Personally I have never been much for trophy moose hunting, I think if a guy has already taken a big bull then it should be about the meat, I love moose meat and there's nothing better than a young bull in the deep freeze.

That being said if a guy sees a 60" + then it's a no brainer 

Shoot the first one with antlers.     Let fate decide on the size.

Shoot the Monster!!

I probably wont dump the first bull I see unless it's a cranker. I probably could have drawn the tag at p4 or 5 but have been 999ing for a while. I've got a couple of decent size sheds in my garage and would like to try rattling them in, got the Idea from Brad Fensons article in the Western Sportsmen.

I probably wont dump the first bull I see unless it's a cranker. I probably could have drawn the tag at p4 or 5 but have been 999ing for a while. I've got a couple of decent size sheds in my garage and would like to try rattling them in, got the Idea from Brad Fensons article in the Western Sportsmen.

Ive seen a few guys trying to rattle moose in northern BC but was pretty limited on success( and wasnt tried allot so ive got little experience with it, And was only really tried when you stumbled onto a couple sheds where you were hunting). Im sure it works on the odd one but I find calling and racking trees with a stick or shoulder blade works best.
Ive seen moose come to almost anything especially the younger bulls but to sound like a cow by far has worked the best for me. The biggest bull I guided to would not budge to bull calls, loud cow calls or tree raking but a low soft drawn out cow call got him on the move.
Just a couple of ideas.
SG

Me and a friend both got drawn this year, he's never shot a moose, so I figure he'll dump the first legal bull he see's. I'm going to partner with my nephew, again another  who's never shot a moose. I'm hoping to get him on one and let him take the shot. If a big old rutted bull gets in our way, oh well To be honest it's about the meat for me and a long yearling sure do taste mighty fine.

I probably wont dump the first bull I see unless it's a cranker. I probably could have drawn the tag at p4 or 5 but have been 999ing for a while. I've got a couple of decent size sheds in my garage and would like to try rattling them in, got the Idea from Brad Fensons article in the Western Sportsmen.

I trophy hunt because it keeps me in the field longer.  Basically, with a little work, I find it quite easy to fill tags.  I love the hunt and I find the meat of a young bull is not a whole lot different than that of a mature bull so hunting the old guys makes sure I hunt longer in the season.  Hunt what make you happy.  As for rattling bulls, never tried, but I know cow calling and raking works extremely well to get a mature to bull to come in.  Every bull has his own boiling point so you will have to figure it out on the fly.  Once tried for hours to call a bull off his 2 cows without any success, he was madder than hell and throwing dirt but wouldn't budge.  Anyway, got a aggressive later in the day and walked through a swamp to get closer just at dark.  He lost it when I hit the water and caming running in to 30 yards.  One well placed arrow and it was all over.  Anyway, good luck and take the one that makes you happy!!!

Okay, I will give this a serious answer as this same dilemma has plagued me in the past.  Every moose hunter dreams about calling in a monster bull on a cold October morning to watch him come grunting through the willows until he is right on top of you and you drop him with one nervous shot.  That is the truth of it and if you say it isn't so, you are lying.    At that point the concept of tougher roasts is not registering in your brain.  You will eat them and there will be more of them, right.   I am a true moose hunter at heart.  Even a 200" whitetail buck does not get my heart rate going as much as a 60" bull moose with his huge bulk swinging his massive rack from side to side as he is coming towards you.

Here is the deal though, with me and most moose hunters, the reason we hunt these critters is the meat.  Moose meat is the best (Elk too).  Deer just can't hold a candle to moose meat imho.  With the limited draws on bull moose these days and the prospect of getting a tag every 3 to 4 years or more makes filling that tag for meat reasons a top priority.  It seems even for me the trophy hunting, where tag soup is an option if you are too picky, can be left for whitetails.  I have shot a couple of bulls over 50" so the trophy aspect of moose hunting has been fulfilled to some extent.  There have been a few years where I have shot a meat bull to later regret it badly.  One year in particular I shot a 2.5 year old bull early in the season and that year I saw 36 different bulls including 2 that would have been serious contenders for the Alberta record.  I am still haunted to this day watching those two 65" plus bulls fight 75 yards in front of me and my hunting partner wide open in a cutblock with no tag in my pocket.  There have been other years that I passed up some average bulls early and was lucky to fill the tag toward the end.  Now what we do is fill the moose tag or tags for meat reasons and then turn our attention to trophy deer later in the season which is the best time anyways.

Dark Wing, it seems like you have done your homework and finally have that tag in a good zone which you know well.  I say you will see a good bull but don't be too picky or tag soup.  You will no doubt get a feel for what is around early on and be able get a feel what to hold out for.  Ya and your right about conditions and weather; they sometimes dictate the hunt to some extent.  Cow calls and raking the bush is what have always worked for me.  Never had much success with bull calls.  Good luck!

Well it was a fun season of calling moose. Didn't see any monster but didn't get into the honey holes I wanted either. Looks like I'm gonna be a hero at the dinner table but a zero in the trophy room. I came across this guy beaded down  in the valley that I was calling in the weekend before.

 

Good stuff Dark Wing,, looks like a heck of a bull.

Sure can tell the size difference between those mountain bulls and the northern boreal bulls eh..