I’m not sure which is harder, finding that special someone you can’t live your life without or finding an amazing hunting partner who accompanies you on all of your hunting adventures and spends their time dreaming about and preparing for the next hunt just as much as you do. Somehow, I have been blessed enough to find both in the same person.
Living on the East Coast, we normally only travel west once a year to chase elk in September, and planning, preparing, and training for that hunt consumes our entire year. This year was different, though. After a friend expressed interest in hunting wolves out west, we jumped on board and had a new adventure to plan and prepare for.
My husband spent hours e-scouting, talking with Idaho Fish and Game, and researching everything he could. Eventually, the plan was made to hunt the Frank Church Wilderness Area. We would have bear, wolf, and mountain lion tags – a true predator hunt. Our love for elk hunting has taught us just how devastating these predators can be on the deer and elk populations, so not only did we want to hunt bear but also whatever else we could to save a few deer and elk.
Once COVID-19 became the focus of our country, we knew this hunt would be in jeopardy. We had already purchased our tags before Idaho stopped selling bear tags to non- residents, so we were through one hurdle. The next issue was the state regulations. Would the air charter company be able to fly us in? Would we be able to travel across the country? The more I watched the news, the more I felt this hunt we had been planning and preparing for slipping away. Eventually, the airplane company got word the state was reopening and they would fly us in! Unwilling to fly commercially with Coronavirus lurking around us, we packed up the truck for the 38-hour drive, only stopping for gas and restroom breaks, even eating prepared food off the back of the truck rather than exposing ourselves or others.
Upon finally arriving in Idaho, we were met with inclement weather and were unable to fly in to the wilderness. Already disappointed, we heard even more bad news. The pilot felt the airstrip we planned to fly into was not useable due to the recent heavy rains. All the e-scouting and planning my husband did would not benefit us, and we had to choose another location. Not a great start to our hunt, but we chose a new spot, made the most of our delay by visiting Hells Canyon, and were blessed with clear weather the following day.
Although nervous, I must admit my first flight in anything other than a commercial airplane was as smooth as could be. Flying into the Frank Church humbled us. We knew it was big country, but seeing really is believing.
After setting up our tent near the river, we set out to explore the area, look for sign, and glass for the evening. We were in awe of our surroundings but saw no bears or sign, just mule deer.
The following day, we set out in the opposite direction again, looking for sign, learning the area, and finding some glassing spots. A couple of miles from our tent, my husband noticed some ravens flying around. After investigating the location of the ravens, we came upon a cow elk carcass that was freshly killed by a predator. I suspected a mountain lion as the elk was brought down by the jugular. Still early, we continued on and returned that evening in hopes that a bear or the mountain lion I suspected killed the cow would return to feed on the carcass. The evening came and went with no excitement.
The next morning, 4 a.m. came early. We began making our way toward the carcass in the dark and arrived shortly after daylight. Once it was light, we could tell something had disturbed the carcass throughout the night. Thinking whatever was there had already come and gone, we wondered if it was worth sitting there a while. Not too long into our sit, my husband drew my attention to a ridge above the carcass. He whispered, “There is a wolf!” It was still far away, and disbelief set in as we wondered if it could be a coyote. Within a couple of seconds, it disappeared out of sight and into a brushy drainage. It seemed like an eternity until it reappeared. Suddenly, it was standing about 90 yards from us in a clearing.
Prior to the hunt, my husband and I agreed that whoever spotted an animal first would be the one to shoot it since we both had the same tags. The wolf was his trophy to shoot 90 yards in front of him. With his gun aimed at it, he calmly whispered to me, “It’s a wolf. Shoot it.” Knowing the wolf could bolt at any time, I slowly squeezed the trigger. Unselfish doesn’t begin to describe him passing up a shot at a trophy to give me the opportunity to shoot it. Harvesting a wolf in the Frank Church on our own was unbelievable. We knew that no matter what else we saw or didn’t see on the trip, it was already a success.
We hunted hard the next several days, spending a total of 10 days in the wilderness. Our friend, Nick, even split up from us to cover more ground. We would climb to find new glassing sites and hike miles looking for sign. We even moved our camp and spiked out in an area that looked promising based on fresh sign. Although we found some bear sign, wolf tracks, and even mountain lion tracks, the only game we actually saw was elk and mule deer. We also kept checking on the dead elk carcass and saw wolves were returning to it every night, but we never saw them again in the daylight. The wolves had the elk carcass picked clean in a matter of five days. Actually seeing how quickly they cleaned it up really put into perspective how important predator hunting is to our big game population. It was an incredible hunt, and I encourage anyone thinking about it to give it a try and help out the game species we love to chase.
Idaho Wolf Hunting
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