I too am back from a wilderness adventure in Newfoundland. I don't know if there is enough space here to recount the trip. It was everything I had heard it was, and a heck of a lot more.

If anyone were to ask me if he or she should make a hunt to Newfoundland, my answer would be an emphatic "yes," but only if you are physically prepared for what you will face there. I thought stories about terrain being "up" in both directions were yarns spun by our parents about how tough they had it in school. I now know that they are stories -- true stories -- about hunting in Newfoundland.

But the hills are not the only challenge. The vegetation consists of two basic types: inpenetrable spruce thickets (called tuckamore), and rock-strewn tundra that sucks you down to make every step a labor. And labor you will, as we covered as much as 18 miles by foot (and knees)in a single hunting day.

As for the game, caribou are easy. There is no excuse not to take a woodland caribou. Moose, on the other hand, are a different story. Moose stick to the valleys and tuckamore thickets and can be very difficult to spot and stalk. When one is spotted, it's a crapshoot as to whether you will be able to get within rifle range. We all three got our moose, but not without considerable effort.

In my case, the effort consisted of a severe injury to my foot. I have a bone spur that I had shot with cortizone a couple of weeks before the hunt. This got rid of the pain, but apparently weakened the joint. When, on the second day of the hunt, I was climbing down a cliff, I came off a rock and landed on my toes. At this point all my weight shifted and pulled on my tendons and, BOING, I blew out my heel.

The pain was excrutiating. I made it back to the cabin crawling and hopping. I thought my hunt was over. But by the next morning, I found out that I could stand the pain if I walked side-footed and didn't let any pressure shift to the toe on my right foot. The guide suggested that we try a "short" hunt in the valley behind camp. My two hunting buddies came along (they had already killed out) and carried my rifle and day-pack. We carved a homemade crutch from spruce tree and off we went.

I made it through that day by shear determination and assistance from my friends. We saw no bulls that day, so the next day we went a little further. Still no bulls. On Friday, the third day since my injury, we went on a five mile hike and mountain climbing adventure. The pain was just about to the point that I was ready to call it a hunt, when we spotted a small bull. Knowing that this would be my only chance, I took him at a whopping 560 (rangefinder)yards. But that's another story unto itself.

Our guides were the greatest. Our accomodations comfortable. The food excellent. And the memories, priceless. The Newfie people are the friendliest folks on the earth.

My outfitter was Ironboud Outfitters, a small operation on the south coast of the Island. They are booked for next year, but I already put my name in for 2004.

GAHUNTER: Congratulations on a successful hunt, and sorry about your foot.

I'm sure there are those who will criticise you for shooting at such extended range, but under the circumstances, I would have done the same. I don't set my rifles up specifically for such long range shooting, but I feel more confident knowing that if the unavoidable circumstances occur that makes a long range shot necessary that my rifle (and I) are up to it.

Hope your foot is healing.

Great story and congrats on hanging in there when the going got tough. Just out of curiosity did you see any black bears? Moose don't light me up personally but a woodland caribou and black bear would do the trick for me.

No, we did not see any black bears, but they were definitely there. Every morning there would be a fresh set of bear tracks outside the cabin and bear sign (droppings)was everywhere. The guides said that they see one about once a week while hunting, but that that doesn't mean that you could kill one once a week. The bears are very spooky this time of year and hard to stalk to within gun range.

On the subject of caribou, the best advice to take a Newfoundland trophy is to have patience. You will see lots of caribou and be tempted to shoot, as all three of us did, one that looks good to you. After you shoot, however, you more than likely will see some of the mammer-jammer big boys we saw. In fact, we saw a potential record book bou while walking up to my diminutive-racked stag just after I had put him on the ground. Needless to say, I was sick.

I also just got back from a Newfoundland moose hunt. 3 of us got bulls, 47" 49" and a small 6pt 30". One older fella got a cow. Ditto the terrain. it was a gruelling hunt. The main thing I remember was shoot them until they drop. I lost a real nice bull on 1st day. Only got 1 shot into him at about 250yds using a 300 Win Mag and Speer Grand Slam. 165g. My most accurate load. I dont care if they use 6.5 x55 in Finland or Sweden. Next time I will be using 200 grain X-Bullets. I finally got another chance on the 5th day. 3 shots to bring him down. Rain, fog, wind and more of the same. Be in the best shape and it will be a lot more enjoyable. Went with Rack Lake outfitters. They are also booked next year and part of the next. Walked, hiked 5 to 15 miles per day. Any other question please email me @ fetchmax@msn.com. Good Luck

I don't begrudge a guy for long shots if the wind is dead, he's got an accurate rifle, he can shoot, and there's enough energy left at the end of the shot to get the job done. Considering the situation with your heel... I think, conditions being as I stated, it was probably a reasonable shot.

What gun/load/scope were you using?

Again, sorry about your heel.

Russ

[ 10-10-2002, 05:30: Message edited by: Russell E. Taylor ]