A Caribou Quest Years In The Making

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A childhood memory—“caribou make a C”—set Cody on a path that didn’t let go until he stood in the Mackenzie Mountains with a bull on the ground and snow creeping down the ridges. This story begins years before the shot, in 2016, when he started messaging outfitters across the North to understand species, terrain, costs, and what truly makes a hunt worth the wait. We walk through the tradeoffs between barren-ground tundra and the mixed country of the McKenzie range, why Ravensthroat’s reputation and responsiveness sealed the deal, and how booking early with a top-tier guide can change everything.

We get practical and precise—gear that matters when helicopters, rain, and drafty teepee tents are your reality. From a 280 Ackley Improved with 145-grain all-copper Hammers to mid-flex boots, bombproof rain shells, and a zero-degree bag that saves sleep, Cody explains what worked and why. Then the hunt unfolds: float plane to camp, prime rib at the lodge, wolves echoing across the lake, and a guide who understood exactly what this dream meant. We spend time on the hard part—knowing when to pass, when to commit, and how to balance a once-in-a-lifetime budget with the desire to let the story breathe. When the right bull appears—great tops, strong bez—Cody takes a calm quartering-away shot at 180 yards and feels the North settle into him for good.

The days after are rich with what makes mountain hunts unforgettable: packing meat in cold rain, fresh snow on black rock, a grizzly feeding down a meadow, grayling flashing in clear water, and a helicopter scouting run that reveals just how alive this country is. We also break down logistics most hunters overlook—donating meat to northern communities, freezing and flying capes and antlers, and the small-town ingenuity that turns a tarp into checkable luggage. If you’re dreaming of a caribou hunt—or any remote big-game adventure—this conversation offers field-tested insight on outfitters, gear, weather, travel, and mindset. Subscribe, share with a hunting buddy, and tell us: would you have taken the shot or waited one more day?

Check us out on Facebook Hunts On Outfitting, or myself Ken Marr. Reach out and Tell your hunting buddies about the podcast if you like it, Thanks!

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (01:28):
It's Canadian access fire.
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All over Canada.

(01:50):
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(02:15):
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(02:36):
developing others and dogs.
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outfit at gmails.com.

(02:57):
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All right, let's talk, Cody.
So Cody Hunter the Hunter,welcome to the podcast.
You know, I I got in contactwith you through mutual friend
Dave McKillop.

(03:18):
And uh what I do know about yougoing into this and talking
about your your dream hunt isthat you live in Saskatchewan,
you went on a trueonce-in-a-lifetime dream hunt,
and you s booked it and startedthe process uh some time ago.

SPEAKER_02 (03:33):
Yes, I did, yeah.
It was uh quite a while ago.
I started actually messaging uhoutfitters um northern Manitoba,
uh Nunavut, uh NorthwestTerritories, and Yukon at about
2016.
I started like, you know,reaching out just inquiring on

(03:53):
what it costs and you know, uhkind of feeling them out.

SPEAKER_00 (03:59):
Yeah, so you I mean you definitely didn't book this
uh this hunt on a whim.

SPEAKER_02 (04:04):
No, it's yeah.
It's been a really long timecoming.

SPEAKER_00 (04:08):
Yeah.
So uh I gotta ask, I mean,caribou, I think they're a super
unique animal.
Uh there's m different speciesof them, different areas to hunt
them.
I mean, what got in your head topursue caribou?

SPEAKER_02 (04:22):
You know what?
It's kind of funny, actually.
Um you know how uh you take yourhunter safety here in
Saskatchewan when you're 12 or11, depending, right?
You can take it at 11 too, soyou're you're set to go the when
you turn 12 in the followingseason, right?
Right.
And um the guy at the time, uhhe's an old boy in town here,

(04:43):
he's a great guy, actually.
And his brother is was one of mymentors for hunting and
reloading, and you know, youname it, just any question.
He's he's kind of been the gurufor for lots of stuff.
And uh his brother taught huntersafety, his name is Jerry
Hilgers, uh better known aroundhere as Fritz.
And uh so I'm 12 years old, andyou're learning about uh hunter

(05:08):
safety and uh animalidentification, and I remember
uh you know, this elk andcaribou can kind of look almost
similar, right, in the in theheadgear kind of end.
And his explanation for it waselk make an E with their antlers
and caribou make a C with theirantlers, you know, so they start
with a C, and I kind of thought,oh, that's cool, my name's Cody,

(05:31):
you know.
I start with a C too.
They're caribou, they got a Cfor antlers, and they start with
a C.
And you know, that was honestly,if I can go way back, that was
really the the start of it.
And then I've honestly alwaysbeen infatuated with the North.
Um something just you know, it'salways piqued my interest.
I trap.

(05:51):
Uh I I just I like that.
You know, I like being in Canadaand the cold and the harshness
of it, and I love reading bookson like the fur trade and stuff
like that.
And nothing represents the northfor an animal better than like a
caribou or you know, maybe apolar bear, but I thought
caribou really stood out andreally represented what the

(06:12):
north was.

SPEAKER_00 (06:13):
Well, yeah, a hundred percent.
I mean, I I feel the same waywhen you think of up north.
I the caribou immediately comesto mind, and they're just a
really cool animal.
So I mean, that's neat that yourfascination for them uh started
at such a young age.
So, I mean, that's why youdecided to book the caribou.
Walk me through, I mean, how doyou go about where am I gonna

(06:34):
hunt them?
What species am I gonna hunt,what outfitter am I gonna use?
Because I mean, these are notcheap hunts, you want to have a
very reputable outfitter.

SPEAKER_02 (06:42):
Yeah, absolutely.
And that was a huge part of itfor me too, was um I'm not I
wasn't just going for a caribou,right?
It was like it was everything.
Um so I started looking into itand I started reaching out, and
you know, like the ones in umnorthern Manitoba and none of
it, they're they're barrenground caribou, they're

(07:03):
migratory.
Um they are a little cheaperhunt.
But the more I dug into it, itwould just for me personally, it
wasn't something that really gotme going because uh it was just
flat tundra, right?
Yeah, just rocks and flat, andit wasn't so much that the
they're not as big, but theyalso aren't as big.

(07:24):
And then I got looking at likethe Yukon and Northwest
Territories, like like alonglike the territories right along
the border in the McKenzie's.
And uh Alexander McKenzie'sactually like a guy, you know,
I've always read about him, andyou know, so oh cool, the
McKenzie Mountains like awesome,right?
Like kind of got my interestgoing there and got reading

(07:46):
about those caribou, and yeah,they're a little bigger, which
was cool, but the hunts were waymore expensive, right?
So I was like, oh frick.
But I wasn't going for just justto go say I shot a caribou,
right?
It was about being up in thisbig, vast country.
Um, it was cool up there becauselike it's not a treeless area,

(08:07):
right?
There's there's trees, there'sthere's poplars up there,
there's evergreens, there'sshrubs, there's berries, there's
you know, grizzly bears, youname it.
There was sheep, stuff likethat.
So being there was more thanjust the caribou, like I already
said, there, but it's it wasjust like being immersed in in
that kind of uh area, and thatso that's kind of where I went

(08:29):
into that region, and then uh,you know, honestly, I felt like
who I went with, uh it wasRavenstroat Outfitters.
Okay.
Um they were kind of the guysthat almost were just willing
to, you know, work with me andtalk with me and really even
engage with me, you know.

(08:50):
They they responded right awayto my messages, um, my emails in
2016, and then when I went to gobook in 2020, um they were like,
you know, we're not open quiteyet for 2025 bookings, but you
contact us first thing, youknow, in January, and we'll get
you uh we'll get you down on thedocket here.

(09:11):
And I was like, okay, cool.
Like, you know, these guysactually want to engage with me.
They really want to make thishappen.
And then I started doing somemore research on like outfitters
themselves, right?
And I actually had a buddy whouh he guides in BC.
He doesn't anymore, but he didfor a while.
So I ran it past him becausehe's honestly these guides all

(09:32):
kind of know each other too.
That was a that was a thing.
They all are kind of in theindustry and they all kind of
know each other, whether it'sfrom Sheep Show or the Bighorn
Banquet in Alberto or justthrough the guiding in general.
It's kind of a small world,really.
But he said uh, you know, Ibrought up Raven's throat and he
was like, Yeah, man, that that'sa really like super reputable uh

(09:53):
company.
Like that is where a lot of guysdream of going to Outfit for,
and they're known for you knowbeing top notch.
So I was like, okay, perfect.
Like that kind of you knowsolidified it for me.
So then yeah, they just saidlike we'll just need a deposit
down and uh it's refundableminus 20%, and I was like, K,

(10:16):
you know, if something badhappens or I just can't make it
work, at least I don't I'm notout everything, right?
Yeah.
So yeah, I sent him a deposit in2020 and the rest is history or
2021, sorry.
And yeah, the rest is history.
That's uh I just and I didn'thave to like pay it all up front
either.
It was something that I got towork towards.

(10:38):
Um paying with them whenever we,you know, got a bonus at work or
whatever it was, I was able justto keep hammering down that that
total bill.

SPEAKER_00 (10:47):
Yep.
I mean, so is that nor I mean isthat normal booking?
Did this outfitter deal withpeople booking that far in
advance?
And also, I mean, just for youtalking with them from 2016 on
and not being a tire kicker, butuh, you know, they weren't 100%
sure if you'd even book withthem and all that, but for them
to keep in contact with you andbe answering, I mean, I think

(11:08):
that says a lot about theoutfitter.

SPEAKER_02 (11:11):
It does, and it you know, and I even thanked him
when I was up there.
I just said thanks for, youknow, like even giving me the
time of day, like you know, andthey said, and they're really
good people, like they wereGrizz and Ginger were amazing.
They were just they're fromWyoming originally, they live in
uh Whitehorse now.

SPEAKER_01 (11:27):
Okay.

SPEAKER_02 (11:27):
Uh once since he's since he's bought the place in
actually 2016, he bought it.
So um, you know, he I justthanked them and they said, you
know, Cody, anybody who shows usinterest, we gotta give them
interest back.
Like that's just a good humanthing to do, right?
It's like maybe they can't doit, maybe they can, but they

(11:47):
still deserve the time of day toget a response and to at least
know what it is, right?
So they were it, you know, thatwas just a big part of it.
And I was super happy that I didgo with them just now that I
know them too, right?
It was awesome.
But yeah, that's kind of youknow, even when I booked them,
they were filling up fast.

(12:08):
Like I I know they're full in2025, uh, in 2022, they were
rateful, and they're booked allthe way to 2028 now.

SPEAKER_00 (12:17):
Really?

SPEAKER_02 (12:17):
Wow.
Yeah, they're booked solid till2028.

SPEAKER_00 (12:21):
So uh just quickly, we're not gonna get too much
into that, but um what do theyprimarily outfit for?
Raven's throat.

SPEAKER_02 (12:30):
I think their big one is like uh doll sheep,
right?
That's kind of what a lot ofguys really go for, is like the
sheep there.
Um a lot of the guys will do asheep caribou combo or a sheep
uh moose combo uh or a grandslam, which is like a sheep,

(12:52):
moose, and caribou.
Oh wow.
Um sheep only guys will go likeearlier in the year, right?
Um just uh just because theythat that's when the season
opens and there's a little moredecent hunting, I think, like
temperature-wise.
But yeah, the moose, uh moosesheep hunters, uh they're kind
of later because they want toget the moose like uh where

(13:13):
they're moving and they'reruting and stuff like that.
So yeah, um they did that, likethe hunt before ours.
They did the sheep moose combos.
But yeah, they kind of mainlyfocus on sheep, I think, but
they they do a 30 caribou a yearuh on average.
Yeah um eight moo eight moose ayear, and I'm not even sure on
how many sheep.

(13:33):
I think it's something similarto that though.

SPEAKER_00 (13:35):
Okay, so they're uh they're busy.

SPEAKER_02 (13:38):
They're busy, yep.
Yeah, and they're on a goodthey're on a great outfit for
sure.

SPEAKER_00 (13:42):
Yeah, that's a lot of work.
Um all right, so so you you knowwhat species you want to hunt.
You got the outfitter booked.
Uh before we get into the wholeadventure itself, and I want to
kind of get like a day by day,uh, let's do uh a rundown of the
gear.
I mean, what are you looking atfor gun?
Your bullet I know bullets yousaid you got special from uh
Montana.

SPEAKER_02 (14:02):
Yeah, I I reload uh my own bullets actually.
Um I kind of got into that whenI got uh a caliber that really
piqued my interest.
I shoot a 280 Ackley, improved.

SPEAKER_01 (14:13):
Okay.

SPEAKER_02 (14:13):
Uh so it's yeah, it's a special caliber.
They it's kind of getting morepopular now.
You can actually buy factoryloads for them.
Um but when you hand load,you're kind of really able to
like really dabble into it andput what you want through it.
So yeah, I was shooting uh 145grain hammer bullets, they're
handmade in Montana, um andphenomenal.

(14:35):
That was the first animal I'vetaken with them.
Uh they're all copper bulletsand then before that I was
shooting Barnes, they're anall-copper bullet too, and
they're really good.
But yeah, I just I thought I'dtry these hammers out, and I was
super happy with them.
But uh yeah, I've I've been on aelk hunt with my uh cousin in
northern BC before.

(14:55):
Uh he's able to do like asponsor hunt.
So he's able to be like quoteunquote your guide.
So then you're able to buyover-the-counter tags and hunt
with him, um, which is awesome.
I can hunt uh moose, elk, goatswith him.

SPEAKER_01 (15:13):
Oh wow.

SPEAKER_02 (15:14):
Um yeah, yeah, it's pretty pretty phenomenal.
So if you got a buddy in BC, uhyou can you can do that too.
He's gotta apply to it inadvance.
So I did that with him.
So I kinda had like a lot oflike the mountain gear uh
before.
Um I didn't really have to stacktoo much on top of it to make
this happen.
I I did upgrade my sleeping bag.

(15:36):
Uh I found my other one wasreally brutal out there in
northern BC with that.
I had a 15 degree down bag, andjust at night it would just, you
know, you were borderlineuncomfortably cold at night.
So I upgraded to a zero degreebag, and that was the best thing
I think I could have donebecause it it was dialed.

SPEAKER_00 (15:56):
That was that was the ticket.

SPEAKER_02 (15:58):
That was it was a ticket for being comfortable at
night, and and uh, you know, itdid snow the one night or sorry,
the one day on us, and uh, youknow, it didn't matter.
This thing I didn't zip up allthe way.
I was still nice and warm, andand you know, you that's a big
thing.
You want to have good sleep outthere, you you don't know how
long you're going for.
So yeah.

(16:18):
Uh yeah, and then it was justlike a lot of you know other
stuff.
They provided uh the meals foryou out in the field, uh, most
of the other equipment likethat.
They had camp chairs, stuff likethat.
They had the tent.
Um they actually uh it was ahelicopter hunt, so you got
dropped off with a helicopter.
Um, so we had a teepee tent witha wood stove and some wood out

(16:42):
there with us, so it it made itgood.
But those I mean, those stovesaren't like you know, your
typical house stove wherethey're they're nice and coasty
all night.
This thing's like maybe an hourand she's kind of done, right?

SPEAKER_00 (16:53):
Yeah, yeah.
And it it's probably a little uhdrafty in those tents, is it?

SPEAKER_02 (16:58):
Yeah, it was a little drafty, but you know,
like I said, it wasn't bad atall.
It was it was actually kindasome good living out there, I
won't lie.

SPEAKER_00 (17:07):
Yeah, yeah.
Um so I mean what kind of whatdo you have for I mean, I'm
curious about the footwear.
Uh what were you wearing forboots and stuff?

SPEAKER_02 (17:15):
Did you wear like gators with hiking boots or
yeah, I rocked uh snays beartooths.
I've owned owned them now forlike four or five years.
Uh actually probably yeah, thiswould be five years, full years
now, because I had them when Iwent hunting in BC.
And they're kind of like amid-flex, um, so they're not
like a true mountain like uhboot where you need like that

(17:38):
stiffer flex.
Yep.
Um I bought the mid-flex becauseI knew I'd get dual purpose out
of them with like hunting aroundhere, hunting pheasants, hunting
moose and elk aroundSaskatchewan, and then still
kind of they're still uh goodenough to take to the mountains
with you.
So that's why I wanted thoseones.
Um yeah, I wore gators for sure.

(17:58):
Uh rain gear was superimportant, like good quality uh
Puyu Yukon or IROC the the firstlight uh stuff.
Oh yeah.
Um that that was superimportant.
It rained a lot out there, andthey even said that like
probably three quarters of theirdays were you know they did get
some rain, and we got rain whenwe were out there every day in

(18:20):
the field.

SPEAKER_00 (18:21):
Oh, you did?
Is that just the time of yeardown there, the fall?
It is a lot rainier.
I mean, what was the generalweather like, I guess, for the
week?

SPEAKER_02 (18:30):
Yeah, it was pretty it looked pretty good actually,
and then uh you know, it we hadtwo days of good hunting
weather, and then it turned intorained all night and then turned
to snow actually the next day inthe morning.
Oh, okay.
And then the next day it was uhback to being pretty decent, and
then it did get really windy theday I uh flew out, it got really

(18:52):
windy.
Yeah, like 70k wind, so thefloat plane had a heck of a time
uh taking off the lake.
I felt like it did anyway, butuh it was it was this sketchy
ride out for me, you know.
Um but yeah, the weather waspretty decent.
It was uh single digits, I'dsay, in the plus side there.
Yep.
Uh during the days.
The the one day I think it wasmaybe maybe 10 degrees the first

(19:14):
day that we flew in there.
So it was comfortable, it wasnice, and and really other than
the one windy day, the rest werenice and calm and it was
beautiful.

SPEAKER_00 (19:24):
Yeah.
Uh what were you wearing too foruh for jacket?

SPEAKER_02 (19:28):
Did you have like a down jacket on or I used to have
a down jacket and I actually uhgot rid of it.
It was the two uh they're justnot tough enough, right?
Like any anything poked throughthem, right?
Yeah.
Yeah.
They kind of poke through them.
So I s I got like a it's calledlike a hybrid jacket.

(19:48):
It's kind of like a fleece andthen cotton filled with like a
nice outer shell.
And then I was rocking uh Couyuproximity.
It's uh it's a nice fleecejacket and it's really warm.
Um yeah, and then I had uhsimilar pants, like the gear
list was pretty big.
I was you're like, you know,with your gun and everything,

(20:10):
you're 70 pounds.

SPEAKER_00 (20:12):
Wow, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (20:13):
Yeah, that's that's all well because you just don't
know what kind of weather you'regonna get.
Some days are good where you'rekind of on a thinner pant, and
then it turns to rain.
Well, now you need your raingear, and the next day's cold
and miserable, and now you needlike your heavier stuff, right?
So you kind of want to beprepared for all that.
Um, and I felt like I wasn't.

(20:34):
They they had a really good gearlist, like they were dialed on
it, right?
They had a list of all the stuffthat you should bring, and uh
like right down to the socks andhow many pairs kind of thing.
So that made it that made itnice and easy.

SPEAKER_00 (20:48):
Yeah, yeah, that's really good because uh not a lot
of outfitters say that.
You know, they'd be like, uh,you know, dress warm or uh it
might rain a bit, dress forthat.
So they actually had a gearlist.

SPEAKER_02 (20:57):
They had a gear list, yeah, and it was perfect.
And honestly, I I had 90% of thestuff.
I really did, um, prior togoing.
So I didn't I I didn't needmuch.
I I bought I brought some extralike battery banks um for my
GoPro and for my phone to keepcharge, my sat phone, um, just

(21:19):
because I knew you know we couldbe out there for five, six days,
seven days.
Um so I just wanted to make sureI had enough stuff that you know
if you got in some troubleyou're able to still reach out,
or even in the good times whenyou want to take pictures,
you're you got the ability tocharge your phone or take a
GoPro video or whatever it was,right?

SPEAKER_00 (21:39):
So Yeah, absolutely.
Yeah.
Um all right, so I mean we'vegot the out species outfitter,
the gear.
I mean, Cody, walk us throughit.
You're getting what you going toRegina to fly out the uh the
airport there?

SPEAKER_02 (21:52):
I actually drove to Edmonton.
Um most guys were probably gonnafly from Regina if they would
have, but just looking at it, umyou know, Regina's a two-hour
drive for me.
Edmonton's a 10-hour drive forme.
Edmonton, Alberta.
Same plane.
Yep.
Yep.
Edmonton, Alberta, 10-hourdrive.

(22:12):
So for me, it was like, youknow, it's the same plane that
I'm on the whole way to NormanWells.
That's nice.
Uh the town where you kind ofget off and get on the flow
plane, and then the flow planetakes you to camp.
So for me, it was like it's notlike you're going to Mexico
where if your bags don't arrive,they'll bring into the resort a

(22:32):
couple days later, right?
Or whenever they show up.
Like, I don't have that option.
If I show up there and my gun'snot there or my gear's not
there, like you know, that'sgonna be really crappy.
Yeah.
Um, yeah.
So they do actually recommendyou wear, like in your in your
carry-on, you know, bring youryou have any medicine or
anything like that, you need tobring, you bring that.
You wear your hunting boots onthe plane.

(22:54):
You you you you basically gearup uh just in case you can get
there, and you know, if theyneed to lend you a gun or
whatever, at least you can stillget out there and hunt, right?
Um, so I was like, uh, you knowwhat, I should have drived to
Edmonton.
Same plane, don't have to riskany of that stuff, really,
right?
And then even flying home too,like that was a big thing too,

(23:16):
was flying home.
I flew home with everything, uh,fifty pounds of meat, the cape,
and my horns.
So that's a lot more money toyou know check everything again.
Um yeah, I just drove to Ad andTim and then uh yeah, you hop on
the plane there.
We flew out at 8 a.m.
and uh we flew to Yellowknife,uh stopped there for a bit, like

(23:40):
45 minutes, and then we flew toAnuvik, which is like way far
north, like uh almost on theArctic Ocean coast there.

SPEAKER_01 (23:48):
Okay.

SPEAKER_02 (23:49):
Um and then we stopped there for a bit and it
was pretty cold there, I won'tlie, it was uh like 30 degrees,
high 20s in Edmonton.
She was eight degrees in Anuvik.
And uh then we flew back downsouth, kind of basically the
same uh latitude as whatYellowknife would be, but more
towards uh the McKenzieMountains there.
You're just basically in thefoothills of the McKenzie's and

(24:11):
uh landed there, got all of ourgear, and everyone's arrived
actually, all the hunters thatwere uh going to Norman Well or
going to Ravenstroat, and therewas another group of guys going
to a different outfit, and alltheir gear came to or got there.
And then we got picked up uh bya little bus there, and it took
us about uh five minutes uhsouth of town, where there's a

(24:35):
small lake, and that's whereyour uh float plane is.
That's first time.
So we met the guys there, youtake your gun out of your hard
case, like your locked case, youtake your ammo.
Um, you can either just carryyour gun on the plane with you
on your lap or put it in a softcase, whichever.
Um then you load up in the flowplane and they fly you.

(24:56):
It's about a 45-50 minuteflight.
And then we flew into camp anduh everyone met us at the at the
dock there, and all the guidesand and uh outfitter owners
there, and and uh the thehelicopter pilot went up and
they had uh supper ready for us.
It was freaking awesome, and itwas uh prime rib.

SPEAKER_00 (25:18):
Okay, yeah.
That's a good welcome to campdeal.

SPEAKER_02 (25:21):
Welcome to camp deal, yeah.
And it was it was great, andthen you know it got rolling
right away.
Like uh they got the everyonegoing right away.
Uh the four guys that were theredoing um moose caribou combo,
they went out first and uh theyall got out that evening.
And then uh it was getting toodark up there, and it actually
gets dark there way later thanhere.

(25:43):
It was like nine o'clock.

SPEAKER_00 (25:44):
Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (25:45):
It was dark.
Yeah, so the sun was stillpretty good up there.
I was surprised.
I didn't know what to think,right?
You're you're getting pretty farnorth, and I know they got
endless daylight in the summer,but eternal darkness in the
winter, so I didn't know wherewe were gonna land in the middle
of that.
But yeah, it's actually stillbrighter there.
So then uh yeah, the next day,um one of the moose hunters

(26:08):
actually tagged out right away,first thing in the morning.
It's because you have a 12-hourdelay too, right, when you're
when you get up there.
Um you can't hunt for 12 hoursafter flying.

SPEAKER_00 (26:17):
Yeah, because it's considered scouting, right?

SPEAKER_02 (26:20):
Yeah, scouting.
It's a little you know on ESCO,you can't see something and just
march off for it.
So yeah.
Uh the next morning there, uh Igot a big moose, and yeah, there
it's Alaska Yukon moose, and sothey flew that back in with the
chopper in the net, and it wascrazy.
I could not believe how bigthose are.
Like just insane.

(26:40):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (26:41):
So imagine the one was pretty happy.
What how big of a spread was it?
I thought you put on Facebook.

SPEAKER_02 (26:47):
Like six sixty inches, and uh wow.
Yeah, and the biggest one thatit got out of there ever is
74-inch spread.

SPEAKER_00 (26:54):
Wow, that's crazy.
That's a huge one.

SPEAKER_02 (26:57):
Yeah, they got a replica of it on the wall there
in the main lodge, and it islike insane.
I could not believe it.
I actually come home and lookedat the biggest moose shed I
have, and it you know, it is noteven comparable.
No.
I actually couldn't believe,like, you know, I'm looking at
this thing like that's thebiggest moose shed I've ever
found, and this thing was like afraction of what they're

(27:19):
shooting up there.
Just insane.

SPEAKER_00 (27:21):
Just doesn't even look real.

SPEAKER_02 (27:24):
No, it doesn't, yeah.
And then the bodies are massivetoo.
So yeah, then we uh me and myguide ended up getting out there
at like two o'clock in theafternoon.
Um, and my guide was a beauty,like uh he came and met me the
first day and we got kind ofshooting the breeze, and he's
like, So you're fromSaskatchewan too, eh?
And I said, Yeah, man.

(27:44):
And he's like, Me too.
And I said, No way.
He's like, Yeah, I said, Wow.
Came all the way up here to huntwith a guy from Saskatchewan,
eh?
And he's like, Where are youfrom?
I said, uh, Rocanville.
He said, Shut up.
I said, Yeah, why?
Where are you from?
He's like, I'm from Melville,dude.
I'm like, Are you serious?
So, like, our towns are onlymaybe an hour apart, eh?

SPEAKER_00 (28:03):
Yeah, small world, and you guys are up there on a
hunt.

SPEAKER_02 (28:07):
We're up there on a hunt, and then he's like, Where
do you work?
I said, uh, at the potash minein Rocanville.
He's like, dude, I work at thepotash mine in Esterhazy.
So yeah, takes all his holidaysuh this time of year and goes up
there hunting.
He hunted for an outfitter therein UConn for a few years, and
now he's been here for a coupletoo.
So yeah, he was a great guy.

(28:28):
It was so awesome, too.
Just because, you know, talkingwith him, he knew what this hunt
meant to me.
He he really, like truly on apersonal level, he knew exactly
because he was he's basicallythe same kind of guy, right?
He's just a small town guy fromSaskatchewan, too.
So he really knew what thismeant and what this was.
And uh I'll get into it when weget on the hunt, but yeah, he

(28:50):
really helped with that part ofit too.
Um so yeah, we get out at twoo'clock in the afternoon and set
up camp, and uh it's a nicelittle spot.
Uh there's a couple drainagesall around us, and uh there's
some trees around us, but somereally good glass and knobs.
So we get there, and when we'reflying over, we kind of seen

(29:11):
some caribou on the way, but wewere like, ah, what's set up?
We got lots of daylight left andwe'll have a supper like later.
Neither of us were super hungry,so we'll we'll eat later when we
come in.
We'll just have a mountain houseor uh peaks, whatever.
So yeah, we went for a scout andseen probably 15, 20 caribou.
That was awesome, right?
Got gets pretty gets the guypretty excited that he's

(29:32):
actually seeing stuff, you know.
Yeah.
Um we seen a pretty good onelike right behind camp.
They were kind of flown out ofthis draw just east of camp into
the the range that we were kindof in.
So again, that was exciting, butwe couldn't do anything about it
because twelve hours.

SPEAKER_00 (29:50):
Yeah.
So are they in herds?

SPEAKER_02 (29:54):
Yeah, they're kind of in herds, but they're not
really migratory.

SPEAKER_00 (29:57):
Okay.
Yep.
That's what I was gonna say.

SPEAKER_02 (29:58):
So they don't uh Yeah, they don't migrate.
They don't like bunch up intothousands.
They just got you know, they'llget into herds of a couple
hundred, I think he was saying.

SPEAKER_01 (30:07):
Okay.
That's a good thing.

SPEAKER_02 (30:07):
Uh for the rut that's about to take up here.
So they're just getting intolike their rutting phase when we
were there.
You know, we I got a couple coolvideos of them fighting and
stuff.
But yeah.
So they were in herds of I don'tknow, we seen a couple of eight
to well, by the end we seen uhthree herds merge uh just down
from the glassy knob we were at,and they merged into a herd of

(30:28):
sixty.

SPEAKER_01 (30:29):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (30:30):
So yeah, it was it was cool.
So yeah, we we went back to campand you know, I wish I could
tell you some really big storyabout uh how we were out there
for six, seven, eight daysgrinding, but uh it's not gonna
be that kind of story.
But uh so the next day we wakeup and uh we head off and we can

(30:51):
see them coming out of this drawagain, and they're coming out of
these pine trees actually righteast of camp again, and we're
like, Gail, this is kind ofwhere they're heading.
It seems like they're headingout of them and they're uh
funneling down into the flathere.
And uh so we go to this glassyknob, and he was pumped too,
because I brought I got a goodspotter and stuff like that.
So I brought all that, and hewas like, Yeah, we're gonna need

(31:12):
that, and it's good to haveanother guy that actually has it
because otherwise it's just themean kind of looking.
Yeah.
So yeah, we washed some porn outof there, and then around noon
we found a good herd, and hekind of came out of the creek
and they come right around us,and I seen him uh in the pine

(31:33):
trees.
That my guide spotted him first,actually, but I went and had a
good look at him.
He had a double shovel, which iskind of rare.
Like less than 10% of them havea double.
Oh really?

SPEAKER_00 (31:42):
Yeah.
So the double shovel, thoselistening, uh I know what it
looks like, but could how wouldyou describe it?

SPEAKER_02 (31:50):
Kind of like an eye guard almost.

SPEAKER_00 (31:52):
Yeah, you know two two eye guards straight above
their forehead, basically,right?

SPEAKER_02 (31:57):
R right above their forehead kind of comes out and
looks like they're just like,you know, like an eye guard
almost.
And yeah, most of them just gotlike one big one and then
usually like a little knob or atip of one on the other side.
But yeah, the one that we seenthere had like a true good, like
decent sized double shovel.
So I was like, I was prettyexcited about him, and he's

(32:19):
like, ah, you know, like I don'tknow, man.
And I'm like, no, I get it.
I'm just like, he's pretty coolthough.
He's like, yeah, he is for sure.
But you know, first morning,first day, like we'll probably
pass.
I'm like, yeah, for sure.
Like, you're the guy, and I'mlooking at the first caribou
I've ever seen in my life, man.
Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (32:36):
Well, I mean, what was that like dreaming about
these and everything, and thenseeing one in front of you for
the first time?

SPEAKER_02 (32:42):
Oh, it's it was awesome.
I was just I was pumped that wewere actually seeing them too.
Like, I had no doubts we weregetting it right.
These guys are super reputableand they run pretty much 100%
success rates on them too.
So you know, I had no doubts wewere gonna get them, but I also
didn't, you know, I didn't wantto settle, but I didn't want to
pass, if you know what I'msaying.

SPEAKER_00 (33:01):
Right.
Oh yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (33:02):
I d you know, it's it's so hard for me, and we know
you you waited all this time anduh invested a lot of time and
and money and literal blood,sweat, and tears to make this
all happen.
And the last thing you can do iscome home with nothing, but the
last thing you want to do too isjust shoot the first one that
you see, right?
Right.
So that was definitely playinglike playing in my heart and my

(33:26):
head the whole time.
And uh I said to my guide there,he I said, uh, like, well, I'll
tell you what, if he comes uparound this knob that we're on,
you're gonna have to take thisgun from my hand, because you
know, he looks pretty okay tome.
He's like, no, he is prettygood, but just probably on like
the fifth or sixth day we'd takethat.
I'm like, okay, sure as craft,he comes like a hundred yards

(33:49):
from us.
Uh I got a great video of himcoming around too.
He's like 150 yards kind ofthing.
And yeah, it was it was awesome.
But I was like, okay, whatever,we'll pass on.
So we ended up doing like a bighike.
We end up going back into thisdraw where they were kind of
coming out of him.
We couldn't see much, but thenwe went to this top glassy knob
and we could kind of see thewhole valley, and we could see

(34:11):
that herd that we had just seenkind of come out around us,
merge with another herd rightbehind camp, actually.
And then they continued on downsouth and they merged with
another herd of about 30.
So we were now looking at 60caribou.
So it was pretty cool because wewere looking at, you know,
probably a dozen bulls, uh, likedecent ones, and probably five,

(34:32):
like, you know, that lookedpretty good.

SPEAKER_01 (34:34):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (34:35):
So that was nice.
We were, you know, really layingour eyes on them.
And they they were flown intoand the good bull that we'd seen
the night before, we couldn'tsee him.
Um, and he did say if we did seehim, we'd probably take him,
right?
He was that good.
Uh we couldn't see him.
So that was also a good sign,though, too.
You're getting new caribou,you're getting new flow all the
time, right?
And that's kind of what youwant.

unknown (34:56):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (34:58):
So yeah, we ended up uh going up on this knob and it
started raining, so we we set upa nice little uh tarp above us
and sat there in glass, and itwas just the same uh herd that
was out there, so we ended upboth falling asleep under the
tarp and woke up and the sun wasshining in our eyes, so it was
perfect.
Yeah.
Had a quick bite, uh, found acreek and filled up our water

(35:20):
bottles.
And then we went back down tothe knob that we were first at,
uh, where we'd seen this thisdouble shovel bowl kind of come
around.
And uh my guide's like, youknow, I just have a feeling,
man, that we're gonna keepseeing him pour out of that that
drainage there to the east.
And it wasn't 20 minutes later Ilooked and I could see these

(35:42):
horns sticking up over thishill.
And then I was like, oh man,there they are right there.
And he's like, Frick, I toldyou, buddy, told you they'd be
coming.
I'm like, yeah.
So that was awesome.
And then yeah, there was onegood bull there, and he uh he's
like, Yeah, we'll pass on himtoo.
And then uh we could see thetops of another one kind of
coming around this pine tree.

(36:03):
And he's like, Yeah, we got agood one here, dude.
And I was looking at him and wehad the spotters both on him,
and he's like, Holy cow, dude,he's got like great tops.
So we kind of you know waitedand could be they were both uh
with a herd of cows too.
There's about 10 or 15 of themand they're pushing right

(36:23):
towards us.
So my guide's like, okay, he'sgot really good tops, good
Bezes, which is like the hornabove the shovels that kind of
sticks out.
Yeah.
And he's got really good tops.
He's like, uh, you you shouldget your gun ready, and you
know, we might this somethingmight happen here.
And I was like, K.
And then yeah, we just had likea really good talk about it

(36:45):
because like I was alludingthere before, my guide really
knew what this meant to me,right?
Mm-hmm.
So he had a really good, like,you know, this is our first
actual day of hunting.
Um, we don't have to go back.
If we take them, we can hang outhere.
And we don't have to take them,like there's gonna be other
carrier that we're gonna be ableto shoot, but I can't promise

(37:06):
you, right?
It's hunting her man, like it'sjust you never know what's
coming over that next hill orwhat's gonna be flown into the
valley the next day, right?
Like exactly.
Um and so I was really just likeit was definitely playing in my
heart a lot, right?
Like, I didn't want this to bedone.
But I also like you know, I'mnot this guy who's got all this

(37:28):
money in the world where if youdidn't see the one that was like
boon and crock at tipping thescales at 400 inch plus, no
problem, we'll just do it againnext year.
Yeah.
Uh it's not an option for me.
And guys do do that, right?
Like there was a guy there thatyou know, he just uh didn't see
a moose that he really wanted,you know, or couldn't get to it

(37:50):
actually.
He was just too far away and hejust wasn't able to do it.
And he's like, ah, that's fine,let's go hunt caribou now.
Right.
So he just cast in his tag.
Yeah.
And uh just this just wasn't anoption for me.
So my guide was just that wasawesome just having him there
and being like, you know, knewand what knew what this meant.
And he said uh he understoodright from the like right to the

(38:12):
core, right?
And I I I said, dude, I'm reallyhappy with him, but I don't want
to like, you know, go in if wetake him.
He's like, no, no, not a problemat all.
We'll hang out here for a fewdays and have fun and shoot the
shit in the tent.
And so he ended up coming likequite close to us.
He dropped down below us and hewas maybe like ten yards, like

(38:36):
we could hear him, you know,eating, feeding right below us,
but we couldn't see him.
And uh he kind of came aroundtowards that creek where the
where the other ones is kind ofcome up and around.
And he got a really good look athim then too, from like 50
yards, and so did I.
And he said, Yeah, dude, he'she's a good caribou for sure.
Um so I was just like, that'sall I needed to hear, right?

(38:58):
Um I didn't want to settle fornothing, but I also I needed to
be like right in the mix of likethis is what's this is what we
kind of came here for, right?
Mm-hmm.
So he kind of came around and uhhe ranged him at 180 yards and
then he took a few steps backand was quartered away and uh

(39:19):
just take your time and thenyeah, squeezed off a shot and
dropped him uh right then andthere.
Uh so that was awesome.
It was like the first firstnight like of uh like legal
hunting, so we were only outthere for 24 hours and we got
one down.
Wow.
And uh yeah, it was it wasperfect.
Like, you know, I wish there wassome cool story where I was out

(39:42):
there for four days or grinding,but I just couldn't pass as an
opportunity.

SPEAKER_00 (39:46):
Yeah, no, I mean I don't blame you at all.
Yeah, I mean I get that you weresaying you're almost in uh a bit
of a conundrum.
You you know, how you're worriedabout like, well, if I take
this, we're just gonna headright back.
But that's nice that yourguide's like, no, no, like it's
not simple.
You want to take it, we'll takeit.
And uh we're gonna hang out hereand you know, take in the
scenery that you came for.

SPEAKER_02 (40:05):
So that we came for, yeah.
Because the caribou, yeah, thatwas like obviously what got me
there, but it was it's stilleverything about it, too.
Pretty much, and uh it's theadventure, right?
And I wanted to be out there andsee grizzly bears and sheep and
stuff like that.
So you know, I messaged my wifeon my inreach after we got it.
He he died basically likeinstantly.
He he fell right over rightafter the shot, and he did one

(40:28):
lift of his head, and that washead for him.
So uh we went back, you know, 30yards for our packs and uh
repacked our tripods andeverything like that.
And I messaged my wife on myinreach, and yeah, she actually
told me when I got back, she'slike, not that I couldn't
believe you got one on the firstday, but like knowing you as a
hunter, like you know, I haven'ttagged out on a deer in three

(40:48):
years because I just like I'mgoing for the one.
Yeah.
Right?
So she's like, you know, everyevery deer season you're out day
in and day out, and you comeback and you're just like, nope,
seen a good one, but wasn't theone kind of thing.
So she was just super like blownaway that I I shot one on the
first day because I'm like,yeah, but it was a nice one.
You know.
It was a nice one, and it was itwas it's a great, it's a great

(41:11):
bowl.
And but failure just wasn't anoption, right?
There's no like no problem buy ageneral tag again next year and
try her again.
Yeah.
Right?
Like it is with deer.
I just it's I'm not doing itagain.
So so yeah, we we went downthere and we uh we field dressed
them and skinned them andquartered them up.
Uh prior to that we took someawesome pictures, like some, you

(41:33):
know, that was cool too.
My guy took some time to getsome really great pictures and
and we cleaned them up nice sohe look he looked really good.
And then yeah, we packed the itwas by that time it was pretty
dark.
Um so we moved the quarters offthe off of them and uh hauled
them back to camp.
And uh yeah, it started raining.

(41:54):
We're walking back and then inthe dark there and in the rain
and just shooting the shit, uh,me and a good buddy now at this
point, right?
Yeah.
So yeah, we got back to camp anduh we had uh some ground doll
sheep that we'd brought to campand uh we made uh wrap doll
sheep smash burgers and uh hungout all night in the tent and

(42:17):
just played games and shot thebreeze, and then uh the next day
that rain turned to snow and wehung out in the snow all day and
went for a hike and went and gotuh the rest of the meat and
stuff like that.
Um and then with every tag youbuy up there too, it kind of
comes with like uh whenever youbuy a big game tag, it comes
with uh two wolf tags and awolverine tag.

SPEAKER_00 (42:38):
Oh, cool, yeah.
Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (42:40):
Yeah.
So and you know, we don't reallytarget them, they're kind of
more opportunity-based.
Um, but they just come they comewith your tag.
So yeah, we we uh sat over thecarcass there for a bit and
checked on it uh every morningand every night, but nothing was
on it uh either of the day, sowe never really sat up on it
much because like nothing hadeven been there.

(43:00):
We could see the tracks and thesnows and and snow and there was
nothing, so there's no pointreally uh sitting there all day
if nothing's even been thereyet.
Um but yeah, we checked in on itand then uh yeah, we hung out
all day there, and then the nextday um a couple guys were
getting moved around and pickedup, and uh the day after that
there was another weather stormcoming in, so uh we thought it'd

(43:23):
be a good time to to pack up andand beat that weather.
So then we uh called in for thehelicopter.
We got a helicopter ride out.
They uh came, picked up the meatand the horns and everything,
and then uh came back for me andmy guide and the rest of the
gear.
And uh yeah, we flew back tocamp there.
And I guess I should go backthat day that snowstorm

(43:46):
happened, uh no, the day that wewere flying out, sorry.
There was uh a grizzly bear thatwas in the meadow, kind of
probably almost a mile away, anduh it was feeding right towards
camp, and the wind was blowingactually towards us, like in our
face, so it wasn't coming forthe carcass, and we knew that,
but it was heading for us.

(44:06):
And yeah, it dipped down rightinto the redstone river, uh kind
of right close to camp, and thenit would never popped back up,
so we never seen it again.
But uh, you know, justbeautiful, beautiful scenery.
The the snow had kind of meltedback off to the top half, one
third of the mountains there, sothere were beautiful white tops

(44:26):
and feeding in the sun in themorning was uh band or uh sheep
there.
There's 14 sheep, 13 sheepfeeding there, so it was it was
just everything a guide went forand seen it.
And then we get back to camp andyou know at camp it's it's good
life there, you know, from uhfrom the field.

(44:47):
Shower and uh hide a nice littleplace to stay in, like a little
sh uh shed kind of cabin thing,and it had two small beds and a
wood stove in it for a night,and then they have a chef on on
uh on site there and he makessome phenomenal meals and cooks
a lot of the f uh the meat upthat hunters harvest while
they're there.

(45:08):
And uh yeah, went fishing forArctic grailing and lake trout,
uh caught an Arctic tro uhArctic grailing.
And that was kind of a bucketlist of mine too.

SPEAKER_01 (45:17):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (45:18):
Yeah.
So then yeah, did that, and thenuh there was a grizzly bear,
huge boar came right across fromthe lake where the where the
main camps posted that, so gotto watch him.
Um wolves were howling in themorning.
Uh, my first morning there.
Um they were right across thelake, just giving her at 6 a.m.

(45:39):
And then yeah, the outfitteractually invited me for like a
scouting mission in thehelicopter.
He was going out and we weredropping off some wood for the
next uh next hunters, and therewas a sow and two grizzlies and
probably a hundred caribou weseen and stuff like that.
So it was just everything a guydreamed of being there, and
yeah, it was it was a greattime.

(46:00):
I I couldn't I can't say enoughabout the guides up there and uh
the camp owners or the owners ofthe outfit.
They just they run a great job,and the guides really they make
the whole operation just what itis.
Those guys spend a lot of time,you know, in the bush and in the
field, so they're some toughdudes.

SPEAKER_00 (46:19):
Yeah, I mean it sounds like it was amazing.
So you actually saw uh a fairamount of wildlife, really.

SPEAKER_02 (46:27):
Yeah, you know, and that's the thing, right?
You get up to the north and it'sI don't know, it's kind of not
as game rich as a guy usuallythinks, right?
Like they're you know, moosedensity is usually pretty sparse
and stuff like that.
But this place here, it was gamerich, right?
It was it was unbelievable.
Yeah, when I was there, four theuh three moose were taken while

(46:49):
I was there, um, out of the fourmoose hunters, and they were
just stud moose.
Like I mean, massive.
And you know, there's anotherguy in camp there, uh, he's a
guide in Alaska, and he used towork for the outfitter that I
was at there when they were inWyoming, and he was a really
cool dude.
He just he'd hunted everywhereand everything, and guides for

(47:10):
grizzlies in Alaska, and he's areally tough dude too, and you
know, puts on a lot of miles anda lot of time in the bush, and
still guides for sheep inWyoming, uh big horn.
And then his cousin who he waswith, she is a you know,
phenomenal hunter too, and anduh hunted almost everything you
can name.
And uh that was a really coolpart too about being there,

(47:32):
right?
And that was you know, the otherpart about going up there for me
too is uh the hunt andeverything like that and the
game.
And then I was I did want toenjoy the camp life too, right?
I wanted uh I wanted to do somefishing.
I don't know if I'll ever catchan arctic car grailing, sorry,
again.

SPEAKER_01 (47:48):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (47:49):
Um and meeting so many people that are really
like-minded and hearing theirstories, and everyone I met was
just you know phenomenal, reallygood people.

SPEAKER_00 (48:00):
So it was it lived up to your expectations, is what
you're saying.

SPEAKER_02 (48:05):
Oh, I l yeah, it lived up to me.
It was it was worth every pennyand every, you know, every
holiday he used and everythinglike that needed to go up there.
It was so worth it for me.
And you know, um something thatI've always been able to lay my
head on at night is uh you know,it's all about what you want to
spend your money on, right?

(48:25):
Like uh some guys got side bysides and snowmobiles and boats
and you name it, and go toMexico.
Some guys go to Mexico everyyear, twice a year, whatever it
is, right?
It's all about what you want todo with your life, and not one
of them is right or wrong.
Um this is just m my passion,you know, that's what gets me up
in the morning and you know,outside of my family, obviously,

(48:47):
but uh this is what I want todo, and so that's why I spot
these head nights, you know.
Because it was it was a bigcommitment for sure, but you
know, this is what I live for.

SPEAKER_00 (48:57):
So Yeah, absolutely.
I mean, um that sounds amazing.
So Cody, I gotta ask, like, whatwhat's the size of them?
You said you got what was it,sixty pounds a meter so that you
brought back, but I mean whatwhat's the size of an average
caribou bull?

SPEAKER_02 (49:14):
I think they're like three hundred pounds.
Like, you know what?
Okay.
I have to look that up.
Yeah, they're not huge, they'renot bigger than an elk.

SPEAKER_00 (49:21):
Like a real big white tail.

SPEAKER_02 (49:24):
No, no, no, I would say like probably the size of a
cow elk, kind of okay, yeah,yeah.
Yeah, that's where I would kindof rank them in as like a cow
elk.
Um I should have looked it upbefore, to be honest.
But uh yeah, that's where I'drank them as a cow elk.
You know, and most guys upthere, because it's such a
logistically, it is a pain inthe butt to get up there, kind

(49:45):
of thing, and and getting home,and you know, I'll get into that
getting home in a minute, butmost guys just uh donate the
meat back to the communities upthere, and it and it's a big
deal for the communities upthere.
I mean uh talking to the DNRwhen I was leaving, uh he said
that this year alone, just fromthe the camps around uh Norman
Wells there, they're gonna get60 to 80,000 pounds of meat from

(50:08):
the outfitters.

SPEAKER_00 (50:09):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (50:09):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (50:10):
And I'm sure that's much needed for you know a lot
of the locals there.

SPEAKER_02 (50:14):
It is, yeah.
It falls into like theirsustenance, like, you know,
traditional meats kind of thing,right?
Lots of like when uh when I gotoff the plane there, there was a
guy and uh and his wife and twokids uh unloading the plane, the
float plane, that had threemoose on it and uh two caribou,
and they were unloading all themeat off it to take it to the

(50:35):
the community storage area whereit all gets frozen and stuff
like that and then distributedat the end of the season.
So you know it's a big deal tothem too.
And it's so remote too that youknow no one's really going out
there to hunt, like honestly.
It it it's a 50-minute floatplane ride out there, so yeah.
So yeah, uh I I came home with40 pounds of meat, is what I

(50:56):
ended up coming home with.
Um and that that was strictlydue to like cost and stuff like
that, trying to make make thatmake sense to come home with it.
So I took uh one hind quarterand then choice cuts after that.
So then three quarters will belike three of the quarters will
be donated um for to thecommunities.

(51:17):
But um, yeah, coming home, itwas uh you know, you're allowed
three pieces of baggage on theseplanes, right?
And after that, it has to getchecked as cargo.
Once it's checked as cargo,there's no guarantee it's on the
plane with you.
Oh and it's and it's expensiveto check this cargo.
Like if you want it guaranteedon the plane with you, checked
his cargo, it's five hundredbucks.

(51:39):
So I just uh I actually camewhen we flew back into Norman
Wells, we had to spend the nightat a at a hotel in Norman Wells.
It was like a B.
Yep.
And uh this guy that runs a Bthere at New North, you know,
what a good guy he is.
Uh Al is his name.
He uh he's like, well, you knowwhat we should do is we should
try uh I got a dry bag, he said.

(52:01):
I'll see if it's big enough, andif it is, we'll put your horns
in there.
And I was like, Yeah, that'd beawesome.
And then he's like, Yeah, andthen you know, honestly just
mail the dry bag back, dry bagback or whatever, right?
We'll figure it out.
And I'm like, wow, like thanks,man, that's awesome.
No dry bag big enough, but he'slike, hey, I got an idea.
Why don't we use a tarp?

(52:22):
We'll wrap the hide and uhantlers in the tarp, we'll tape
it up really nice so it looksgood, and we'll put some rope
handles on, and then we cancheck it as luggage.
I'm like, you think they'll takethat?
He's like, oh yeah, they'veflown with weirder stuff for
sure.
So yeah, I got all that uh putaway and it looked pretty legit.
And then I had a cooler of meat,and then so that's my fourth

(52:43):
bag, right?
You got your I actually packed ahockey bag with my uh I got a
6,000 cubic inch backpack withall my stuff in it, and uh
slings and ammo and stuff likethat, and I threw it all in a
big hockey bag.
Well now I got this coolerthat's technically the fourth
bag because your gun, uh yourantlers, and then this this uh

(53:04):
hockey bag.
So I was like, okay, frick, likenow what are we gonna do?
So I took the he let me freezeall the meat the night before in
his freezer, like refreeze it.
So I put it in a garbage bag andthen threw it in my hockey bag.
So now I had my hockey bag, myhorn and cape, and my gun.
So it's three bags, but now myhockey bag weighs 85 pounds, but

(53:29):
whatever, you know.
Get to the airport, uh check itall in.
You gotta pay overage fees on uhthe hockey bag, and you gotta
pay one extra bag on the theantlers and cape, but yeah, they
took them, so it was it was 250bucks to get all that, so it was
quite a bit cheaper thanchecking it as luggage, but at
least I was able to get it alland get it on the same plane as

(53:49):
me.
So when I got to Edmonton, yeah,it would all come off the plane
with me.
So that was awesome.

SPEAKER_00 (53:53):
Yeah, that helps a lot.

SPEAKER_02 (53:56):
It does, yeah.
And it was great small town uhhospitality up there.
That uh, you know, every youknow, buddy, I said it once
there, and I'll say it again.
Everybody you meet along the waythere was just really, really,
you know, like-minded people.
You know, the the huntingcommunity is so big, but yet so
small, I felt like.
Yep.
You know, and everyone, yeah, Iget to this, you know, this DB

(54:19):
here in Norman Wells and talkingabout these guys from Wyoming
that I hunted with, and sure ascrap, the girl and her husband
that were uh also staying there,they knew them.
She's on the wild sheep board inWyoming and just phenomenal
people.
Um a guy there is wearing, Idon't know if you've heard of
the brand All In.
They make like a digi scope.
Okay.
Or like uh spotting scope sothey and I run their stuff.

(54:42):
He's wearing uh a couple ofthings, and I'm like, You like
your uh all in stuff, eh?
And he starts laughing.
He says, Yeah, man, I do.
And uh he's like, Do you got anyof it?
And I said, Yeah, I got somestuff from them too.
And yeah, they're phenomenal.
He's like, Good, I'm glad tohear that.
I was the guy that actually madethat.
Oh, that's cool.
You know, just yeah, it is cool,and it's just a small world,

(55:02):
right?
And funny getting up there andjust talking to just really good
people and like-minded, andyeah, I got nothing but great
things to say about everyonethat I met, and especially the
outfitters, those guys really orthe guides, those guys really
grind it out, you know.

SPEAKER_00 (55:20):
Yeah, I mean, they they do they know what you're
committing to the hunt, youknow, financially and time-wise
and all that, and they're gonnamake sure that they can do what
they can, get your money,money's worth out of it.
Yeah, and experience.

SPEAKER_02 (55:34):
They want to see nothing but your success, right?
Because their success is theirsuccess.
And they were really happy tohave a guy like me too, you
know, like knowing what thismeant, and they were really
pumped on it too.
They're like all the guides, notjust mine.
You know, they're they werereally just happy that a guy,
you know, stepped up and didthat, because it's not their
typical clientele, you know, butum everyone that still all the

(55:57):
rest of the clients that werethere when I was there were just
really, really good people too.
So yeah, it was three the guysthat did the moose caribou
actually, they were uh threebrothers and a brother-in-law,
and so I thought that was justawesome for them, you know.
They were a little older, butgreat guys, and they had
actually been to that uh samecamp 30 years ago hunting

(56:18):
together with their old man backin the day.
They were hunting sheep.

SPEAKER_01 (56:21):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (56:21):
Yep.
Wow.
So they're kind of doing fullcircle now, you know, they're
getting up there in age and theywanted to come back uh all
together and do it again and domoose caribou instead.
And I just thought that wasawesome, you know.

SPEAKER_00 (56:34):
Yeah.
Yeah, that's really cool.
Um, I mean, after doing the huntand knowing what you know now,
is there anything would you packdifferently?
Did you think you packedsufficiently enough?
Uh gear was good.

SPEAKER_02 (56:47):
Yeah, gear was good.
Uh honestly, the only thing Iwould bring uh different is I
didn't bring uh any waterpurification stuff.
They said not to worry about it.
And they were right, you didn'thave to worry about it, nothing
happened, uh, it was all good.
Uh, but it was definitely stilllike on my mind.
Do you know what I mean?
Yeah.
Um lots of these horror stories,right, where someone's on this

(57:09):
big hunt and they're drinkingthis what seems like clear
moving water, but you know, allof a sudden their guts just
start going on them, and nowthat you know they're kind of
wrapped up in a tent in asleeping bag for a full day.
Well, there's a you know, daywasted to so nothing happened
like a you know, like bat onthat end, but they make that
stere pen.
I don't know if you've seen thatas a UV light.

(57:31):
I have, yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I wish I would have, you know,went out and bought something
like that, just because thewater was so clear, you didn't
need no like filter or nothinglike that.
Um but to have that just forreal peace of mind, just so you
could really sit there and justchug some water, that would have
been nice.
But uh yeah, other than that,honestly, the gear thing, there

(57:53):
was not one thing that I went upthere without or that I was
sitting there thinking, man, Iforgot this or I forgot that
because my wife helped me packprior.
Um, you know, I was worriedabout the guns and the bags and
that kind of stuff, and she'sthe one that's thinking, well,
what about your get?
How many gets do you got, or howmany pairs of socks, or what
about your toiletry bag, or yourovernight bag at the hotel, like

(58:16):
stuff like that.
So she was thinking more onthat.
And then the gear list that theguides or the outfitter sent,
you know, that just really, youknow, like you were saying, most
places probably don't do that.
No.
But that just puts a peace ofmind at a, you know, at another
level.
Yeah.
Yeah, that's it.
So I went through that listthree times before I left and

(58:36):
re-checked and checked andchecked, and you know, the final
one was scratching it right offof the permanent marker just to
really hammer it down, makesure, and yeah, I had everything
and brought everything they saidto bring, and it worked out
flawlessly.

SPEAKER_00 (58:49):
That's yeah, that's great.
That's I was I'm wondering aboutthat.
You know, I'm always curiouspeople after they do these hunts
that they're not sure about andhaving done before, if there's
any gear they you know, bring ornot bring next time.
So that's that's good.
So I mean uh Cody, I I guess youit's your once-in-a-lifetime
dream hunt.
Uh what's next?
Is there another big oneplaying?

(59:11):
Your light's probably notlistening.

SPEAKER_02 (59:14):
Oh, uh I bet you she will, but you know what?
She's she already caught me onuh you know, messaging my cousin
there last night.
Um, he was congratulating me anduh I I messaged him back and
said, Yeah, buddy, uh lookingforward to moose with you next
in BC.
So yeah, I think that's probablygonna be next on the list is uh
uh moose and mountain goats inBC.

(59:36):
Um just because uh yeah, it'sit's just on the list and uh
it's not like a super expensivehunt because uh you know he's
able to do the the huntersponsor there, um, you know,
where he's able to act as theguide.
So without having to go throughan outletter, I mean, right
there you're just saving a lotof money, and um, you just gotta

(59:58):
buy a non resident tag.
Which my elk tag when I wentthere in twenty twenty was like
uh what the hell was it?
Like three hundred bucks.
Oh yeah.
So yeah.
So I don't know.
We'll probably plan somethingpretty big there.
Uh I'd like to I'd like to forhim to bring a buddy and then I
could bring one of my brotherswith me and do a four man hunt
kind of thing.
Each buy moose tag, each buy gotag, and if you get the

(01:00:21):
opportunity on one, take her.
And if not, well whatever.
Yeah.
Um so yeah, hopefully do like afloat plane uh, you know, kind
of along that Yukon border upthere and go for an Alaska Yukon
moose.

SPEAKER_00 (01:00:35):
Yeah, that sounds uh that sounds good.
Uh no, I was just uh justcurious because I mean this is a
huge hunt, but I know afterlistening to you talk about this
hunt here, I mean I knew thatyou'd have uh, you know, if
you've got the yearning foranother big adventure, you can't
just one.

SPEAKER_02 (01:00:51):
Yeah, the fever, sorry, yeah.
That's exactly what my wifesaid, you know, when we were
down here uh the other day.
I'm I'm sitting in my huntingroom right now, and uh there's
not much in here just areloading bench and and my safe
and stuff like that.
But uh she says, so is thatactually a once in a lifetime or
what's going on in the old brainright now?
And I said, Yeah, we'll we'llsee.
I'm not gonna lie, that uh thatitch is still gonna be there for

(01:01:14):
sure.
So, you know, we'll see what thefuture brings.
Uh I win the lottery orsomething, you can bet I'll be
doing a lot more.
But it was so worth it, youknow, those and it, you know,
those guys are really dialedthere.
And it is a lot, like umlogistically, to get make it all
happen, like where where I was,like logistically, that is it is
crazy to to be out there and tobe that remote.

(01:01:36):
It was it's something, man.

SPEAKER_00 (01:01:38):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, it it sounds amazing.
I mean, I appreciate you tellingthe story.
I was excited to hear it, andthen just looking at your
pictures too.
Uh it it yeah, amazing,beautiful scenery.

SPEAKER_02 (01:01:51):
Yeah, and and honestly, it's a really good
bowl to go with it.
You know, he was you know firstfirst aid bowl.
Uh I wish it was you know alittle cooler story or whatever,
but uh, you know, I could notpass on that.
And you know, he he fit right inwith like, you know, you know,
they they probably finished theseason off with like I was

(01:02:11):
saying 30 caribou, and he'llfinish, you know, right up there
with the top ten or top ten tofifteen somewhere in there.
Um, you know.
So not the bottom, not the topten, but you know, right in the
middle, and that's kind of whereI wanted to be.
You know, I was happy just beingthere.
I didn't I didn't need to goshoot the world record, but you
know, it definitely played myheart the first day.

(01:02:34):
But uh don't pass on what you'dshoot on the last day on the
first day.

SPEAKER_00 (01:02:38):
So exactly.
Yeah, I mean it's still a coolstory.
You went to, you know, anotherprovince and shot a caribou, so
it's pretty it's pretty cool.

SPEAKER_02 (01:02:45):
Oh yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah, and it was it was totallyworth it.
But uh yeah, definitely got thebug, man.
I'm not gonna lie.

SPEAKER_00 (01:02:53):
Yeah, I can tell.
Uh no, that's awesome.
And uh yeah, Cody, I can't thankyou enough for coming on the
podcast and telling about youradventure.
And uh I want to hear about thenext one too.

SPEAKER_02 (01:03:04):
Yeah, for sure, Ken.
Uh thanks for having me andthanks for listening.
Appreciate it.
Anytime.

SPEAKER_00 (01:03:09):
Thanks, Cody.

SPEAKER_02 (01:03:11):
Okay, good night.