Hunting The North Where Adaptation Is Key

Hunting is about adapting. There are so many variables when it comes to hunting big game in the north that you have to not only be able but willing to scrap your plans, and to keep trying until everything aligns. Whether it is the weather, game movements, camp location, horses, crews, aircraft, or gear, we are always working at something. Our ability to problem solve is a daily evolution that keeps us on our toes and is the secret recipe for success.

This week we shared an Instagram story from behind the scenes of a Moose and Caribou horseback hunt from the fall of 2019 with client Bill Finch, Dustin Roe, Owen Blackmore, and Nick Marchiando. If you were following along, you couldn’t help but notice the variety of weather that the crew encountered, and how they were prepared for the change in weather from mild to snowy temperatures. Sometimes they had to deal with horses that were taking an impromptu hiatus where the crew had to disperse so that Owen could find the horses, and the guys could keep hunting.

Our country is diverse up north and ever changing. To remain successful, we too have to change with the seasons and learn from the patterns of our game.

Moose and caribou live in a diverse topography of high buckbrush plains to hidden meadows surrounded by a fortress of trees. In the early season when they are both pushing out velvet, they tend to be higher up on the hillsides. Sometimes the caribou will be spotted moving to and from snow patches or glacial remnants and can be spotted bedded high up on ridgelines, escaping the hordes of bugs in the cool mountain thermals. Early season moose typical will be high in the timberline and can be found living up drainages where willow brushes are plentiful, but usually don’t stray too far from swamps or lakes that offer grasses and other moose menu delicacies. As fall creeps onto the horizon, and the rut begins to kick in, both species will begin to move. As hunters, we learn to intercept them and figure out how to hunt through all stages of the season. ‘Rut Hunts’ are made popular due to the animals’ potential to be moving around and actively calling in search of a mate. But some times a perfect hunt date can be just as hard as a ‘less poplar’ pre-rut hunt date. This can be largely due to a warm front moving in making the animals move during the cooler evening temperatures. Or like us, they will bed down or go for shelter when storms blow in and the weather is less than favourable.

Regardless, whether you are hunting dates that are ‘pre-rut, rut, or post rut’, going in with an open mind is the key for success.

Some of the best animals we as guides and outfitters have harvested with clients have been ones that we have bumped into on the trail. Most of the time it’s been when we are packing through the country on route from one camp to the next. Much like Bill Finch and the crew, you learn to never look a gift horse in the mouth when you come across a dandy caribou like these fellas did.

We always aim to have our gear ready and handy at any moment as you never truly know what is around the next corner. Depending on what part of the area you are hunting, the ability to get high to call and glass is usually a priority. It’s like taking educated guesses to help decide where you are going to move to next depending on what you see and hear. If the weather isn’t cooperating and you aren’t seeing the game move as freely as you would have hoped, sometimes the need to pack up and spike out to a new location is in order.

The secret to success on any big game hunt is the ability to read the weather, the game and your hunting party to address what areas you can change if the first few efforts are not successful in a hunt. There is always a chance, and being willing to move away from creature comforts will aid in long term success rates.

If you ask anyone, and most would say they’d rather be lucky than good! But when all else fails, and weather rolls in for a bit, you can count on rekindling your childhood ‘fort building’ days and learn to enjoy the simple things. There’s an art to making a glassing spot just perfect and on a dank day, there’s nothing finer than nestling into a patch of trees while you sip a fresh brewed coffee and play a hand of cards between glassing. After all, this is hunting, and not shooting. It’s all about making light of the situation and learning to have patience. Animals have been crafting their use of terrain for a millennia, so give yourself a little time and grace to look over the horizon before you move vantage points.

 When the game of cat and mouse is done and a tag is punched, grace and braun come into play, especially when a moose is on the ground. Next Monday we are are going to be touching on all of the hard work that comes with tagging out on one of these majestic animals, and why you should give your pony an extra pat the next time you are getting lugged from one spot to another! Until then, we hope you are enjoying the journey with us on our social pages.

– The Team at Backcountry BC and Beyond