Moving through wolf territory
- Thread starter T Y L E R
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If you look at the wolf in this pic, it seems to be about half of the size of the guy's foot.
https://forum.ih8mud.com/hunting-fishing/569693-another-worlf-down-n-idaho.html
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- Thread starter
- #46
Decided to take out the measuring tape on the hike yesterday. Got a few decent shots of tracks. Most measure approx 4" across, and I came across a few areas where they appear to be sprints. Either that or wolves have a huge relaxed bound because the distance between them was always 8-9 feet. Each time this occurred it was when the wolf had to traverse an area of deeper snow. An area that had previously been logged and had the usual boreal crap growing back in.
It was pretty interesting to see the huge leaps, with changes in direction through those 1" saplings.
As far as 'circling' I'm becoming more and more aware of that behaviour. Not active circling, or at least I'm not aware of it at the time but I do make notes of the wolf crossing my tracks and count my steps to gauge how far he's going before he crossing my trail again. Nice to have GPS's these days - to get back home, and download the waypoints and where I've been on a wolf trail to see from a birds eye where he's been going, and how he's been behaving in a sense. I always import that data into google earth from my garmin basecamp program afterwards. The thing I like about basecamp is the ability to create proximity alarms. I can map out an objective, then hike out towards it and follow the terrain rather than a line on the GPS but always have that audible que that the area I'm after it close at hand versus gawking at the GPS half the hike.
I'll post some images later. Going to try and get to a far ridge today and then sweep back towards home.
Cheers,
TY
It was pretty interesting to see the huge leaps, with changes in direction through those 1" saplings.
As far as 'circling' I'm becoming more and more aware of that behaviour. Not active circling, or at least I'm not aware of it at the time but I do make notes of the wolf crossing my tracks and count my steps to gauge how far he's going before he crossing my trail again. Nice to have GPS's these days - to get back home, and download the waypoints and where I've been on a wolf trail to see from a birds eye where he's been going, and how he's been behaving in a sense. I always import that data into google earth from my garmin basecamp program afterwards. The thing I like about basecamp is the ability to create proximity alarms. I can map out an objective, then hike out towards it and follow the terrain rather than a line on the GPS but always have that audible que that the area I'm after it close at hand versus gawking at the GPS half the hike.
I'll post some images later. Going to try and get to a far ridge today and then sweep back towards home.
Cheers,
TY
- Thread starter
- #47
Couple images from the last few hikes. One measures length of individual leaps, and another the width of the print (approx. 3.5"). Another is a print which unlike a regular print with middle toes fairly symmetrical, shows what could be interpreted as a directionality. As if the wolf landed that paw with the intent of altering direction of travel.
TY
TY
- Thread starter
- #48
We could hear a few wolves bark-howling last night to the south. I suspect that perhaps the black wolf I saw on the lake last month has broken off with another pack and started up with a female. Maybe the lighter coloured wolf we say a few days after the black one, sitting in the same spot the black had been on the ice. Maybe he was wooing her away from her pack to the north?
TY
TY
How are your friendly neighborhood wolves doing?
- Thread starter
- #50
Good question. My wife and I heard the odd bark-howl a while ago, but beyond that nadda. No cam captures. Only deer so far. The snow is completely melted here so tracking can be more challenging. Instead of perfect tracks in snow, I'm left starring at matted wet leaves a few of which have the tell tale signs that claws smooched the leaf down into the mud. I was thinking in the summer of setting up a track trap of some sort. Maybe hoof in some sand if I have to. Or if the soil is right on different parts of a trail I'll clear off the foliage and hope for the best.
For spring and summer I'd just be interested in whether they've got a few regular trails through the area. I'll start expanding my hikes and keep my eyes open. I'll keep a look out for cougar tracks as well. It almost rural myth here that they exist, but I've seen photos a guy had 20 miles from here - cat tracks with that tell tale tail swoosh through the snow well behind the body/tracks.
I was on a 6 hr hike last week and came across some great bear territory - maybe set up a second cam on a ridge to catch them. Like deer bears seem far easier to track because they'll follow the same trails year after year.
If I even spot a wolf outside of winter I'll be tickled pink, and if I see a cougar I'll be ecstatic. Unhappy that I've peed my pants, but thrilled all the same. I should get one of those nifty bicycling mirrors so I can creep home walking backwards in the event I ever do come across one of those suckers.
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On another note I found an interesting area a few hikes ago. There was lots of snow left then, and I gps'd out to a marsh with a beaver dam in the middle and a 75' high ridge running north-south down almost the length of the wet area. Opposite the ridge on the other side of the marsh was a short wall of rock perhaps 10-15'. This also traversed the marsh.
I found it interesting that that short 10' ridge area was loaded with deer beds. I kept wondering what exactly it was about THAT spot that left them feeling safer than anywhere else I'd been, and what if anything does it express about the movement of the wolves? I recall see 2 different wolves trails leading off some portion of that low ridge over towards the base of the higher ridge, or the area in the foreground where the cliff bleeds off allowing access to the top or access through the area to it's south.
Cheers,
TY
For spring and summer I'd just be interested in whether they've got a few regular trails through the area. I'll start expanding my hikes and keep my eyes open. I'll keep a look out for cougar tracks as well. It almost rural myth here that they exist, but I've seen photos a guy had 20 miles from here - cat tracks with that tell tale tail swoosh through the snow well behind the body/tracks.
I was on a 6 hr hike last week and came across some great bear territory - maybe set up a second cam on a ridge to catch them. Like deer bears seem far easier to track because they'll follow the same trails year after year.
If I even spot a wolf outside of winter I'll be tickled pink, and if I see a cougar I'll be ecstatic. Unhappy that I've peed my pants, but thrilled all the same. I should get one of those nifty bicycling mirrors so I can creep home walking backwards in the event I ever do come across one of those suckers.
-------------
On another note I found an interesting area a few hikes ago. There was lots of snow left then, and I gps'd out to a marsh with a beaver dam in the middle and a 75' high ridge running north-south down almost the length of the wet area. Opposite the ridge on the other side of the marsh was a short wall of rock perhaps 10-15'. This also traversed the marsh.
I found it interesting that that short 10' ridge area was loaded with deer beds. I kept wondering what exactly it was about THAT spot that left them feeling safer than anywhere else I'd been, and what if anything does it express about the movement of the wolves? I recall see 2 different wolves trails leading off some portion of that low ridge over towards the base of the higher ridge, or the area in the foreground where the cliff bleeds off allowing access to the top or access through the area to it's south.
Cheers,
TY
Snow definitely helps with deciphering activity. If you have a lot of Beaver in your area, those are good spots to visit b/c they love Beaver. 
Especially Spring and Autumn when Beavers are on land more frequently.
If you can identify their home range, you'll up your chances of sightings during the rearing season as they tend to travel less as a result of pups and more abundant food supply.
Especially Spring and Autumn when Beavers are on land more frequently.If you can identify their home range, you'll up your chances of sightings during the rearing season as they tend to travel less as a result of pups and more abundant food supply.
- Thread starter
- #52
Pretty good day. It started with my wife telling me that she'd seen the wolf crossing south to north across the lake just before I awoke. She grabbed the camera and snapped a bunch of photos, and then took the binos so she could get a feel for where it would enter the bush on the north shore.
Later in the afternoon I decided to go out and check the cam hoping it would have wandered by it on the way down to the lake. No luck. I took a bag of apples out with me for the first time, and jammed them onto branch ends in the cam's frame, then decided to hike towards the lake a few feet where I remember seeing wolf tracks weeks ago.
Less than 30' away from the cam I came across some deer hair tufts. They seemed to appear around logs, so I started to assume that the deer's winter hair was shedding as they stepped over obstructions. Nope ... a few feet later I spotted some deer scat, and thought WTH is lying in the middle of that poop?! I picked it up and confirmed my suspicions - deer bone fragment. Man thats one powerful super colon blowout
Now I knew the search was on, and his meal couldn't be far away. I kept on that in the same direction and spotted a 60 square foot area matted in deer hair. Beyond that was a really cool discovery - ribs, scapulas, spinal column, lower jaw and finally a skull from the eye sockets back with full antlers and half a spinal vertebra attached.
It was pretty picked over, so I opted to take the antlers home with me to clean up, but I gathered the other parts and hiked them back to my cam site and dropped them in the middle of the apples. Hoping a wolf or two returns and nibbles a bit for the camera.
Gotta say it felt a tad odd wandering home through the bush dragging fresh kill, picked over or not. I half expected a posse to surround me at any moment .. 'WTMFH do you this you're doin crackah??'.
Looked a bit barbaric marching through the door with this over my shoulder ..
Later in the afternoon I decided to go out and check the cam hoping it would have wandered by it on the way down to the lake. No luck. I took a bag of apples out with me for the first time, and jammed them onto branch ends in the cam's frame, then decided to hike towards the lake a few feet where I remember seeing wolf tracks weeks ago.
Less than 30' away from the cam I came across some deer hair tufts. They seemed to appear around logs, so I started to assume that the deer's winter hair was shedding as they stepped over obstructions. Nope ... a few feet later I spotted some deer scat, and thought WTH is lying in the middle of that poop?! I picked it up and confirmed my suspicions - deer bone fragment. Man thats one powerful super colon blowout
Now I knew the search was on, and his meal couldn't be far away. I kept on that in the same direction and spotted a 60 square foot area matted in deer hair. Beyond that was a really cool discovery - ribs, scapulas, spinal column, lower jaw and finally a skull from the eye sockets back with full antlers and half a spinal vertebra attached.
It was pretty picked over, so I opted to take the antlers home with me to clean up, but I gathered the other parts and hiked them back to my cam site and dropped them in the middle of the apples. Hoping a wolf or two returns and nibbles a bit for the camera.
Gotta say it felt a tad odd wandering home through the bush dragging fresh kill, picked over or not. I half expected a posse to surround me at any moment .. 'WTMFH do you this you're doin crackah??'.
Looked a bit barbaric marching through the door with this over my shoulder ..
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Tyler, I just accidentally clicked on this section of MUD for the first time and wow am I glad. Thank you for sharing your wolf experience as I've had a great fascination with these animals my entire life. Living in Minnesota and frequenting the shores of lake Superior I can relate to your environment a deep appreciation.
Perhaps your already familiar with Jim Brandenberg, He's a long time Nat. Geo photographer living near Ely MN not far from you. He has an amazing book titled " Chased by the Light " with incredible wolf photos which he took on a personal challenge to snap just one exposure a day for 90 days straight. He also has a web site well worth exploring which I believe anyone following your story would enjoy.
Here in Minnesota the Wolf population has grown strong and have now been removed from the endangered species list. This would be great except now they're talking about establishing a wolf hunting season. This makes me wanna puke, I have no issue hunting for sustenance , but wolves?
Anyway thanks again Tyler please give us any updates, maybe we'll cross paths some day on the big Gitchegumee!
Steve
Perhaps your already familiar with Jim Brandenberg, He's a long time Nat. Geo photographer living near Ely MN not far from you. He has an amazing book titled " Chased by the Light " with incredible wolf photos which he took on a personal challenge to snap just one exposure a day for 90 days straight. He also has a web site well worth exploring which I believe anyone following your story would enjoy.
Here in Minnesota the Wolf population has grown strong and have now been removed from the endangered species list. This would be great except now they're talking about establishing a wolf hunting season. This makes me wanna puke, I have no issue hunting for sustenance , but wolves?
Anyway thanks again Tyler please give us any updates, maybe we'll cross paths some day on the big Gitchegumee!
Steve
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
This is a fairly average (adult male) wolf print in interior Alaska. The front paw track is 6 inches front to back in a muddy trail.
Mark...
Mark...
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
When I lived out on the AK Peninsula, I would sometimes bring complete (field dressed) caribou home to hang and butcher in the basement. Drag the carcass through the mudroom and kitchen to get to the basement stairs. Never felt all that barbaric, but did have to chuckle sometimes as I thought of what my east coast urban parents would have thought as I was wiping up the drips of blood from the kitchen floor.
Mark...