jon_norstog
07-23-2018, 10:37
Another year of not making the draw to hunt eastern Oregon, another year of not wishing to mix it up with the shoot-if-you-see-the-bushes-move city hunters west of the Cascades.
I bought a lifetime hunting license before I left Idaho but I still have to pay the non-resident price on tags. So once again I'll buy a general deer tag - lets me hunt anywhere in the state from roughly early October to early December. My brother is interested in hunting the "big hole" a 2,000-ft deep refuge area in the Coeur d'Alenes. We have a couple younger friends who hunt there and they have horses if we get something. It's kind of steep and a lot of deadfalls, chances of getting a 300-yard shot are slim to none. It's the kind of country the Krag "carbine" (cut down rifle) is made for. If one of us gets an elk we'll split the meat.
ID F&G cut the number of tags for the Lolo Zone, our old hunting grounds, by 75% this year. There are elk there, big ones, but they have never recovered to their old levels and the wildlife managers, after throwing a lot of money at killing wolves, have thrown in the towel. They did break up the packs, but that meant any female could get pregnant and have a litter without the permission of the alpha male and female.
You can learn a lot hunting ... I'm well into my seventies now and am thankful I can get out, and thankful to have a brother who can get out in the field.
jn
I bought a lifetime hunting license before I left Idaho but I still have to pay the non-resident price on tags. So once again I'll buy a general deer tag - lets me hunt anywhere in the state from roughly early October to early December. My brother is interested in hunting the "big hole" a 2,000-ft deep refuge area in the Coeur d'Alenes. We have a couple younger friends who hunt there and they have horses if we get something. It's kind of steep and a lot of deadfalls, chances of getting a 300-yard shot are slim to none. It's the kind of country the Krag "carbine" (cut down rifle) is made for. If one of us gets an elk we'll split the meat.
ID F&G cut the number of tags for the Lolo Zone, our old hunting grounds, by 75% this year. There are elk there, big ones, but they have never recovered to their old levels and the wildlife managers, after throwing a lot of money at killing wolves, have thrown in the towel. They did break up the packs, but that meant any female could get pregnant and have a litter without the permission of the alpha male and female.
You can learn a lot hunting ... I'm well into my seventies now and am thankful I can get out, and thankful to have a brother who can get out in the field.
jn