trip to alaska what to pack?

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Goretex really doesn't cut it as working rain gear. Look up Helly Hansen and get a set. At the end of the day, turn the coat and bibs inside out to dry. Repair rips with duct tape. I don't know what you wear for work clothes, but a lot of us rock Carharts.

I don't know why you say you can't use your mavrick 88 with slugs.:confused: Short barrels are what we use for bear guns, you're not going making 100 yard shots. My 870's barrel is 18.5" and does just fine at 50 yds.
 
I know this sound crazy, but make sure you test the effective range and spray pattern of any bear spray you carry. Also, practice drawing the spray and deactivating the safety. Oh..and don't spray into the wind.

You wouldn't be the first person to not be able to deactivate a safety or spray himself in the face. Trying to stop an angry bear without prior practice can make learning very interesting.
 
I was in Kotzebue from 4/2010 to 7/2010. In may there was some snow. By late June it was up to 40 degrees during the day. Windy. Only one day did I have a problem with mosquitos down by the swamp, then the wind picked up and no more problem. I didn't know there was gold in the Kotz area. Most of the gold is about 200 miles south around Nome. The National Park Service issued Rem 870's with buckshot for the first shot backed up by slugs to visiting archeologists for protection. A gallon of milk is $9-10/gallon. Most stores sell ammo. The AC store, another store by the Post Office I can't remember the name(german), and there is a gun store down near the library. Everything is pricey. Take as much stuff as you can in your suitcases. I had my wife and kids mail me packages of food every 2 weeks. I knew before going and fixed up the boxes ahead of time so all they had to do was mail them. I didn't see any bear or moose in or around Kotzebue, but I did see the damage a bear did to the metal pipe bringing water to the town from Devil Lake. Others saw a moose and her baby. Stay away from the dump. It has been known to attract bear. Good luck. Northwest Flight Service is a good crew. I flew with Jim and Jim some.
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In addition to your camera(s), bring a journal and take some notes if you're so inclined. My mother, now 89, went to Alaska as a child in the late 1920s and still recites very specific details of that amazing trip today.

Cheers,
Dr. Detroit
 
Isn't there a problem with bringing a handgun into Canada if you are driving to Alaska?
Would the .44 or .357 mag. lever-guns be sufficient for bear protection?
 
I agree with having a shotgun as a back up. I flew a small civilian aircraft up in 97 to sell to my uncle. We drove a truck back out. It broke down in Canada, about 3 hours from no where. I stayed with the truck and had a 12 guage. I am glad I had it. I was there for 7.5-8 hours while waiting on someone to tow the truck. Always be as well prepared as you can....
 
i would like to carry a 12gage but all i have is a short barrel 19" mavrick 88. i couldnt run slugs through it.
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i too am curious as to just why you think that? i have had my mav 88 for several years and have fired HUNDREDS of slugs with it. in fact, for the past 4 years or so it has been my dedicated slug gun.

i say take the shotgun and a few boxes of brenneke slugs. my preference would be to load it up with some of these. they are a very hard and heavy slug and will do a LOT of damage.
 
i didnt think the mavric could run slugs. that is probably what is going with me now.
i am going to be flying in. i am going to try to fit as much gear in my bags as i can but some things im just going to have to get there. my friend left yesterday so i should hear back from him by the end of the month. think ill see how the mavric shoots with a rifled slug this weekend
 
Bear defense?

Oh, 12 gauge Mossie 500 Mariner, regular stock and not that stupid cruiser grip, and with Brenneke Black Magic Magnum 3 shells.

I've got them both.. 629-3 4 inch .44 magnum and Glock 20 10mm but the handguns are only if I'm away from the shottie.

Deaf
 
Post 27 is right. We would also practice with bear spray. You do have to learn how to be quick with it too. But it is pretty easy. When we first moved there we had an extra can and practiced with it. It is a little different but easy to get quick with.


Carry both, but use the spray as primary.
 
We lived in rural Alaska for seven years and unless hunting, my carry was a short two row 12 with 3” triple ought buck.

I had a .44 mag and thought it was sufficient, until one day decided to take a cow moose for meat near the house. Disappointment is hardly the word for it’s performance, at about 30 or 40 feet I placed first shot broadside into the heart/lung s. she flinched and moved off, next shot in the shoulder, nada, then two more in the neck and she was off in a dead run. I sit down and had a couple smokes before tracking, result, over an hour tramping through thick alders and devils club and three more hits before she was on the ground.

I had carried the .44 when fishing and felt it was adequate for griz, but that moose cured me of my disillusionment.

http://hstrial-rchambers.homestead.com/untitled2.html

http://hstrial-rchambers.homestead.com/Index.html
 
Bear spray will be confiscated by the TSA even in checked luggage.

Buy it there.
 
I spent ten years in Kotzebue 1963-1973 as a technician with the FAA. I flew a Supercub and a C180 out of there into the Western Brooks and Baird mountains as well as along the coast to Pt. Lisburne and Pt. Lay when they still had DEW line radar sites. I always wore my S&W 29 holstered on my hip and a 12ga. with slugs and shot. The .44 was the minimum for bear protection when you are working and moving a good bit and don't want to carry the long gun. The shotgun with shot and slugs was a good bear protection weapon as well as a game getter in case of a forced landing. Lots of bug dope, the whole area is a mosquito feasting venue. When the wind stops (it does sometimes) there are mucho bugs in the air. A hat with mosquito netting is good if you're going to be walking on the tundra or small streams. No bug dope will stop the deer flies, they thing the stuff is salad dressing. It's great country, beautiful in summer or winter. Not quite the same now that the villages have airstrips and there are helicopters to make life easier but still it's a great place. Of course the real testing comes in the winter which is still good for hunting. Or at least it used to be when we could hunt caribou of either sex all year 'round with no bag limit. Enjoy the experience it's a different world.
 
You should go. You have the rest of your life to work.
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Like he said.
Get a good pair of rubber farm boots, with good tread. You'll love them. Fleece is a great alternative to wool and it's cheaper and dries faster. Double up on the raingear and boots cause you'll need them. Bring a few lighter weight sleeping bags instead of one real thick one. You can layer them to adjust to the temp. Rectangular sleeping bags are bulky and not as warm but man are they ever comfortable. And you can use them as a quilt. Those fluorescent orange helicopter flags are great to hide under from the mosquitoes, they don't like it under one and leave you alone for some strange reason. Deet is your friend, just be careful cause it's strong enough to melt plastic.
And don't forget the beer.
It's an adventure, just do it. Take lots of pictures and enjoy. Lucky lucky.
 
Rain is usually light in the summer, overcast is common and wind on the coast is usually pretty consistant. Up the rivers, the Noatak and Kobuk are the major ones in the OTZ area, and tributaries there isn't as much wind and the bugs can be more of an irritation. Temperatures aren't bad, it can be pretty warm up river and will hang around the 50s on the coast. Fishing is good, I used to carry red Daredevils in various sizes, they work well on salmon and grayling early in the season. Later on in the summer when the bugs are out smal spinners and flies work better on grayling. Grayling are excellent camp grub as long as they are cooked soon after catching. We used to wrap them up in tinfoil and toss them into the campfire embers for 15-20 minutes. Great eating fish. If one has some dried onions or fresh ones along with salt and pepper to put in the gut cavity prior to cooking they are really good. I do envy you it will be a great experience.
 
Yep, in SE Alaska cannery workers wear black rubber boots and fishermen wear red ones. Floatplane pilots wear 'em too. Xtra-Tuff Neoprene were the most popular. Just noticed they're running around $128 now. I still have a pair I paid $48 for, think I'll hang on to them. Great boots they seem to last forever. They are made in the USA and popular all over Alaska. The company even made a high heeled pair for Miss Alaska one year. Waterproof gloves are a help too, the rivers and creeks in NW Alaska are damn cold!
 
this is comferting lol i though it was just a joke. lol im looking around for a good pair of muck boots i have three pairs of steel toe but none are watter proof. if i get to go it should be lots of fun.
 
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