non resident in alaska required to have a guide

[paintballdude902]

well guys im heading up to alaska next summer(june-aug or maybe april-0ctober of 09) and im staying with a friend for a little while and we want to do some hunting. he is a native and will be 21 i believe i will be 19, the law says that if i want bear/goat/and maybe moose if i recall correctly i have to hire a guide or have a resident family member

any chances i can get a really cheap guide like 500 or less not including tags?


would he be able to count as a guide?

 

[moosehunt]

A guide is required for Grizz, Goat, and sheep. Not for Moose (though that may change), Caribou, or Black Bear. A friend is not good enough; they have to be kin, second degree or better as I recall, not sure on the level. What you are going to find is that access is a problem. There is a lot of game, but a lot more country, and roads are rare. It's not like you find dirt roads going everywhere. They aren't there, for the most part. Boats and planes are how the vast majority of the country is accessed, whether you're a resident or a chichaco. I don't mean that there are no other options, but for the most part, you are likely to be surprised. There is basically no place that you could hunt the guide required animals without a guide to get you in, anyway, so you'ld best either plan on a guide, and they don't work cheap, or set your sites on Caribou or Black bear, possibly moose, but again, that will be tough to access without help. Enjoy. It is one great place! Going again myself this fall. I'm hunting Caribou this time, so no guide, but I am getting flown in--not cheap. A lot of folks go to Alaska with the idea that they'll just go do some hunting, and they get a real surprise! Even where most of the deer are, you need a boat.

 

[paintballdude902]

well my friend has been huting there all his life and i went when i was little (6-7) but did not huning just hiking

we already knew that we are hiring a float plane to get to the island for bear cameron is talking abotu getting his guide liscense now and said if i payed half of that and for my share of suplies and tags it would be fine


he has hunted moose and caribou but never bear that is our only problem(if he gets the liscense) we were gonna go south down by st.petersburg where my dad got his brown in the 60's

 

[Albatross]

By St. Petersburg, I assume you mean Petersburg (nothing saintly about the place). Southeast is unusual country and based upon what your friend has hunted before (moose and caribou) he probably isn't from the area.

You'd better be real confident of your friend's guiding ability and woodsman skills. Bear hunting in southeast Alaska is worlds apart from caribou hunting on open tundra.

If he doesn't know what he is doing it is more than possible (very likely) you won't get much of a bear hunt, but just a workout climbing up steep inclines through devils club patches and blueberry bushes.

 

[Harley Quinn]

If he doesn't know what he is doing it is more than possible (very likely) you won't get much of a bear hunt, but just a workout climbing up steep inclines through devils club patches and blueberry bushes.

Along with that scenario you could end up being another meal for mr/mrs Griz

 

[paintballdude902]

lol alba things have kinda been blending together its been a long week im ready for spring break


i was talkin to my dad today and he told me i should hold off the bear hunt till i can afford to do it right


so i think im gonna be stuck hunting black bear here for another year instead of a brown


my friend is from anchorage hasnt done much time in southern alaska

 

[Albatross]

Yup, definitely listen to your dad.

But also reconsider shooting a brown bear all together:

Most week long guided hunts cost around $12,000 plus expenses (travel, tips, etc). Instead of blowing that wad on a bear and seeing a very small part of Alaska, you could spend it traveling the state doing a ton of activities over the course of a few weeks.

With that capital spend some time at a fishing lodge (slay a halibut and a few salmon), get a guided caribou and moose hunt (approximately 3 grand I hear), visit Denali National Park. Rent a jet boat and spend a few days powering up river to do some fly fishing. Take some sight seeing float plane tours and see/take pictures of all the brown bear you want. Hell, you could rent a RV and tool around for a long time.

The price of one canned 10 day bear hunt can buy you a dozen (or more) other Alaskan adventures.

Shooting a brown bear has a lot of hype and seems to be everyone's big dream, but to be honest it isn't anything special to get within 50 yards of a brown bear and shoot it with a high power rifle.

Brown bears are apex predators who aren't exactly sneaky or cautious.

 

[paintballdude902]

well i never really wanted to do a guided bear hunt i really wanted to camp, hike, and track a bear with me and a good friend that i havent gotten to spend much time with in the last year or 2 the brown bear thing is just some braggin rights

alba u got me thinking now i havent gone flyfishing in 2 years and need to pull out my old orvis bamboo rod again last time i used it was in the tetons and landed a few nice trout