A buddy and myself were hunting caribou and moose above the Arctic Circle. We were hunting from a drop camp along the Seliwek River. This was expensive, and we were hoping for a wilderness experience with peace and quit.

BUT, the friggin Alaskan fish cops were flying over ever day, circling low and landing to inspect every dead animal. They weren’t happy unless you took every last shred of meat from the carcass. The Alaskan G&F ruined the trip, because I got so angry with these a**holes buzzing us everyday. It felt like LAX. It became so frustrating, we quit hunting moose and prayed for this hell to end.

I’ll never waste money like that again in Alaska. Everywhere you went somebody wanted to get PAID big bucks for doing very little. Moreover, shooting the caribou was so easy, it was like shooting cattle in a pin - they were so stupid – even using a bow & arrow would be only marginally challenging.

Sorry about the bad time.

To bad about the game and fish harrassment. But I think there had been lots of waste in remote areas by people who go off in the bush but dont want to bring much more than horns back. The regs really got strict in the last couple of years. Next they will want the critter brought back whole.
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"Everywhere you went somebody wanted to get PAID big bucks for doing very little."

Cant help you there. Once you leave the road system to hunt they got you by the balls.

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Did someone tell you Caribou were hard to hunt?

Sorry couldn't help it. I have mostly hunted them with a bow. The caribou that get hunted a lot can be spooky.

Sorry to here of your bad hunt. I went to Alaska last year and it was a blast. We did a drop hunt in the Arctic Circle. We hunted Caribou and the closest we could get to them was about 200 yards. I had a very good experience, we will be going back next year to the same place, hopefully we will get a wolf this time.

quote:

Originally posted by Ackley Improved User:
They weren’t happy unless you took every last shred of meat from the carcass.

That's pretty much what we all expect of you.

quote:

They weren’t happy unless you took every last shred of meat from the carcass.

I have to agree with David.

To quote Paul Harvey, I sure would like to hear "the rest of the story"

Ackley: All hunting off the road system in Alaska is expensive (for everyone)...And anyone who shoots animals has the personal responsibility of recovering every last bit of ediable meat from the carcass. The reason the Troopers/ADFG frequent certain areas (by plane or boat)is because there are too many solid examples of people that shoot animals on the day they fly in, or they shoot animals and leave them to rot, or they do not know how to take the rib and neck meat off of a large animal. I have shot plenty of game with Troopers/ADFG flying around. I have also found dead caribou left on the tundra in heavily hunted areas...non-residents sometimes shoot animals they do not have tags for, so it is easier to just leave the animal..that's my guess.

As for caribou, the hardest and most exciting thing about caribou hunting is getting to and being where they live.

Alaska treats the harvesting of game animals more seriously than any other state I have ever hunted in. And I like it.

There is also a fair chance that transporters (say your transporter) and State Troopers work together pretty closely...which is not a bad thing. They knew where you were and there may have been some other problems in the area that you were not aware of that they were looking into. Authorities usually show up when there are existng problems.

Let me finish this story. By the time we got all the meat out, it was so expensive to ship it back to the States that I had no choice but to give it away to the native Americans (charity, I guess) - this was legal. They fed it to their dogs! I'd rather feed the wolves and bears.

Hello;
One of the first things you learn is that things get expensive in a hurry, the further north you go, and you don't have to go very far. A lot of that relates to the cost of living there, especially transportation costs. As for natives being allowed to "waste" game meat, welcome to the real world.
Grizz

"By the time we got all the meat out, it was so expensive.........."

Sounds like somebody didn't do their homework before their hunt or you didn't really plan to bring the meat out to begin with. Read the Regs. Wanton waste is a serious issue up here.......we treasure what we have up here and folks from outside either need to abide by the rules or go elsewhere........"friggin' Alaska fish cops," "a**holes,"......your descriptive terminology speaks volumes as far as "your terrible hunt" goes. Sounds to me like the officers doled out supervision where it was needed.

Joe

I have a friend that lives in AK and have gone on three caribou hunts and am going on the 4th this fall. We use a flying service and set up our own camp for about 5-7 days. It gives more flexibility as the flyers always know where the herds are and can take you there (usually about a 100 mile range from where they fly out of). YUP the F&G keep an awful good eye on you. It kind of made me mad that every day there seemed to be lots of private planes going by and also the F&G but, then I got to thinking what if we had a medical emergency? My buddy is 45 yrs old and fit as a fiddle standing 6'4" weighing 210 #'s but just 2 years ago his appendix went out on him with about 4 hours warning.
CARIBOU AREN'T STUPID--they just don't recognize man as a predator and figure you can't run fast enough to catch them. I wonder how many have ever seen a man. I've seen some unbelievable sized herds migrating. I stood there in awe watching them. Never lived in a "national geographic" film before but figure that's as close as I'll get in my lifetime.
As for cost I figure $600 to fly to AK. About $500 for a license. Another $350 or so to fly out to a commercial strip and then another $800 a piece for the bush plane. It's an easy $2000 to $2500 but then I always laugh and say I have to deduct $400 for not being home for 10 days going out to eat, golfing, going to the bar etc etc.
Hunting caribou pretty much is as you described but it all depends on how you look at it. It's an easy hunt in low altitude so it's not physically demanding and the odds of seeing tons of animals "doing what they do" are pretty good. I really can't wait to get up there again and hope it all goes as it has in the past....it's right up my alley!!

I'm not surprised to hear you didn't want the meat. Now I understand why you were so upset about having to remove it all from the animal.

We get lots of people that come up here to kill as much stuff as they can, then dump the meat off on someone else so they don't have to deal with it.

All those hunt pics and videos are cool, eh? Your big trip to Alaska....nice job.

If the cops weren't keeping an eye out, I've a feeling you wouldn't have come out with much meat.

We don't really need your kind of hunter up here, and we don't have much sympathy for your type.

I did my homework and figured an overall cost of $4000.00, including a significant amount for unexpected expenses. The trip ended up costing $7000.00 - once you added in all the price gouging. Once the locals had you on site in Alaska, you were at their mercy. They knew it and took advantage of it. I got fleeced, and it won’t happen again!

In summary, if you’re planning a hunting trip to Alaska, be certain to find a place where the fish cops are not going to 1) harass you by buzzing you and your camp everyday, 2) check your licenses daily and do necropsies on all your game carcasses, 3) prevent you from taking your meat home because of exorbitant freight charges by Alaska Airlines, and 4) price gouge at every opportunity – for example, “Oh, we just raised our rates and your 50# over weight, that’ll be an additional $300.00 air faire.†You have no choice but to pay – through the nose. Then all your hard work and money goes to FEEDING ESKIMO DOGS.

I post this experience, because hunters from the Lower 48 need to know what happens in Alaska. Not to worry, I'm not planning to go back – who need that sh*t.

Besides, for $7000.00 I can buy two fabulous wilderness hunts in the lower 48 – and, I get to KEEP my game meat.

Ouch....a $7000 bou hunt would leave a bad taste in my mouth too. I've been lucky because of my local "connection" and think some of the other posters have been unreasonably hard on you. The caribou herds are getting out of control and from what I understand the locals can take up to 5 a day. (in certain areas) It would be good if there was a more reasonably priced way to share the hunt experience with fellow country men in the lower 48. Overhead is killing every small business in the US and I'm sure that outfitters feel the same crunch as all of us do. All of our airlines are in a world of hurt too.....the aggrevating thing so often is the attitude of people who we pay our money to. Eventually these people get removed from the "front line" of the business cause either the business goes under or someone in management finally realizes what an arsehole they are. And usually these are the people that are the first to complain that it was someone else who caused the demize of their job.
Unfortunately we run into them all the time and it sounds like you got your full 150% dosage in one trip.

For the guys with negative comments above, I offer this. Plan a once-in-a-lifetime hunt to a "great and wonderful" dream area (for me it was Alaska) - one of the last wilderness's on the planet.

Then find yourself essentially camped in the "wilderness" in the middle of a daily air show with fish cops buzzing you, harassing you, and watching your moves every second, even while your shitting.

Next have everyone putting their greedly little hands in your wallet at every opportunity, especially when you're in a very compromising position and can't say no! Then being essentially forced to leave all you hard-earned game meat behind for the local mongrel dogs. All the expense and hassle for dog food!

Don't tell me you wouldn't be pissed off - you would be BIG time, just like I was.

Any HUNTER planning a trip to Alaska - BEWARE!

Ackley, I can believe you about the fish cops, but $3000 in price gouging is bs. And as for the cost of shipping meat being prohibitively expensive, that is definitely bs. Let's see 200#s (2 caribou) of meat at say $1.00 a # to Anchorage - that is $200 (what is it going to cost to get 200#s of meat airfreighted from some little airport in Iliinois to a little airport in Georgia which is about the same distance?). Did you keep the horns and cape? How much did that cost to get home.

Sorry, I sympathize about the ADF&G "harrassment", but as for the cost question, I suspect you are either not being honest, or did not really do your homework.
I spend about $2000 to hunt about 150 miles from my home in Anch each year, so I don't doubt that for transportation from the lower 48 to Selawik and then into the field for you and gear and out with meat is going to be a pretty penny. There are a lot cheaper places to hunt cariou in Alaska - but if you did your homework, you would have known that.


Sure you didn't piss off those fish cops?

What did you have to pay for that you felt you shouldn't? You also should know that prices in remote locations reflect the cost of getting whatever it is you needed there and still have the locals to make something off of it for having it there in the first place.

Whining about wanton waste is going to fall on deaf ears here in Alaska.

Did you check and see that Alaska Airlines weight limit was 50 lbs before you left? Or are you complaining because you didn't do your homework? Sounds like you have been ill prepared for a true wilderness type hunt or you wouldn't have had to pay so much that you didn't plan on.

Boggles the mind to think you are complaining because you couldn't leave meat in the field.

I'm telling the truth about the cost - I know how much the entire trip set me back. I agree maybe I only "thought" I'd done my homework - obviously I hadn't done enough or the proper homework. You know what they say...there are no victims, just volunteers. No one forced me to go to Alaska, and no one can force me again.

The problem with one's mind set in planning a big trip like this is that you want it to be affordable - a fantasy, not reality.

quote:

Originally posted by Ackley Improved User:Not to worry, I'm not planning to go back – who need that sh*t.

Perfect! Please tell as many friends as possible, as well as everyone else you can reach on the 'net. The less people crowding the hunting grounds, the better. You think we're gonna miss you?

If you're stupid enough to pay $7k for an unguided caribou hunt, there isn't much anyone here can say to educate you about the situation.

The truth is, people like you are the reason the game cops are forced to patrol as intensely as they do. Pissing about actually having to take home the meat...

Everything you've posted here is so ridiculous you should be embarassed to have posted it.
It is kinda humorous, to hear from Jerry's kids now and then, however...

Thank God there are alot of decent people in AK. Sounds like David should have his own planet a state isn't good enough!

quote:

Perfect! Please tell as many friends as possible, as well as everyone else you can reach on the 'net. The less people crowding the hunting grounds, the better. You think we're gonna miss you? Quote from DavidAK a true Alaskan!

Mr. David Alaska, I plan to tell everyone and everybody, including ALL those reading the WORLD WIDE WEB. People need to be warned about people like you and YOUR ALASKA ATTITUDE. Because, clearly, I ran into a whole bunch of "DavidAKs" in Alaska, when I was up there. Sure, my $7000.00 is spent and won't return. But, I plan to WARN a WHOLE BUNCH of unknowing folks, who might actually think Alaskans are not out to rip them off.

It's always funny to hear how the non-resident hunters think how it should be up here......if it weren't for hurting the good do-it-yourselfers that come here and act like hunters should, I'd be for extending the hiring of a guide requirement to the taking of ALL big game animals. Almost all of the problems encountered on the "terrible hunt" could have been taken care of by reading the regs and spending less than $50.00 in phone calls before coming up here.......kick yourself around for that not ADF&G officers.....if it hadn't been for the officers, it sounds like a pile of meat would have been left in the bush.....sounds like they earned their keep.

Joe

Obviously, some of you Alaskans can hardly ready and write - read the posts. I didn't leave any meat and wasn't planning on it. I got sick of being buzzed and checked everyday on a wilderness hunt by some over busy, paranoid fish cops. Then, once trapped inside the state, I got fleeced by price gouging from all directions.

Yes, I admit it was foolish, but like I said, it won't happen twice. Maybe somebody reading this forum and thinking of the same thing will think again, before they pay thousands of dollars to be buzzed and harassed by fish cops.

quote:

Then, once trapped inside the state, I got fleeced by price gouging from all directions.

Dude, thanks for the laughs, at least.

I must have missed the part where you were held prisoner, and robbed.

I fail to understand how a grown man can be such a helpless victim of the tides of fate.

Life must truly be a trauma, in your shoes...

Can you give us some examples of price gouging?

You stated earlier that you were ticked because you had to recover every scrap of meat, then ticked because of shipping costs (by the way, Alaska Airlines is based in Seattle Washington, not Alaska), then mad because you gave it to someone else. It's easy to mistake that as you would have left meat in the field.

quote:

The caribou herds are getting out of control

Brilliantly put.

"obviously some of you Alaskans can hardly read and write"

Sounds like a case of the kettle calling the pot black......could we have a little more whine with that cheese?

Joe

"I must have missed the part where you were held prisoner, and robbed." Quote from David Alaska.

I think I was (in Alaska) - but I escaped after 14 days. LOL

Sorry to read about your "terrible hunt in Alaska". I made my first trip to our Last Frontier in 1987, that was going to be my one trip of lifetime. Guess what...I got hooked on Alaska, it great people and its beauty. I return as often as my meager financial means will allow. And I can honestly say that I have enjoyed each and every visit.

I have made many friends there through the years, hunting on my own and with some excellent guides and outfitters when that was required. The visits to Alaska offer so much more than just the hunting. The chance to see how people live and survive in the harsh environment is amazing. How about taking in some of the sites or doing some fishing while there. From the Simon Peake (sp?) museum in Anaktuvuk Pass to the University in Fairbanks and the Natural History Museum and the Great Alaskan Bush Co. in Anchorage, the fun little restaurant in Port Alsworth, the fantastic Silver Salmon fishing in Cordova, even watching the "dump" bears in Hoonah...can one still do that?? Alaska has much to offer those who go with the right attitude. Spend some time getting to know some of locals in the villages. For the most part they are hard working people just like you and me who ask nothing more than to be treated with respect. Approach them the right way and they will do most anything for you. Approach them the wrong way and they would be happy to see you drop dead.

Just being in Alaska is a dream of many. The chance to hunt and/or fish there is one of life's greatest adventures. In five weeks I'll be on way to Alaska again with time to hunt and time to visit some of the people I have met on previous visits.

If anyone comtemplating their first trip to Alaska would like another point of view, feel to contact me.

David in Alaska, is it OK if I come back? I promise I won't whine or bitch if something comes up that I didn't plan on. That "Ackley" guy should be banned from hunting all over the world. Fact is we don't call his kind hunters; he is the kind of guy that counts his success by quantiy, not quality. There difinitly is room in this world for some form of gun control and this guy should not be allowed to own a gun, unless of cousre he wants to use it on himself.

HMMMM!

We get $4500 for a 2x1 fully guided caribou hunt. There is a $750 charter fee plus tags and license. Gee maybe those drop camps aren't such a bargain. If my pencil doesn't fail me I think Ackley User could have hired a guide and paid all his additional transportation etc. for $7000.

I actually do work with a drop-off service out of Dillingham. I figure that a caribou hunt depending on the amount of flying should not cost more about $3000 for absolutely everything other than airline tickets to Alaska.

I too think the AK, F&G tries to do a good job and yes they do get in the way occasionally but I applaude them enforcing the law.

Regards,

Mark

I agree with Mark, with regard to the pricing. You have to actively work at it, to spend $7k on an unguided caribou hunt.

In addition, Ak Air Cargo charges $100 to ship 250lbs of meat from Anchorage across the whole freakin' country....

So...for $200, Ackley could have shipped 500lbs home, via cargo. Just exactly how much meat did he have, that he couldn't affort the shipping?

Also, you can check up to 100lbs with you in a container, for $50...since you're allowed two checked bags, that means around 200lbs can go for $100...just mail your freakin' clothes home instead of checking them.

This is just after about 2 minutes of checking...and you supposedly did your research?

If none of the above was possible, for some extremely unlikely reason, why not give the meat to Hunters For The Hungry, a charitable service that receives hunters' meat and distributes it to needy folk?

AND, Ackley, if caribou hunting is so easy....I assume you have some trophy bull photos to post?? If it's that easy, I imagine you bagged some B&C bulls?

The fact is, you didn't do any research...didn't give a damn what happened to the meat...didn't plan ahead to minimize extra expenditures...and would rather bitch about Alaska, the people here, and the F&G folks than admit that you were an idiot about the whole thing.

Ackley Improved User is a shit-talker. Kraky, if you disagree with me on this, I suggest you and Ackley get together and plan your next hunts together. I'm sure you'll get along fine.

As a friend is fond of saying, you can bullshit the fans, but not the players...

This, from a recent post of Ackley's:

"Come on Guys, be real and be fair! Without G&F departments there would be no game"

I guess that doesn't apply to Ak's "friggin' game cops"?

quote:

Moreover, shooting the caribou was so easy, it was like shooting cattle in a pin - they were so stupid –

Only animal I can think of that is more stupid is the one that would pay $7000 for a Caribou hunt. You got my sympathy. Not.

lol

I'll be darned...you guys from Alaska know how everything works up there. Imagine that...... you know all about how to work airlines, frt and meat handling in your state. Us dumb arses from the lower 48 don't have the local knowledge you do. It's almost like you guys made Alaska what it is............bottom line is YOU didn't. As a matter of fact your attitude detracts from the wonderful state of Alaska. I know this post got to be a pissing match of wits. Spend a little more time and energy being helpful...it could help alot of small business in your area that could use the $$$ from the lower 48.

When someone talks shit about our home, we tend not to appreciate it.

Why don't YOU spend more time asking questions about how to plan a hunt and less time talking about how our state sucks?

That's what I'd do...were I planning to visit your state...

"when someone speaks shit about our home, we tend not to appreciate it."

David, apparently you have become the spokesman for the state of Alaska.....they can do much better!!!

Well, frankly my response to this unpleasantness is that I think AIU is being a bit disingenuous with us. He said he went on a moose and 'bou hunt. Just when did this happen? The last open season for nonresidents on the Selawik river ended about 10 months ago.

Did he just now become upset?

I lived near there for four years until this spring. It ain't cheap! "Begining carpentery" jobs started(!!) at $54 per hour two summers ago. Truck drivers were making $48 per hr/72hrs per week in Nome(and there are damn few roads!), courtesy of our tax $ via the native corporation. If you think you're going to find a bargin or motivate someone to help you for minimum wage, well, welcome to the bush!

On the otherhand, where else can you hunt brown bear after work and take 5 caribou per day, year round, provided you can find'em AND USE THE MEAT?!! I've hunted all over and still think it's the best kept open secret on the planet.

Now AIU, if you true intent was to keep others away so we can hunt in peace, then I'm right there with you and forget everything I just said. Alaska is obscenely expnsive, we're all out to screw you, there aren't any animals here anyway, the fish cops are jerks, mosquitos, swamps, rain, locusts, plaugue.......You're much better off spending your cash on a high fence whitetail hunt in south Tx! Tell your friends!

Kraky, I'm no one's spokesman, but I'm also not the only one to call BS on Ackley, as you could tell if you'd lift the bill on your camo CAT hat and put down the Old Milwaukee long enough to read the thread.

If you prefer his side of the conversation, fine with me. I'll not lose any sleep over it.

"Us dumb arses from the lower 48"....don't sell yourself short, Kraky....you're a tremendous dumb ass...if defending Ackley is important to you.

quote:

Originally posted by Omnivorous_Bob:
Well, frankly my response to this unpleasantness is>> SNIPP<<<

Alaska is obscenely expnsive, we're all out to screw you, there aren't any animals here anyway, the fish cops are jerks, mosquitos, swamps, rain, locusts, plaugue.......You're much better off spending your cash on a high fence whitetail hunt in SOUTH TX! Tell your friends!

Now wait just a cotton picking minute! How in hell did Texas get involved in this shit fest?

Gentlemen, I have hunted Alaska every year since 1982, and always in drop camps, and I have never spent more than $2000 for a hunt in alaska, all included. I come back with "ALL" the meat, and Trophy horns&cape. The only Alaskan I ever met that I didn't like was a rent-a-car guy in Kenai airport who didn't have change when I turned in a 4X4 pick-up, and promised to mail me my change of $51 from two 100 dollar bills, and stiffed me for it. At the same day in the same airport there was a drunk Native Alaskan woman in the lobby who became abusive because, as she stated, we were "HOANKIES, and would be Bear food if we didn't get out of Alaska".

I've met folks like AIU, and they weren't all from the lower 48, who don't do their planning, and then want to blame everyone but themselves for comming up with the shity end of the stick. I find that almost every complaint lodged, any place is usually not the way the complaitant lays it out, but is usually 180 Degrees out of sync.

Here I see folks on both sides of this little affaire makeing statements that are a little on the "I GUESS" side. Like the broad brush statement about the HIGH FENCE, in SOUTH TEXAS! That statement leaves one to think the only hunting in Texas is High fence, and is another case of exageration, acin to the claims AIU makes about Alaska. So I guess the kettel & the pot change hands, depending on who is talking!

I understand natives getting upset with the dispariging crap written by AIU about Alaska, but the reference to other states, or even the so-called LOWER 48 without knowing any more about that than AIU does about Alaska, is just as bad!

Anyone knows that hunting way up North in Alaska is going to be expencive, that is anyone with the foresight to inquire, and that there are much better, and cheaper places to hunt Bou, and Moose, with much shorter Bush filghts. The cost of fuel is raising flying costs and one must expect to pay more, for that. However, anyone who pays even $3K for a drop camp Bou hunt, is, IMO, a fool! No other way to say it!