2006 Kodiak Alaska Trip

[Red Rabbit]

My first trip to Alaska was a vessel-based hunt originating in Kodiak for Sitka Blacktails . Five of us (Art, Troy, Jason, Mecen and myself) were on a Art's 36' UniFlyte with twin diesels, galley, head and bunks for 4. We were out for 7 days of comraderie, good food and hunting adventure.

 

Reflections in Kodiak Harbor.

 

Kodiak is on the northeast side of the island, and we motored for a day to the northwest side, past some scalloped shorelines.

 

 

 

We stopped above an underwater hump to catch some dinner- Yellow-eyed rockfish and quill backs which were served blackened and later in fish tacos. On the return trip we stopped again and caught some more yellow eyes and a couple halibuts.

 

 

 

I spent a few mornings shotgunning some seaducks, primarily goldeneyes and the beautiful Harlequins.

 

 

We saw over 30 brown bears on the beaches and the slopes, and one swimming across the bay.

 

 

 

The Alaskan Vulture, err Bald Eagle, was ever-present, usually perched along the shorelines.

 

 

A Lion's Mane jellyfish was in shallow water.

 

Sunrises were quite colorful.

 

 

 

We were treated to several rainbows.

 

The hunting began on the beach with about a 1000' climb to glass for deer.

 

 

But this climb was made difficult by the 30*-45* slopes, having to bull upward through thick alder thickets, knee-to-chest high grass, and thorn-covered berry stalks and devils club that constantly tried to grab a boot, stop the legs from moving, or trip you . It was like trying to run in waist deep water wearing ankle weights. Being over-the-hill didn't help getting up the hill either .

 

 

We found the deer population to be severly lacking, possibly due to the long spring. Most of the bucks we saw were forkies. The first day we saw no deer. The second was wettened by a constant light rain. Troy and I saw a nice buck possily 4x4, but we judged him too far away to shoot and gave us the slip when we tried to close the distance. We passed on a few forkies that day.

 

The rain tuned to snow that night. THis should have made the deer stand out, but the third day only shown a few does/fawns, and a couple of forkies. The wind howled up to 35-40 knots, making rough seas that forced us to hole up in a sheltered cove for four days, and kept the deer hunkered down in the thick alders.

 

On the next to last day, the weather became nice and we pulled up anchor and relocated around the point into the next arm back towards Kodiak. The last full day, we jumped a nice buck out of its bed on a open slope, but it made haste around the point. We decided to work back that way and located a forky and doe in a alder thicket below. We rounded the next point and Troy spotted three bucks on a open ridge below. Shots from the 300 WSM anchored two of the bucks at 431 yards. We were subsequently concerned since we had spotted a browm bear about 400 yards directly above on a rocky ridge, and another after the shots, bedded 340 yrds below the deer. After a photo session, a quick gutting, we dragged both deer down to the beach below, paying attention to the location and movement of the brownie directly below.

 

 

 

 

Doug~RR

[KGAINES]

Congrats on your hunt and thanks for the story and the great pictures.

[DEERSLAM]

Great pics and story Doug. Real nice buck you got, great character.

Sorry all you coues fanatics but Sitka blktail are the most beautiful of all the deer species.

Can't wait to see Kodiak for myself some day soon I hope.

[bowhunter4life]

someday I too will make a hunt to kodiak. the dream come true, great story and pictures.

[azryan]

simply amazing thnx for sharing with us....congrats

[azcouesandelk]

Very nice bucks there Red Rabbit.

 

How would you rate the Sitka Blacktail hunt compared to a Coues hunt?

[Kilimanjaro]

Great pics Doug.. and congrats on the deer.... BUT, I think the best trophy you got on that trip was the Harlequin ducks.. I could go up there and JUST do a duck hunt for those guys!! I have always wanted to do a sea duck hunt..

[DesertBull]

Awesome!

That will be the best deer meat you will ever eat.

[AZP&Y]

RR,

Outstanding pics and recap. I miss Kodiak, it's the 2nd largest US island and boy is it incredibly beautiful.

Those darn alder thickets are incredibly dampening on your movement. They are tough as nails and make for a tough climb. Glad that you got a SITKA! My buddy up there has said that the population is not what it should be , but maybe it will rebound in the coming years?

HEY- HOW ABOUT THAT AIRPORT IN KODIAK- THE MOUNTAIN AT THE END OF THE RUNWAY

 

 

Thank you for shaing the experience and pictures!

 

AzP&Y

Doug

 

Here's one of my better pictures from Kodiak...

[WFGinNM]

Great pictures Doug, I'll be headed up to Kodiak November of 2007. I'll be hunting the west side of the Island with Alaska Coastal Marine can't hardly wait, just have to concentrate on coues for now. If you don't mind, what bays where you hunting around?

 

--Bill

[CB1]

Great report and pic's...I'm leaving on friday morning to do the same hunt....wondered if you had any advice or is there anything you would have done differently...Did you pack a tripod for glassing, or were you trying to keep the weight down...what did you carry in your pack? Any words of wisdom would be appreciated, thanks again for the pic's...Bob H.

[Redman]

Thanks for sharing and the pictures were great. I would love to someday go on a Kodiak trip, would you do it again?

 

Redman

[stanley]

You're shots anchored the two bucks just like your story and pics anchored my rear to my seat while I enjoyed each pic! Glad you had a great trip Doug!

 

I'll call you with a report on last weekend's deer exploits down south. Nothing too exciting.... one 'last day' buck taken.

 

Sincere congrats on a great Alaskan adventure!

 

S.

[Red Rabbit]

P&Y Doug- Nice framing by the puddle-neat photo.

 

Bill- We were over by Uganik. Have a great trip next year.

 

Christian- The climbing was a lot more difficult due to the alders, brush, stickers and grass. When spooked, the sitkas did not run as far as coues, but there was always an alder ticket to get lost in.

 

CB1- I left the tripod in the boat to save weight and often the grass was too tall to sit down. It would have been useful at times though. Good raingear- I wore the rain pants alot for the wet grass and snow- use a belt or suspenders as the elastic waistband alone ain't enough. Waterproof surdy leather boots with straight beeswax melted in. A silicone spray or mink oil would be useless and snowseal does not last well for several days. A couple of guys used ankle-fit Lacrosse rubber boots.

No cotton clothing; Cabelas Microtex is great stuff, as are Smartwool socks with a thin liner sock. A light rifle with a short barrel. Leather gloves for busting through the alders and stickers, and clear safety glasses so you don't get poked in the eye.

Just carried 1 quart of water with cytomax or Clif shot mix. Safety kit with lighter, fire tabs, and an emergency mylar space bag.

We drug the deer down the steep slope with a line that had a swivel in it for when it rolled. I tried a plastic deer sleigh from Cabelas that slid easier and protected the cape. Would have prefered the 3' wide model, but it would be too long to carry in the pack. Dragging the deer gets it out in one trip so a bear does not claim the deer left behind. Mine weighed over 200#. Splitting the load between two guys to pack out would work.

 

RR

[CB1]

Thank you Sir, How about a bi pod...grass to tall? And the boat accomadations, anything extra i need to bring to make it more comfortable, and did you incure any suprise expenses....thanks Doug...Bob