DIY Alaskan Caribou

[irf1983]

I'm thinking about planning a DIY caribou hunt in Alaska. I have seen some companies, such as Outdoors International, offer some outfitting services where they provide tents, food, etc and organize the pilots and other transportation. Does anybody have any experience doing something like that? Seems like it could be a very helpful service that could take a lot of the headache out of getting all that gear and supplies from Florida to Alaska. Any help would be very much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Brian in Montana]

Sounds like a lot of fun; afraid that's all I know.

 

[Brian in Montana]

A good friend of mine lives in Anchorage. I have this idea that some day I'll be able to get up there and hunt with him. But with 3 kids in school and a career, that's going to tough.

 

[Elkish]

Check out The Hunt Backcountry podcast episode 94. It's got some good info and will give you a good idea of what you are getting yourself into and costs. I thought it was pretty informative.

 

[Gut Shot]

I've done it before. Unfortunately, it was fourteen years ago and any info on transporters I give would be out of date.

Call up biologists in AK and pick their brains about which herd to hunt. Then look into transporters and heed their advice on what equipment to take/rent. We made the mistake of not renting an inflatable boat the first time we went up. Of course we killed caribou a few miles from camp. If we had the boat they would have been easier to get to and get out. If you've never hauled dead animals across tundra you are in for a real treat. Everything worked out in the end and it was one of the greatest hunting adventures I've ever had.

 

[FLXHunter]

Check out Damaon Bungard at Orion Coolers. He has a 8 part series on a DIY Caribou hunt

 

[Gary]

The 2 hunt planners that I know that are currently active are Larry Bartlett and Michael Strahan. Bartlett can be contacted through his "Pristine Ventures" website and Strahan at the "Alaska Outdoors Supersite". Another resource is the book for self-guided hunters, "Hunt Alaska Now" by Dennis Confer.

 

[Haw Creek]

Following

 

[glass eye]

Seems like it could be a very helpful service that could take a lot of the headache out of getting all that gear and supplies from Florida to Alaska.

Invest in quality gear and it's not that a big a deal to fly with it. I've travelled with winter camping gear to NZ 4 times, and several times to AK including winter camping gear and inflatable kayak. You can find great deals on ebay.

 

[rlmmatt]

Im following this thread and live in Daytona. I was also thinking about during this hunt. Pm me if you want to get together on planning

 

[mdhunter61]

I hunted Alaska this year and bumped into three guys who were doing a float hunt that Larry Bartlett outfitted; sounds like Larry may be booked pretty solid for the next few years, he runs a great service.

I've done 12-13 remote Alaska hunts since 2002, feel free to PM me and I can share some info. It is a little bit of work to lug everything to Alaska; I have a storage unit in Anchorage where I keep all my gear except rifle and clothing, makes things a lot easier.

I did a caribou hut this year, that story is on the Alaska sub-forum if you want to see some pics of Unit 20.