I wanted to obtain a good guide for a friend of mine who wants a trophy moose.He and his friends(4), went to Alaska on a hunt and the guide was terrible! There was no food in the camp with the exception freeze dried packets that were five years out of date! There was no gas available to return the party to the main camp and the guides global sat phone had a dead battery!!! The guide was supposed to refund 12,000 per hunter and never paid one cent!!

I have offered to try and arrange a hunt for these fellows and would like to find a guide who is honest and will have decent camps for the hunters. I would appreciate any information and referrals any of the members may offer. Many thanks!

Who was the guide who screwed your friends?

Try Phil Shoemaker who posts here. Most everything I read about his hunts and camps is top notch.

http://www.garylarose.com/alaska_pen_moose.html

My husband hunted three times with LaRose. 1987 for caribou, 1990 for brown bear and 1993 for moose. We still visit with Gary every year at the SCI Convention.

Hope everything works out for your friends.

Bookman, The majority of Alaskan guides are hard working and honest but as you unfortunately found out , not all of them are.
If you check with the Alaska Professional Hunters Assoc you will find a number of outfitters/guides who will do an excellent job.

+1 on Gary LaRose.

quote:

Originally posted by Snowwolfe:
Try Phil Shoemaker who posts here. Most everything I read about his hunts and camps is top notch.

+1

Many thanks for your reply's! I will look over the
Information you have provided and let my friend know!!!

Bookman,
I don't think you can go wrong with Phil.
He did OK for me and my dad this fall. If you like 60"+ moose. moose

You must be very carefull in Alaska at this time when booking a moose hunt.

In much of the state the moose populations have been devistated by preditors. The reputible guides in those areas have quit moose hunting untill circumstances change. I know where I hunt in the upper part of 9 and 17 I haven't booked a moose hunter in 7 years. It looks like that is turning around but we're not there yet.

Both Phill and Gary Larose hunt the mid part of the AK penn and I belive the moose situation is much better down there.

I would reccomend picking a guide from this area and both Phil and Gary have been there a long time and know their areas well.

I belive the 40 ,mile area still has a good population as well so there might be some good outfitters offering moose hunts up there but I don't know any of them.

Sam Fejes is still getting very good moose down in the gulf of Alaska but those hunts are very hard and wet and expensive.

When do you want to go?

If not until 2011 or so, could look at Virgil Umphenour. He hunts the famous Koyukuk NWR. Has exclusive guiding rights to over 3,000,000 acres.

Not sure if it is still true, but at one time, this place had the highest concentration of moose in the world per square mile.

He takes some monsters every year (see website).

I hunted the Koyukuk many years ago on a self guided hunt and it was awesome. Moose galore.
Brother and myself each took a moose - 1 60" and the other, just under.

This hunt is a registration hunt and i believe the application had to be in by the end of November for 2010 hunts.

Here is his website
www.huntalaskawithus.com/Moose_Hunt_koyukuk.htm

Good Luck,

The AK range still has some excellent moose hunting.

Mark

George Siavalis, has taken many large Moose over the years and won some top awards as well.

quote:

Originally posted by Northman56751:
When do you want to go?

Virgil Umphenour. Has exclusive guiding rights to over 3,000,000 acres.

the highest concentration of moose in the world per square mile.



This hunt is a registration hunt


Good Luck,

3 million exclusive acres? Highest concentrations of moose yet a registration hunt ?
Virgil has a good reputation but I would certainly check out those statistics.

I thought exclusive guiding areas was done away with many years ago ?

Cold Zero, While the state supreme court did outlaw exclusive guide areas the Feds - to their credit- did not. USFWS, BLM,NPS and USFS all decided that limiting the number of guides and amount of game taken was a wise move and best for the game.
On state lands now there is no limit to the number of guides who can use the same area and no limit to how much game they can take or how many clients they can drop off. It has been a disaster for many areas.

Claims like Brett made can be true - to the best of his memory - but anytime a prospective client hears something that sounds too good to be true it should serve as a warning to check out the facts carefully.
It could be that Brett didn't remember all the facts but it is obvious he had a great time. That is always a good first recommendation.

when did virgil get a good reputation?
i'll second feje's area, the gulf coast has some of the most incredable moose hunting i've ever seen. ya its wet and brushy, if it wasn't the moose wouldn't be there. don't kid yourself on getting an "easy" moose hunt, figure it'll be rough, that way if its not, your not disapointed.
Virgil has one of the most incredible areas for moose, but there are other details you might have to tolerate to hunt there...

There are in a lot of camps

CHECK REFERENCES

quote:

Originally posted by Fourtyonesix:
when did virgil get a good reputation?

Virgil has one of the most incredible areas for moose, but there are other details you might have to tolerate to hunt there...

Beating around the bush does not help. If you have some information and it is the truth, just post it. Or why bring it up ?

458, thanks for the clarification.

If you check out Brett's post, beleive you will see his commnets were about the Koyukuk River area and not the guide; he says he went on a self-guided hunt

I was lucky enough to be drawn for that hunt and I will say it was suprising crowded

Residents can hunt without a permit but the horns are cut to destroy the trophy value

Also have to be very careful about hunting on Native Corp land or you pay a big fine

That being said, it does holds some big moose and is a very popular hunt

Just to clarify things:

Virgil.......I didn't say i knew anything about his reputation just that he takes some big moose.

Other people in the area:
I will agree, we did run into some other hunters in the Koyukuk, but a lot of them were meat hunters. Also, seemed like a lot of them just hunted the river.
We had some good topos and found clearings not to far from the river. Walked to the clearings, started calling, and it worked great.

At the time we went, i believe there was to be no more that 100 hunters in the Koyukuk on any given day. Sounds like a lot, but when you consider the immense size of it, that's not really that many.

Was kind of funny. Babe Winkleman went with the same transporter we did, strickly boat hunted (transporter told us) and didn't get squat!!

Would i do it again....maybe. Was an awesome experience, but a lot of work.

Brett, was Charlie your transporter ?

Abob,

No, back then it was someone else.
He was o.k. We had a couple issues with him, but that was about it.
Haven't seen him advertise on the internet in years. Maybe, because a year or 2 later, he didn't even show for 2 hunters from Ohio. They flew into town and he was nowhere to be found.

Was based out of Galena. Part of his name was PJ.

i brought it up so if someone had questions about it they could pm so i didn't say stuff in the open forum that was specific.

all i asked was when he got a good reputation, cause i haven't heard it, thought maybe i missed something.

Anyone know who took 1st., 2nd and 3rd for the APHA awards last year for Moose?

I started Training with a Registered guide in 1998 and working as a Guide since 2003 for Nick Pierskalla * NWA "who has been doing hunts in Unit 17, 19 since 1983. I am also the director of Marketing and Hunt Sales. The reason I got involved with him as my dad I hunted as a client with him in 1997 and had a top notch quality hunt. Since the year 2000 and the fall of the Mulchatna Caribou herd and thE advent of the Non Resident Corridor in 2006 I have seen a nominal difference in the amount and quality of the Moose in the area.He has limited his number of Moose hunters to 6 per year and we have been nearly 100% successful with Bulls averaging over 60". By limiting the number of hunters he takes and coming up with a game management plan for himself trying to create a little preserve in his area he has creatd a wonderful and very successful Moose hunting and Brown Bear hunting mecca.
We have had the opportnity to work with a few of the high profile personalities within the hunting industry and built a reputation within that community as being a 1st rate, well accomodated, top notch outfitter. Our Accomodations in the Bush are second to none, our reference list is always available, and our Moose hunting is world class. I will try and post some pictures from last year, I also will try and post a clip of a video that was shot for a TV show we did last year but being it is a 72 MB file I do not know if I can pull that off.
One word also about the APHA. All in all a good organization but as within any organization just because you belong to it does not mean that you are reputable. I have seen many posts here and other places about quite a few members of the APHA who have not lived up to or provided quality hunts so be careful and do your research. They have also been the driving force behind the implementation of the newly proposed Guide concession areas. This could be a blessing and also a hinderence to some of the registered guides in the state. With the Criteria they are trying to make applicable some will benefit from it and inevitably it will run some out of business. This policy will pass and be implemented by 2011 and it is our opinion hat it will overall be good for the future of the quality and quantity of the wildlife.
If you are interested in obtaining our information please fell free to PM me and I will give you all the information you need and look forward to talking with you.

Thanks
Doug K

The APHA should not be counted on to counsel their dues paing members who do not do the right thing.

However, a check of which of their members won annual awards from the APHA will give an idea as to who is taking quality animals.

The APHA is for their Guide / Outfitter member benefits, not the fee paying hunters benefit.

You are correct and hence my post. Just because you belong does not mean you are reputable.
Awards are political, and it is my opinion that if you have an organization for Professional hunters they should make a criteria that is just that Professional. Ensuring that the members do and provide quality hunting and fishing experiences with some type of oversight on their members. Just my opinion.
This was not at all a bash on APHA. In fact it was a compliment to them and for the most part are a decent group. This was meant for the gentleman who started the post to let him know to simply do the research on all and any outfitters so he does not just get a glorified camping trip or worse yet a disasterous and life threatening experience,

The APHA does little or nothing for the paying client. They are stictly organized to provide a political voice for the outfitters. They do virtually nothing to police their own members. Not a slam, just the reality of their purpose.

I've hunted the Koyukuk drainage several times, including this year. The hunting is definitley down from previous years. I'm not sure when the harvest data for this year will be released, but from the data at Ella's cabin, you will see a decidedly reduced harvest, especially noticeable in the late season.

Good luck finding a reputable guide in Alaska. They do exist, but there are a surprising number of shady outfits. Do your research carefully.

Bill

A few Pictures hopefully I can do this.
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well that didnt work. Lets try again.

Unfortunately the APHA is mostly a political organazation and there are still a few less than upfront types in it but all-in-all the majority of it's members have been in the business a long time and are reputable.
As for who "won" the competition for best of anything - most guides don't bother admitting their clients game as they are not after atta-boys. Every year there are larger trophies taken than shown. Still, those outfitters are a good place to start. Just remember that those animals are already dead and "resulsts may vary".

quote:

Originally posted by 458Win:
Unfortunately the APHA is mostly a political organazation and there are still a few less than upfront types in it but all-in-all the majority of it's members have been in the business a long time and are reputable.
As for who "won" the competition for best of anything - Still, those outfitters are a good place to start.

Correct. That was my point. it is a research tool. It shows who had good results this year and you can go back to previous years to see who is producing quality, consistently.

APHA looks out for their dues paying members. They are not an organization for looking out for hunters.

On the other hand, the G.O.A.B.C., does do a good job of policing their own members, if they want to continue being members. So that proves, a professional organziation can police it's own, if it chooses to do so.

Unfortunately, the APHA has chosen a different path. Commite all the sins you like, just pay your dues....

quote:

Originally posted by llamapacker:
The APHA does little or nothing for the paying client. They do virtually nothing to police their own members. Not a slam, just the reality of their purpose.

Good luck finding a reputable guide in Alaska. They do exist, but there are a surprising number of shady outfits. Do your research carefully.

Bill

The above is 100% accurate. Be careful and research very throughly.

Last year, Sept 2008, my best bud and I had a wonderful hunt out in 22e with Brian Simpson of Wittrock outfitters. You won't find a web site, he doesn't have one. Mostly repeat customers, word of mouth and he may visit the Michigan SCI meeting. I got lucky and found him via the AK web site that lists outfitters by unit. We had a wonderful 7 day hunt which went into 9 days to get my buddy his grizzly; Brian will hunt you until you have your animal as long as you have the time. I posted my hunt a year ago Sept/Oct entitled "My Ruger Bull". The terrian is rolling mountains and extremely open terrain with shallow willow draws north of Teller. The group of 4 hunters before us used bows and rifles but only got one bull; 64". Our four hunters got three bulls, 62", 64" and 67". Brian hunts out of 8-wheeled ARGO's vehicles so if you're out of shape it's a great way to see TONS of country. Also, a great way to bring a bull carcass back to camp. Very reasonable costs too.

Alan

Try Maddog on these forums. I've been with him 3 times. Top notch.
Got my brownie with him, and Moose, and Caribou.
E-mail him at
akguide4@yahoo.com

He has a place in unit-9 that only 2 guides on the face of the earth can hunt. He is one of them. You hunt his Costal browns and won't see another person there the entire time.