[SHOOT1SAM]

Howdy,

Was wondering if anyone has some tips for hunting moose in SE Idaho?

I keep finding pretty fresh droppings up on the hillsides, although most people I talk to say to stick to the water. The problem is that the vegetation around the streams & bogs is so thick, you can't see anything past 5-6 feet from you. And, I can't see walking down the creek in chest waders without spooking the heck out one.

Also, is early morning their most active times, or are they just out & around whenever?

Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Sam

[eliphalet]

Being as Moose tags are draw only and quite hard to come by you might want to think about talking to a local pro. Directories for outfitters are easy to find

[campbell]

What eliphalet said. A local guy with experience should be a good source.

Never hunted them, but I've seen them heading back into the trees in the evening while flyfishing. Pretty often see them out and around feeding near the water during the day. So if you're seeing a lot of scat on the hillsides, maybe they're bedding down away from the water. This wasn't quite up in the Boise area, but I sometimes fish around the upper end of Logan Canyon a little ways below Bear Lake.

If it was me, I'd try and catch one away from the water. If your animal keels over and dies in the water, that's not going to be much fun.

[Sharps Shooter]

Sam, what area in SE Idaho? I see your address is Boise, which is SW Idaho, but your question specifies SE Idaho.:confused:
If your hunt is over around Soda Springs where we'll likely be deer hunting next week, I could probably point you towards a moose or three. We've hunted deer and occasionally elk up in the Skinner Canyon, Soda Peak and Eightmile Canyon area for about 35 years. Neither my wife nor I have drawn a moose permit yet, but the dang things are always in the way when we're hunting deer.
To answer your question though about where to find a moose, yeah, I've seen them sometimes standing belly deep in beaver ponds. But I've seen them out in the sagebrush at least a mile from the nearest creek too. And I've jumped them out of their beds in heavy timber - that's a thrill when you're trying to climb up to your favorite saddle before daybreak.:eek: At any rate, I think when it comes to finding a moose it's probably more a matter of being familiar with the area than it is knowing moose habits.
When you do find one, and I'm pretty sure you soon will, shoot him behind the ear if you can. Don't mess up his ribs if you can help it. Because I'll tell you what - you haven't eaten barbecued ribs until you've eaten barbecued moose ribs.:D

[SHOOT1SAM]

Sharps Shooter,

Soda Springs it is, specifically, Hunt Area 76-1 which I think is a little North of where you mentioned? It runs from East along the Georgetown road to North along Diamond Creek Road to just South of Grays Lake and back South along Highway 34 to Soda Springs. Slug Creek, Sheep Creek, Angus Creek are all in there, among others. The Northern part of the unit seems to be more private farmland than further South. The Blackfoot River seems picture-perfect for them, but I have yet to see one anywhere along there.

It's taken me 15 years to draw a tag.

Sam

[Sharps Shooter]

Yeah, you’re right Sam – the area you’re hunting for your moose is north of our usual deer hunting area, and on the other side highway 30. It’s been a while since we hunted over there.
I think you’re also right about the northern part of your unit being a lot of private land. At least it’s private land on both sides of the road, which prevents access to the public land. However, there is a lot of forest service land and roads to access it in the Slug Creek area. I never did any good, but I’ve hunted bears up around there.
I’m not suggesting that you break any laws – don’t shoot from your vehicle or from/across a public road. But if I drew a moose permit in that area, I’d do a heck of a lot of driving around in my pickup truck looking for a big, black thing standing up in the timber or alongside a creek. I sure wouldn’t want to get a moose down very far from a road anyway.
I’ll bet you do okay. Looking through the regulations it appears you have until November 23rd. Is that right? You’ll probably find your moose long before then. Like I indicated in my first post, there are a lot of moose in the Eightmile Area. Surely some of them have wandered across highway 30 and ended up in your area. I’m wishing you the best of luck in finding the one you want.

[eliphalet]

Best of Luck to you,
'be sure and let us know when you fill that tag.

[SHOOT1SAM]

Sharps Shooter,

I hope for one of those mythical situations I hear about. You know what I mean; "Ah's jes drivin' 'long the road, & thar he was, jest a standin' 5 feet off'n the side." I always hear these stories, and I know at least some of them must be true.

I have talked with a couple of game wardens who basically said much the same thing; drive the roads & watch the creeks. It's just that I can only take so much of road hunting before I feel the need to actually get out there & hike & glass.

Should we get one down a ways from the road, I'm hoping my Rokon will be able to tow it to the truck.

Sam