Once in a lifetime hunt - congrats on your good fortune on being able to go. My firearm vote goes to the Lott. The Kuiu Yukon rain gear is excellent and certainly appropriate for your hunt. Sat phone. Try not to contaminate any potential hunting area with your sent UNTIL you see what you want - an old trophy bear didn't get that way by being last in his class!!! If one scent's you he is usually history. Plan on spending the majority of your time spotting spotting spotting and more spotting and along with that recommendation goes good optics - binocs and spotting scope. Many people take a tarp to hunker down under while spotting in the rain. Many well known guides (e.g. Joe Want) have only a cold (ie. No cooking) camp until a bear is shot!Try to envision some way to dry out items in your tent!!! For input from individuals who have actually hunted Red Lake I would post to outdoorsdirectory.com to query Alaskans who have actually drawn that hunt. I think the Alaskan F&G has some videos to view to assist in judging bears. Good luck as it is always better to be a lucky hunter that a good hunter!!
Kodiak Red Lake Bear Hunt Advice Thread
- Thread starter backyardsniper
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backyardsniper
Well-Known Member
Gonna bump this up one more time with a couple more questions.
The guy I'm going with says there's no need to bring a water filtration/sterilization system in this area. I had palnned to bring a steripen and maybr some pills, can any of you give me some input on this. He says theres plenty of running water everywhere and we can juat melt snow in a jet boil for water and that we could just boil water if we need to sterilize it.
We're taking a larger cabelas Alaskan guide tent for base camp and a big Agnes copper spur 3 man expedition for our spike camp.
Any opinions on the Galco Kodiak holster. I'll be carrying a Christensen arms 300 win and a ruger Redhawk 7.5" 44 mag
We talked about bringing a small collapsible shovel like an army E-tool to level a spot for our tent, would it be worth the extra weight or is it not really necessary?
I have the Sitka storm front pants and Kodiak jacket so I should be good on rain gear.
What is a good weight to shoot for on your pack. With spotting scope, binos, sleeping bad, jet boil, tent, rifle and all the other small things I'm trying to shoot for 35-40lb ..is that too much?
The guy I'm going with says there's no need to bring a water filtration/sterilization system in this area. I had palnned to bring a steripen and maybr some pills, can any of you give me some input on this. He says theres plenty of running water everywhere and we can juat melt snow in a jet boil for water and that we could just boil water if we need to sterilize it.
We're taking a larger cabelas Alaskan guide tent for base camp and a big Agnes copper spur 3 man expedition for our spike camp.
Any opinions on the Galco Kodiak holster. I'll be carrying a Christensen arms 300 win and a ruger Redhawk 7.5" 44 mag
We talked about bringing a small collapsible shovel like an army E-tool to level a spot for our tent, would it be worth the extra weight or is it not really necessary?
I have the Sitka storm front pants and Kodiak jacket so I should be good on rain gear.
What is a good weight to shoot for on your pack. With spotting scope, binos, sleeping bad, jet boil, tent, rifle and all the other small things I'm trying to shoot for 35-40lb ..is that too much?
There will probably safe sources of drinking water. I don't recall ever having to boil lake water. Have melted some snow. The items you mention taking are so small and light, you could always take them just in case.
I don't take shovels.
I don't pack a pistol when I'm packing a rifle. But the pistol isn't a bad idea. Just personal choices.
I expect your pack to be ~55 - 50lbs, with the gear you've mentioned. Those tents are heavy. My pack some weighs 8-10lbs. Then add the food, clothes, sleeping pad & bag, rifle, spotting scope, binocs.
I'm at 35lbs when headed out to spike camps with a 1-man tent. I've got 18lbs into my rifle, ammo, and empty backpack. Leaves another 18lbs for everything else.
A big bear hide with skull can be 110-120lbs. That's when the weight becomes a serious matter.
I don't take shovels.
I don't pack a pistol when I'm packing a rifle. But the pistol isn't a bad idea. Just personal choices.
I expect your pack to be ~55 - 50lbs, with the gear you've mentioned. Those tents are heavy. My pack some weighs 8-10lbs. Then add the food, clothes, sleeping pad & bag, rifle, spotting scope, binocs.
I'm at 35lbs when headed out to spike camps with a 1-man tent. I've got 18lbs into my rifle, ammo, and empty backpack. Leaves another 18lbs for everything else.
A big bear hide with skull can be 110-120lbs. That's when the weight becomes a serious matter.
backyardsniper
Well-Known Member
Thanks. I figured the pistol would be handy to have around the camp for anytime we were just hanging out around camp or taking a trip to the latrine and such
Speaking of in camp, what's you opinion on cooking. I had planned to bring mountain house and ramen noodles but what about cooking around your camp .Bacon and eggs and such, would that be a bad idea or would you need to move away from camp a little ways or just stick to the mountain house/jet boil kind of stuff
Speaking of in camp, what's you opinion on cooking. I had planned to bring mountain house and ramen noodles but what about cooking around your camp .Bacon and eggs and such, would that be a bad idea or would you need to move away from camp a little ways or just stick to the mountain house/jet boil kind of stuff
I don't cook much of anything around camp other than freeze dried foods. Hot water based drinks and prepared foods. That and the ready to eat snacks, of course.
Mostly because I don't like to bother with the extra weight and time associated with home-style foods. A jet boil and boiling water are comparatively fast and convenient. Another stove and cook pot, butter, ect., and cleanup..., not so simple. For me it's about convenience more than bear odor attractiveness.
But if bears like bacon as humans like bacon... may not be good as far as bear troubles in camp. Take a good LED flashlight/headlamp. Nothing more nightmarish than a bear prowling/growling around your tent in the dark that cannot be seen or dispatched. I have stories of guys shooting holes out the roof if their tents, trying to scare bears away from their tents at night. Spooky stories...
If it's a spring hunt, the nights will be pretty short, compared to a fall hunt.
Mostly because I don't like to bother with the extra weight and time associated with home-style foods. A jet boil and boiling water are comparatively fast and convenient. Another stove and cook pot, butter, ect., and cleanup..., not so simple. For me it's about convenience more than bear odor attractiveness.
But if bears like bacon as humans like bacon... may not be good as far as bear troubles in camp. Take a good LED flashlight/headlamp. Nothing more nightmarish than a bear prowling/growling around your tent in the dark that cannot be seen or dispatched. I have stories of guys shooting holes out the roof if their tents, trying to scare bears away from their tents at night. Spooky stories...
If it's a spring hunt, the nights will be pretty short, compared to a fall hunt.
backyardsniper
Well-Known Member
It's spring looks like only 7 hrs of dark so lots of time to hunt
How is the terrain in that area. Really steep? Would you say that it is an extremely physically demanding hunt? Or mostly sitting and glassing? How much would you walk in an average day. 3 to 4 miles?
How is the terrain in that area. Really steep? Would you say that it is an extremely physically demanding hunt? Or mostly sitting and glassing? How much would you walk in an average day. 3 to 4 miles?
I have not been to your hunt area, just to clear that up. But hunted Kodiak for bear/deer multiple times. Around 8-10 times.
A good deal of time glassing is a good idea. But glassing different areas is also smart if you see little to nothing after watching an area for a while. I think I posted earlier, bears have been much more active from morning daylight until ~9:30 - 10am, when I've hunted spring brown bear. Try to be glassing those morning hours. Those morning hours will be darned chilly until the sun starts to shine on your body! Also glass the evening hours as they seem to be out and about then more so too. Working on a morning killed bear is nicer/ convenient, than one killed in the evening. I've done it both ways. So I don't pass on a large evening boar.
If you're restricted to foot travel, not terribly tiring while hunting. You'll travel some to an observing/spotting location, and then be resting and watching the terrain.
The serious exertion comes after a kill, if you're a good distance from base camp.
A good deal of time glassing is a good idea. But glassing different areas is also smart if you see little to nothing after watching an area for a while. I think I posted earlier, bears have been much more active from morning daylight until ~9:30 - 10am, when I've hunted spring brown bear. Try to be glassing those morning hours. Those morning hours will be darned chilly until the sun starts to shine on your body! Also glass the evening hours as they seem to be out and about then more so too. Working on a morning killed bear is nicer/ convenient, than one killed in the evening. I've done it both ways. So I don't pass on a large evening boar.
If you're restricted to foot travel, not terribly tiring while hunting. You'll travel some to an observing/spotting location, and then be resting and watching the terrain.
The serious exertion comes after a kill, if you're a good distance from base camp.
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backyardsniper
Well-Known Member
Yeah that's pretty much my job in this equation is to help carry the hide/skull back to camp. I've been putting in a lot of time rucking around where I live but the problem here is its just flat. No real up hill to work with so I've been trying to put in a lot of time on a stair treadmill which I think will help. I'm about to start incorporating my pack while doing the stair treadmill and I'm gonna try to go down to the local high school football stadium and go up and down the stairs with my pack
