Sitka Deer Hunt on Kodiak (pics)

R

redrabbit

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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 6. We were out for 7 days of comraderie, good food and hunting adventure.

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

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I spent a few mornings shotgunning some seaducks, primarily goldeneyes and the beautiful Harlequins.
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We saw over 30 brown bears on the beaches and the slopes.
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The Alaskan Vulture was ever-present, perched along the shorelines.
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A Lion's Mane jellyfish was in shallow water.
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Sunrises were quite colorful.
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We were treated to several rainbows.
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The hunting began on the beach with about a 1000' climb to glass for deer.
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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 :angry: . 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 ;) .
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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 slnow 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.

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Doug~RR
 
Wonderful story with outstanding photos. Those deer sure are beautiful.

I would like to go just for the Harlequins. I once shot a pair here in Northern California.

Thanks for posting!

Steve
 
Doug...
What a great trip.
What was even better than the harvest of a nice Blacktail is that you took in the incredible aura of Alaska.
What great photos.
Beautiful ducks, Wow!

To me this photo says "I was there" and somehow reflects your love of the outdoors.
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I am so glad you had a good trip, It couldn't have happened to a better guy.
Thank you for sharing your success.
Your friend,
Harry
 
Those are some awesome photos. Thanks for sharing such an awesome experience. I'm headed down that way in 10 days. I sent you a pm to hopefully get some info from you about equipment and what not. Thanks for posting.

IB
 
Great story and photos!
Congrats on a couple nice bucks.
I hope to have my own Sitka story in a few years! :)

Lien2
 
dude.... That , my friend, is the Way to tell a story !!!! WOW.

I'm heading up in 9 days and Idaho Bugler is gonig with me. He thinks he's leaving in 10 days he's going to be late :) Since I bought the tickets Maybe I should send him one, eh ;)

The ducks were Awesome !!! HAve a Couple questions for ya. I would love to talk to you about the hunting. What would be the Chance of you sending me your Phone number and I'll call or you calling me ? My Cell # is (208)571-1ELK. If we could set up a Time were IdahoBugler and me could Conference that would be better.

I have no worries about the bears, or finding deer, A little worried about our boat..... But I would really like to ask more about the ducks :) :)

Awesome Story, Fantastic Pictures !!!! Congrats !!!



  • [*] -Moosie
~~If you're going to walk on thin ice, Ya might as Well DANCE !!
WALK the TALK, Or shut the HECK UP !!
 
Congratulations!! Nice pics and the story was great. Looks like you had a great time and did well in spite of being over the hill!! Those are some great deer and some beautiful ducks as well. Kind of glad you didn't have to try to out run one of those bears with your advanced age and such! :^)
 
LAST EDITED ON Nov-01-06 AT 08:01PM (MST)[p]Chris- I did not have my tennis shoes on, so I may not have won the race ;-) I'm looking forward to the next trip to AK, but the species are undecided at this time. A Dall sheep hunt has been a wish for many years.

Moosie- I will try to give you a call tomorrow. I have pm'ed Idaho Bugler some info.

Doug~RR
 
Great story, even better pictures and an awesome buck, Thanks and Congratulations. Someday...Someday...

Keep the Sun at Your Back and the Wind in Your Face
 
Doug, I was just thinking of sending you an email to inquire on your Ak trip when I checked this forum. Congrats and thanks for sharing your story and pics. Man there will be many a jealous MM Member after they see and read your post. I am glad to hear and see you had such a great time. That is truly the last American frontier and it makes for great adventures. It has been over 20 years since I last visited the great state of Alaska, and your picutres and story really have made me determined to get back soon. Thanks again for the report. Jim
 
Here's a pic taken of the brownie that was between the kill site and the shore. We had to sidehill to the next gulley so our drag to the beach would not be directly under his nose and to help keep us hid (which made keeping track of the bear more difficult).

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Doug~RR
 
Gee, I thought Kodiak was a bigger island.hahah
Your picture from 2006.
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My picture from 2005.
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Interesting rock.
 
mtmiller,
Nice lagoon to anchor in and get out of the wind. A nice cross fox was at the entrance on the last evening of the hunt.

RR
 
mtmiller- Awesome pic of the lagoon with the turning leaves. That band of low clouds really sets off the ridge.

BlacktailBC- The rifle is an HS Precision SPR in 300WSM, 26" barrel. Leupold 3.5-10x50 with Stoney Point turret.

Doug~RR
 
WOW!! That seems like the ultimate hunting vacation! Thanks for taking me along!

Kirk
 

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