Sue Tidwell
AH fanatic
- Joined
- Nov 22, 2022
- Messages
- 869
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- 1,213
- Location
- Cottonwood, Idaho
- Media
- 2
- Articles
- 7
- Member of
- SCI, DSC, RMEF, Wild Sheep Society, etc
- Hunted
- Tanzania, Namibia, Mozambique
At 7:45 this morning (December 26), we got an excited call from our son-in-law, who lives 300 yards from us: “Are those wolves in the pasture above your Mom’s?”. Rick got out his spotting scope and, sure enough, 5 blackish gray wolves were laying in the field about his Mom’s cattle pasture….1 ½ miles away! Rick grabbed his rifle, and off we went. Rick has bought three Idaho wolf tags each year since it became legal…but hunting those critters is not easy. It takes skill coupled with a lot of luck.
From his Mom’s house, we couldn’t see the field. So, we climbed the stack of round bales, praying it offered a view. It was a long shot – literally and figuratively. The field was still 700 yards away. Rick got in position and was able to spot one wolf briefly before it disappeared over the hill. Less than 100 yards below the wolves, five mule deer were laying in the pasture, and another five further down. From across the canyon, Damian could still see all five wolves, but they were now up and on the move.
Here is the DARN DARN Triple DARN part! Normally, Rick (with me tagging along) would have walked up the draw and stalked them. BUT Rick had to leave to go back to Seattle for a three-day flight (he’s a pilot)…and Snoqualmie Pass had finally opened after days of on-and-off closure. In two days, the snow was supposed to start again. Although I wanted him to call off work, he did the responsible thing…although it about killed him to pass up such an opportunity.
So, as we speak, he is on his way to Seattle, and Damian, our son-in-law, is on the hunt. It's still a long shot. Damian is less patient than Rick and doesn’t have nearly the hunting experience.
I hope you don’t mind me blabbing away about this. It was just an exciting morning…and I knew I wouldn’t get blasted on this sight for posting about wolf hunting.
On a side note: When I was young and naïve in my 20’s, I was a wolf advocate. I wanted wolves wild and free everywhere. Careful what you wish for. I ended up marrying smack dab into the heart of wolf country…and watched the demise of elk and other creatures after the wolf reintroduction and years of mismanagement. I’m not proud of my well-intentioned but misinformed past, but it helped make me who I am today. I don’t believe in coincidences. I believe it was part of my learning experience, one I can use to hopefully help others NOT make the same mistakes.
The wolves were in the hay field at the top of the picture near the skyline.
Rick hoping the stack of hay bales would offer a view of the wolves.
Rick and I on top of the hay bales, hoping it would give him a shot...but he saw could see only one wolf and it was gone almost instantly.
From his Mom’s house, we couldn’t see the field. So, we climbed the stack of round bales, praying it offered a view. It was a long shot – literally and figuratively. The field was still 700 yards away. Rick got in position and was able to spot one wolf briefly before it disappeared over the hill. Less than 100 yards below the wolves, five mule deer were laying in the pasture, and another five further down. From across the canyon, Damian could still see all five wolves, but they were now up and on the move.
Here is the DARN DARN Triple DARN part! Normally, Rick (with me tagging along) would have walked up the draw and stalked them. BUT Rick had to leave to go back to Seattle for a three-day flight (he’s a pilot)…and Snoqualmie Pass had finally opened after days of on-and-off closure. In two days, the snow was supposed to start again. Although I wanted him to call off work, he did the responsible thing…although it about killed him to pass up such an opportunity.
So, as we speak, he is on his way to Seattle, and Damian, our son-in-law, is on the hunt. It's still a long shot. Damian is less patient than Rick and doesn’t have nearly the hunting experience.
I hope you don’t mind me blabbing away about this. It was just an exciting morning…and I knew I wouldn’t get blasted on this sight for posting about wolf hunting.
On a side note: When I was young and naïve in my 20’s, I was a wolf advocate. I wanted wolves wild and free everywhere. Careful what you wish for. I ended up marrying smack dab into the heart of wolf country…and watched the demise of elk and other creatures after the wolf reintroduction and years of mismanagement. I’m not proud of my well-intentioned but misinformed past, but it helped make me who I am today. I don’t believe in coincidences. I believe it was part of my learning experience, one I can use to hopefully help others NOT make the same mistakes.
The wolves were in the hay field at the top of the picture near the skyline.
Rick hoping the stack of hay bales would offer a view of the wolves.
Rick and I on top of the hay bales, hoping it would give him a shot...but he saw could see only one wolf and it was gone almost instantly.
