A Bow hunter's Dream

A Bow hunter's Dream

The challenge of taking a record book animal normally takes skill, perseverance and for many species lots of money and sometimes just a little luck.  I personally have never taken a Boone & Crockett record book animal.  I have come close on Dall sheep, caribou and Sitka Black Tailed deer.  I have guided on two B&C record book brown bears and five B&C record book caribou but again none of my own.  I guess I consider taking the number 3 Pope & Young record book Dall sheep with my recurve bow my highest accomplishment as a hunter.  Now that I’m getting older my chances at a B&C are pretty slim but like most hunters I keep hoping.  Follow along as I chase those elusive Dall sheep with my Kodiak Magnum bow.

Hunting with Horses

Hunting with Horses

Having horses in the mountains might sound like fun but after my experiences with them for ten years, I can tell you it is anything but fun.  I know Brent, Dan and our wranglers have their own favorite horse stories but I don’t have room for all of them so here are a few of my favorites about my love/hate relationship with our horses. 

Hunting Black Bears

Hunting Black Bears

At this time of the year when the days are getting longer and the sun is brightly shining melting the winter snow I’m continuously thinking of chasing black bears.  In my early years in Alaska two or three of my Air Force buddies and I would head down the Seward Highway glassing the slopes for black bears.  I want to thank all of the following guys for the many wonderful memories that I have hunting black bears on the beautiful Kenai Peninsula: Gary Wadkins, Chuck Berry, Dennis Bush, Doug Simmons, Bill Burgess, Walter Burkett, Russ Langston, Skip Phillips, Dan King, Earl Boucher, Marv Buckley, Dave Fannin, Mike Herbert, Lyle Thompson, Dave Brotherton, Bobby Butler, Eddie Lanoue, Marty Turnbow and Jared Juliussen.  This is quite a gang and I have about the same number that hunted black bears with me in the Prince William Sound area.  But this story is about the bears on the Kenai Peninsula.  Follow along as we go black bear hunting.

Spring Brown Bear Hunting In Western Alaska

Spring Brown Bear Hunting In Western Alaska

Some of my most enjoyable flying hours were during our spring brown bear hunts in Western Alaska.  Flying on skis during those beautiful cool bluebird days with smooth air and with the spring snow conditions made the entire area our runway.  Of course we had storms but they moved in and out pretty fast not like those three or four day storms we have in the fall.  We had to deal with overflow on some of the larger lakes but only once did we have to deal with overflow on Otter Lake itself and only for a few days.  Dan and I did most of the flying in AAA’s two “super cubs.”  We hunted this area in the spring of the odd numbered years mainly because there wasn’t a brown bear season on the Alaska Peninsula during those springs.  Business wise this allowed us to offer hunts at a lower price for clients that may not have been able to afford the price for the larger Peninsula brown bears.  I have always felt it was a great choice for a brown bear hunt because of price and the quality of the bears we harvested.  Those bears were generally smaller.  We harvested a good number of 9 ½ footers in the spring but never a 10 footer.  I personally never thought it was worth the extra 5K we charged on the Peninsula for maybe an opportunity at a bear six inches larger.  But if you were looking for a 10 footer the Peninsula was where you needed to go.

Sheep Hunting The Chugach Mountains

Sheep Hunting The Chugach Mountains

By 1971, I had taken three sheep including my first 40 incher and was now on a mission to get a sheep with my Bear Kodiak Magnum recurve bow.  My last two sheep hunts had been in the Chugach Mountains and I was still convinced that was the place to make it happen.

AAA's Most Challenging Client

AAA's Most Challenging Client

After our 1999 hunting season I attended the Alaska Professional Hunters Association’s annual meeting.  Most of the professional Alaskan guides attend this meeting which includes a banquet.  It’s a great time for guides to get together and discuss their past season and to work on guide related issues.  While talking to some of my guide friends and acquaintances I mentioned that we had had a client that broke his leg twice and he still wanted to continue his hunt.  A couple of them said, “Whoa, that’s a tough dude.”  Then I would tell them it was an artificial leg and continue my story.  The client’s name has been changed to protect his privacy.  I will have to say that Al really had the desire and fortitude to hang in there.  He was determined.

Cold Bay Trophy Bear

Cold Bay Trophy Bear

I’m posting a story written by one of my clients, John Bermen.  The story was published in the Alaska Professional Hunters Magazine in March, 1989.  This bear was and still is the largest bear that I have ever guided on.  It was also the largest bear taken by a guided hunter in 1988 and received the first place award from Safari Club International, scoring 29 5/16 SCI points.  I received a .270 Remington Model 700 mountain rifle from the FNAWS Association for guiding the hunter on “The Outstanding Animal of the Year” for 1988.  That’s the rifle where I had the stock cut down for my wife.

What I find so aggravating about hunting for a 10’ bear is I hunted brown bear for myself eight different times and never killed a 10’ bear.  Then Brent and I formed AAA Alaska Outfitters and I guided on a 10’+ brown bear the first three springs and the fall of ’89. Four 10 foot brown bears our first five years in business and I wasn’t hunting any differently than I did my last four personal hunts.  I even hunted in AAA’s areas on two of my hunts.  To this day I still don’t understand that.  That being said, I hope you enjoy John’s story about a great bear. 

My Quest For A Brown Bear

My Quest For A Brown Bear

After two years of hunting in Alaska I had taken two sheep, two goats, two caribou, a moose and a black bear.  Not bad for a beginner.  All I needed now was a grizzly or a brown bear.  When I received my assignment to Alaska the only animal I knew I wanted to hunt was the grizzly.  I had read in various books and magazines that the grizzly was mean and caution was paramount while hunting in Alaska because those bad boys were out to get you.  However, after two years of hunting in numerous areas I hadn’t even seen one.  In talking to many hunters, taxidermists and biologists I decided that I would rather have a big 8’ to 10’ brown bear than a mean 6’ to 8’ grizzly.

What Guides Never Want To See!!

What Guides Never Want To See!!

What Guides Never Wants To See!!

 

This is my thirty-second story and it has been a year since H.A.R.M. went on line.  I am happy to say the response has been great, reaching over 770 cities and 92 countries.  For you new subscribers, if you haven’t read some of my earlier stories you might want to go back and check them out.  Some say the older ones are the best.  I’ll let you be the judge of that.  I have also added a Search Bar for the site which will allow you to check on story contents, individuals in the stories and more.  As I’ve said before, if you enjoy the site please share it with your friends.  Thank you for your support.  It has been fun reminiscing about the old days.  Now for my story.

Many bad things can happen when you are guiding around water, especially when you are guiding for large animals like moose or brown bear.  Like most guide operations, AAA Alaskan Outfitters has had their share of bad endings.  I know many of you have had similar incidents or know of someone who has.  I thought you might get a kick out of seeing some pictures of those “bad endings.” This is not the total by any means but is a good representation of some we had to deal with.  Some of the captions with the photos will explain how each situation was handled.  These pictures may give you a good laugh or bring back memories you would just as soon forget.

Caribou Hunting On The Alaska Peninsula

Caribou Hunting On The Alaska Peninsula

First things first.  In my last post I made a serious mistake.  I stated that Eric Sjodin packed both moose after my two lazy packers gave up.  Actually, Jeff Hamburg packed the first moose and Eric packed his client’s moose.  Jeff had packed for AAA the two previous years and was now guiding his first client for us.  The story has been corrected.  Sorry Jeff and thanks again for always going the extra mile.

I truly love caribou hunting and have made some wonderful memories hunting with my friends.  The caribou hunts in this article took place on the wild Alaska Peninsula.  These are just a few highlights of those adventures.