Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Wolf Down with my LONGBOW!

I have been pursuing my dream of taking a gray wolf with my longbow ever since they were delisted. I have been an avid predator hunter and traditional archer for most of my adult life. It seemed like the ultimate challenge to try and take what is arguably the most elusive apex predator with what is certainly one of the most difficult primitive weapons to master. I have spent hundreds of preseason hours practicing and countless days in the field every archery season in pursuit of wolves but have never (until now) been able to put it all together. Ask any predator caller and they will tell you that the most difficult part of predator hunting is often just locating an area that holds the species they are pursuing. This problem is greatly magnified with wolves when one considers the incredibly transient nature of a pack whose territory can often cover hundreds of square miles.

The 2014 Montana archery season started on a Saturday and by one o�clock in the afternoon I was hiking about 9 miles from the nearest blacktop. I found a pile of still wet wolf scat on the trail so I instantly knew they were close. I set up quickly, my back to a small ridge, with a great view of the facing hillside and shallow valley below. The wind and sun were both in my favor as I began to blow on my predator distress call. Just minutes into my calling sequence I was startled to hear very aggressive barking about 50 yards directly behind me. You guessed it, a pack of 5 wolves had been bedded down on the ridge right behind me and when they responded to my call they got a good whiff of my scent blowing right into their faces. Game over! They seemed quite content to stay just out of sight up in the timber and alternately bark and howl at me for over 30 minutes before they finally drifted out of the valley. Sadly I must admit that I have experienced that same response from wolves on a number of occasions and they all ended the same way, a fun show, and a long walk home, empty handed.

Three days later my work schedule unexpectedly cleared so I decided to take a quick morning trek back into that same area and give it another try. I am well aware that frequent calling in an area will quickly educate a wolf pack and ultimately make them even harder to hunt. However on this day I threw caution to the wind and decided to go for it on the slim chance that they would still be in the area. As I approached the area, I saw no fresh sign at all. I quickly picked a large tree to stand behind that would provide me some concealment but was also situated for a good view of a nearby hillside and the trail running along the base of it. I shed my backpack and nocked an arrow; my Toelke longbow was now ready for action.

I started to blow into the call, doing my best to duplicate the sounds of some small animal dying a horrible death. Less than two minutes into this sequence I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. Unbelievably, an adult wolf was racing straight down the hill towards the sound of my call with an even larger one about 40 yards behind the first. It all happened fast, but as the first wolf got within about 20 yards of me it put on the brakes, hard.

Apparently realizing that something was wrong it was already turning and starting to trot away. As the wolf had come to a stop, the call fell from my lips and I had come to a full draw with my bow. As the wolf started to leave I gave a quick bark which is usually a surefire way to get a canid to stop and look back. The moment the wolf looked back towards me I let the string slip from my fingers and sent the arrow tipped with a Zwickey broadhead on its way. I watched the arrow arc the 28 yards to the wolf as if it were in slow motion and then saw the feather fletches bury in the fur near the last rib of the now quartering away animal. I watched the animal spin and bite at its side before taking off at a dead run straight back up the hillside it had just come down. It disappeared over the hilltop and out of my sight. The other wolf also turned and ran, stopping at the top of the hill to bark at me several times before departing.

In the moments after the shot, archers will frequently replay in their mind the spot that was hit, the reaction of the animal and its direction of travel. I was no different, and while I was very confident in the shots placement I am experienced enough to realize that what looked like a good hit can occasionally result in a long blood trail, or even worse, a lost animal. I picked up my pack, gathered my gear and tried to calmly wait the recommended 30 minutes before following after the wolf. In reality it was taking every ounce of my will power to fight off the urge to rush over that hill and begin my search. I finally reached a compromise with myself and after 20 minutes started to follow the blood trail. As I scaled the small hillside I found a fairly good blood trail with drops close enough that they were no challenge to even my limited tracking skills. When I got to the top I found where it had followed a trail on the spine of the ridge then the blood droplets suddenly stopped. To say that this was starting to look like my worst nightmare would be an understatement and a moment of panic set in. I took off my pack and was going to get out my flagging tape to mark the last known drops of blood. As I unzipped my pack I glanced over and not fifteen feet away was the now lifeless wolf sprawled over a small log. It had travelled less than 100 yards from where it had been shot. I let out a whoop that was probably heard in town 20 miles away.

All of the hours spent both at the range and in the woods had finally paid off. I had just fulfilled an incredibly challenging goal and at the same time I have taken what may be the first modern day wolf killed with a longbow. I sat there on that log just soaking up the sights, sounds and smells. It was an experience that I now shared with the wolf hunters throughout history and it was one that I wanted to savor as long as I possibly could!

The details; The wolf was examined by a biologist and then a game warden at which time a DNA sample was taken as part of the states management plan. It was an adult female in excellent condition (other than the fact that she was dead). Equipment used was a 62� Longbow crafted by Dan Toelke, 56lbs30�. Carbon Express wood grain Heritage 350 arrow tipped with a Zwickey 145 grain broadhead. The shot entered mid body at the last rib on the right side and exited through the left armpit taking out both lungs on the way through.

Uber cool. Congratulations!

That is awesome! Congrats.

Sure your happy now but soon you will want the Alpha male.LOL Good job and congradulations. ED K

Man, a smart critter taken, and with a longbow too!

I am impressed.



Clearly, those are composite bow limbs -- can you give us some more details on the bow please?

A friend who makes self bows (mostly yew) has introduced me to the joys of longbows and piqued my interest!

John

I cant even get one w/ my rifle....SUPER way to go!!!

Way cool! Congratulations. Nice story-telling too.

Now that your goal/fun is over, get serious and carry a semi-auto rifle and kill em both!

That's true dedication and cannot imagine someone more deserving of the hard-earned reward. Congrats man!

Very cool story. Unreal to get one with a longbow that was called in.

Great story! And congratulations.

Outstanding and congratulations!

Amen!

Love it!

That is one hell of an accomplishment, nice work.

Cool!!

I'm inspired! In less than 2 weeks I will head to Idaho for my 4th year of trying to find a wolf.When I read your post 2 hours ago I was about to award myself an unscheduled restday. I just finished my full routine with 3 additional set of kb squats as a penalty for using a rifle. You are the first I have heard of that has bagged a wolf w/ a bow, congratulations.

mike r

Way cool! congrats

Most excellent!

This is just so cool. Good job!

Great trophy and effort.
Congrats.

You sir, are my hero. Well done!

Cool!
Are you going to eat this one like the last one?

Congratulations on the trophy of a lifetime.

You are the man!

Congrats, what an accomplishment

All of the above in spades. Just outstanding! So happy for you!!!

WOW! Now that is an impressive undertaking. You sir can move to the head of the class!!

a BIG +1 to that!

Badass

That's awesome. Can you share what call you were blowing?

Attaboy!!

Dale

That is beyond sweet!

Hunting at it's finest IMHO.

That's awesome!

Great job

Way cool, congrats.

Fantastic.

Not the OP but knew Dan when he worked the gun counter at Ronan Sports & Western. He's now on his own, here's the website:

Toelke Tradtional Archery

Badazz, cool story.

Most impressive.

Very, very nicely done sir. That is truly incredible.

Wow!!!!

Great story and well done; super accomplishment.

That is SOOOOOO badazz. Congrats bud.

Dave

A wolf with a bow- Can't be very many people that have ever done that! Congradulations!

That's about as good as it gets....Congrats.

What a tremendous accomplishment, congratulations on a great effort and great skills.

Sweet success!

Congratulations.

I am surprised you remembered. And YES, there are a couple of hams in the fridge that are going to get smoked. Should be fun!

Awesome!, congrats.

Super cool and a HUGE thanks to you!

Superb!! Excellent effort, rewarded!!!!!!

+1

Congrats! Thanks for sharing.

Couldn't have said it better.

WOW! Just an amazing accomplishment, congrats.

WHoaaa... I bow down to your badassness!

Thanks for the story. One of the most awesome reads on here in a long time.
Congrats

That is AWESOME man!! Great write up to go along with it.

Very happy for you.

Reno

Congrats on a heck of a hunt and fine trophy.

very cool man and congrats.....

As cool as it gets, right there...

Fantastic!!!

My buddy and I called in several lions trying to nail one with our recurves. My pard finally got one while I was doing the calling.

Scoring a wolf with a longbow is the ultimate.

Congrats!

Casey

Nice write up and great pictures. Thanks for sharing your hunt with us.

Awesome. Congrats.



Travis

Making the world safer for Little Pigs.

Good job.

That is absolutely fantastic! Congratulations.

The ultimate hunting reward - a wolf with a longbow. Not sure you can top that. Congrats on a great story and a great hunt.

THAT, my friends is awesome! Hat's off to you

Best story I've read on here in a looong time.

Big time Congrats!

Congratulations! I can't even imagine.......

Super cool! Congrats!

What did she weigh, that looks like a pretty good size animal.

Holy crap!


Can't imagine.

What an accomplishment. Well done, Sir. Thank you for the story.

Wolf with a longbow, now that is impressive!

Eric

Wow! What an accomplishment! Congrats...

+ 1 (and a bunch more)

As a traditional archer I know how hard it is to get an animal within range, and more importantly to have the cards align so you can loose the string without getting "busted". Enjoy the hams, and make a quiver out of that skin maybe.

A tip of my Borsalino in your honor and that of your prey!

Geno

Other than with a knife, rock or hypnosis, that is absolutely awesome.

Congratulations added!

Simply fantastic. I bet the list of folks that accomplished what you did is mighty, mighty short! Congratulations on a hunt of a lifetime.

This may be the coolest, most difficult trophy to take in North America!

Fantastic story (if I were you, I'd write this one up and start talking to Traditional Bowhunter Magazine about doing it as an article for them).

WELL DONE!

Saw an article concerning people shadowing wolf hunters outside of Yellowstone and in the article they talked about only one wolf killed in Montana so far and it was by a bow hunter, awesome!

Incredible hunt! Congratulations.

JCS271, if I'm not mistaken, this is not your first wolf. didn't you get one with your rifle a few years ago?

and kudos on the bow kill, too!

Wonderful achievement.

Well done sir! That is a good wolf.

Yup, that would be me!

The one in my avatar was from 2011 (rifle), my neighbor and I have also picked up two on the trapline in 2012 and '13.

Congratulations on an incredible accomplishment! The elk, deer and moose in that unit owe you a big thanks! I see a full body mount of that wolf in your future!

I'm with Scott. A very big congratulations to you!

You da' man! Congratulations, and thank you!!!

I'm impressed!

I wrote a couple of years ago that I hoped someday, we could talk about wolf hunts on this forum, just like other hunts. Maybe we're getting there.

How are your local fur prices?

Thanks for the story.

Bill

Congratulations!

Nothing tops the challenge of taking elusive game with a long bow.
Few creatures are as elusive as a wolf.

Fantastic!

Congrats...very cool. Thanks for sharing.

What a Great Story ! Nice Kill !

Ken

Awesome. Congrats.

Great Story!!!

Congrats, this is probably the best hunting story of the year!

You got to love a wolf with the air let out of it.
Get some more.

I just read this post.

That's an amazing hunter in our midst. Congrats!

Thanks for all of the kind comments. I got an email from the FWP biologist the other day. Said this was the only wolf taken during the 2014 archery only season!

Great shot and story.

I understand your quest and think I understand how you feel after you have completed your task. I too went through a quest similar to yours but not on the same scale, and the feeling of accomplishment left a gap in my soul. I needed a new challenge now but I was not ready to let the last challenge go so easy.

A great achievement for sure. I have a hard time hitting a target with a long bow, much less the most elusive critter in the woods.

You sir, are an archer in high regard.

Very cool, now go shoot another dozen or so!

A phenomenal thing to be able to pull off. This may be the first long bow wolf kill in the lower 48 since the days of plains indians.

There is just no way to top this other than doing it again.

Hope you get many more.

JCS271: YOU... are THE man!
Congratulations on the fine trophy!
I had a close encounter of the Wolf kind on a recent back country archery Elk Hunting trip.
The lone Wolf I heard/saw was a pure black adult.
I heard it bark (not howl) and then turned my gaze towards where the sound came from and there was the Wolf trotting along with its nose to the ground.
It passed by me at about 250 yards and did not respond to my cow Elk calls.
Again congratulations to you on the great Hunting accomplishment.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

That is an impressive animal with a bow. Congratulations.