Hey guys my uncle and I are planning a moose hunt for 09. We are down to these two service providers. They both have pros and cons to us. I am looking for any solid help on choosing one of them. Anybody that has been with one of these providers I would love to hear the outcome of your hunt. Thanks in advance
DYI Moose Hunt 40 Mile Air or Papa Bear Adventures
- Thread starter jacill
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AKHUNTINFOOL
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LAST EDITED ON Nov-28-08 AT 01:50PM (MST)[p]I have flown with both of these air taxis. These are both well known for providing quality hunts. My neighbor went with 40 Mile air last year and did not see a moose in 10 days of hunting. I think Papa Bear will tell you that their success rate for moose hunters is 50%. The unit that Papa Bear drops moose hunters in currently has a high moose density due to the area being closed to everyone that did not live in the unit for many years. It was Papa Bear that wrote the proposal to open the moose hunting again.
I have only hunted sheep with 40 mile air and they did a good job for us. Over the years I have taken moose (63"), caribou, sheep, bears, wolverine, and went fishing this past September with Papa Bear. Steve and Karl are like old friends after all these trips. They both love to hunt and are both pilots.If I had to choose for 09 I would go with Papa Bear due to the current moose numbers being so high.
I have only hunted sheep with 40 mile air and they did a good job for us. Over the years I have taken moose (63"), caribou, sheep, bears, wolverine, and went fishing this past September with Papa Bear. Steve and Karl are like old friends after all these trips. They both love to hunt and are both pilots.If I had to choose for 09 I would go with Papa Bear due to the current moose numbers being so high.
AKHUNTINFOOL thanks for the reply. Do you happen to know if that was your nieghbors first hunt with 40 mile or was he a returning client and still didn't see anything? Also would you reccomend a float hunt or drop hunt with Papa Bear? If your willing, maybe pm me some areas that you would reccomend hunting with Papa Bear. Thanks again
AKHUNTINFOOL
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This was my neighbors first hunt with 40 Mile Air but he went with a friend who was a returning client. They did a drop camp on a lake.
I don't know what your background is so I don't know if a drop camp or float hunt would work better for you. I know on a lot of the their drop camps are provided a boat and motor to access other areas. Float trips can work good but you spend a lot of time setting up and taking down camp. When you kill a moose then you have to hang the meat at each new camp you float to. If you deside to float then you need to concentrate on the areas that will hold more moose. There can be moose anywhere along the river but certain areas will have the majority of the moose and you should spend the majority of your time in those areas. It sounds so obvious but lots of guys just float aimlessly while the more successful hunters will identify areas on the topo map or on the flight in that are moosie areas. Once you float by an area there is no going back with a raft. I would also hunt as late in the season that I could to catch as much of the rut as possible. In regards to specific areas there are only so many places any air taxi can land. Steve and Karl are always looking for new spots where moose congregate. They usually test out the area by test hunting it prior to dropping clients in a new spot.
I am not sure how to PM you but I would be happy to talk to you sometime about your hunt.
I don't know what your background is so I don't know if a drop camp or float hunt would work better for you. I know on a lot of the their drop camps are provided a boat and motor to access other areas. Float trips can work good but you spend a lot of time setting up and taking down camp. When you kill a moose then you have to hang the meat at each new camp you float to. If you deside to float then you need to concentrate on the areas that will hold more moose. There can be moose anywhere along the river but certain areas will have the majority of the moose and you should spend the majority of your time in those areas. It sounds so obvious but lots of guys just float aimlessly while the more successful hunters will identify areas on the topo map or on the flight in that are moosie areas. Once you float by an area there is no going back with a raft. I would also hunt as late in the season that I could to catch as much of the rut as possible. In regards to specific areas there are only so many places any air taxi can land. Steve and Karl are always looking for new spots where moose congregate. They usually test out the area by test hunting it prior to dropping clients in a new spot.
I am not sure how to PM you but I would be happy to talk to you sometime about your hunt.
nmtaxi
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LAST EDITED ON Dec-01-08 AT 02:22PM (MST)[p]
Had a great hunt last year with 40 Mile. Here's a video of the adventure.
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v375/nmtaxi/?action=view¤t=alaska.flv
Had a great hunt last year with 40 Mile. Here's a video of the adventure.
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v375/nmtaxi/?action=view¤t=alaska.flv
AKHUNTINFOOL
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Nice video. Looks like you had a great hunt. How wide was the moose? I think you lucked out that it didn't rain hard while you were in the field since one of your tents only has a 1/2 rainfly. I recommed a full rainfly for all tents to be used in Alaska.
nmtaxi
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The moose was only 52" wide, but was a pretty big bull for only 52". We were first time clients. Got the last ridge top hunt they had. It was also one of the few areas you could hunt both caribou and moose at the same time. We got lucky with the migration. We flew out on the 10th, and came back on the 20th. We were suppose to come out on the 18th, but bad weather had us stuck out a few extra days.
202typical
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nmtaxi
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That's pretty interesting. In my opinion, 40 Mile was absolutely top notch. Believe it or not, I would say that whether or not I had harvested an animal. Leif Wilson is a very honest guy. I had absolutely no delusions going into the hunt of what to expect. It was my second trip to AK, the first being terrible (different service). Leif was extremely honest about the success rates. We did better than you can expect. D.I.Y. moose hunting is no easy task. You have to go knowing that there's a pretty good chance of going home empty handed.
