Northern Ontario Wolf Hunt
By Randall Bush

Timber wolves have eluded me almost as much as African Leopards. My hunting partners, however, fare much better. My first attempt at a wolf in Northern Ontario was in February 2002. Along on this trip were Don and Doris Miller and my wife, Janice. We were hunting at the camp of Tom Henry, a long time supporter of our chapter. The camp is located on Cree Lake in Hornepayne, Ontario, Canada. This hunt report was written up in an earlier edition of our "Newslet-ter", so I won’t go into it other than to say that Don took a spectacular male wolf and I had a lot of fun enjoying the scenery.

Last year I returned along with my son, Randy and his wife, Kris. Although we had a fantastic time neither of us managed to take a wolf on this hunt. I did, however, have one to walk out of the bush and pose just long enough for me to get my rifle to my shoulder before he turned and walked back in. The sight was so spectacular. I am in a shooting blind overlooking a bait that is about 100 yards in front of me. There is about 4 feet of snow on the ground and a recent snow has the bows of the evergreens loaded down. It is a winter wonderland. It is just at sunset and there are no sounds. The wolf, a large gray fellow, walked out onto a small mound and stood broadside to me for several seconds. He then slowly turned, took a couple of steps and was gone. He was so majestic looking. I knew, then, that I would be back again to try my luck.

At Tom’s camp there are three cottages. We were staying in the largest, a log cabin, with all the conveniences of home, except that all the plumbing is frozen so we have that little problem to contend with. A generator supplies power to the camp and we have satellite TV, microwave oven, electric lights and any other electrical appliance that one might need. Cree Lake in front of the cabin is frozen over to a thickness of about 4 feet. Snow in the bush is several feet deep. Morning temperatures greet us at about 15 degrees below zero Fahrenheit most of the time, with our lowest reaching 36 degrees below zero. During the day it may warm up to as high as 20 above, a real heat wave.

Travel to the baits is by snowmobile and snowshoes. A sled is towed behind the snowmobile carrying your daypack, rifle and snowshoes. When you get off the snowmobile the fun begins. I am as graceful on snowshoes as a rooster on a bicycle. As Doug Smith once said, "Snowshoes were invented by the Devil to maim and cripple a man." Tom’s first instructions on the use of snowshoes were to always fall forward. I informed him that if I had a choice, I would rather not fall at all. I soon discovered what he meant. Unless there is something close at hand like a bush or a tree, you have nothing to push against to get back up. The snow is so deep it is useless to put your hand down to try to push up. You must, somehow, manage to get one of your snowshoes off and use it to push against. The first few days are filled with trying to make friends with the snowshoes, but later in the week you get the hang of it and it is almost fun. The countryside is so beautiful at this time of year and a stroll on the snowshoes through the bush is an awe-inspiring experience.

It is hard to imagine the amount of wildlife in the area, but it is evidenced by the amount of tracks that shows up in the snow soon after a fresh snowfall. There must be at least a thousand snowshoe rabbits per acre. They are everywhere. Most of the tracks seen close to the baits are fox, wolf and lynx. All along the edge of the roads are moose tracks. They apparently like to walk just off the edge of the roads.

The trip is primarily to hunt timber wolf, but that is only a part of the entire adventure. Randy and Kris use the snowmobile to do some sightseeing along the International Snowmobile Trail, which runs through Hornepayne. This is a very unique and exciting experience for those of us from Alabama.

This brings us to 2004. Randy, Kris and I return to Tom’s camp for a week of relaxation and hunting. Although there is as much snow as usual, the temperatures are much more comfortable. Morning lows rarely got below zero with daytime highs getting above freezing on some occasions. When you visit with Tom Henry you get the whole package.

Tom’s family joins in to make you welcome and comfortable. We would go to his daughter and son-in-law’s home in town to shower and occasionally to eat a fabulous meal prepared by his daughter, Billie Jo. Tom does the cooking at camp and is nothing less than a gourmet cook. No one goes away from the table hungry. Tom is very entertaining and knows more jokes than any stand-up comedian. He will also amaze you with stories about his days as a bush pilot.

Tom would go out each day to put bait at the different sites. He liked to go to the bait alone since the wolves had gotten accustomed to his scent. He usually starts pre-baiting several weeks prior to the arrival of the hunters. The blinds are also set up ahead of time to allow the animals to accept them. The hunter would approach the blinds from a different direction than Tom would use going into the baits.

On the second day of the hunt, Randy had arrived at his blind about 10AM. He had his rifle already through a shooting hole in the blind and had it suspended by a string. Since a wolf doesn’t usually hang around too long, you want everything as ready as possible. After a snack or two Randy would nod off a few minutes then check the bait and nod off again. Shortly after noon he glanced up to see a wolf step out at exactly the same location that mine had stepped out a year ago. This time everything was ready and before the wolf had a chance to turn and step back into the bush, Randy was on it and one shot dropped it instantly. Shortly after dark I returned to camp on the snowmobile to see Randy and Kris standing outside admiring a beautiful gray wolf.

The bait I had been hunting was located at the end of a long, frozen lake. The setting could not have been prettier. At any one time there may be as many as 40 or 50 ravens at the bait. They can make such a variety of sounds it is comical to listen to them. After Randy took his wolf, I decided to go set at his blind since there appeared to be more activity in that area. As I approached the blind on my second day there I noticed an animal run through the bush just beyond the bait, but I could not identify it. Having barely gotten settled into the blind I looked out to see the back of a dark colored animal above a small mound of snow. I could see the tail clearly and it looked just like a wolf tail. When enough of the animal got into view above the snow mound I placed the shot and the animal went down hard. At this point I was certain I had my wolf. Upon arriving at the site I discovered that I had taken a Cross Fox. This is a recognized species and appears to be a cross between a red and a black fox. Their pelts are highly sought after and are one of the prettiest of the foxes. I could not have asked for a more gorgeous animal even though it was not a wolf.

This only means that I will be going back. This wolf hunting has become a challenge to me now. There is no question about the quantity of wolves in the area where we hunt. Their sign is everywhere.