Headed to Alaska on Monday

[dope hunter]

Good luck!

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[J-DUB]

Travel safe and good luck!!!

[BURTONboy]

Good luck. Hope yall have a great time and successful hunt. Stay safe up there.

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[Mertzon Man]

Good luck, be safe, and send pics.

[76aggie]

We made it back home. I wish I had great pictures of a 65 inch moose to post but it was not to be. We dealt with 2 bulls and six cows. I have been fortunate to go to AK fishing several times before but there is absolutely nothing in the world like a 10 day float trip in true wilderness. No guide, just me and my buddy on our own. To say we learned a lot is an understatement! As a non resident, a bull in our particular unit had to be at least 50 inches wide or have at least 4 brow tines on one side. John had one dead to right at 300 yards but was concerned about pulling the trigger because he was not quite sure about the 50 inches. He got me to come over to where he was and it was my judgment that he was a shooter and was somewhere around 53 inches. We were both watching him in heavy brush on a sand bar and John decided to stalk around behind him. For the next 45 minutes or so I expected to hear his .300 boom but it never did. The bull then walked out of the brush giving me a direct broadside and unobstructed shot at 402 yards. I really wanted to shoot but it was John's bull and he was still stalking it. John got to within about 75 yards of the big critter but never could get a clear shot through the very think brush. To clarify, I would not shoot a deer at 402 yards but shooting at a moose like that is like shooting at a Volvo! They are huge.

We both agreed that our other bull was a little shy of 50 inches. This was a great personal triumph me. I have always thought I could get along pretty well in the boonies with minimal gear. I just turned 62 and this was going to be a real test for me personally and I came through and am planning on going again in 3 years. Next trip will be four of us as John and I will be bringing our adult sons.

If you are planning on a trip like this, give me a shout and I will be happy to tell us what worked for us. All our planning paid off. Weight is very limited in a fly out trip and the raft weighs a lot. We were paranoid about the weight amount but made it under the limit quite comfortably. We thought we would have to go to the drop point with two trips in a Super Cub be made it in one trip in a Helio. I was not familiar with a Helio and thought they were talking about a helicopter. Helio is a three seater and a tad bigger than a Super Cub.

Do not skimp on quality gear. Please do not skimp on quality gear. Quality rain gear, lightweight merino wool clothing, etc can be very expensive but is well worth the cost when you consider the alternative. I also suggest at least a -20 degree sleeping bag. The coldest weather we experienced was about 20 degrees but most sleeping bag temperature ratings are grossly exaggerated in my opinion. Avg temps we experienced were about 35 to 40 degrees and it actually got up to 50 a couple of time and the bugs immediately came out but were not real bother. Wind was a real problem at times. Imagine being in a 16 foot raft on icy water in blowing snow and or rain. The strong winds actually blew us upstream against the current a couple of times.

Fishing on the particular river we were on was not nearly as good as I expected. We did catch graylings on small spinner baits but nothing of any size. I hear they can get up to around 4 pounds.

Our boots froze almost every night but every night. It is a real challenge to put on frozen Simms Wading Boots when you cannot even hardly bend them. We ate mostly Mountain House freeze dried meals with some Cliff bars thrown in for good measure. We also cooked some of the fish we caught. Moose ribs on the fire would have been really good though. Those Mountain House meals can taste pretty danged good when you are cold, tired and really hungry.

It didn't take us bright boys but one night to realize you don't set up your tent on rocks on a gravel, rock and sand bar. Your sleeping pad can suffice when sleeping, but crawling into a short tent on your knees is very painful on 62 year old knees. Set up in sand. It will get into everything you have but is good to sleep on. Bring a small wisk broom to sweep sand from your tent. That is the one thing we forgot! Next trip will probably be with a floorless Kifaru tent. We used a Cabelas 4 man Alaskan Guide tent and it sufficed well but you cannot stand up in it. Also 4 man tent actually means 2 men and a little bit of gear.

Although there was no shortage of grizzly bear tracks, we only saw one. Tracks were everywhere! There would be fresh tracks in the close vicinity in the mornings but we never had any issue with them. I know some guy in Montana just got mauled in Montana but I believe that bear had cubs. John and I figured the grizzly card is pretty remote unless you come across with a sow with cubs or an older grizzly who is having trouble fending for food.

Two old geezers, me at 62 and John at 55 had one heck of a trip. We rowed, paddled and drifted about 125 miles of Alaskan River. In the future, I would like to plan a shorter route an spend more time hunting and less time on the river.

Sorry for the long post but it was really a fun trip I hope you all get to experience at some time.

[cw3jperry5]

Sounds like a good trip, and a great time!! Thanks for sharing...

[Mertzon Man]

Glad your back safe, hey 62 ain't old. Lol