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Hunting Alaska News & Tips
June, 2005

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Hunting in Alaska during June is mostly planning for late summer and fall hunts, and bear baiting.  Several interesting discussions have been ongoing on the Alaska Hunting Forum about good baits, discerning what kind of bear has visited the bait station and more.

Two well prepared Alaska wilderness travelers were killed in what appears to have been a predatory grizzly bear attack in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in late June.  While information is still incomplete, it seems that these two did it right, as far as I have read.  They were known to be bear-aware and careful, they were armed, and they were experienced.  It is important to remember that these kinds of unprovoked attacks are VERY rare, but do occasionally happen.  Preparation can avoid most bear problems, but Alaska wilderness is still that, and not without dangers.

The hunting regulations for the 2005/2006 season are now available, and can be seen online for those who need the official details.

Perhaps one of the most interesting Alaska hunting stories relates to the continuing effort by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to reintroduce wood bison to the state.  Alaska's existing plains bison are a separate subspecies and came originally from Montana in the 1920's.  Wild wood bison today inhabit only northwest Canada, and apparently died out in Alaska some hundreds of years ago.  Interestingly, Alaska natives have an oral tradition from their forebears about hunting bison.  No one ever thought to ask that question until recent years ago....but it is still in community memory.  The Fairbanks Daily News miner has been covering this story, and there is more information below as well.

David M Johnson
Publisher / OutdoorsDirectory.com
PO Box 609
Delta Junction, AK 99737

FEATURED

Calling North American Moose by Wayne Kubat......

Moose calling for me is a broad hunting strategy in which I use various sound effects, vocalizations and sometimes even visual effects to attract or approach moose. I don’t limit myself only to the use of bull grunts and cow calls, and if a bull won’t come to me, I’ll go to him. Experience has taught me three main concepts.

First, Moose calling is easy, and anybody can do it. Even young kids can do incredibly good cow calls with just a little bit of practice, and anybody can break sticks and rake brush.

Second, it works - and not only during the peak of rut. Moose calling can increase your chance for success in almost every hunting situation from late August into October, and even beyond.

Finally, you must be patient. Best results will be realized when you believe that it will work and are willing to wait.

Alaska Remote Guide Service sells Love, Thunder, and Bull 2 in Alaska in VHS and DVD format from their website. These videos provide thorough training for the hunter wanting to improve success by calling. They also sell a fiberglass megaphone that can aid your calling efforts.

This is important. Please use extreme caution whenever you call. A rut-crazed bull can be dangerous and can cover ground very fast. Brown and black bears can come into calls expecting lunch, and you might even call in other hunters. Be alert and prepared whenever you call.

When calling, I use three basic sounds: “brush thrashing”, “bull grunts”, and “cow calls”. Depending on the time of year and the current status of the rut, I use these sounds alone or in combination to try to imitate various moose behaviors. I call for 20 to 40 minutes at a time, at 3 to 5 hour intervals, and usually from a spot that is two to three hundred yards removed from my main lookout location. During these 20 to 40 minute sessions, I brush thrash and/or use bull grunts and cow calls for two to three minutes, then I glass the area thoroughly with binoculars; then listen and wait for five to ten minutes before calling again. I repeat this sequence continually throughout each session.

NEWS

NEWS: June 30, 2005 -- Wildlife and forestry managers are hoping that 2005 will be the year for a long planned and very large (74,000 acre / 30,000 hectare) Tanana Flats prescribed fire designed to restore habitat for moose and other wildlife.  Managers have been waiting for a long time to ignite this fire.  Weather conditions and personnel availability have put it on the back burner for a decade.  The fire is expected to produce large areas of improved moose browse and habitat for a variety of other wildlife. 

NEWS: June 28, 2005 -- The Alaska Board of Game is calling for proposals for changes to the regulations relating to hunting, trapping and use of game in Alaska's Arctic and Western regions.  The proposal deadline is 19 August 2005, and these proposals will be considered at the fall meeting in Kotzebue.

NEWS: June 17, 2005 -- A Yukon Game Branch biologist believes the first two years of the Chisana caribou herd recovery project has been a success with good numbers of calves raised in a unique new approach to protecting newly born calves.  The Chisana herd has been troubled for two decades.  Read the story from the Whitehorse Star >>>

NEWS: June 17, 2005 -- The Department of Fish and Game in conjunction with the Alaska Hunter Heritage Foundation are putting on a Becoming an OutdoorsWoman Workshop at Lost Lake, near Fairbanks on August 19-21, 2005.  This is an excellent way for women to become more familiar with outdoors activities like fishing, hunting, hiking, boating and more.

NEWS: June 17, 2005 -- The Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge  said "no" to the reintroduction of wood bison to its lands at a public meeting on June 7 in Fairbanks. According to the Fairbanks Daily News Miner, the refuge staff was unconvinced that the reintroduction of bison there would be a good biological decision.  The state of Alaska continues to seek public and agency input on its proposal to reintroduce these bison of the northern forests. The Alaska Chapter of the Wildlife Society reviewed this concept several years ago, and while the TWS report is fairly technical, it is a good read on the realities of this subject. At a June 8 meeting, the News Miner reported strong public support for restoring wood bison to at least one of three potential sites, including among Alaska native and environmental groups. An advisory panel decided against throwing its support behind just one site, but recommended going ahead with the project "to get hooves on the ground."  The Fairbanks Daily News Miner reported again on 17 June that some substantial obstacles remain, but wood bison could be on the ground in Alaska as early as 2006.

NEWS: June 14, 2005 -- The 2005/2006 Alaska Hunting Regulations are now available online.  The regulations are effective July 1, 2005 through the last day of June, 2006.

NEWS: June 8, 2005 -- University of British Columbia and ADFG researchers have found some surprising answers to questions about coyote predation on Dall sheep.  Coyotes are a common predator on Dall sheep lambs, and researchers wondered if cyclic lows in Alaska hare populations might contribute to increased predation on lambs....and partly explain decreasing Interior Alaska sheep numbers. The answer, strangely, was no.  Read more about this from this from Alaska Wildlife News. >>

NEWS: June 7, 2005 -- The Nelchina caribou Tier II "subsistence" hunt will continue as it has now for more than 10 years after a special Alaska Board of Game meeting on the subject that left nothing unchanged.  The contentious Tier II hunt has been on the books for years, despite numerous attempts to change it.

NEWS: June 7, 2005 -- The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has posted improved Game Management Unit (GMU) maps.  The new maps provide additional detail.

CALENDAR: June 2, 2005 -- Mark your calendar for July 15, 2005.  That's the date by which ADF&G has promised to post results for the fall drawing hunts.  You can check this page for information on how to access the results.  ADF&G does not mail notification letters, so if you win a permit, you will find out about it when it comes in the mail, or by checking online.