BigGameHunt.net Hunting Forums

bushman · Joined: 03 Sep 2002 Posts: 1

I have hunted moose in Ontario for over 30 years,since the tag draws came out,I personaly have recieved 1 Bull Tag & 1 Cow tag,so our group have hunted a lot of calf,s.I feel the draw system is realy unfair in our province,some camps seem to get tags every year,yet others dont, Our MNR states it is the luck of the draw. But for you hunters that have ricieved a tag, ENJOY ! My four son,s have been hunting with me fo a few years now, Just beeing in the bush with them is worth more to me than a dozen tags,,So hunt and pass the know-how on to the next generation. Bushman

moderator · Joined: 27 Jan 2002 Posts: 6680

Hi Bushman, welcome to the forums!

I hear you on the moose tags and it just isn't Ontario. They are hard to come by nearly anywhere you go in North America. Check out the Canadian and Rocky Mountain boards, there have been people discussing the low moose percentages...

I agree with you though, just getting out is what is nice. If you can't get a tag, you can still get out and go for a deer or just go with another hunting party.

[ This Message was edited by: moderator on 2002-09-05 11:51 ]

scrimmy · Joined: 09 Nov 2002 Posts: 12 Location: Wayne J. Scrimshaw

I agree with you bushman. I have hunted moose all my life. I am now 48 and have 2 sons ages 21 and 20 who just started to hunt this year. I have taken them on some very successful deer hunts. So far we have filled 3 tags. We only have their buddies to fill if he can only put the arrow where its supposed to go. I strongly believe that most available tsgs for moose are given to the operaters of motels/outfitters in the North. I have always hunted moose with friends and set up our own camp. I have hunted Lake Onaping(70 miles north of Sudbury) and the Atikokan area. I have not been succesful in getting a tag for well over 10 years. The kiker is I know of a motel operator near huntsville who says if I pay him The $1200.00 for the 6 days he will through in a bull tag. You see my point!!

Renegade · Joined: 10 Nov 2002 Posts: 6 Location: NorthWestern Ontario

I hear you. If you want a better chance at a tag in Ontario you have to apply in areas that give you better odds. If your willing to travel. I'm considering going way north and try and get a tag in pool 2. I had a good year. Got two bulls around 4-5 yrs old. I hunt with a group of five. Deer hunting, was not a easy this year. Never filled my buck tag and I had a week in Shabaqua area near Thunder Bay to do it....oh well.

mixerman55 · Joined: 01 Mar 2003 Posts: 8

I agree the system is not fair at all they should alternate it you get a tag every other year bull one year cow the next none the next then back to a bull and so on what ever would make it a little more fair

AdkGuidesForHire · Joined: 26 Jan 2003 Posts: 17 Location: Saranac Inn, NY

It's always somthing though, when Vt opened it's season one of the guys drew a tag and got a nice cow, antlerles only his tag was, then he was not eligible for 5 years!

I have never drawn a tag and the next year he was eligible he drew one, the kicker here was he was doing the math wrong and he had to wait until next eyar!, not this year, so had to turn his tag back in once he realized he was under the wire.

you watch, he'll draw one next year, while I sit here with ME, NH VT and ontario permits filled out and nothing coming in, I even can't draw one in WY for pete's sake.

years ago we hunted newfoundland all the time, but it go tto be too much as we got older, so was the full day and night drive into canada, even from up here, but that looks like we'll be doing it again if we can get a tag.

moose hunters... we gotta be all crazy

sawman · Joined: 12 Apr 2003 Posts: 91 Location: central ontario

Well bushman your ahead of me since they came out with this system i have not got a tag or has the group im in (4).other groups in the same area seem to get them regularly.Others are like ours.I can,t count the # of bulls&cows we have passed up over the years.We to are going north to give it a try just plain frustrated.

Snake · Joined: 29 May 2003 Posts: 8 Location: Northwestern Ontario

The moose tag lottery system here in Ontario sure does have its frustrations but it is workable, especially if you use the group tag application system. There are 9 of us who hunt together(all friends and family encompassing 3 generations) and we have always had at least 2 adult tags every year, and of course are all eligible to harvest calves. We hunt west of Thunder Bay, and have found that if you're willing to get out of your truck or off your quad,and get back into the beaver ponds, lakes and old cuts, there are plenty of moose to be had. Early season calling has proven very effective for us. Last year in the first 4 days of the season we had the great fortune to call out 4 moose and harvested 2 nice bulls. My 76 year old father, who had not shot a moose in 3 or 4 years took a good bull at 200yds with one shot from his old Remington pump '06. The bull was busy thrashing the brush with his antlers in response to our calling and never knew what hit him. What a thrill it was to be a part of that.
As to the question of how much gun is enough for moose, the general rule of thumb we use is that your choice of calibre/bullet should deliver approx. 2000ft/lbs of energy at the distance you anticipate shooting the animal.That is of course to ensure a clean one shot kill from a properly placed bullet. On a large boned, thick skinned animal like moose we have found that premium bullets like Swift A Frames, Federal Trophy Bonded Bear Claws, Nosler Partitions and the like, tend to provide that extra measure of knockdown power to ensure quick humane kills. If there's a more exciting sport than moose hunting I sure don't know what it is. Every time we go out we learn something new, both about the moose and about ourselves. I can't think of a better way to spend time with good companions.

c_nelson7 · Joined: 29 May 2003 Posts: 1

My dad was drawn for the moose hunt in North Idaho this year. About 1 out of 9 people get drawn here. We get the big money back if we are not drawn, but the initial $6.00 they get to keep no matter what.

Anyway, he's gonna' let me shoot it. Probably so that he can say that I then have to pack it all out too, but I won't mind.

bitmasher · Joined: 27 Feb 2002 Posts: 2652 Location: Colorado

Good luck with the hunt, C_nelson7. Better watch out with that packing though. From what I hear you'll have your work cut out for you. :wink:

sawman · Joined: 12 Apr 2003 Posts: 91 Location: central ontario

well it finally happened drew a bull tag for the first time!

saskie · Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2003 7:03 pm Post subject:

Congrats. Perhaps some of you Ontario hunters can try and explain the whole moose lottery/pool system in Ont (since I'm moving there in 2 weeks). What are the differences between the pools, how does the group thing work etc etc?

sawman · Joined: 12 Apr 2003 Posts: 91 Location: central ontario

Saskie we finally had to apply for an area that is a 14 hour drive to get a tag.Now there is only two of us But one more would be welcome for it takes two to be guaranteed a tag that means with three we would get a tag for this area every year untill they changed the #s for a bull tag.When you move here post your location maybe we can get together for bull sesion or some fishin.

bitmasher · Joined: 27 Feb 2002 Posts: 2652 Location: Colorado

Congrats Sawman, good luck with the hunt.

guyrg · Joined: 03 Aug 2003 Posts: 2

My Question
Everybody knows moose population is going down since you's guy's come out with the draw sys.
Every body knows there’s a lot of poaching going on.
So how come nobody does anything about it.
We the hunters know that everybody tags out even peoples that do not hunt
so y don’t they make it a draw system give so many hunters a amount of tags or a single tag when that tag is gone out of the bush I can pretty well guaranty every body would be happy and the population would go up and pretty soon more tags and the real hunters
Will hunt not grandpas & wife sitting at home

Hey if nothing is done hunting is going out

This has got to be fix a lot more important then gun laws.

ps. no tag this year again its been ten years
a lot of hunters or thinking of going out of province to hunt
what a goverment ont. has the worst syst
Thanks Guy

[ This Message was edited by: guyrg on 2003-08-04 19:11 ]