December 12, 2008 Bonfield Man’s Incredible Hunts

Andre Ladoucer who lives on highway 17 near the Bonfield turn off (531) has been hunting for 46 years since he was 15.  He was one of 18 children from a family in Wolf Lake Quebec.  He got his first rifle, a 303 army rifle for 24 dollars he saved from a part time job. 

Andre Ladoucer (left) and brother Rheal in 1962 with Andre’s first deer.

When he was 15 he and his brother Rheal heard about a large buck deer that his community talked about for years. They went hunting and when Andre got to the top of a hill he saw the buck and dropped it.  Everyone said it was the biggest ever in the area– 260lbs.  Things were tough so the deer was traded for a pair of new snow tires for the family car.  He was hooked on hunting. 

In 1967 he moved to Ontario and hunted out of a camp on the Kiosk Road (630).  Andre and his partners Jean Yves and Jan Cartier lived in the bush in tents and travelled by foot.  Andre later travelled greater distances to hunt especially in the Eldee area.  He acquired more guns and equipment.  Over the years they got 32 deer and 24 moose. 

On October 23, 2008 Andre decided to hunt on crown land with four friends-  Joe Desgrosselliers, Leo Blais, Mike Savage and Mark Amyotte.  In some areas there are restrictions on the size of the hunt, but not where they went.  Calves can be hunted without a tag.  They had not had a tag for a cow or bull for eight years but one of the group got one this year. 

They spread out and walked for an hour and a half when Andre saw four moose – a calf, a cow and two bulls about 400 feet away.  He quickly took down the calf and approached it.  He saw more blood and followed it and realized that with one shot he had got the calf and the cow.  The men had a story of a lifetime and lots of moose for the  freezer. 

Andre Ladoucer by his gun cabinet  Doug Mackey photo.

When I visited Andre I noticed dozens of trophies and found he was one of the best chain saw sculptors around and that he makes his living with a skidder and a chain saw cutting logs.  The sign on the front of his house says LUMBERJACK but it should now also say FAMOUS HUNTER.