JACKMAN — An 89-year-old hunter, with a little help from her family last week, took down a 775-pound bull moose on the fourth and final day of her moose hunt.
Arline Achey of Jackman was concluding a long day of hunting last Thursday and expecting to come up empty handed, particularly because the last day of her hunt Friday was expected to be a washout with forecasts calling for heavy rain.
But as she and family members were driving away, a moose was spotted in a clearing. Achey got out of the pickup and her sons quickly set up a long stick, fashioned at the end with a Y on which to steady the rifle, and she fired off a round, killing the animal from about 75 yards, according to her son, Kelvin Achey.
Arline Achey was assisted through the week by family members who served as scouts, drivers and carried a chair for her when she needed to rest.
On Monday Achey thought she had taken down a moose, but it turned out her shot missed. There were more than a dozen moose sightings over the week, but thick foliage, darkened woods and other factors worked against her, Kelvin Achey said.
The moose last week was Arline Achey’s third. She shot her previous moose 10 years ago when she was 79 years old, her son said.
“My mother has had us hunting since we were 10 years old. … My father and her used to go bird hunting every day in October. She loves hunting,” Kelvin Achey said.
“She’s the one who got all of us three boys hunting, because my father was always working,” he said.
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