blast from the past

60x

WKR
Joined
Dec 20, 2013
Messages
366
didnt see a bison forum so figured I would post here and let the mods move where they see fit..

So in Alaska December is a special time of year and I aint talking Christmas, I’m talking permits.. This year I was asked about a certain Bison tag and whether or not I put in for it. With a new baby in the house I knew the funds would tight so when picking permits this year I decided to stay close to home. My worry was if I drew would not be able to hunt it, but it did remind me of my favorite all time hunt in Alaska. I wanted to share this to get the juices flowing for those who put in for this tag and don’t know much about it and especially for Yellowknife cause I know he put in for it and I’m pullin for him to get this tag..

Well my story starts in the Alaska Range where so many of my hunting memories began. In my guiding career I was very fortunate to work for some of the absolute best outfitters in the business, including a very well-known guide for most every species in Alaska including Bison. Anyway after getting to camp and guiding a few sheep, bear and moose hunts I got the word that I was going to the guide on a fall bison hunt. For those that don’t know these bison are unlike most any other bison out there. They are truly free ranging and wild as can be. To say I was excited was an understatement. I was also told I would be doing it float style which was fine by me since it meant less gear on my back. So fast forward to late fall, time to chase bison. Weather delayed my hunter on the other side of the range so the boss decided to take me into the field to get the raft and gear ready for the hunt. Our destination was a major checkpoint on the world famous Iditarod trail. Off we went, the cool thing about where we were going was there was a cabin and after spending the majority of my time in a tent for the previous 3 plus months it was a welcomed change. The boss dumped me out and fired up the 206 and off he went. Weather was bad so I knew it could be a few days before my hunter made it in so I decided to make the best of it.. The first thing I noticed was the amazing amount of birds’ around and not just any bird but spruce grouse and tasty ones.well when compared to freeze dried;). The thing about spruce grouse is you can get pretty close to them before they break so with no shotgun in hand the weapon of choice was a rock or two.. Good thing I was a guide cause I suck as a pitcher cause I couldn’t hit squat. Finally I got frustrated and decided I was hungry for fresh meat. Grabbed the 475 linebaugh of the ole hip snuck up on one to a mere few feet or so and opted for the head shot. Cocked back the hammer,took aim, the ole mouth started watering and pow…….. smoke cleared and that damn bird was just sitting there staring at me as if laughing.. It was rough, finally got it all sorted out and just started using bigger rocks..;).

A couple days later the hunter finally made it in. That night we talked a game plan. I try not to be a type of guide that just controls a hunt, to me it’s a partnership so we hashed out a plan and set it in motion.. In the fall these bison do this neat migration up a river valley. Its good and bad. The good is they should be relatively easy to find but the bad is if they pass you at night or in the brush there is no paddeling up stream. Our plan was simple, float down to where we could get up high and find some herds or preferably a lone big bull. First two days were pretty uneventful. On day three we finally found some fresh sign. We tracked a herd into the heavy brush but the neat thing about bison is their trails are wide enough to drive a car through, I bit different then brush breaking after moose. Never did find that group and it seemed they gave us the slip.

The next day we drifted a bit and found a great area to spot from. As soon as we got to where we could see we immediately spotted a group of 50 or so marching right up the middle of the river. Time to run.. We got to the river to cut them off and the only cover was a 10 square foot patch of willow so we jumped in and waited.. It was about an hour when the leader got close then another and another. Then the coolest and somewhat scariest thing happened. The herd was all around us, I mean close, so close I could touch them at arms length. They towered over us,huge cows some decent bulls and young ones. I remember thinking what happens if they come through this brush pile. They never did but I have to admit the hair on the back of my neck was standing a bit. I was taken back by this and it gave me a glimpse of what it must have been like back in the old days of the west.. Not much could top this day..well maybe one thing..

The next day we were pumped as we knew there were more herds coming. We spent the day watching some small groups but none had that big bull we were looking for. A little before dark we searched for a spot to set up the tent. We were in a wide part of the river bottom so we decided to camp out right in the middle where we could watch the willows downstream.. As I was cooking and waiting on water to boil I decided to scan the willows. All of a sudden I caught a dark shape moving.. Watched for a little longer and yes it was a lone bison. He came to a clearing and holy crap he was huge.. I yelled for my hunter to get on his gear as we didn’t have a whole lot of time. This big ole bison was marching right up a little off shute of the river and we were gonna use the river bank to conceal us. We got to a point where we figured was close enough and I got the hunter propped up on an old log. Being a bison hunt I just layed my back up rifle on the ground next to me.. a mistake that almost cost me.. I told the hunter to put one in the chamber and be ready. I told the hunter I figured the bison would follow the turn in the river and be broadside at about 40 yards and I would tell him when to shoot. Just like clockwork…100 yards..90..80….60…50…. I said get ready….bison turned broad side….I calmly say “take em”.. My hunter let loose a 300grain slug out of a 375. I hear whack.. I fully expected the bison to drop but also seen that the shot was a bit high.. Instead of dropping this cranky old bison reared up turned right at us and here he comes full bore.. I yell to the hunter “hit him again” This whole time I am watching through my binocs so I don’t see what is going on next to me.. I look over and my hunter in the heat of things dumped all the bullets out of his gun and jammed his rifle….now what…lol Well I dropped the binocs and grabbed my trusty weatherby and cranked one in the chamber and let er rip.. I whacked the bison with a 400 grain slug and he flipped backwards and the ground literally shook as he fell inside 10 yards of us. We got up on him and of course he was stone dead , he was dead on the first shot but he just didn’t know it. To this day I don’t know whether he seen us and charged or we were in his escape route but I wasn’t willing to wager at the time. This bison was big and it was a big job to get him out. The hunter decided to have a full body mount done so it took a while.. The hardest part of butchering was the amount of dirt in the hide. It would dull a knive in minutes.. Took a while but we got him out of there and it ended up being one of the biggest bulls taken out there..
Throughout my days of hunting in Alaska I have had the fortune of personally and professionally being part of some incredible hunts from chasing brown bear on Kodiak to Dall sheep in the best permit areas but to this day this bison hunt stands out at the top.. Incredible hunt that I hope to be part of again someday, love to see my kids get this tag.. The best of luck to those in the Draw.. Feburary aint that long off..;)
 

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realunlucky

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60 thanks for the writeup felt like I was right there. Hope I draw a Henry's mountain bison tag soon what a massive animal
 
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60x

60x

WKR
Joined
Dec 20, 2013
Messages
366
Thanks for the kind words guys. It was a fun story to share. YK no worries I'm right there with ya. I think Adf&g makes us wait and tortures us of purpose to get us even. I helped some new hunters put in for the draw this year including my 13yo so I am sitting on pins and needles;)
 
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