Moose hunting

[stumpy]

OK, here's the deal.  I'm 66 and have hunted deer all my life.  Whitetails in Wisconsin and Mule deer in South Dakota and Wyoming.  I am exclusively a spot and stalk hunter and enjoy a lot of walking. The thing is, I have a burning desire to hunt something else. before I am too old to do it.  I also don't want to spend $10,000 for a guide to hold my hand.  Because this may be a one time deal, it will be a gun hunt to increase my odds.
OK, this is where you all come in.  I need some suggestions for a hunt like I described.  It can be (preferably) Moose, Elk, Black bear. I know it's going to sound like I'm looking for the "perfect" hunt but really I'd just like input to help me narrow down my choices. I'd prefer fall versus heavy winter.  I'd prefer a little more rustic so as not to compete with a lot of hunters.  I'm not looking for a trophy, the experience is the main thing.  Lastly, cause this may be a one time hunt, I'd like a fairly high success rate situation. So, I'm hoping to tap into you all to give me some ideas.

[newoodguy78]

You might want to look into the New Hampshire moose hunt. It's a lottery and doesn't cost much to apply. While they have lowered the number of permits recently the success rate is still pretty good. Some zones are definitely better than others if you decide to go this route and need help picking zones let me know. My father has been drawn several times and been a subpermittee multiple times as well. He's yet to come home empty handed.

[Chuck White]

Check with outfitters above you, in Canada, about a moose hunt!

Not all that far to travel and most of the Provinces have moose!

[Magicman]

Considering your parameters, I would remove Elk from the list.

[Southside]

Maybe it would be different in other areas but Moose hunting in Maine would not be a spot and stalk type of hunt.  They have gone down over the years due to changes in the lottery but quite a good success rate for those that draw a tag.  If you could do some preseason scouting then setting up and calling over a chopping or a bog would have potential, but you better have a pack animal to get it out in that case, or you could get your walking in at that point, one steak at a time.  

[moosehunter]

Consider a "semi guided" hunt. Your guide will have done the scouting to find a good area and will be able to help you get a harvested animal out of the woods. I have been moose hunting in Maine 4 times,  each time has gotten exponentially harder than the last. Many areas require a guide. Lottery areas may not be a good option for everyone,  it took my wife 19 years to be drawn in Maine. We are considering New Brunswick or Newfoundland for our next moose hunt. 
mh

[petefrom bearswamp]

I went to Newf in 72, 93, 97, 98, 99 got moose each time and a couple of Caribou.
Great place to visit and hunt but I believe you are required to have a guide or at least go with an outfitter.
Lots of walking involved and mostly glassing from vantage points then stalking sometimes from a mile or more away.
I'm sure it is now big $ to go.
I put in NH lottery a couple of times but the odds of getting struck by lightning are better, (Or worse depending how you look at it.)

[BradMarks]

I love hunting elk - on the east side of the Cascades!. Too brushy west side for me. Only problem is getting the tag drawn. Most popular units it's every two or three years until I draw again. Some units with few tags, I know people who have gone 10-15 yrs until they're drawn.  BUT, if you are out of state, you have a better statistical chance of drawing - a certain percentage (maybe 5%) are set aside for non-residents. I am also a move around, stay put, move again type of hunter. Many an elk I have shot at close range while on foot. And sometimes so close no time to get a shot. Like three yrs ago!  Success rates of course vary with the hunter, but overall the state has a 14% (1 in 7) success rate.

[WV Sawmiller]

   Never been on a moose or elk hunt but I have vacationed all over the world and I can attest the best money I spent in almost every case was hiring a good guide. I have visited so many wonderfully interesting places where if I had not had the guide along advising me I would never have recognized how interesting and important it was. They got me access to places I could not and taught me things about local people, places and things I would never have known. Many times it would have been time and money wasted without that local expert advice. In many cases the guide did not have the answer but could take me to the person who did. 

   Good luck.

[mart]

WV is giving you good advice. New Hampshire and Maine have drawing hunts as do some of the western states but without a guide your chances decrease significantly.

I live in Alaska and have for 16 years. I've taken a few moose, my family got two this year, but we earned everyone of them. You can come to Alaska and hunt moose/caribou/black bear without a guide and without having to draw a tag, but you'll find it a tough and expensive lesson unless you hire a guide or have a close friend or family member here. Same goes for the other states that offer moose hunts. You really need someone in that area or hire a guide.

There are a few hardy souls who do all the research, make the plans, maybe contract with a pilot or outfitter to get them into moose country, or hike into good areas and have success. Hiking several miles into the back country, regardless of the state means hiking back out. With a moose that means multiple trips with very heavy loads. The rule of thumb for packing out moose on one's back is, "one man, one moose, one mile, one day."

A good guide will be money well spent.

[maple flats]

I've never been there, but my research says Newfoundland is one of the best for moose. Maybe think semi-guided.

[thecfarm]

I would suspect other states are the same as Maine. It could and has been 60° during a moose hunt.  Need to get that meat on ice quick. That needs to be plannned out too.

[2308500]

newfoundland is averaging about 4500 bucks plus travel. non residents need to go through an outfitter to get a license.

lots of moose, all sizes but the big trophies are mostly in the deep country. Argo's are used for extraction after the killand in the rare occasions a helicopter may be used. lots of walking and glassing. fun trip overall but with travel, can be pricey

[starmac]

I see moose almost daily running the log truck, but the last day of august a space ship picks most all of them up, leaving just a few stragglers.
Exactly 2 weeks and one day later, they drop off seemingly more than they took to start with.

[AZ_builder]

OTC elk in Colorado, not the biggest bulls but you'll be hunting. Land owner tag in New Mexico, usually have to pre buy a year or two in advance as they sell quick. Or wait 25+ years to draw a tag in az lol 

[starmac]

I have not applied for an elk tag in New Mexico for several years and it has likely changed. You used to get 4 choices  (first to last) on your application. Now if you were after meat and not set on a trophy, you could put any hunt for your last choice for the area you were applying for. You were pretty much always going to draw a late season cow tag every year. landowner hunts, were much too expensive for my tastes, unless you happened to know the land owner. I have a hard time paying more than what I figure the meat is worth though, I always thought the expense of getting their and hunting was enough. 

[AZ_builder]

Starmac, I hear ya! It's hard to justify paying more for elk meat (or any meat for that matter) than you could pay for a side of butchered and wrapped beef. It's the hunt though. In az our coues whitetail are 100-120lbs on the big side. 30-60lbs of meat. Bit I'll gladly pay the extra for the hunt. To each their own though, I ain't mad at ya lol

[starmac]

Ah, you got it all wrong AZ, Where I lived in eastern New Mexico, I could usually get a nice fat grain and alfalfa mule deer within a mile of my house, but that just wasn't my thing. I would always drive down to the gila, 360 miles and camp for a week, sometimes get a deer and sometimes not even see a legal buck. I always thought they had the seasons mixed up, it seemed like elk would be everywhere during deer season and visa versa. lol

I just hate paying huge out of state tags or land owner fees, especially when there is a lots of public land with little to no pressure on it. The hunt, the camp and the camp meals were my main priority, the quarry second on the list.

Them coues deer are not only little, they are smart too.

[AZ_builder]

I've spent a lot of time on the gila, in az and nm. Nice country. Hunted my fair share mulies but never had the chance at the grain fed ones lol. All mine were high desert or pine bucks.

[starmac]

I have never hunted them, even on years I didn't have time to go to the hills, for some reason it just isn't the same.

I have eaten my share of farm country muleys , white tails too, and it is better meat, but then I never had a problem with the wild taste either.