LAST EDITED ON May-30-17 AT 03:32PM (MST)[p]My son was lucky enough to draw a moose tag for this fall. I admit that I am pretty much clueless as to moose hunting. I am curious what grain bullet you would recommend shooting. I currently have a 7mm that I shoot Hornady ELD-X 162 grain custom loads. I assume that this would be adequate for moose. I was also wondering about the acutal hunt. For those of you who have been fortunate enough to draw what tactic did you use (ambush, spot and stalk, etc.). Really any help would be great. I am so excited to be able to share this hunt with my son!
Shiras Moose
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grizzly
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My wife shot a moose at around 10 yards with a 7mm shooting 168gr Berger CH. It took 3 bullets in the rib cage without flinching, she then broke its back leg just trying to knock it down but it kept going so she shot it through the spine. All bullets stayed in the animal under hide on far side with perfect performance.
My (albeit, only) experience of shooting a moose with a 7mm is that they aren't enough gun. If that bull was a few hundred yards away and didn't allow follow-up shots, the results would've been disastrous.
Grizzly
My (albeit, only) experience of shooting a moose with a 7mm is that they aren't enough gun. If that bull was a few hundred yards away and didn't allow follow-up shots, the results would've been disastrous.
Grizzly
Blank
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Our Shiras moose here in Idaho are some great trophies, but can be strange to react to various methods. Think they are almost to dumb to know they're dead sometimes. I have shot 3 personally (bow, rifle, and muzzleloader) and probably guided others to another 12 animals. I have seen them take a bullet to the lungs and never move until they tip over, I have seen several 300 mags in the chest make them run like crazy, and watched arrows in the lungs literally put them down in less than 20 yards. Each is different. The 7 Mag in the right place is more than enough gun to do the job, and in the wrong place is just asking for a lengthy recovery.
2lumpy
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I agree, a heart, double lung, or spine shot will make the expire. Now could they still dive off into a hell hole, dead fall, willow patch, water up to you neck. Yep. But they'll die if you take their air or their spinal column away, a 30-30.
I killed mine in Utah, it ran about 100 to 150 yards.
Find a moose by spot and stock. The easy part is killing it. No need to tell you to pack a lunch, they weigh a bit more than a mule deer. ?
I expect you'll do fine and have a great time doing it. Scout early and often.?
DC
I killed mine in Utah, it ran about 100 to 150 yards.
Find a moose by spot and stock. The easy part is killing it. No need to tell you to pack a lunch, they weigh a bit more than a mule deer. ?
I expect you'll do fine and have a great time doing it. Scout early and often.?
DC
dgwoody
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Along the same lines as whats been said, they can take a few good hits and never give you any idea that they're hurt.
My Utah bull last fall took (2) 190 gr. Noslers out of a .300 win mag, both double lung shots at 150 yards and never looked hit. When he went behind the tree and tipped over dead, I thought he'd turned to run over the hill and was gone. I scrambled up the hill as quick as I could to get another shot off at him, and much to my surprise he was dead with all four hoofs in the air, five feet from where I'd shot him the second time. After the celebrations, my buddy that was down the hill watching threw the bino's said the same thing, "he never hunched up, he never stumbled or put his head down. I thought we'd bumped your scope and you had two clean misses."
As far as tactics go, lots of glassing and covering a lot of country. They seem to have a two or three mile radius of where they like to hang out, but if they get on a hot cow, they can show up or disappear in minutes.
My Utah bull last fall took (2) 190 gr. Noslers out of a .300 win mag, both double lung shots at 150 yards and never looked hit. When he went behind the tree and tipped over dead, I thought he'd turned to run over the hill and was gone. I scrambled up the hill as quick as I could to get another shot off at him, and much to my surprise he was dead with all four hoofs in the air, five feet from where I'd shot him the second time. After the celebrations, my buddy that was down the hill watching threw the bino's said the same thing, "he never hunched up, he never stumbled or put his head down. I thought we'd bumped your scope and you had two clean misses."
As far as tactics go, lots of glassing and covering a lot of country. They seem to have a two or three mile radius of where they like to hang out, but if they get on a hot cow, they can show up or disappear in minutes.
Ranger1
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Most important to practice so you hit where you aim and know the skeletal structure of the moose to make a killing shot. I shot mine at twenty yards with my bow and had the arrow pass thru. He went twenty yards and bedded down. I put a couple more in to make sure he was not going much further. As long as they are calm and its a good shot you should have no trouble. They are great eating!
I shot mine with a 7mm rem mag three times and he just stood there. Started to try to walk off and made it about 6 or 7 steps and fell over dead. I really wanted all the meat so I purposefully aimed behind the shoulder. Two of the three bullets were caught by the hide on the far side. All three shots went through the lungs. They are so big they just take a little bit to lose enough blood to show a response. A 7mm mag is plenty if you do your part.
Good luck and have a plan for the retrieval, they are a load.
Good luck and have a plan for the retrieval, they are a load.
cbeard
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A cannon is not needed for moose. They die as easily as any animal that walks. BUT, it can take a minute - so be patient. And keep shooting unless you KNOW you have a couple in the boiler room. Knocking one flat is rare no matter what caliber is used.
That said, there is no need to pump a half a box of bullets into a dead moose standing.
That said, there is no need to pump a half a box of bullets into a dead moose standing.
I've taken a couple shiras and I don't think they're that tough to put down, but they're big so a bullet capable of penetration is required. I'd recommend the Partition in a gun no smaller than a 7 mag unless you're willing to pass on less than perfect broadside shots.
How you hunt them depends a lot on when and where you hunt them. in my experience moose are seldom in high numbers so covering a lot of ground and glassing is the most effective method. calling never worked for me because I think the moose numbers were so low it would have been pure luck to have one hear it.
Stay Thirsty My Friends
How you hunt them depends a lot on when and where you hunt them. in my experience moose are seldom in high numbers so covering a lot of ground and glassing is the most effective method. calling never worked for me because I think the moose numbers were so low it would have been pure luck to have one hear it.
Stay Thirsty My Friends
DoubleDropMuley
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Killed my one and only moose in 2007 with a Winchester 270. No problem!!!! 150 GR if my memory recalls
Millsworks
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Hope you have a great hunt.
That load you mentioned for the 7mm is a good one. I loaded that same bullet for my son's rifle in 7mm REM mag. also.
I'm sure it will do fine.
Good luck!
That load you mentioned for the 7mm is a good one. I loaded that same bullet for my son's rifle in 7mm REM mag. also.
I'm sure it will do fine.
Good luck!
littlebighorn
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LAST EDITED ON Jun-04-17 AT 03:46PM (MST)[p]In 1993 I took a Wyoming Shiras Moose with one shot from a 7mag. He was facing me at 300 yards and I waited 10 minutes for him to turn broadside. When he wouldn't cooperate, I finally got impatient and shot him straight on with a 150 grain Barnes X bullet. He took two steps and toppled over behind some dead fall.
That's just one more testament that a 7mag will kill a Shiras bull if the shot is right and the bullet performs as designed. I would recommend you stick to a well constructed bullet. They are big boned animals. I don't have any experience with the ELD-X, but I have heard good things about them.
Take as many friends as you can because they are big. It took me and a friend two days of packing to get mine out of the deadfall forest I found him in, but it was an experience I will always remember.
Best of luck on your hunt.
That's just one more testament that a 7mag will kill a Shiras bull if the shot is right and the bullet performs as designed. I would recommend you stick to a well constructed bullet. They are big boned animals. I don't have any experience with the ELD-X, but I have heard good things about them.
Take as many friends as you can because they are big. It took me and a friend two days of packing to get mine out of the deadfall forest I found him in, but it was an experience I will always remember.
Best of luck on your hunt.
llamapacker
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I've killed moose in five states, and each hunt was different. From the dark woods of eastern WA to the high country of Utah they each have their own methods for hunting them. Give us an idea where you drew the tag, and it is easier to help.
I've also killed several Alaskan moose, and would still agree with others that they aren't that hard to kill. Pick a tough, well constructed bullet and a good shot to the lungs will put them down, The lungs are a big target, and they might not show a reaction to the shot, but they will be dead soon. You will be fine with the 7MM with good bullets.
Bill
I've also killed several Alaskan moose, and would still agree with others that they aren't that hard to kill. Pick a tough, well constructed bullet and a good shot to the lungs will put them down, The lungs are a big target, and they might not show a reaction to the shot, but they will be dead soon. You will be fine with the 7MM with good bullets.
Bill
Millsworks
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I'll be in northwestern Wy this fall. What tag and area did your son draw?
Hope y'all punch out a monster!
Hope y'all punch out a monster!
pymulies
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I agree with all posts. Shot placement is key and the 7 mag is plenty.
Good luck and please share pictures. If you let us know the location of the hunt, I'm sure someone can help you with a little info!
On another note I'd like to say how awesome it is for everyone to give good advice and not being a-holes (especially to a new guy). Reminds me what this site used to be like 15 years ago when I first started coming on here!
Py
Good luck and please share pictures. If you let us know the location of the hunt, I'm sure someone can help you with a little info!
On another note I'd like to say how awesome it is for everyone to give good advice and not being a-holes (especially to a new guy). Reminds me what this site used to be like 15 years ago when I first started coming on here!
Py
deerfanatic
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140 grain Barnes x at 200 yards with 264 win mag. Didn't take another step. As everyone has said shot placement is everything. I was young and dumb and shot mine in the back of the head and really got lucky I didn't end up with a train wreck. They are big animals. Take out the heart/lungs.
I have been with several people when they took their moose. Like others said, keep shooting until they fall. Stay put and make sure they aren't getting back up. Most don't have the same flight response elk and deer have after a shot. From my experience, a follow up shot won't be far from the first shot. So take those extra couple seconds to make good followup shots.
I like to cover lots of ground. Not having horses, I keep the distance from the critter to the road in mind. Someone mentioned calling...calling works and can get them positioned better for getting out. It can work outside the rut, just not as well. The temperature can make or break you as well. Good cool days will definitely improve your odds of seeing what's in the area and you can cover lots of ground. Warm weather makes moose hunting much tougher.
I don't know if there is fact in this observation or not, but bulls that hang out in the mountains appear to be 10 times tastier to eat then the ones hanging out in the swamps. My moose was excellent eating as have other mountain bulls I have tried. Swamp bulls that I have tasted have been awful. Could be care taken immediately after harvest. I don't know.
I have been with several people when they took their moose. Like others said, keep shooting until they fall. Stay put and make sure they aren't getting back up. Most don't have the same flight response elk and deer have after a shot. From my experience, a follow up shot won't be far from the first shot. So take those extra couple seconds to make good followup shots.
I like to cover lots of ground. Not having horses, I keep the distance from the critter to the road in mind. Someone mentioned calling...calling works and can get them positioned better for getting out. It can work outside the rut, just not as well. The temperature can make or break you as well. Good cool days will definitely improve your odds of seeing what's in the area and you can cover lots of ground. Warm weather makes moose hunting much tougher.
I don't know if there is fact in this observation or not, but bulls that hang out in the mountains appear to be 10 times tastier to eat then the ones hanging out in the swamps. My moose was excellent eating as have other mountain bulls I have tried. Swamp bulls that I have tasted have been awful. Could be care taken immediately after harvest. I don't know.
All of the posts above are about rifle kills. I actually got my Wyo bull with a bow. I stopped him with a bull grunt at 38 yards. My arrow went all the way through the rib cage/lungs behind the front legs. He continued walking over to the edge of the clearcut, laid down, and died. It took 5 trips to get the boned meat, cape, and antlers out. He was 1.5 miles in. 1.5 miles x 10 (round trips) = 15 miles of packing (and I was alone).
As mentioned above, timing and location is pretty much everything for moose. Western Wyo is likely totally different than the Bighorn Mtns. The moose "tend" to hole up in deep dark pockets during the early season in Western Wyo while moose are out in the open in the mornings/evenings in the Bighorns munching on willows. The moose in the Bighorns move off the willows after the first big frost and often wander 2 to 15 miles to totally different country once this happens. It's a blast to hunt rutting bull moose! I called in over a dozen different bulls on my hunt. The are super callable when the rut first kicks in. They often wander from cow to cow looking for one in estrous. Once cows come into estrous they may not move around as much and hang out with an estrous cow. When they are searching for estrous cows they are super easy to call....but where they are 1 day they may be 5 miles away the next. That gives you a few things to consider about hunt timing!
That
As mentioned above, timing and location is pretty much everything for moose. Western Wyo is likely totally different than the Bighorn Mtns. The moose "tend" to hole up in deep dark pockets during the early season in Western Wyo while moose are out in the open in the mornings/evenings in the Bighorns munching on willows. The moose in the Bighorns move off the willows after the first big frost and often wander 2 to 15 miles to totally different country once this happens. It's a blast to hunt rutting bull moose! I called in over a dozen different bulls on my hunt. The are super callable when the rut first kicks in. They often wander from cow to cow looking for one in estrous. Once cows come into estrous they may not move around as much and hang out with an estrous cow. When they are searching for estrous cows they are super easy to call....but where they are 1 day they may be 5 miles away the next. That gives you a few things to consider about hunt timing!
That
A hole in the heart is still a hole in the heart. It's all about the shot, not the gun. I watched my dad at 72 years old with open sights at 275 yards freehand, put two 130 grain .270 holes through a moose heart and set his gun down. Ten seconds later, the bull toppled.
