is there any predictions for the weather for the begining of November, so far here in PA we have had an unusual cool summer. Are they expecting an early winter QC?

We have a trip scheduled for Nov 18-22, we are planning on taking a snowmobile along with us. Are there any requirements for licence or registration for the snomobile?? any help would be appreciated thanks

Hunter Dave awhile back you inquired about the caribou maps posting both herds. If you check in with them now they are saying they are not showing either herd until after hunting seasons are over. This will not affect me this year due to flying in, but I can see where it would be highly inconvenient to those going on the winter hunt.

no
 

bob what are you and dave talking about bous down after our hunts over please tell me "no" im going from ohio (38hr's.)in nov 17 to 20 ??????? jim, ohio

wooo
 

Reread bobs post tracking off till after season ill be able to sleep now for the next 2 months SORRY....

pm me
 

If anybody going north in november im going up from ohio share info (My frist bou hunt doing it with bow only) Have truck problems on way up ,Gas $$ what every u want to yak about ?? NOV 17to 20??

Help and hints
 

If you look through this thread you can find all the info you need. This will be my tenth consecutive year for the winter hunt. The best thing you can do is read through the info here and decide what's best for you. You will find some guys disagree on some things but the info is here. Make sure your vehicle is in top mechanical condition. It's a long way for a wrecker and an expensive tow.

Good advice to read through - alot of info that will help you out. 1 thing to remember - they treat gas and diesel above ValDor to keep the water dissolved - if you add more to your tank you could have issues - esp in newer diesels - have seen more than a handful of trucks with serious intake issues $$$.

Nord, does this mean that all the advice on adding dry gas way back is no longer valid?

Anybody know what needs to be done to bring your own sled as far as special permits or anything like that. I'm at Mirage Nov.26-29. Still debating as to bring one or rent one if needed.
Time to start thinking about the hunt. Bummer about the tracking maps not being available this year.

For Diesels YES - I do not think a gas engine will mind as gas is more explosive than the IPA - not so with Diesels - increasing the pressure will blow your intake manifold - we have seen it now the past 3 years with several trucks - some brand new.

Im glad i live here in ohio instead of down south!!! Im half way to herd.... and as im driving towards them, they are running towards me ....(Hope we meet at L-G1 in November) Jimbo, ohio

:confused0024:I would think that the farther one lives from the hunt the more dedicated he would have to be to follow his brother-in law to this fairly remote area ,especialy after he has seen that they were going about 1500 klicks past B F E . can any tell me the chances of seeing the northern lights in mid november ? also if a man shoots his sisters husband and no one hears him fall in the woods does he still make a sound?:confused0024:

seafoam gps cor. on page 38 Its a long trip to make fun of your brother inlaw like that dont think i wont shot back if you are shooting at me too!!! remember brig is going to sell me your hunting gear for what you said you payed for it also.....

just finished all 186 pages . if i didnt have two more big fishing trips planned tween now and mid nov i would probably need a stay in the "nervous hospital" also i would like to thank all the guys that share their knowledge with the 1st timers to make it a better hunt. best i can figger it will take me about 3 weeks to get there from central North carolina and i hear its icy and uphill all the way there and back. still i am STOKED about going and cant wait , would love to meet some of yall in person . Q ... can you see the northern lights in mid november?

Come on back and talk to teady bear ??? Is anybody else going up week of 17 to 19 of nov we need at least two more tags to fill beside our own ,,, meet me at lodge and give me you tags!!!

Well- the Northern Lights are there - question is - will is snow every night which is normal and expect at least 25cm a night - this keeps us from seeing anything up top. Once year we left @ 0230 to hunt the tiny sliver of 22B East of the JBR and it was the only clear morning I have ever seen and the lights were real visible - the most beautiful area you will ever see.

bouman thanks for the info.this is our first time going bou hunting sounds like a real time i know we will enjoy it . we are booked with donat nov 17- 19 & my gps wont accept any of the #s that were in the post pg #38 must be different datum or something loc for the mirage was the only one that works in my gps that showing 1954 miles as the crow flysfrom my house in N.C. good hunting to you and yours and thanks again, david

Bouman are you from valDor i sent you a pm about staying there its a little past half way, im going with seafoam (Should be interesting trip:) We thought we would stop at nouchimi and go to camp early to get to hunt the whole first day ??? We do need to stop at km381 to talk to fish cops right , get maps , anything else??

Somebody make something up and post it !! I cant go on for two and half months like this ??

OK, I hear you...lol
I am going to the range next week to check zero on my 300 Win Mag and my Rem 30-06 auto.
I will be there Nov. 19 - 22nd at Mirage and I'am like you..can't wait!
I really hope I am there during the full migration, just can't imagine that many animals, it has to be a sight to see

thats a drag about the migration maps went to the mirage for the last 6 years for the first hunt in the winter and had great luck except for one year when we had to take the chopper if you can go to the maps of years past and look at them and how they moved along with the weather i might give you guys a good idea for this year i wish you all the best of luck and be careful on the transtagia road very unforgiving if not carefull

Thanks fire3517,
Can you remember what the cost of the helicoper was when you rented it, I imagine it was pretty expensive.
I think a good part of the adventure from what I have read is the trip up there.
I would like to get lots of pictures and I hope we have some caribou to take pictures of, the country also looks pretty awesome.

PW - I sent you a PM but do not know if it made it to you or not.

I am from NH and have been going for many years now. If you want to stay in Valdor it is a good town with some good hotels - you may have trouble getting a room now - they book early. you can also stay in Matagami - Hotel Matagami is OK with a resturant. The drive from Matagami to Laforge is over 900 KM and about 10 hours if the weather and roads are good. You can also stay at K381 rest area - make sure you call for reservations - not too great a place but clean and they have food. You are still 530 KM from Laforge. We stay in Valdor and drive straight in the night before 0 maybe get a room, maybe sleep in the truck - at Donat's you may have a cop look at you if you are sleeping in your truck - technically a no-no. This gives us the untire first day to hunt and if we tag we head back a day early - if not we have an extra day to look for bou. Without the maps you will need to rely on guides who are not always truthful unless you are paying them - but it become more like hunting like in the beginning before we had the maps. I think you will see plenty. Sight in for 0 @ 200 yards and know your ballistics - you may need to get out to 400+ to get that bull you want - and sometimes you muzzy will do the trick as the walk by you.

bjess the chopper is expensive but split between 4 hunters per each hour of filght and i believe it was like $1000 per hour when we flew out and depending on where they are at in the zone depends on how long the flights are dont forget to include weather conditions also bad weather takes longer to get to them if they even fly at all we also tiped our guide an pilot but for me it was like $1500 per person on top of our hunt to get our boos expensive yes but what a thrill how often do you get to see the caribou migration by chopper and be dropped right in them while they are running all around you.

Thanks for the info, you guys are great and I appreciate being able to chat with guys who have been there.
What is the average weight of these animals and how many pounds of meat did you get from them.
I have never tried eating caribou, but I hear it is really good, is it gamey?
How did you have your meat done up, was it mainly roasts and chops or lots of sausage.
Hey, now that's confidence eh, worring about how to get the bous cut up and I haven't even been there yet..lol

Something to help with the edge!
 

I made the trip for the first time 2 years ago and WOW it was great, we did good hunting but the whole trip was an adventure, from the amounts of animals to the drive, to the scenery. I am going to try and post some pic's for you.

We never got any real large bulls but they are all trophys to us, this year we know what we are in for and hopefully will hold out a little longer. Were up 17-19 of Nov. Staying in a cabin of nouchimi's at I think at 480KM
The meat is by far the best I have had, my family and I love whitetail deer, but we thing bou is much better.

Good luck to everyone!!

" /> " />" /> " />

Well the pic's didn't work!!
 

Try it again!" />

Got it now!
 

" /> " />

Yeah just want to take a min. and thank all who have posted. Had a great time reading all 187 pages alot to read.Going with donat 17 thru 20 with seafoam from north carolina (brother inlaw).Got a little deer hunting to do but love to leave tom. Most excited about this hunt for some reason? Any body going up around this time p.m if you want? Thinking of staying at valdor then rest way in ?? Coming from south eastern ohio

Great pictures, you did very well.
Thanks for the info also, too bad were going to miss each other, I will be just arriving (Nov. 19-22) and you will be leaving.
Good luck to you all, hope you have another great year.

bjess the meat is very lean hardly no fat at all under the hide you might find small little jelly sack type objects on the hide its self when you skin it not to worry they are from the flies and never hurt out meat as for size of the bous about 225 to 300 lbs on average we cut all our own meat and get quite a bit of meat its like 2 to 3 medium whitetail depending on what you want done and i agree by far the best meat you will ever eat in my opinion.

A tip for you!
 

A tip I learned the hard way! As soon as you can gut, you will want to, for some reason the guts swell real quik, I mean within 1/2 hour crap is pushing out of the mouth, so you can imagine trying to gut one with the intesine all swelled up. My first one actually somewhat exploded I was a mess. I think they eat lykens or something like that and it must give off helish gas.
I did not tell you this but it is fun not to tell one of the new guy's and just set back and watch the fun!!! I think I was the new guy last time because no one told me!!LOL

I was told not to gut them just to remove hind q's and front shoulders and tenderloins ??

drawbow is right they swell up from the lychen that they eat soon as you shoot one get to it tag it cause the fish cops are really patroling and get it gutted its the worst smell you will ever smell if they have time to ferment and expand from the lychen trust me perrywinkle you want to take the whole animal if you can there is a lot of meat there. By the way just had bou for dinner and it was great

Hi Fire3517,
The bou for dinner was a nice jab at us who have none...lol, but hopefully we can say the same after November.
I also heard you need to gut them asap, thanks for reminding me.
Should I tell my son about this or do what drawbow suggests and let the new guy find out..lol
Just 2 1/2 months to go, can't wait!

your eat bou and im not
 

ok fire ill gut'em, your eating bou im not, so ill gut them since this is my frist trip for bou ill do what the pro's says to!! gutting them is part of hunt for me ,if im gutting something must mean my matthews went twang....:barmy:

To trailer or not to trailer that is the .....?

can three guys bring all they need in a screw f-250 with 6'6" bed with cap , and bring back 6 monster boone and crockett bulls or is seafoam going to have to bring his trailer

an eye opener
 

This is a detailed account of my hunt with Jack Hume Adventures. I can say that it was a trip of a lifetime and there were very many good things that happened. It was not a guaranteed hunt, nor would I want one, but all did not go as expected either. The purpose of this is for someone booking a hunt to have a heads up on things you might not think of.
Shortly after booking and getting a contract I was contacted by Richard or Amanda Hume that they were trying to compress their schedule and would I be willing to change dates. I had no issue with this and they threw in a bear license, fishing licenses, and knocked a couple hundred dollars off what I owed. A week before the trip I contacted them asking about if they had located caribou and they named 2 camps that had caribou.
Upon arriving in Montreal we met the other hunters in our group and had our orientation. We were being sent to Camp Amanda which was not one of the 2 camps mentioned the week before, but it was supposed to be the best camp of 2008. Upon arriving in Schefferville I met Richard who said there was a huge herd of caribou about 15 miles from camp and they could be there anytime. No issues on the flights and we met our guide and cook when we got to camp. Our guide and cook were both wonderful.
For the first 4 days of camp no one saw a caribou. My son and I saw a wolf on day 2. On day 5 I saw a cow and a calf and my brother saw a small bull which ran past the other father/son combo at a distance. My son and the last hunter still had not seen a bou. That night they said that they were going to move us to another camp if the caribou did not arrive the next day, however we would only be allowed to shoot one caribou, which is something I had not noticed when reading brochures or websites and will touch on later.
On day 6 at 10:00AM Richard contacted the guide to see if the caribou had moved in which they had not. They said they were in the process then of setting up the other camp and that we would be moved the next day. That day my son filled our bear license for the first kill of the camp. We also saw one calf that day. (my brother, my son and I, no one else saw anything)
Early on day 7 they informed us they would pick us up at 2:00 pm. However, by noon there was 50 mph winds and they said they could not fly. The day before had been beautiful and we could have hunted while they set up camp had anyone bothered to check a weather report, or maybe this was how they planned it. My son and I saw a cow and a calf that day.
On day 8 the wind had subsided some, but they said they could not fly due to snow in Schefferville. At this point I told my son that the next day when the hunt was over, they would find a way to pick us up under similar weather conditions. At 8:30 that morning the other son I mentioned previously killed a respectable bull and by evening had limited out with a cow and his dad got a cow. My brother shot a cow that day, and my son and I saw nothing. When news of the bull got radioed back to headquarters our move was history.
On day 9 which was our day to pull out we were hunting by 5am. My brother got his second cow, my son and i got one each. Just before quitting time the other father got a bull similar to his son's. Even the guide said no comes up to shoot a cow, you can get one of them in a pasture for way less than $5000. My son and I and the one other hunter had not even seen a bull and he did not even have the chance to pull a trigger on a cow. Upon arriving back at Schefferville Richard went directly to the other father and son and told them he was glad it worked out for them. He told the rest of us to go up and register our caribou and when the one hunter said he had none, Richard took him aside. He later told me that he was told they would "work with him" if he rebooked. We did fill out surveys which I did not give him good marks due to never getting moved, but as of yet have never heard back. I learned on the way back to Montreal that 2 camps had caribou, with one camp killing 9 bulls and a cow for 5 guys. 2 camps also got moved with each hunter killing the one allowed bull. The other camp had kills, but I never heard how many. Upon arriving back at Montreal I was astonished at how few nice horns there were. Many were far less nice than the ones we took at Kisk on our winter hunt and some hunters even kept cow horns.
Now I would like to touch on the 10 reasons listed to book a hunt with Jack Hume Adventures.
1. Experience: in our case it was the guiding and cooking that showed experience!
2. High ratio of spare camps: meaningless if they have no caribou. The camp they moved people to and promised us was in Labrador and not even one of Hume's own camps.
3. Access to both herds: Not in our case, the Leaf River Herd was too far north yet to help out.
4. Customer satisfaction: Let's not go there in our case!
5. Mobility, Richard Hume has his own plane and is a pilot: The cook told us that he is not licensed to haul passengers, only cargo. I told her to pack me in a box and have him take me to the caribou! Also, no mention here of only shooting one animal if they have to move you.
6. Success over 90%: Even counting cows which is not what we were after we were at 75% and less than 20% on bulls. The people that got moved were at 50%. With these numbers, it would seem difficult to pull out 90+% this year.
7. Owner operated: No argument on this one.
8. Safety Cessna available for emergencies: Perhaps Richard is allowed to haul passengers in an emergency?
9. Fair chase hunts: Again no argument, it may have been more fair for the caribou than for us!
10. Competitive Price: As long as you get what you paid for!