Black Bears of Prince William Sound

Black Bears of Prince William Sound

Alaska is a beautiful and wild place.  It has mountains, the ocean, rivers, tidal mud flats, glaciers and those unpredictable bears.  Add the quick changing and bad weather and you have an accident waiting to happen.  Spend 60 to 90 plus days a year in the wilderness for 45 years and your chances of something out of the norm happening is high.  Add small airplanes and small boats and the odds go up.  I think about this story and some of the other ones that I’ve shared and wonder if you readers are asking if this guy is a little nuts!  Not really.  I have made mistakes and have learned from them but no matter how safe you are or how well you plan in this environment, things just happen.

So far this year in Alaska we have had two bear maulings, several hikers rescued, a kayaker die and a couple of airplane crashes that I know of.  If you live in Alaska and hunt, fish, backpack, mountain climb or any other outdoor adventure, you will have had or know of someone who has had the same type of experiences that I have written about.

Hopefully some of you will learn from my mistakes and some will laugh or cry because you have been there.

Follow me on my black bear adventures in Prince William Sound.

Hair's Breadth Bear

Hair's Breadth Bear

Since it is brown bear season I thought I would add another story about hunting the big guys.

In 1984 I had the good fortune of meeting and guiding Kurt Jaeger from the small country of Liechtenstein.  I really enjoyed my time with him.  We had a great hunt and he harvested a beautiful 37 1/2" Dall ram.  He booked to come back on a brown bear hunt in our Cold Bay area for the spring of 1986.  He harvested a massive 10'+ brown bear and later wrote a story that was published in a German Hunting Magazine and was picked up and published in the SCI Magazine.  Now it is on line under Guns and Hunting and I have attached that link for your enjoyment.  At that time, Kurt was the only hunter in Liechtenstein who had ever harvested a sheep and brown bear. 

Before he printed the story he gave me a call and told me I would not like it because he added a few extras to make it exciting.  He did this because he was told by the editor that they didn't want another "hunter kills a brown bear story" but something more exciting.  We all know that everyone sees things a little differently anyway.  He is a good story teller and a better writer than I am so I think most of you will enjoy it.  He wrote that I said, "He is a lucky _____."  That is something I would have never said then or now!  With that I hope you enjoy.  Read the story

Graduation Bear

Graduation Bear

“Greg, break off some of those limbs and get set."  "My range finder is telling me it's 180 yards across the gully and 250 yards to where the small creek comes in." That was the elevation the big guy was traveling.  He will probably lie down before he gets here so it might be a long wait.  “There he is!!"

Flying the Super Cub

Flying the Super Cub

 

Looking back on the accident I had a total of 282 hours flying time. The insurance company’s representative told me that statistics show that around that number of hours is when first-time accidents are likely to happen and are quite common.  They also say that a major accident usually only happens once.  Our cub had a 150HP engine and I know now that a 160HP is much better at high altitudes. I made sure that our next cub was a 160HP.  They say you fly a cub by the seat of your pants; you actually feel or experience the plane.  This is so true.  I believe to this day that with my experience and a 160HP engine and doing everything the same but with a little more finesse in my reaction, I would not have crashed.  Every year I found myself landing in areas that I wouldn’t have the year before because of my experience.  Experience in your flying environment is the most important part of becoming an exceptional pilot. 

It was about a month after the accident that Paul Claus, who was flying for us at that time, was flying me back to Chitina.  He asked me when I was going to fly again.  I told him I wasn’t sure. He said he thought it was time and landed on a sandbar on the Chitina River.  He got out and said for us to trade places.  He told me that he had had a few accidents and if the plane hadn’t caught fire I could have flown it out.  He climbed in the back seat and said, “Let’s go.”  I think that take-off was scarier than my first solo take-off.  When I greased the landing at Chitina Paul said, “You’re ready.”

The Worst Day of My Life

The Worst Day of My Life

My accident took place over 30 years ago.  It has been hard for me and my loved ones to get passed this devastating time but, with God's grace, we eventually moved on but not forgotten.  What a wonderful time this was supposed to have been.  Our daughter was getting married and my family was in Alaska for the first time.  I couldn't believe it turned into such a tragedy.  I was overwhelmed with sadness, as I knew I was responsible for the loss of a loved one.

With that, here is my story.

A Walk with Roger Morris

A Walk with Roger Morris

Every now and then I will post a story written by one of my clients or grand kids.  This story was written by Tom Wells and it was published in the Alaska Professional Hunter Magazine in 2002.  I guided Tom on two more hunts where he harvested a 40" ram and a 60" moose.  We had a wonderful time and I am proud to call him my friend.

Fishing with my Grandpa

My granddaughter, Jordan, had just recently taken her first black bear and written a story about her experience on the hunt.  The story was then published in the Alaska Professional Hunter Magazine in the fall of 2003.  Coincidentally, at about the same time, Boston Gravity was searching for a young, Alaskan outdoor enthusiast to do a guest segment for the PBS children's show, Zoom.  Somehow, while completing their search, the Alaska Professional Hunter's Association (APHA) office manager directed them to contact me.  In the end, the Boston Gravity team, Alan Grazioso and Steve Eliopoulos, selected Jordan as the "Alaska Girl" for the project. 

Steve, my granddaughter Jordan, and Alan fishing during the project.

Steve, my granddaughter Jordan, and Alan fishing during the project.

We decided on a red salmon fishing trip on the Kenai River for the third week in July.  Both Alan and Steve were from the East Coast so they had a long flight all the way to Anchorage.  They stayed at our cabin with us while filming the project and also had the opportunity to do some fishing of their own.  They had a true Alaskan experience, it was great fun.  Alan and Steve were great guests and super nice individuals.  Everyone had a blast during the filming and the project was an absolute success.  The final cut is below, check it out!

Cub in the Lake

Cub in the Lake

It was fall of 1994 at our Western Alaska camp. The day started out as one of those beautiful September days. I had been checking spike camps that morning with the Super Cub.  One of the camps had a moose down so I needed to pick up a couple of packers and some supplies.  I landed at my strip, taxied the plane into the tie down location, got out and faced into the wind.  Most of the morning the wind had been blowing about 20 mph and the weather report never indicated anything about strong winds.  It takes me about 10 minutes to tie the plane down and 5 minutes to untie it. Since, I was only going to be at the camp, which was on the other side of the lake for about 30 minutes, I decided to save time and not tie the plane down.  I always leave the plane untied when I land at spike camps so there was no difference. 

Hunting with the Grandkids

Hunting with the Grandkids

I wrote this story in 2005 right after I retired from the guide business. It was published in the 2006 Convention Issue of The Alaska Professional Hunter Magazine.

It Pays to Wait

It Pays to Wait

This was the first story I wrote after Brent & I formed AAA Alaskan Outfitters in December 1983.
It was our first season and a great one.


"lt Pays To Wait"


As Brent Jones and I stood in the air terminal at Cold Bay
waiting for the Reeve Bird to touch down, I thought back to the
last three months of planning, equipment shipping, and camp
setup. Our first brown bear season as partners of AAA Alaskan
Outfitters was about to begin.


We had worked hard getting everything we needed, but I kept
wondering if we had forgotten or overlooked something. It was
too late now, though, for the plane had landed and our very first
clients, George Caswell, of Enid, Oklahoma, and Tim Orton, of
Walker, Minnesota, were standing in front of us. The excitement
of taking a big brown bear was evident on their faces. After quick
introductions, we grabbed the luggage and were on our way.