Moose camp memories

If you are an Ontario-based moose hunter, there’s a very good chance you’re part of a moose camp. The moose camp is a fascinating and fun subculture of hunting, in which everyone has a role and inside jokes become an annual event. My moose-camp journey has been spread over a few decades and thinking about it brings back a flood of memories. My first moose camp took place several decades ago with my wife’s grandfather Ed Marsh. I did not grow up moose hunting, so he was a moose hunting mentor, and family, to me. He was well into his 70s when I began hunting with him, but his enthusiasm was high. The first moose-hunting trip with him was an adventure as we were in a rather small trailer he pulled behind his truck. Many tales of moose hunts from over the years were told over a few sips of brandy. He made potato pancakes every day — for breakfast and sometimes at supper. On the morning of opening day, I cracked open the trailer door and was greeted with a howling blizzard. Marsh suggested we crawl back into our sleeping bags and wait for the snow to stop. We played cards, listened to country music, and laughed. I moose hunted with Marsh for a couple of years and got to love that trailer and the time with him. Onions cause stir A few years later, I got to know a chap named Richard Brochu, from Thunder Bay, who was keen to hunt deer and moose. He had a camp near Upsala, which was in the heart of northwestern Ontario moose country. For several years, Brochu hosted a moose camp that included his father, wife, uncle, my father, and myself. Occasionally, there was another hunter in the mix, depending on who had tags and time. All moose camps have a de facto leader — whether they are called it or not. In this case, Brochu was the hunt leader — or king of the hunt, as we would sometimes joke. He had done the scouting and always had a plan. His father was the camp cook and would make delicious dishes, many of which were loaded with onions. This wasa treat, except for those who had to deal with the fallout of some people’s sensitivities to onion. It’s all part of moose camp. I generally used my truck for hunting,