Alaska drive in hunt

[elkhnter]

Going to be retired in a few days and planning hunting trips. Got the first couple years covered, but was wondering if it’s possible to drive to Alaska and moose hunt?
Time won’t be an issue more of a logistic question. Is there a unit with decent odds that we can camp in a village and moose hunt from?
I’m open to any ideas or input.

 

[LCH]

I'm interested to see the responses here. I've thought quite a bit about doing something similar, driving up but still paying a transporter to be dropped off/picked up.

I'm still several decades from retirement, but am blessed with a job where I can take a lot of time off. The drive itself would be an adventure, and 3 weeks ought to be plenty of time to leisurely drive up, hunt 10 days or so, and drive back. I have no interest in shooting a moose if I can't get every bit of meat back home.

From my limited research I do know that a road system hunt is possible, that's how a lot of AK do it each year. Check out Bearfoot's (?) threads on here with his ATVs and monster trucks. But in a lot of areas, I think you are competing with residents that are not necessarily held to the same antler restrictions that a NR is.

There are a lot of AK residents and seasoned AK hunters on here that know the ins and outs of all of this, hopefully they'll bestow some wisdom on this thread.

 

[glass eye]

On my way to Adak for caribou our flight was cancelled so we had 4 days to kill in Anchorage. So we rented a car and hunted grouse and saw lots of moose sign and one cow moose.

 

[Gary]

As LCH stated, many Alaskans kill moose within walking distance from the road every year. Mostly in GMUs 14 & 20. I'd venture to say that a lot of these kills are moose that are known by the residents; ie they've watched them thru the summer and have a handle on their whereabouts. A better plan for nonresidents that want to hunt from the road would be to apply for some of the road accessible "draw hunts". And yes, residents are allowed to kill spike/forks in most units, while nonresidents are limited to moose with a spread of over 50" or point restrictions on the brows. http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/a...11BB91A458E0FFDB14C4/regulations_complete.pdf For regs, which should be studied carefully before making any decisions.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

I saw two legal bulls the weekend before the season backpacking with a buddy. Probably 5 miles in, 2 of which was alder and devils club, and you had to cross a decent size river...would have been a crappy pack out for a caribou...moose would have sucked hard. 100% doable but likely very miserable.

 

[brownbear932008]

I packed an Alaskan moose 100 yards to the boat and it was labor intensive. No way I'm packing one more than a quarter of a mile on my back. It's all fun and games until one hits the ground. I've shot two and if you have never handled one I'd advise against it unless you have some experience with their size. AK game and fish and AK residents take waste very seriously.
Having said all that it's some of the best meat ever. Maybe check into some haul road hunts we saw a few up there off the road think it's archery only though.

 

[Jim/Wa]

I'm in the same boat somewhat except I may end up moving to AK. I've got 3-4 years until I can consider retiring. Even then, I'll likely use a transporter for moose and hopefully sheep just to avoid hunting from the road system. I've looked at driving to Tok, AK from here in Washington -- fishing my way thru BC on the way -- then flying in with a transporter. If I was retired but still lived in the lower 48, that's exactly what I'd do with the exception I'd show up early enough to hit the Reds and Silvers hard for a few weeks.

 

[Gary]

While discussing this topic and knowing that many residents are successful hunting moose from road access, it might be a good tie to mention that probably most of those residents use an ATV for retrieval work. Packing a moose is hard work and time consuming. Hind quarters that can weigh 150 lbs will collapse a lot of legs.

 

[elkhnter]

Guess I should mention that I’ll be pulling a toy hauler with 2 quads in the back. Getting around shouldn’t be a problem.

 

[BearFoot]

I've taken a few moose close to a road. 2 quads offer more options. There are many trails from the road system that get wild fast. During hunting season trucks, motor homes & trailers are parked at all the trail heads. There are ATV trail guide books with maps & location. Trails can be seen on google earth. Many options but often others along the trails. After boots, I owned a few 3 wheeler's, a number of quads, couple of six wheeler's, now the ultimate SxS. I hunt off the road system every year. I'd recommend wench, tow strap, tire repair kit.

 

[sneakypete]

I've driven twice to northern BC. To hunt moose, I know it's not driving to Alaska. The alcan should be on everyone's bucket list especially after leaving Fort Nelson BC. You could see Stone sheep in the Stone Mountain area!

 

[Gary]

Some federal land has weight limits on off road vehicles. Check before you go.

 

[AlaskaHunter]

Guess I should mention that I’ll be pulling a toy hauler with 2 quads in the back. Getting around shouldn’t be a problem.

My strategy has always been the opposite...if a four-wheelers are anywhere during moose season , I will not hunt that area.

The last thing I want is some Bubba on a four-wheeler spoiling my hunt making noise
or competing with me calling in a bull.
I use my 4-wheeler for plowing snow, sheep and caribou hunting, but not moose hunting...

I want a quiet solo hunt with nobody else around for miles.
I prefer to hunt areas that are difficult to access either by boat or 4-wheeler and have absolutely no competition.

I use a boat to get to base camp, then use a canoe to get where river boats can not due to beaver dams.
A rope-winch with at least 100 yards line typically allows me to butcher on dry land,
and calling near the canoe also helps minimize packing distance.

 

[elkhnter]

To be clear, I’m not a quad hunting Bubba. Plan is to park the camper, load tent on quad and get back in deeper then hunt on foot. Have a kayak that I can use if needed.
I like the idea of the rope winch. Cutting up a moose in waist deep water doesn’t sound appealing.

 

[Gellar]

I'm in the same boat somewhat except I may end up moving to AK. I've got 3-4 years until I can consider retiring. Even then, I'll likely use a transporter for moose and hopefully sheep just to avoid hunting from the road system. I've looked at driving to Tok, AK from here in Washington -- fishing my way thru BC on the way -- then flying in with a transporter. If I was retired but still lived in the lower 48, that's exactly what I'd do with the exception I'd show up early enough to hit the Reds and Silvers hard for a few weeks.

I’ve driven to the Tok area and used an atv to access areas further away from the road. Like has been said there will be a camper or more with atvs, argos, side by sides, and anything else you can imagine at trailheads. If you have a way to hunt rivers/streams that are not crossable by those machines like a canoe or inflatable raft you will have an even better chance at success.

 

[Ykrvak]

Elkhnter, I don’t believe he was referring to you as the “bubba” it’s all the others that can spoil your hunt. One thing to remember is that moose aren’t on your schedule. They don’t look at their watch and say “oh, I’ve been calling for 45 minutes and haven’t heard anything. Guess I’ll move to a new spot.” Once I start calling in a spot, especially if I know it’s a productive location, I keep at it. The calling I was doing that evening might bring in a bull from a long way. He might show up at three the next morning. The dark is irrelevant to them. Having a quiet spot you can work consistently and be there the next morning after calling the night before or vise versa can make an enormous difference in your success. Sometimes it might take a couple days to get him spooled up enough to really start responding. Also, if you’re calling and raking and bring in a cow, it’s not uncommon for her to have a mulligan following her around hoping she’ll settle for a lesser bull than the stud she’s hoping you are. If you’re interested in filling the freezer and not as worried about antlers it can be quite productive. Just a couple thoughts.