"Bare" Hunting Adventures with Moosie....

It is kind of funny how hunting with Moosie never quite qualifies as "normal". If you read the Hunting Mags, the stories always start off with long hikes to gorgeous locations for glassing big critters....

Well, with Moosie, we started up to make a quick check on Bait Site T, as I had arrived into Moosie and the Mrs.' Camp just a bit late on Saturday. So I had the wonderful experience of speeding along mountain roads with a "Bare" skinned Moosie trying to change clothes in the front of the pick-up.

And as luck would have it, he was able to get himself properly covered up, just in time to pull into the gas station for a Diet Dr. Pepper and "Pizza Roll on a Stick". Then we were loaded back up, and headed to "T".

We carried one bag of grain into T, some more Jello, and some Grape Soda. It had rained for two days solid and had washed all the tracks out. But in the 12 hours since the rain had quit, there were fresh tracks at the Site. And much of the food at T was gone. The site has been getting whacked by a big one, as evidenced by the size of one set of tracks and the diameter of the pile of shit. I think it may have been 2" diameter.

We hurried back to the rig, and made a dash back to camp for a quick "Hi/Bye" and thanks for the Sloppy Joes, "We'll eat them in the pick-up"....

And off to Site C.....

We arrived at the normal parking spot, about 7:30, and there was an older 240DL Volvo at our spot, with a tent set up and two wimmin hanging around. Moosie said he would go impress them, and let them know what we were doing... ... I am not sure what the conversation was, but he came back rejected, calling them Lesbians....

We then headed across the river, and unlike the past few weeks, the 3 days of torrential rains had the river boiling. Probably the biggest we had crossed it, and no life jackets...

Moosie had been promising that something was going to Die, and as we had mistakenly put him in the steering position of the boat, it was now becoming appearant that something was going to die as we left the security of our eddy and into the main current....

Since It's Out, I'll blow it "OFFICIALLY". I shot the Bear that My dad shot awhile back. 14 days after he shot it. That was the only bear I wanted to shoot in the Last 14 days. We saw it 2 other times but wasn't sure it was the Same one till either too late or too dark in the day.

SO... We'll skip the 13 prior days and Start the Story....

After Setting up our camper in the Last spot in the campground Thursday night, Friday night was a Pleasant drive fighting traffic and not having a Trailer to pull behind us. Sitting under the Camper Awning, we watched the Rain drop down in Buckets. Opting not to go out I was bummed sitting only 2 miles from the Bait site and not sitting on it. The estimated 12 times I've been up prior in the season Driving 2 Hours Each way... Made the Rain seem even more Gloom as I was there knowing we've had no luck in the rain before...

So I awoke to the joy of it being only partly cloudy. Well... Actually I awoke at 6AM due to Kids screaming and Wanting to Go play And spent the rest of the Day Hiking to the river, Hiking trails with the boys and Wife and Just goofing around. Gunner rolls in around 5PM wanting to go check our Site "T". 2 weeks prior it still had over a ton of food there just like the 4 weeks prior to that, But I went.

I have a tendancy to want to stay in Shorts as long as Possible so dressing in the Truck into Hunting cloths is the Norm. I'm not sure why He was Bitchingthough, At least I wasn't driving this time

There was Poop at this site now and All the Food had been Eaten. The poop wasn't normal size, It's like the Size of Greenhorns poop after eating a Bowl of Oatmeal for Breakfast !!!!!

So we moved on and back to our Camp at 7:55 PM. I'm usually SITTING on the Site by 7:30 PM.... So we were Late, Very late. Gunner made it seem like we got their Earlier but we had to stop to Feed his Belly. Something about Power Par obsession and bran muffins... I think someone Made a Comment once on the site and Now he took it personal

At any rate, We show up to our big pullout in the Road and Some Campers are in there. Unlike a Trip in the Past were Gunner opted not to Cross the river because he didn't want to break up the Party, I opted to Go to the Camp and Let them know we were Launching a Boat and Bringing guns through their camp. There was no way I wasn't hunting 2 days in a row !!

So it happened, It was 2 granola Chicks wearing wool caps and Eating Dehydrated food. I politely Told them My Story and This is About how it went ....

"KNOCK KNOCK.. Excuse me, I just wanted you ladies to know we hunt across the River and need to cross it".

"You guys hunt ?" (At this point, I reaslised they must be of the Tree huggin Lamma licker type so I pulled out all the Enviro friendly cards I knew !!

"Yes mam, bears actually".

Now At this point I see the eyes get big and Both wanted to Know if I wass Tricking or if it was True...

"BEARS ?!?!?! ...

"Yah, we hunt bears and We cross the river to hunt them. No need to worry, they Never come over here".

(I knew they were Scared of bears by their reaction.)

"WW..WWHY don't they come over here ?"

"Ohh, The river stops them from crossing and the next crossing is 10's of Miles Away".

"Do you guys eat the Bears ?!?!"

Now, knowing they don't hunt and knowing I needed to get going I brought up Gunners Favorite line :

"Well, truth be told I don't actually eat the Bears. We hunt them because my Grandmother has a rare allergy that doesn't let her eat meat besides Bears and Rabbits, So we must be going".

With the Good luck to get Grandma the Food she needed We loaded up the Boat and Crossed the River.....

.....

And now, back to our Adventure....

We have actually found a pretty cool place to cross the river (if you don't consider the fact we have to carry this 150lb boat straight down a rocky bank). We are in a straight section of River with a natural choke point from both sides. This results in a pretty good tongue with a few bumps right in the middle of the river, and good eddy on each side.

The normal process is to carry the boat to about where the "gals" were doing their business, and then go down a slightly less steep trail. But, out of courtesy, I suggested we go straight over the bank where I had to park, about 50 yards away.

It was kind of one of those things where the guy carrying the front of the boat can see what he is going to fall and break his legs on, and the guy in back doesn't get to see what he is going to fall on...

In any event, we got the boat to the water and into the eddy, and proceeded to the top of the right-side eddy. The whole theory of this crossing is to use the eddy to go upstream, then do a quick eddy turn into the tongue, turn on the tongue, and then do a ferry move to the other eddy. It generally works pretty well.

But, we had a bit higher water than normal, (as in the flippin' river was raging) and for some reason, Moosie decided we were high enough up the near-side eddy, and he pulled us into the fast current. A few big waves splashing into the boat, a couple of weak paddle stokes (by Moosie) and we were about at the end of the tongue, soon to lose the eddies.

About 30 yards from the bottom of the eddy is a rippin' little Class III or IV rapid/drop. And in our plastic rectangle that Moosie calls a boat, it would not be a fun ride. And not having life jackets, cold water, etc.. etc..

Well, we did a couple of urgent strokes and barely got the nose of the boat into the bottom of the far-side eddy. Another 5 yards would have likely had a different ending. We then cruised up the eddy to the normal parking spot and unloaded the boat.

Since we were running late (probably my fault, but Moosie should know enough to expect me to be late, and he should compensate for it), we decided not to take any more bait into the Site. I strapped on my day pack with knives, camera, and bit of water. Moosie grabbed his Samonsite Luggage, and up the hill we went...

We got about 2/3 of the way up the hill, and got to a good place to watch the two gals... It was a tough decision, but we thought we better pass on looking for the "bare" skins, and instead, look for the "bear" skins.

We eased up close to the stump/tree that provides cover just as you crest the ridge. We had both jacked shells into the chambers, so were both ready to surprise anything that might be already on the bait site. And since it was now 8:15, we both knew that was a good chance.

Well, as Moosie crested the ridge, he spotted the Brown Bear on the bait. He quickly hunkered down, and I dropped my daypack. Moosie then turned back toward me, and I was sure he was going to tell me to take the shot at the bear. Ahhh, but I was wrong, as he told me to get his camcorder out and video HIM shooting the bear...

[ 06-11-2004, 17:25: Message edited by: Moosie ]

Gunner tells a Good Story and I can't argue much of the Details in this Version But I want to clear up a Few things...

1st, When it comes to Hunting one should NEVER be late.

2nd, the Rapids were Tough but it wasn't that bad, Being in the Back of the Boat I didn't get wet so I don't know what the Bitchin' was for

3rd, Any other Bear I'd of Passed the Bullet to whoever was With me but I wanted this particular bear, So If I'd say "SORRY" I'd be lieing.

We made the Trip up and As Wylee will back me up, I always (Even If I'm First, which "SOMETIMES" I make it up first ) I wait at the Last spot and Have the Other guy slip in to Shoot a bear if it's On the site.

Well We hike up, Me with my Samsonite luguage and Gnner with his Gun. Since we were late we (ME) Opted to Not bring in any Bait but would go up the Next day and Load it up myself, with noone to slow me down.

We crested the Last Little Vertical Face that we hike Bait up and I dropped my Bags to peak over the Little Stump thats in front of the BAit site... And What do I see ? BUT the Bear that has Been out of Shooting Range for the LAst 14 days. I sneak back a few Steps and Tell Gunner to Grab the CAmcorder, I thought What a Perfect ending.. Me, Loaded with my Match box bullets that have killed many an animal and all that was in the Way was air and a Few Branches to Blast through !!!

I lay the Gun over the Stump and Jack in a Shell, I turn the Scope up to 9x power and I see the Bear in Full form. It's behins a Few Branches but there is a Small opening.

I don't ever Look back to see if Gunner had the Camcorder but The Bear decided it was Time to Go. It was a shot through an Opening but I had to take it... (Have is such a strong word I know... But I had too ).

I pulled the Trigger and the Bear started rolling. It balled like a "SHEEP" and continued rolling. Did it again and continued rolling. I lost the view of the Bear and then Took off running. I missed the spot it rolled down but knew were the Bottom was so I cut across and sprinted downhill to to catch a Glimps if it got up. Gunner had the Cam corder on Just as I was Sprinting away and Out of sight. He filmed as he chased me down. It looks like the Blair witch project but It's a Good memory.

When I got to the Bottom of the Hill.... THE Real chore began, because the bear wasn't there

And now, back to our adventure.....

Moosie had carried up this huge piece of Samonsinte Luggage for some reason, and inside, I had to dig out this little tiny Camcorder in a Zip-loc sandwich bag. I have not a clue what else was in the Samsonite, but I open the Sandwich bag and try and figure out how to operate the camcorder. It is pretty small, and as Moosie says, anything bigger than your palm is a waste...

I have to be honest here , but I was trying to turn the Camcorder on with one hand, while sneaking in to shoot the bear over the top of Moosie's head with my Right Hand. One of my favorite movies of all time was True Grit, and I loved the scene where John Wayne is riding his horse across the meadow with a pistol in one hand, reigns in his mouth, and a rifle in his other hand. The Duke would have been proud....

So, just before I hit the Camera button and the "go" button, I hear the "boom" of the .300 sending a Match box toward the bear. I crest the ridge, and see the bear going ass over teakettle down the hill...

The place we have the bait site is in typicall Sawtooth country (ie... straight up and down). It is not too bad to walk on if you go straight across, as the soil is old decomposed granite, and you can get your boots to dig in on the side-hill. But, due to the extreme vertical nature of the land, going up and down is somewhat difficult.

Well, the bear was flying.... completely off his feet, hitting the side of the hill about every 10 yards and then bouncing 10 more. This was the same bear that just 2 weeks earlier had been rolled down the other side of the canyon, toward the same place.

Moosie side hilled it as best he could run, and I had the camcorder trying to film Moosie and the bear while running on the side hill. It definitely reminds one of the Blair Witch project...

Quickly the bear was bounced out of sight and then Moosie disappeared over the edge into the abyss...

[ 06-11-2004, 17:27: Message edited by: Moosie ]

Gunner, I had a few Hats, I was jsut at the Bottom of the Hill when we found the bear and the Hats and Caps were at the Top

I'm guessing you are the Only one that thinks my hats are Dorky... Trust me, they "ARE" as cool as I think they are .... Just ask me

Pictures Came out great, I'll post some in the AM !!! It actually looked bigger then the 3'8" we measured in the field

Con't on... As I ran After the Bear that Quickly dissapeared, I had the Fear of not being able to find it. I slid down several Sections that had been trampled several weeks prior. It's a Type of Hill that is Thick with Brush and a Moss type covered floor tward the bottom. You can't see your Step and One wrong step and You're on your Back but Sliding down this Vertical Face like you're still standing.

As I got to the Bottom I quickly jacked in Shell #2 and started pushing bushes trying to figure out what wass Fresh and What wasn't. I had a Million things running through my mind.

Now, A normal person wouldn't of tried to Beat a Rolling bear to the Bottom of the Hill but I wanted another Shot at it if it hit the Bottom and got back up. At that Point I'd be infront of it on the Down side and Could place the barrle in it's face and pull it.

Gunner was a Little Slower on the Trip down. He'll give you this "WISER TRACKING" crap but I think he's scared of bears actually. HEck, He's scared of Little Class IV rappids without a Life jacket, What a PUSS I say !!! At any rate, I crossed the Canyon on the other side which is Barren. We're baiting on a North(ish) facing slope that is Verry thick.

As I was Below, I hear Gunner saying there he is !! I swing the Gun around looking and He tells me never mind it's a Difffernt bear. OHHH great, Bears bears Everywere And Mine is not to be Found I thought

So the other bear runs off and I stand back looking at gunner 80 yards acros the Valley. He starts heading back up and I tell him were the Bear was Standing. He takes that trail and (Alright, It was about 30+ yards to the Right where I went down, but I was Blazing in a Hurry !!). So he takes the Right side of this minor Ridge that separates the two valleys about 30 yards appart. I head back into the Thicket Thinking I'll just bush Wack after Making sweeps across the valley. I hear him tell me "THERE HE IS" and I start the sprinting in that Direction through the Brush. Being on the Downcreek side i'm not sure if It's Running twards me, If Gunners going to shoot, or if it's dead yet...

I finally get the message that it's Dead. I ask How Small it is and He lets me know It doesan't have Milk on it's lips... but Probably just barely. Knowing it wasn't a Big bear I knew the Job of Taking pictures Was gonig to be Hard.

Since most of you spent the time reading this Post I figure I'd start with ONE picture tonight.. And all the Rest tomorrow :

Yes, Moosie was definitely excited, as you can tell by him forgetting many of the facts to the story. Luckily, I remember the story......

When we got to the bottom, it was getting a bit confusing, trying to separate the tracks/slides of the Bear from the slides of the Moosie. And this is the kind of country where going downhill is easy, uphill is impossible.

Moosie wasn't able to find the bear, so he quickly crossed to the open side of the hill. It was clear he was getting scared of the injured bear, so he wanted to get out into the open where the bear could not sneak up on him.

I then looked way up the opposite side, above Moosie, and a black bear went galloping across the open hill. I was almost sure it was a different bear, but it did cause a bit of anxiety, as it was moving fast.

We now knew this was not "ordinary" bear, as it had absorbed two shots from the .300s, and had not surrendered. Moosie just stayed over on the open side, looking ashen from fear.

I then hiked back up to the top, and came over to the right, and found about 3 sets of skids down the canyon. My guess is that any bear that has tripped going to the bait site also skidded down similar.

I kept trying to stay on the right side, and kept working my way down the canyon. There was not a single bear hair anywhere, nor a drop of blood. I was now looking for misplaced leaves and broken vegetation.

As I got to the bottom, I had to climb around a rock outcropping, using hands to hold on to the crumbling granite. I came out to the edge and peered over, and could see the bear. Given that the bear had already been shot twice, I knew bullets would not work, so I quickly pulled out my knife, opened the blade and stuck it sideways in my mouth as I prepared to reduce Moosie's bear into "possession"...

YEs Indeed.. I must of forgotten that part Gunner, The part with the Knife in the Teeth and all

Ovis, I'm not a great writer but am A Great hunter, that's why I bring others on hunts like this, I supply the Animals, they supply the story, And after reading Gunners version, It's Always the TRUE story to boot !!!

Next thing you know he's going to tell you he packed out the 4 ~ 1/4's himself while I watched ....

After quickly rendering the bear harmless, I whistled for Moosie and hollered to let him know that I found the bear. (Little did I know he couldn't hear me, and was now jacking a shell in the chamber, ready to make a "brush shot" at me... )

The spot where the bear was would have been difficult to find from the side, only from above could the bear be spotted. The North faces are sure greening up well this Spring.

Moosie then asked if it was big, and I answered back "It has a nice coat"....

Moosie finally got to the bear, and there was definitely an air of relaxation that came over him. It is always a bit anxious when looking for a critter that you have shot, and can't find. Nobody enjoys that feeling.

We then got the cameras out (yes, I was carrying both cameras) and started taking pictures. It must have been a long time taking pictures, as by the time we got the Video out, Moosie's introduction was "Well, It is the 29th of December and ....."

We decided to gut the bear then, and leave it overnight, as it was as cold in the hole we found him as back at camp. And in the morning, we could bring in the pack frames so that I could pack out all the Quarters myself.

We then hiked back up to the Samosonite, and headed to the river. We knew we had a bit of explaining to the two gals, and wanted to let them know it would be safe to sleep there, as we had dispatched the bear....

HEY Ovis.. We took a Picture just for you



Ten bears..... It's not my fault he spent 1/2 the Bear season in AK hunting bears...

Funny thing is I think it's a TOAD for this Area. You hear about the 300# bears but never see many of them in this area. I think People jsut try to Pack it out and think that a 120# bear is 300# as they are hauling it .. Hehe.

At any rate, We're heading back up Thursday to See if Wylee can Shoot one and to check the Film to see what else is in the area. Gunner is heading up to Site "T".

As far as Gunner being a Closet "HUGGER" Sometimes I really wonder about him. That being said I have see him Shoot geese (Most of mine is you believe his stories) and a pheasant once. And I have seem a 6 point bull in his house and Some Dang nice 'bou. That being said I never seen him pull a trigger on a Big game animal, Although He sure as Heck Hunts HArd for them.

Here is a Few More Pictures and I'm downloading a Few more shortly...

I know that MY name should be "GUNNER" with the "GUNS" I pack on my arms... But I won't change it quiet yet, But here's a Picture to show off my "GUNS"



I was Wearing sleaves till I flexed ... HEHE !!!

Anyways, Gunner was a Lier and I did Have a Hat, Here is another Picture :



Heck, Even BEA BEA wanted to Wear a Hunttalk.com Hat :



The Weather the Next day Walking into the Bait site was COOL. I pulled a Few Pictures From the Cam corder to Share....

Here is a Picture from were I shot. I'm at a Stump and Looking into the Bait site. It's on the Right and You can Almost make it out jsut to the Right of the Last FULL length tree you can See and Before all the Brush. It's Brownish color. The White Shirt Hanging from My Stand is a Scent dumper and I blasted through the Brush (I swear I had an Opening ) in between the Bait and the Stand somewere :



Looking down from the Flat stop that the Bait is At, Comtinuing down the Hill it looks like this :



Good luck finding ANYTHING in there !!!

Other then That I think all the details left are Crap, So I'll post a Picture of some :

As usual, Moosie forgets some of the best parts of the story....

After we decided not to pack the bear out the first night, we hiked back to the baitsite to grab the Samsonite and change the film on the trail cam. Then down the hill to the boat crossing.

This time, I got in front, and led us up to the top of the eddy, and then crossed into the main tongue and on over to the far side eddy. Piece of cake with a competent Captain. We decided to leave the boat by the river, and Moosie headed back up the hill to brag to the Gals...

We got back to the Moosie Palace, and Moosie had to tell Mrs. Moosie that they were having a slumber party, and I was staying over...

Mrs. Moosie, as the gracious hostess, made the couch in the middle of the trailer out into a bed, found some sheets and a pillow. I was set... except for the fact that Moosie was wired!!

He kept talking and talking and talking... I kept hinting about how late it was... about how nice it is to sleep in the mountains... about how easy it will be to pack out the bear after a night's sleep.... And he kept talking...

Finally, after I rolled over and pretended to sleep, he then went up front to Mrs. Moosie... And began talking...and talking...and talking

I managed to sleep for about 2 hours before the first "emergency" as one of the little Moose-gang members woke up crying... and then a bit later one fell out of bed... and then another one woke up crying (I think that one was Moosie)... and then Mrs. Moosie fell into a wall... and then more talking....

Finally about 5:30, I suggested maybe we should go get the bear, as sleep was not happening in that trailer...

So we loaded up, and headed back toward the Granola girls...

So Back to the Story....

When we decided not to hike the Monster of a Bear out I shot out from under him... .... We head back to the Boat. Gunner takes the Lead and Decides he wants the Front this time. Not Wylee and Me have Boated across this raging River at least 10 times with no Problem.. Gunners been across 1/2 dozen or so times himself...

Now, I don't describe things like Gunner but Picture me in the Back, Gunner in the Front, and the River coming at us from our right. So What does Gunner do ? He paddles on the Right hand side. I'm Paddleing on the Left and fighting 'Gunner the whole time and the Current. The first Big Wave Comes Crashing over the Front as he Dig's UPSTREAM into the River pushing us Ever so fast downstream...

We get over to the Other side and 'Gunner makes a Comment about my rowing. I ask what he was thinking and He said he was Rowing against the Current. I politly told (corrected) him that he was Rowing on the wrong side and He thinks about it and Then says he was Rowing (On the Upside) INTO the River pulling the Boat upstream....

Anyone that has any water ability knows that to fight the River you paddle on the Oposite side... That being said, I'll take the blame because Gunner cries easy

Knowing we had to phone Wylee we went back to the casa' and told Mrs Moosie I was letting Gunner stay. She said that dogs usually sleep outside but since it was a bit cold and He was wet from the Paddleing excersize he was doing she said he could sleep on the Couch. We finally get through to Wylee and Let him know and Head back.

The Wife lays out a Nice sheet and Blanket. And I give up one of my Pillows... Gunner having video taped some of the Bear hunt, I figured I'd watch the Video Clip. He jsut wanted to nap.... Something about a 10k Race earlier that day and BLAH BLAH BLAH... excuses, Hell, 10k is only 6.2 miles, he should have quit his Bitchin right ?

ANyways, I have the same Illness Greenhorn has. The night before a Big hunt I can't sleep. Heck Sometimes Greeny will be online or Call me at Midnight just to chit chat.. I have the Same thing after shooting something, To HAppy to sleep.

So I watch the Video and talk to Gunner, It's only like 11PM or so. Hell, Most nights we're up till 1AM and thats on a Work night... So After Seeing Gunner can't stay up I go to Bed and talk with Mr's Moosie. Although She Hates talking about hunting, She Enjoys it when I'm Excited. We talk for awhile jsut low enough that Gunner has to Strain to catch every other word or two. It was Pretty obvious with him Cupping his Hand on his Ear. Some one might mistake that for Covering his Ears but I knew the truth ....

Then, The night Kind of Happened like Gunner said. Little Parker Cried and Me and the Mrs jumped out of the bed to take care of him because We were worried Gunner wouldn't get his Rest. And he's a Craby butt if he doesn't get his Beauty sleep.

So With the batteries going dead on the trailer, There weas something wrong with the HEater. Every time it cicked on, About every 20 mins I'd have to Jump up and Check things out. I tried Hooking it up to the Truck and Running it that way for an Hour but didn't work well either. So I didn't sleep well from 2:30 till about 5:30.

I sat on the Table at 5:30 Looking at gunner... He tried to pretend I wasn't there then Pretended he wanted to get up. I knew Staring at him while he was Sleeping would work

Unfortunately for Gunner, his Granola Dykes were sleeping in that morning.