Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska Spring Brown Bear

I am looking to make my way to Alaska spring 2011 for a brown bear hunt since they canceled the grizzly bear hunt in Alberta a few years back. I am looking for any advice as to good areas to hunt, outfitters to contact. This is as hunt of a life time that I am planning so any advice that I can get will be appreciated. If there is any fishing to get into while there appreciate the info.

Check with Muskeg Excursions out of Ketchikan. Guide Johnnie Laird is the man to go with. He's good.......

For a once in a lifetime hunt.. I'd go to Kodiak.

We got a few nice bears in the neighborhood.... no winter to put them under yet....

If you or your guide can draw a tag...

Depends on what you are looking for, I suppose. Want a monster skull for the record book? Sure, Kodiak or the Peninsula is for you. Want a true wilderness hunt in Alaska, lots of places can provide that with a big bear. Most folks won't care if their 9 or 10' bear (if the difference matters, which it wouldn't to me) has a 26 or 28" skull bone. Just find someone that gives the type of hunt you want and be satisfied with a mature boar from wherever you hunt. Just, well, damn...

If you are set on a hunt next spring (2011) you should probably look at Southeast Alaska.

As I understand it (someone can correct me if I am wrong) the Alaska Peninsula is out because those hunts are the spring of even numbered years and the fall of odd numbered years. If you want to hunt Kodiak, you will need to get a signed guide/client agreement and have your guide get your drawing application in by December 31.

If you hunt Southeast Alaska you do not need to worry about drawing a tag or locking in a guide so soon. However, if it is, indeed, a once in a lifetime trip you might consider postponing it and doing some research on Kodiak and the Alaska Peninsula.

If you do want to hunt next spring, Hunter01 gave you a suggestion as to a contact in Ketchikan, and it was not a bad suggestion...

Good luck,

Chris

It is all about expectations as several have mentioned... There is no reason to worry about draw odds because nonresidents are both virtually assured of drawing a tag and able to fill in after the drawing closes in many cases.

That said, Kodiak and the AK Penninsula are not going to be cheap dates. The best units with the more established guides can easily set you back close to $20K by the time you put all the stuff together.

And there is little fishing in the spring in most areas.

SE and interior AK where hibernation lasts longer and the feed bag is a bit less rich produces smaller bears. Your money, your call, how much do you want to spend?
art

If I were going to go on a guided brown bear hunt, I'd go with Jake Jefferson of Black River Hunting Camps. That dude has a damn good track record with his bear hunters. Super friendly guy and works extremely hard for his clients and he flat out know's how to hunt bear.
http://www.alaskasgreatoutdoors.com/Jake/Black%20River%20Hunting%20camp.htm

Exactly what Art said.

If you're perusing websites, take it all with a grain of salt. Many outfits haven't figured out that they could make their life (and potential clients) a whole lot easier by having a decent website - including some of the ones listed above.

Check references - successful and unsuccessful references.

I hunted with Steve Johnson - straight shooter and good guy.
http://www.ultimatealaskanadventure.com/about.htm


If I were in a little different tax bracket, this is the outfit I would have gone with;
http://www.grizzlyskinsofalaska.com/Hunting.html

+1000 on that. Just sent an email this morning to some guys I know in Florida coming up next spring. Told them Jake is definitely the guy to go with.

Here is a re-post of my thoughts on brown bear hunts.

If you opt for a truly large brownie, I strongly feel that you should hunt the first SPRING hunt available.
The leaves are off the alders allowing for better glassing and the days are much longer in length.
The biggest boars are generally the first to come out of their dens if you go later, you will see more bears, but you will see smaller ones and might be tempted to shoot something less than what you are after.
You do risk a late spring by going so early though, where the bears are late in coming out of their dens, which prove disasterous, but that's the risk one takes in trophy hunting.
Also if you go later, you will see rubbed bears that you will truly regret shooting.

Hunt Kodiak Island or the south
western most part of the Alaskan peninsula.
Forget about southeast Alaska, they just
don't regularly produce bears that compete with the best from Kodiak or the Peninsula.

I hunted my big bear with Brian Peterson.

http://www.ugakbay.com/

He is a very honest, hard working guide with a real
honey hole on Kodiak.
He was very reasonably priced at the time.
He offers a 14 day hunt!
Brian was on the board of directors of the Alaska Professional hunter's Assn.
He has MANY years of guiding under his belt


I took my 10 footer with Brian Peterson (907) 783-1886 Girdwood, AK 99587









Other great Kodiak choices would be:

http://www.huntalaska.com/

Choice #1 is Scott Mileur Truly a legendary guide on Kodiak,
Most honest, tough, hard working guy you will ever meet
PERIOD.
LOTS of GIANT bears under his belt.
He hunts the legendary area of Olga Bay where Pinnell & Talifson trained him. He too offers a 14 day
hunt for the price. (VERY IMPORTANT!)
I would go with Scott if my life depended on killing
a giant brown bear.

Friend of mine killed a nice 9'9 bear with Scott and got to meet Morris Talifson many years ago.
I know Scott and have talked to him for many years at the different hunting conventions.
HE IS SUPERB.
I would have gone with him but I just couldn't afford it at the time.


Dennis Harms is a stand up guy with lots of big bears under his belt.

http://www.alaskakodiakbearhuntingsafaris.com/

Dick Rohrer is a Kodiak legend, his son Sam has taken over..

http://www.kodiakbearcamp.com/hunting.html

Alaska Peninsula...

Butch King

http://www.wildmanlodge.com/Hunting%20Photos%202006.htm

Has taken TONS of monster bears, but his hunts are short and he runs a lot of hunters through his area,
but he does really well.

R&R guide service does a bang up job on Unimak Island as well.

http://www.rrhunting.com/unimak-brown-bear/

Train like you were going sheep hunting, you won't be sorry.

I hope you can obtain one of these hunts.
They are adventures of a lifetime, you will never regret it.

Good Luck.

I'll be bugging you all winter on snow level.. I'm rolling the dice on a late spring.

Another option I would look at.
http://www.theperrinsrainypasslodge.com/kodiaksafarisprices.asp
Friends of mine who have guided on the island for many years.
Steve will work hard to make sure you have a great hunt.

another guy to check out for those interested in a brown bear hunt

top quality guide, well run outfit

http://www.alaskanperimeter.com/alaskanperimeter.com/TROPHY_Brown.html

I suspect that all of the good guides are booked for 2011, unless there is a last minute cancellation, in which case you might get it at a discount. Probably 2012 is booked for the best hunt dates. I have found that for SE AK boat hunts, the 2nd brown bear hunt, about May 10th to 20th, is the best hunt. The rut has or will be about to start, bores are out, hides on many will be OK. Hunts in the fall are on the streams; it usually rains daily, sometimes so heavy that the fish are washed right out of the steams...so hnting can turn poor. You wade the streams & shots can be very, very close. I have been on 2 brwonie boat hunts, 2 black bear hunts, and will return next May for another black bear hunt. You can contact the Alaska License Dept for a list of guides, locate the area you want to hunt, then start contacts. My advice is to follow up VERY carefully on references, last 4 years only, & look for hunters that have returned to hunt with the guide a second time. I can personally recommend Brad Dennison out of Sitka, Eli Lucas out of Petesburg; also check Dale Adams out of Sitka. There are NO cheap brown bear hunts.....and USE ENOUGH GUN! Hope this helps/ Chaz

Pretty solid advice here and ( with minor exceptions) there are a number of very good and reputable outfitters listed here that you will enjoy going with.
Remember to check references well.

You are hunting Uganik in spring?

Viekoda Bay. I'm looking hard at a few spots on the Kupreanof Peninsula. Some ANC land to navigate around, but it looks pretty good!

SKane,

Thanks for the link to Steve. Lost touch over the years since the military (he was our corpsman) and was wondering what he was upto.