Queen Chantelle – Canadian Huntress

My name is Chantelle and I am from Dawson Creek, BC Canada and hunting is my life! I have been hunting for as long as I can remember. Hunting, fishing and the outdoors was a huge part of my childhood as my family depended on wild game as a major food source. My parents taught me everything I know about hunting along with many crucial survival skills.

The photo I shared is one of my most memorable hunts!

My parents were camped north of Fort St John, BC where we try to go each fall. My hunting partner and I decided to join them for the weekend. They had been camped and hunting for about a week with no luck. They hadn’t seen very much for game but were still enjoying the time away. We arrived at camp in the afternoon. After setting up we headed out to scout the area. It was great to see all the grouse (the last few years have been hard on them)! Once we had an idea of where we wanted to go in the morning we headed back to camp.

Morning came early. It was cold. After a nice hot cup of coffee we headed out on the ATV. We got a couple kilometers away from camp and decided to hike an old road and see where it went. We came over a hill and realized we were in an old logging block. Instantly I spotted a moose at the very back. It was obvious it was a bull but I was not certain it was of legal size from that distance. The bull was smart and was already heading for the heavy timber. We had to get closer so we crawled down the trail. We cut the distance by half and then peeked up to look for the bull. He was no where to be found. It was early October and the moose were in the peak of their rut so I decided to give a cow moose call. Just seconds after I called I could hear crashing in the trees! My heart started pounding because I knew that was the sound of antlers raking the brush and he was coming. He came charging to the call so quickly I had to act fast to get into position for a shot. He scraped the brush and grunted as he came right to me. His head swaying from side to side with the whites of his eyes showing. I watched him with my binoculars and it was very clear he was a legal bull to harvest (mature bull, must have 3 points on the brow or more in my area). He stopped broadside about 75 yards away allowing me to make a good shot with my .270 Tikka WSM. After a well-placed lung shot he took a few more steps and went down! I was so excited. I couldn’t believe what had just happened. Because I hunt for primarily for meat, it wasn’t until I got up to him that I realized how big he really was! I was so focused on making sure he was of legal size and filling my freezer that I completely missed that detail. It was a really great surprise when I walked up and put my hands on his antlers. We quickly field dressed him, got him back to camp and hung to cool.

That evening my dad harvested a nice bull! We got extremely lucky that day. Everything came together for us. We enjoyed a couple more days of camping and Grouse Cordon Bleu and then packed up right before the snow storm hit.

It was a hunt I will never forget, my family and I are still enjoying the meat from that trip. I am so thankful for the opportunity I have to hunt and fish and the knowledge passed down from my parents. It is a great feeling being able to provide for myself and have a freezer full of delicious, natural game.