficult season of the four seasons we have filmed. We have had most anything you can think of happen this year. It will all be a learning experience that will help us overcome the challenges that arise in future years.
Almost thinking of putting together a "Worst of OYOA" to show how many strange things can go wrong when cameras are invovled. Seems it would be a fitting twist to the normal "Best of" episode. Guess when it airs next year, with all the warts and bumps, we will see how important the kill shot is to our viewers. Whether they are intrigued by the story and struggle, or if an animal must die to provide them a reason to watch a hunting show.
Thanks to all of youf or your support and encouragement on this hunt and this season. Thanks to Matt and Loren for making this hunt a great episode.
I think this one will be a good one, regardless of a kill or not. Critter and I both intend to hunt wolves until the season ends or quotas fill. When I go, I will have a camera with me. I doubt I will capture a kill shot, but is so lucky to take a wolf, I will use it to talk about the stalk and film the recovery. And, show you how excited I will be to punch my tag.
A few pics from another day in the wolf woods.
I need to say no more.
The sunrise was so cool with the hoarfrost on everything, I had to take a couple minutes from glassing to take a few pics.
A first class fire that anyone would be proud of. The sun was setting and the chill was coming our way. The fire helped us hang out for another twenty minutes.
The sun setting on a great hunt with great guys. More wolf hunting to come in a week or so.
drahthaar
Active member
Well, you've seen two more than me ya bastages!!
I am at a loss. Feeling kind of stupid. Sounds like those wolves you are chasing have a ton of people after them. I think it smartens them up quick.
I am at a loss. Feeling kind of stupid. Sounds like those wolves you are chasing have a ton of people after them. I think it smartens them up quick.
Brandenbowhunter
Well-known member
Keep at it...we need to take a few of these things! Nice read and great pics!
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