Looking to do a DIY hunt for blacktails and thinking mainly kodiak but am open to POW Island too. been doing some research and thinking of an early high country hunt would be fun for me and a buddy or two. a couple questions though. are they deer horns hard and out of velvet early? and has anyone seen or killed a caribou(ferrel reindeer) on kodiak? curious if its possible to hunt both?
kodiak island blacktails
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Longbow6360
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The Sitkas here start shedding in the last week of August. Yes I have a couple friend who have killed ferel reindeer while hunting deer near Ayakulik Lake on the southeast side. They saw many deer during their hunt so hunting both is very doable.
If you want to fly in and hunt deer and reindeer, Kodiak is your place. Do you want to hunt from a NFS cabin? Do you want to tent camp?
I've hunted POW many times. If you don't want to fly in and are willing to hike to where the deer are in August, then POW is your place.
Good luck. You'll love hunting up here!
If you want to fly in and hunt deer and reindeer, Kodiak is your place. Do you want to hunt from a NFS cabin? Do you want to tent camp?
I've hunted POW many times. If you don't want to fly in and are willing to hike to where the deer are in August, then POW is your place.
Good luck. You'll love hunting up here!
Thanks!! Most likely tent camp. Been talking to some
Air taxis and sounding like down in that south east area is what we are looking at. More expensive but better hunting I hear and def would be interested in trying to whack a reindeer too! On average what is the weather like in early to mid September? I'm excited. I applied for the Alaskan airlines credit card last night. Looks like I can damn near get up and back for free with their 25,000 free miles at sign up.
Air taxis and sounding like down in that south east area is what we are looking at. More expensive but better hunting I hear and def would be interested in trying to whack a reindeer too! On average what is the weather like in early to mid September? I'm excited. I applied for the Alaskan airlines credit card last night. Looks like I can damn near get up and back for free with their 25,000 free miles at sign up.
Longbow6360
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LAST EDITED ON Mar-20-15 AT 09:54AM (MST)[p]If you're going to hunt from a tent, be SURE you bring a bear fence. You can save on baggage fees by renting camp gear here from Kodiak Kamps. I've helped set up camps with guys that have rented from them. Everything was in order and in good shape.
Eric, from Island Air flew in yesterday so I asked him about the reindeer. He shot one last year and he flies down there all the time. You can fly over and find a herd and he says there is several places to land and drop you off. You can hunt deer the same day as you fly but not reindeer. He said to be SURE you have a deer tag or two because there's a lot of big Sitkas in that area.
The weather in September is pretty damn nice most of the time. But still be prepared for the worse. I read somewhere that it rains 63% of the days here on Afognak and it's probably true on Kodiak too.
To save baggage costs, it might be a good idea to send heavy things ahead of time with USPS or rent/buy it here.
Good luck!
Eric, from Island Air flew in yesterday so I asked him about the reindeer. He shot one last year and he flies down there all the time. You can fly over and find a herd and he says there is several places to land and drop you off. You can hunt deer the same day as you fly but not reindeer. He said to be SURE you have a deer tag or two because there's a lot of big Sitkas in that area.
The weather in September is pretty damn nice most of the time. But still be prepared for the worse. I read somewhere that it rains 63% of the days here on Afognak and it's probably true on Kodiak too.
To save baggage costs, it might be a good idea to send heavy things ahead of time with USPS or rent/buy it here.
Good luck!
Does anyone have any suggestions on tents to use on kodiak? planning on flying to the south end of the island. looking at a basecamp and taking a lighter back pack tent to spike out in if we see something we want to chase after further away from camp. been looking at the hillebergs and bomb shelters and getting mixed info on the actual need of a tent like that if we are setting up in the brush around a lake. and yes we are planning on taking a bear fence!
AKHUNTINFOOL
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Buy a high quality 4 season tent as big winds and horizontal rain are normal Kodiak weather. Bring a bombshelter type tent if you want to be able to stand up. Hillbergs are top of the line as are Terra Nova, North Face VE25. Get a tent with a large vestibule for packs and other wet gear. Your air taxi may be able to provide an aluminum bear box to put your food in. I know Seahawk Air does this. How and where you set your tent up is as important as the tent itself. Bring some longer 10 - 12 inch stakes as the stakes that come with most mountaineering tents are not adequate in wet tundra and high winds. Also place large rocks on all stakes to hold the tent in place.
Longbow6360
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LAST EDITED ON Apr-10-15 AT 01:23AM (MST)[p]
Look into renting or buying an Arctic Oven tent. They're very popular up here for a reason. I see quite a few North Face VE25 tent around here too. Hillbergs are pretty spendy but I have a friend who bought one and resold it on Ebay when he got back to Utah for a hundred or so less than what he payed for it. For all-around economy and comfort, I'd rent a 10x10 Bomb Shelter from Kodiak Kamps for $245 a week. I helped some friends during a brown bear hunt last year and they rented a package deal. The tent was easy to set up and it looked to be a good storm tent. It rained every day. I took my boat to their bay and checked on them every other day and they were always dry and comfy.
My son and I have been socked in by weather many times in both 2-man and 4-man tents. Being able to stand and stretch is 10 times nicer than being scrunched into a little tent that you can barely sit up in. We spent 5 days inside a Eureka Timberline on a remote island once. It was hell. Conversely, we've spend some fairly comfortable days in a spacious tent where we could stretch, hang our clothes and move around to cook or flesh goat hides.
Look into renting or buying an Arctic Oven tent. They're very popular up here for a reason. I see quite a few North Face VE25 tent around here too. Hillbergs are pretty spendy but I have a friend who bought one and resold it on Ebay when he got back to Utah for a hundred or so less than what he payed for it. For all-around economy and comfort, I'd rent a 10x10 Bomb Shelter from Kodiak Kamps for $245 a week. I helped some friends during a brown bear hunt last year and they rented a package deal. The tent was easy to set up and it looked to be a good storm tent. It rained every day. I took my boat to their bay and checked on them every other day and they were always dry and comfy.
My son and I have been socked in by weather many times in both 2-man and 4-man tents. Being able to stand and stretch is 10 times nicer than being scrunched into a little tent that you can barely sit up in. We spent 5 days inside a Eureka Timberline on a remote island once. It was hell. Conversely, we've spend some fairly comfortable days in a spacious tent where we could stretch, hang our clothes and move around to cook or flesh goat hides.
i've looked at that actually and may end up doing it. we just have plans of coming back a few more times to alaska and do some hunting so not sure if we want to rent or take that money and put it towards buying something. i guess one thing you might can answer is would the tent we need for kodiak be totally different than a tent we would take on a moose or bou hunt in another part of the state?
You can never have enough tents... I had one when I lived in Idaho. Now that I live up here, I have 6 and want another 
I'd take an Arctic Oven to Kodiak for a base camp, you can use that tent for moose fly outs and even bou if weight isn't too much of an issue. Then bring a smaller 2 man tent for spiking out.
Here's what our camp looked like on Kodiak this past October. Weight was of concern as we were flown into an alpine lake late in the season, may have had to hike out. For deer and a beaver load, I'd have brought either an AO or Cabelas guide series (much cheaper than AO)
I'd take an Arctic Oven to Kodiak for a base camp, you can use that tent for moose fly outs and even bou if weight isn't too much of an issue. Then bring a smaller 2 man tent for spiking out.
Here's what our camp looked like on Kodiak this past October. Weight was of concern as we were flown into an alpine lake late in the season, may have had to hike out. For deer and a beaver load, I'd have brought either an AO or Cabelas guide series (much cheaper than AO)
Longbow6360
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An Arctic Oven is 56#s. How much are going to spend every time you fly it up and back from Alaska? It might be worth it to you, maybe not. Most over weight charges are 40 cents a pound. All the tents that have been suggested in this thread would work almost anywhere in Alaska.
Longbow6360
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NickM, looks like the southeast side of our island. How did your hunt turn out?
Hey, went to Kodiak last August/September and had the time of my life. I put together a review on my blog sicne it was hard to find info on early season. Go ahead and check it out and let me know if you have any more questions. Good Luck
http://www.hunts4two.com/p/12-part-series-alaska-sitka-blacktail.html
The actual hunt:
http://www.hunts4two.com/2014/09/we-back.html
Dan
www.hunts4two.com
http://www.hunts4two.com/p/12-part-series-alaska-sitka-blacktail.html
The actual hunt:
http://www.hunts4two.com/2014/09/we-back.html
Dan
www.hunts4two.com
Just starting my research on this hunt. Let us know how the hunt goes. You could pm as well with the fine details if you have time.
Ryno_19 nice blog and great info. Thanks for sharing. You did a stellar job.
www.SkullHanger.com
Ryno_19 nice blog and great info. Thanks for sharing. You did a stellar job.
www.SkullHanger.com
