When it comes to creating fun and worthwhile hunting content, it’s tough to beat Michael Waddell. Sure, he has talented cameramen and producers around him, but in my opinion, it’s his engaging personality that elevates his videos to the top shelf.
The 9-minute YouTube video below details Waddell’s Yukon moose hunt from 2019. He’s joined in the field by Keith Mark, founder and CEO of Hunter Nation, an advocacy group whose mission is “to be the united voice of the American hunter, to protect our sport, lifestyle, heritage, and our traditional American values of God, family, country, and our nation’s constitution.” Keith also owns MacMillan River Adventures in the Yukon, known for its world-class moose hunts. (Fast-forward to the 2-minute mark to see a crazy-big bull taken by Keith with a muzzleloader in this area.)
As you’ll see, Waddell has close calls with a few smaller bulls, then he finally gets his chance at a mega moose — and this one is close! The guide calls it in, using a combination of mouth calls and rubbing sounds. To mimic the sound of an aggressive bull thrashing its antlers on saplings, the guide uses a moose scapula (shoulder blade) and smashes it against the brush.
Of course, the challenge in this thick cover is having a clear archery shot at a moose, even at 15 yards. It’s one thing to pick an opening with a high-powered rifle, but you must be especially careful when bowhunting.
Fortunately for Waddell, his massive moose approaches broadside instead of head-on, and he has just enough of an opening to slip an arrow into the bull’s lungs. Watch closely (or rewind it several times) and you’ll see that Waddell’s arrow clips a twig near the bull, and a few leaves fall to the ground. That said, the twig/leaves don’t change the arrow’s path, and the broadhead drives deep into the bull’s chest.
Waddell’s last day in the Yukon produced a bull weighing an estimated 1,800 pounds with a huge rack. Amazing!
