Well, it has been quite the summer and fall. From a 70,000+ acre wildfire ripping through the majority of the trapline to a flooded landscape for the fall hunt we have hit both sides of the spectrum. Haven't been able to see most of the trapline except for a couple arials but I think most of the new trail I cut and pole sets I made last year are gone along with all the older pole sets. I do take all my big traps and conibears out so at least I didn't lose all my traps. We'll see after freeze up the extent of the damage. I do have another trapline that I should still be able to do something with this winter.

My oldest shot her first moose this year. The young bull provided a good opportunity and died on dry ground which was hard to come by. He fell just 15 feet short of the watery depths. I also had some success after putting in 20 days calling moose. I had many close calls before that but couldn't seal the deal until 2 days before the end of the season. I have been trying for a mature boar grizzly for several years and finally was able to connect this year. The freezers are full and got to share as well.

Congrats. Very nice moose and bear.

Congratulations on the full freezers ! My dad warned me against moose hunting he said a moose doesn't know how to die on dry ground normally ha ha .

What did you're bear square out to ?

Nice. It's hard to pass up them big horns, but I'd rather eat that one your daughter got. Not that I've ever had a bad moose, but those young ones are tasty and tender.

Congratulations on all your hunts! Persistence pays off.
Hope you are able to salvage at least part of your main trapline, and glad you have a backup. Good luck!

Allan- The bear squared at just over seven and a half.

bearcat2- I agree. The amount of meat between the two though is quite a bit. We had some moose steaks from hers the other night. Most tender moose I have eaten.

ak viking- It may be a year of remaking and cutting trail. I am curious to see how much sign there will be (or won't be) when I am able to get out there.

Hopefully the hide looks as nice as what we can see in the picture , darn nice claws too !

Granted I'd have a tough time deciding which moose to shoot of those two bulls , it would boil down to which is easier to get out to the boat or 4 wheelers .

Thank you for sharing with us !

Fantastic! Nice moose and love the fat brownie even more! Kids are getting big! Good luck trapping.

True, whether we are talking moose or elk it is amazing the difference in the amount of meat between a young bull and a mature one. I guide elk and so I generally pack out quite a few, as well as my own. There have been a few times when I was really wishing it was a smaller bull shot by the time I got it out. But it is nice to have that extra meat in the freezer.

Wow, what a great season. Congratulations

when you say you pack out elk, what does that mean? I see many western state do not require all the edible meat to be salvaged or packed out.

The bear was fat! My wife rendered down the majority of the fat and stores it in jars in the freezer and fridge. She has been using it for cooking. Fried some burbot in it the other day and had no adverse flavor. Not all grizzlies are that way.

Unfortunately, the hide is not great but I will keep it or give it away anyway.

I mean packing it out on my back (packboard). Depends on state and what is considered edible. Here in Idaho the regs state that you must pack out all edible meat (deer, elk, moose, antelope, sheep, goat. You are not required to salvage meat of bear, cougar or wolf) of big game. Not including rib meat, or meat on the legs below the knee, meat of the head or neck, internal organs or meat on the bones after close trimming.

Generally I take the quarters with leg bones (knocked off at the knee unless the client wants the hooves, and yes I've had more than one want them to make a lamp or something out of) and remove the backstraps, tenderloins, and neck meat. Leaving the spine, ribcage, and pelvis in the woods. If I am doing it for myself the liver, etc. is left in the gutpile with the rest of the guts, I will pack out the liver and heart though if the client wants it. So no I don't pack out the heavy bones or hide, but I do pack out all of the meat with the exception of that between the ribs. Personally I don't eat the neck meat off a rutting bull, and generally warn a client to keep it separate from the rest of their burger meat, but it does get packed out unless it was neck shot and is full of bone fragments.

Generally salvage meat from bear and cougar also, even though not required. I won't eat a bear that has been eating rotten stuff however, so it is nice to not be required to salvage meat I'm not going to eat. A lot of our clients don't want the meat off bear or cougar, but there is usually somebody local who will be happy to take it.

Thanks bearcat2, that was very educational. I never knew people don't like rutted bull meat. I have ate dozens of bull moose that were in rut and tasted fine. Yet a bull caribou in rut. None if his meat is even edible.

I have hears that about rutty caribou from several sources. That was why the few times I flew from Juneau up to Iliamna specifically for caribou, I went in August. Bugs were brutal, and keeping the meat cool was a challenge, but the meat was excellent. That was back when the Mulchatna herd was flourishing, right before the crash.

I was talking elk specifically there, and I can only recall one rutty elk where the entire elk was bad, but that was back when I was a kid and it is possible it was the way the meat was handled (by an uncle) but the neck meat on a rutting bull is often very, very strong. I can eat it, but don't enjoy it, and it takes a strong stomach to do so if you are in the house while it is cooking. Shortly after we were married the wife cooked some, and wanted to know what she did wrong, lol! Therefore, personally, neck meat off a rutting bull is canned for dog food, but neck meat off a spike or none rutting bull is ground up for burger and is fine. Every bull elk I have taken care of myself and eaten has been tasty whether in the rut or not, with the exception of the neck meat. The few moose I have eaten have all been good, whether in rut or not, but since the moose I have eaten can be counted on one hand, that really isn't a very valid observation. Deer on the other hand, whitetails seem to be decent eating whether in rut or not, a rutting mule deer or blacktail on the other hand can get pretty rank, with blacktails being the strongest while in rut, in my experience. Still edible, but I recommend making most of it into sausage or seasoned burger if you can smell it walking up to it.

Never eaten caribou, but have heard that exact thing about caribou, that it is good unless in rut, and then it isn't edible.

A wise older gentleman (trapper) gave me some super advice about caribou meat many years ago...

"When it comes to caribou, take young bulls in August, or cows in January or February. The rest of the time, if you want to eat something that tastes like bad liver, just buy some liver and leave it out to sour!"

I have since then subscribed to that theory and NEVER been disappointed!

Pete

Excellent job, cool pics