Shot this bull last week in zone 4 in Maine. 338 Federal/210 partition did the trick ay 94 yrds.

Dang Nice Bull! Congrats!!

Congrats on a great Maine bull. Still drawing points myself, but looking forward to being in your shoes someday. Enjoy that meat and congrats again!

Nice moose. Nice rifle/caliber and bullet! Great smiles!
Hunting = "Pursuit of Happiness" for you quite obviously!!
best regards,

I am on a smart phone, so a write up would be tough. I did a short one at the campfire.Two other bulls shot in camp tjat week were similar. Ross Lake Camps did an outstanding job!
http://www.24hourcampfire.com/..._with_Ross_Lake_Camp

Oh yeah, the meat is outstanding!!!!

What a great bull, Waidmannsheil!

Any Maine moose is a trophy; I'd say yours is a quadruple trophy- - Congrats!

He's a Beauty!!! Congrats

Great looking bull. Congratulations.

Great bull! Congratulations

THAT is a beast! Where did you say you were, Maine, British Columbia? I couldn't find it on the map?

Josh,

Great bull! I think too many folks kill the first bull they see. if they were more selective you'd see more bulls like yours on the Internet.

Big Congrats!

Mark

quote:

Great bull! I think too many folks kill the first bull they see. if they were more selective you'd see more bulls like yours on the Internet.

Mr. Young, when making comments like that, you and everyone else needs to keep in mind, that some folks may only get to hunt moose once or twice in their life time. I have done so once and hope to do so again once more before I die, with that as the parameters, it should be MY choice as to what I will shoot as long as it is a legal animal.

What has happened to the concept that the estimation of what is or is not a trophy, is solely up to the individual that is paying for the hunt?

Congrats on a great bull!

Very nice Bull....Congratulations

Crazy,

Your making me laugh. I think your taking offense where there is none to be taken.

"Josh,

Great bull! I think too many folks kill the first bull they see. if they were more selective you'd see more bulls like yours on the Internet.

Mark"

I'm not trying to tell anybody what to do in the above post. I'm just stating my opinion and the opinion of many of the Maine guides. You can't shoot a bull like Josh's if you shoot the first 2 year old Bullwinkle you see and that applies to all hunting.

Mark

Glad I could provide you with light entertainment. I did not take offence, I just believe such comments as the one you made concerning selective killing for the sake of antler size is one of the main lines of division among hunters in America right now. You have the over inflated egos that judge animals solely by the size of their antlers/horns, and then you have regular folks are damn happy with any thing they kill.

I am sorry that people that pay for their licenses and hunts and are happy with any animal they kill, instead of wanting to kill what in YOUR opinion is a trophy makes you laugh. Maybe people should have to take a test or pledge an oath of loyalty to be a "Trophy" hunter only.

I am not taking offence, I just find in this day and time such comments only divide hunters further and prevent us from presenting a united front against those that want to take hunting away from us.

Crazy,

Your making an issue where there is none. All I was saying was if you fill your tags with the little ones of any species you'll never shoot the big ones. How can anyone argue with that statement? It's completely true.

I think your suggesting that I was implying more than the above but this thread is about Josh's excellent luck so I'm going to forego any further comment and apologize to Josh for highjacking his thread.

Mark

Great moose! Congrats!

quote:

Originally posted by MARK H. YOUNG:
Crazy,

Your making an issue where there is none.
Mark

...hmmm...

Thanks for the nice comment fellas!! To each his own on what they fill their tags with...but I was not even thinking about shooting a dink with a non resident Maine moose tag.

Josh

quote:

All I was saying was if you fill your tags with the little ones of any species you'll never shoot the big ones. How can anyone argue with that statement? It's completely true.

And all I am saying is that not every hunter views things from the stand point you do.

Why draw or create lines of division?

If a person wants to shoot a "Trophy" specimen of any species, more power too them.

Josh K., my question for you, is if was the last day of your hunt and the only moose you had a chance at as a non-resident was a "Dink", would you have turned it down?

I am not knocking you, because you killed a great looking animal. But knowing first hand how hard it is to get drawn for a moose tag in Maine, had you not seen and gotten the opportunity at this animal, would you have went home empty handed or shot whatever presented itself on the last day of your hunt.

My concern does not lie with what you shot, but with the attitude of holding out for something bigger, especially in a place like Maine, where drawing a tag is difficult at best.

And Mr. Young, yes the guides/outfitters in Maine would like to see people go after the bigger bulls, because if they can put their hunters on bigger bulls in a consistent manner, they can charge more, and if a client does not kill something, they are not going to refund all of the clients fees.

Last time I checked, unless it is high fenced, guides/outfitters sell hunts, not kills!

Somehow, as hard as it is to draw a tag for moose here in the states, I really can't envision anyone simply walking away empty handed due to trophy quality. Alaska and Canada yes, but in the Lower 48 I just do not see it.

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:

Why draw or create lines of division?

Look in the mirror.

Quite a bull Josh, looks like an Alaskan moose to me.

Mark,

You're wasting your time with Crazy. I've been down this road with him many, many times. He argues where there is no argument, just for the sake of argument.

Personally, I think Saeed should open a new forum called "Arguments", with Crazy and Trax as moderators. Those two will argue with you whatever position you take. They'll especially argue with you if you agree with them!

BTW, very nice Main moose! Congrats!!

No Scott, I am not drawing lines. I merely take exception to Mr.Young's comment about people passing on an animal because of his personal beliefs about what does or does not constitute a trophy. With the difficulty of drawing a tag in the lower 48 states that have moose, in reality, how many individuals are going to hold out for a trophy or nothing?

I think that the bull in the picture is a great looking animal. I just do not buy into the idea that people should turn down a legal animal, hoping to run into a bull like this one. I also have my doubts as to anyone drawing a tag and going home empty handed because the moose they saw was not big enough.

Todd, tell us again how well your stint as a moderator on that new website worked out since you went to banning anyone that did not agree with you on everything? You sort of got fired from that position didn't you???

Point is people, I am not asking or expecting ANYONE'S agreement with my opinion. If a person gets a shot at an animal like that, I am happy for them, it is a great looking bull. Stating that everyone should hold out for animals like that is simply not realistic from any stand point. If a person is really intent on shooting a real trophy moose, they are going to go to Alaska or western Canada, where they can pick and choose.

Id have gone home empty handed had i not got shot at a good bull,but that's just me.

Mark,

See what I'm talking about with Crazy. He just can't leave it alone.

And Crazy, just to give you a short but straight answer, as I don't want to trash up Josh's posting of his fine and very large trophy moose, any more than you've already done, NO, I was not fired from SafariRifles.net. As did all of the other mods with the exception of one, I resigned over an unrelated private matter. Had nothing to do with you or performance by any of the mods, including mine.

quote:

Originally posted by Josh K.:
Id have gone home empty handed had i not got shot at a good bull,but that's just me.

Exactly Josh. That attitude is why I always challenge the antis that put down "trophy" hunting. They use the term in a derogatory manner, attempting to discredit hunting in general. IMO, "trophy" hunting, in terms of being selective as to which animal you take, largely driven by antler or horn size, or simply age of the animal, dictates that the older specimen is removed from the population, thereby ensuring genetic contribution to the herd by letting the younger ones grow to maturity. "Trophy" hunting of only fully mature to past prime animals significantly reduces the total number of animals harvested since it requires letting the young ones walk.

Todd,
Yep. I just cannot see shooting a "meat" bull or smaller bull with such a coveted tag. I would have been happy with a lesser bull,but no dink. But like i said to each his own. A couple people in camp just wanted a moose,any legal bull. More power to em i say.

Josh

He's a dandy Josh! Got a friend up in NH that has invited me to come up and hunt moose with in Maine. So far, we haven't drawn the tag. Looking forward to doing that hunt, hopefully soon!

That is a wonderful moose. Congratulations!

quote:

Id have gone home empty handed had i not got shot at a good bull,but that's just me.

I respect you for your attitude and choice. As I have said, it is a great looking bull, very few people would not be proud of killing such an animal.

My point however remains, it is the person that is doing the hunt and their individual estimation of what is or is not a trophy/what they are willing to shoot.

Research by professional wildlife biologists world wide has proven over and over again, there is no guarantee that any particular animal will grow into a trophy class animal no matter how long it lives that is just nature.

It has also been proven that trying to manage any species by concentrating on only one segment of that species population is not good practice.

The Scandinavian countries have been managing Moose/Elk for a little while longer than Americans and to the best of my recollection in those countries, the hunter does not get to choose which animal to shoot but is instructed to shoot a specific animal/type animal i.e. cow/calf/spike bull/bull, the concept being, and evidently working, the management of the entire herd, not just one segment.

Having been a zoo keeper for 25 years, I worked around and interacted with many non-hunters and plenty of anti-hunters and one of the continual questions that I had to discuss with those folks and many times with members of the public concerned all of the emphasis being placed on "Trophy" animals.

With minor variations in wording the most often repeated question revolved around the concept that if hunters were/are supposed to be such great conservationists, why do we/they only concentrate on the biggest and best specimens of the species being hunted.

It gets really old explaining to non-hunters/anti-hunters that not ALL hunters only hunt for "Trophy" animals. As old as that got, explaining to fellow hunters that not being interested in "Trophies" only, or that the concept of what is or is not a "Trophy" lies solely with the person doing the shooting and then getting the response "Let'em Walk And Grow Into Monster's" has gotten a lot older.

I personally feel that the emphasis too many people place on some arbitrary concept of what is or is not a trophy is hurting hunting on several levels. If a person wants to hunt solely for trophies, that is great, I wish them the best. What would be somewhat refreshing is if the "Trophy" hunting element, would attempt to grasp the concept that not everyone is or ever will hunt strictly for "Trophies".

Some hunters, of which I am definitely one, gain pleasure/enjoyment out of the whole experience and any legal animal killed is a personal "Trophy" to me. Would I or will I turn down an actual "Trophy" animal if the shot presents itself, no, few if any hunters would.

But, a lot of hunters, especially those holding a hard to get permit for something like moose in Maine are not going to go home empty handed. I just feel and I don't think I am alone about this, that the continual emphasis some folks place on trophy quality is hurting hunting.

Awesome bull!!!


In 2012, a NR with 1 chance and no bonus points odds were 1:566.....lucky man!

Great bull!

Can't the poor guy just post a hunting report without it turning to shit?

Congrats on a once in a lifetime Maine Moose!

Can't a person state an opinion about a comment that was posted by another member, that bothered them?

I have made no attack on Josh or the animal he shot. Josh did not make the comment I gave my opinion on.

Would it have been any different if Josh had killed a "Dink" and posted a picture of it?

We have all seen members stop posting pictures for getting taken to ask because the animal they killed and were proud of for what ever their reason, did not come up to the standards some members of this site judge others by.

Josh killed a great bull, I hope to kill one half that size before I die, almost anything will be bigger than the 7 pointer I killed in Newfoundland in 1996, but even if I killed the next world record moose, it will not make me any less proud of that little "Dink".

I respect Josh for his honesty in stating that he would have taken a smaller bull, but not shot just any moose he saw, I just do not share that same philosophy.

Just like I do not share the philosophy as those individuals on here that are only interested in "Trophy" animals, nor do I share the philosophy some have concerning the overall management of free ranging animals by killing only on specific segment of the total population, nor do I subscribe to the notion that all male horned/antlered game animals will grow into real "Trophies" especially in FREE Range conditions.

Personally I think this site would not be as popular as it is if everyone always agreed on everything/every time. I have visited such sites and they are BORING.

quote:

Originally posted by Antlers:

quote:

Originally posted by MARK H. YOUNG:
Crazy,

Your making an issue where there is none.
Mark

...hmmm...

Josh K, my apologies for getting distracted from your very fine trophy - CONGRATS!!!

Antler,
It's ok. I know when you post something online you are subjected to everyone and anyone's opinion.
Thanks for the nice words!


Josh