- Banned
- #1
Where's Bruce?
WKR
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2013
- Messages
- 6,389
Call me crazy but the more I research outfitters and hunting packages in this part of Alaska, the less inclined I am to "sign up" and entrust some stranger to put me on game. So now I'm thinking, why not go with an experienced AK resident, charter a plane to fly over the area and land us somewhere where we see game. I know ya can't hunt for a day on a fly in trip but at least you'll know there's animals near your camp. The original idea was to fly in-float out and cover a lot of ground but then I considered the advantage of being able to fly in-fly out from a base camp based on actually seeing animals you wanna hunt while still having the option to float out if things don't pan out. It's a simple thing to call in GPS coordinates for pick-up anywhere out there with a decent natural runway.
Too many times I have read horror stories of guys being flown into a central camp where they sat for a week with a bunch of other hunters "waiting" for their turn to fly to their hunting area. Issues arose that caused delays in getting out (not always weather related) and sometimes guys were dropped in areas devoid of any sign. Basically plopped into the heart of Hell to wait for their extraction. This is a place where you can easily die and some hunters have because they could not get out...some forgotten by their outfitter, others left because of mechanical failures and the outfitter left em out there instead of calling someone else to retrieve em. I know...it's unfathomable but true. I watched one program where the guys had rifle hunted brown bears eight years in a row with the same outfitter and still never got a shot off. When you're spending tens of thousands of dollars per hunt...that's brutal!
So maybe spending the money on a bigger plane with greater fuel capacity and flying into a general area without a fixed location in mind but instead, waiting until you spot the (bear, moose, caribou, etc.) you intend to hunt before putting down and setting up camp is a better option. Even if it that takes a few days...it still seems like a logical alternative to the norm, does it not? Are there factors I am not considering? To me it seems like a way to ensure you're not hitting areas that have been stepped on a lot or for whatever reason...aren't holding animals. Scout from the air, wait till you see something that gets your blood pumping, land nearby (or ahead of a moving migration if that's the case) and set up camp. Make sense? I realize some people aren't gonna consider this "scouting" but I am not one of them. It's big country and traditional scouting isn't practical.
Would really like to hear from those who have hunted AK's interior, especially the central southern portion of the BR.
Too many times I have read horror stories of guys being flown into a central camp where they sat for a week with a bunch of other hunters "waiting" for their turn to fly to their hunting area. Issues arose that caused delays in getting out (not always weather related) and sometimes guys were dropped in areas devoid of any sign. Basically plopped into the heart of Hell to wait for their extraction. This is a place where you can easily die and some hunters have because they could not get out...some forgotten by their outfitter, others left because of mechanical failures and the outfitter left em out there instead of calling someone else to retrieve em. I know...it's unfathomable but true. I watched one program where the guys had rifle hunted brown bears eight years in a row with the same outfitter and still never got a shot off. When you're spending tens of thousands of dollars per hunt...that's brutal!
So maybe spending the money on a bigger plane with greater fuel capacity and flying into a general area without a fixed location in mind but instead, waiting until you spot the (bear, moose, caribou, etc.) you intend to hunt before putting down and setting up camp is a better option. Even if it that takes a few days...it still seems like a logical alternative to the norm, does it not? Are there factors I am not considering? To me it seems like a way to ensure you're not hitting areas that have been stepped on a lot or for whatever reason...aren't holding animals. Scout from the air, wait till you see something that gets your blood pumping, land nearby (or ahead of a moving migration if that's the case) and set up camp. Make sense? I realize some people aren't gonna consider this "scouting" but I am not one of them. It's big country and traditional scouting isn't practical.
Would really like to hear from those who have hunted AK's interior, especially the central southern portion of the BR.
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