Mooses' prayers all answered

Outdoors in Alaska, by Howard Delo

Another moose season is history, including the archery registration hunt in Chugach State Park. That hunt was scheduled to run through Oct. 20, but was closed because the quota of bulls had been harvested. Like many of you, I will be buying meat this winter.

I don't have any good tales to tell, but a friend relayed a story that explains what moose hunting is all about. He asked not to be identified, so I'll just call him Nick. While I'm at it, I'll call his hunting partner Daryl.

Nick and Daryl chartered an air taxi to take them to an undisclosed location. Daryl was interested in a sheep and Nick, an avid bowhunter, was hoping for a moose. Sheep numbers were few, but several moose were in the area, including a couple of potentially legal bulls.

Having spotted a possible 50-inch bull, the guys used the wind and terrain to stalk within 20 yards. Even after glassing the bull several times during their approach, the guys could not see the antlers clearly enough to confirm three brow tines. The antler spread was right at 50 inches, but might easily have been less.

Using the wind to his advantage, Nick, in full camouflage with his bow, moved to a spot where the bull would pass close by if it responded to Daryl's bull grunts. Daryl would remain where he was and once Nick was in position, would start calling. Daryl was also in full camo, including a head net and gloves.

If the bull responded as expected, it would pass close enough to Nick to let him get a good look at the antlers. If Nick determined the bull was legal, he would attempt a shot with his bow. In addition to calling, Daryl was backing up Nick, if needed, with his rifle.

Once Nick was in position, Daryl started calling. The bull was interested but hesitated to move in the direction of the grunts. Daryl picked up a limb and snapped it, sounding like a grunting bull, spoiling for a fight. That did it -- the moose moved toward Daryl.

The bull stopped in Nick's shooting lane and swung his head towards Nick. Seeing nothing, the moose walked by within five yards of Nick's position. Nick studied the antlers but could count only two brow tines per side. He also figured the antler spread was marginally at 50 inches and decided to pass on the shot. The bull continued toward Daryl and walked up to within 6 feet of Daryl's location. Daryl said he could have reached out with his rifle and bopped the moose on its nose.

The bull stood eyeball to eyeball with Daryl for several minutes until the wind gently swirled. The bull apparently caught a whiff of Daryl, whirled and trotted off. It didn't go very far, though, apparently confused over why the unseen moose it heard calling smelled like a human.

Nick said Daryl could have called the bull back but decided to let it wander off, since the moose was not legal to harvest. Besides, the guys had already gotten the adrenalin rush of having a large, potentially dangerous animal move within feet of their respective locations, never knowing they were there until the wind swirled and gave away Daryl's position.

They had experienced all the fun of moose hunting without all the hard work a killing shot would have brought them.

Another story I heard involved the local church congregation. The Wednesday night services coincided with the day after the end of hunting season. The pastor asked who had killed a moose. Nobody raised a hand. Puzzled, the pastor said, "What happened? Many of you said you skipped Sunday services because you were hunting. I had the whole congregation praying for your moose." A hunter seated in the back of the church responded, "It worked, Pastor, they're all safe."

Howard Delo is a retired fisheries biologist living in Big Lake. Send your comments and ideas to editor@frontiersman.com, or call (907) 352-2268 and leave a message for Howard.