How to hunt wolves?

[bigngreen]

I'm curious if there are any wolf hunters that have some advice on how to hunt them not just bump into them. I have heard of guys calling them but could not get the info on how, I can not use electronic game calls but manual ones are legal.
I really want to hunt them not just get lucky, season opens in 2 days and my tag is burning a hole in my pocket. Any and all advice would be great!!!

 

[royinidaho]

Here's what I'm gonna do as soon as the medical system gets me ready for some long days in the hills.

Our allotment is 5 wolves and 3 have been taken with the general cow elk season opening only yesterday. Whether or not the quota is filled I'm going to hunt the same as mr. woof and ms. elk are found in the same areas.

First I talked with as many cattlemen as I could. I then divided any quantities in their stories by 2 or better. The always seem to see wolf tracks when they are horse back but never see the wolves. Some claim to hear them. A grain or maybe shaker of salt is needed here.

I then pick the areas where wolves are known to hang out. Their range is really large. Thus the tactic is about like hunting moose.

I then set up my ambush spot with bivvy etc and expect to spend at least one evening, night and morning or maybe two in the same spot.

For calls I'm going to use cow calls and yote howler with the alert bark.

I'm also going to "smoke" everything I pack including the pack. Smoking seems to work very well for a bow hunter I've gone with. I've seen elk walk up wind right to him???

I've got the 270 AM loaded with some special made "wolf boolets" that have been tested out to 1400 yards and are yote accurate to that distance as long as the wind is guessable and the yote is broad side.

 

[bigngreen]

Check this out, this went down this morning, the ranchers are about to loose it and just shoot on site. They are also talking about putting a guy on the pay roll just so they can shoot wolves.

.::The Montana Standard::.

I know allot of the people in this area and talked to one this morning that side in the Big Hole he has seen two moose all year, this area used to have a 15 moose hunting quota.
I'm breaking out the coyote howler and try laying down some distress calls. The hard part is stopping after shooting one

 

[flyin lizard]

If you have country big enough drive out, park, try to get out of sight of the vehicle ,blow a rabbit or fawn distress type call ,if wolves behave like yotes you should see them coming very soon, after 10 to 20 minutes you have no responce drive 1/2 mile or so and repeat .

 

[royinidaho]

Bigngreen,

Was talking w/a stockman at the local tire store and asked about the 7 wolves taken off of the area he grazes by the gov't.

His story was that one rancher only got 6 calves out of 85 cows. A bit overblownI suspect. Another rancher lost several cows and calves.

However when nothing was done about either situation the wolves got two of his horses. When he found them one was dead and not eaten the other was pretty chewed up but not dead and had to be put down.

He got them in his trailer and hauled them to the F&G in Idaho Falls and stated that if something wasn't done the next stop would be the TV stations and news paper.

Two days later the helo was in the air and rumor has it that 7 or 10 wolves were killed.

The elk are moving in behind the house and the fall pasture is full of mother cows w/o calves. I'll do some scouting and see what I can find but I hear way too many yotes howling to think there are any wolves near by.

 

[bigngreen]

This week I know of 12 that were killed by the Feds, add to that the rancher have been shooting on site if they can plus the few were killing during hunting and you get a picture of what these wolves will sustain.
A month ago a rancher here had 11 heifers killed in one pasture, not a single bite eaten, then a sheep guy had 149 sheep killed and last week had another 29 killed. When the pups hit this age they are killing machines, the heifer I guess you could see that one ran on each side and would grab there front ends and drop them in the trail running. All kills were confirmed by government trapper. Don't under estimate the kill number it is amazing the killing power of these animals.
If you can find some of the old picture of wolfers or of some of the last wolves killed they are nothing like what the Feds unleashed on us, they were bigger than a coyote but not by as much as these are and they ran in packs kinda like coyotes not in these super packs were seeing now. They have literally wiped out some wildlife population is some of the valleys around Montana.
Some of the old timers are saying that unless they are hit hard and we start denning them we will never stay with or get a handle on the population till they have killed themselve out of food and us out of hunting, which I would say has been the enviromental wacko plan all along.
Hope you get one or two I'm actually kinda excited about this.

 

[fj40mojo]

Didn't even buy a tag, but if I was gonna do it this is how:

First fill a deer or elk tag or help someone else do it and collect as much blood as possible during the gutting process and freeze immediately.

Second, get myself a decoy

Third, scout at first light and just before areas where prey base critters are. Find the prey and you'll find the predator.

Last, find an ambush site that I can get to in the dark, make sure my clothes are scent free as possible, leave a blood trail to my ambush site, set up decoy, move to shooting position/overlook and start calling like a bloody wounded critter.

'Bout 10 years ago I wounded a cow elk during late muzzle loader season. Lost the blood trail in the dark. Came back the next morning 'bout 10 hours later and found her less than 50 yards from last blood I'd found. She was half eaten! Wolves don't miss opportunities, provide what looks like one and you might score a nice pelt.

 

[royinidaho]

Wolves don't miss opportunities, provide what looks like one and you might score a nice pelt.

Score a nice pelt? I don't understand.

I tho't the object was a hole in wolf?

 

[Dave in Idaho]

Roy,
I am counting on you. I bought a tag. Just to frame and put on the wall. I am not confident that there will be another hunt after this year.
That said............
I am counting on you to get one. Preferably from the area around Island Park(my archery elk area every year). They have devastated the elk there. I would come over to try and fill my tag but I don't think I will have the time. If I do I will be using wounded deer call, coyote barks, and watching my back for humpback bears!
I would love to see the pics when you get one.
Dave

 

[bigngreen]

I would prefer to frame my wolf tag next to a tanned wolf hide

 

[Akbushape]

Wolves will respond to calling but I have never seen or heard of them coming in fast like coyotes sometimes do. They generally come in slow and cautious
and may take up to an hour to check out the source of the call. Another tip on hunting them is watch for congreations of birds (crows, ravens, magpies) to locate their kills. If there is lots of prey the pack may not be on the kill long but
sometimes lone wolves will visit these kill sites, which they locate as well sometimes by the birds squawking.

 

[bigngreen]

Had a friend call one in a couple of days ago using a calf elk in destress, just about ran him over he shot it at 30 yrds.
I'm hoping to get out this week end and locate some, it sound like if you can locate them you can call them.

 

[Akbushape]

May be that where they haven't been hunted a lot they will come in fast, but, they learn fast too.

 

[bigngreen]

Ya, I kinda expect the first one's to be easy and it seems like there are more young ones gettting shot first just like coyote calling. I have seen how hard they are to trap or snare so I'm expecting it to get tough.
I really want to target the breeding females as I think that would be the most effective members of the pack to kill to have the most effect on numbers.
I kinda lean to the spot and stalk long range kill just so I can be real selective about which member or members die.
Good idea with finding the kills, I can talk to some of the ranchers and they can put me on one fast that I could stake out on and maybe do a little coyote whining to get a territorial responce and pick up a adult.