So I figured I'd post this here in anticipation of the Upcoming Hunting Season in AK....And because I love reading other reports and need to contribute.
Alaskan Float Hunt 2014
So this all started back in 2006 which was my first trip to AK to visit my cousin where we fished and caught Halibut, Coho, Reds, Pinks, Dollys, rainbows and also hunted very unsuccessfully. Hunting would be the next trip focus in 2010. In 2010 Justin and I visited a friend of his that lives out in Prince William Sound at one of the Hatcheries for a week of Black Bear hunting and fishing. PWS is like a playground and Justin was able to take a Blackie and I was unsuccessful but not for the lack of trying. We also did a pile of fishing and caught Silvers, a variety of Rockfish and other bottom dwellers, ling cod and Halibut. We also pulled shrimp pots, hiked into some lakes to fish and hunt, hiked into the alpine after Blackies, and had a fantastic trip but didn't fill my blackie tag. When we got back into Whittier we had a few extra days and decided to try and fill my Blackie tag chasing Alpine blackies near Cooper Landing by spotting and stalking them up high in the mountains where they are feeding on berries. We had a tip on an area to try and hiked up the mountain and as soon as we rounded a bend nearing the 3-4 mile in mark we were spotting bears on the open hillsides. We turned off the trail bushwacked through the Alder choked, Devils club infested mess up to treeline and made a plan to go up after them. The thermals were carrying our wind directly up the mountain but we were certainly out of reach of the feeding Blackies noses and started up after them...Wrong. I learned right then and there how good they noses are and how to hunt them. With the stalk blown we headed back down and out of the mountains and I vowed to return. Fast forward to 2011 a couple buddies and I were on our way up about the same time 1 year later with better gear and a plan of how to get those Alpine Blackies. long story short we were beat up badly by 60 MPH winds and rain for 5 days straight but when the weather cleared on our final morning of the hunt I was able to get the wind right and pulled the trigger on a beautiful alpine Blackie.
Alaskan Float Hunt 2014
So this all started back in 2006 which was my first trip to AK to visit my cousin where we fished and caught Halibut, Coho, Reds, Pinks, Dollys, rainbows and also hunted very unsuccessfully. Hunting would be the next trip focus in 2010. In 2010 Justin and I visited a friend of his that lives out in Prince William Sound at one of the Hatcheries for a week of Black Bear hunting and fishing. PWS is like a playground and Justin was able to take a Blackie and I was unsuccessful but not for the lack of trying. We also did a pile of fishing and caught Silvers, a variety of Rockfish and other bottom dwellers, ling cod and Halibut. We also pulled shrimp pots, hiked into some lakes to fish and hunt, hiked into the alpine after Blackies, and had a fantastic trip but didn't fill my blackie tag. When we got back into Whittier we had a few extra days and decided to try and fill my Blackie tag chasing Alpine blackies near Cooper Landing by spotting and stalking them up high in the mountains where they are feeding on berries. We had a tip on an area to try and hiked up the mountain and as soon as we rounded a bend nearing the 3-4 mile in mark we were spotting bears on the open hillsides. We turned off the trail bushwacked through the Alder choked, Devils club infested mess up to treeline and made a plan to go up after them. The thermals were carrying our wind directly up the mountain but we were certainly out of reach of the feeding Blackies noses and started up after them...Wrong. I learned right then and there how good they noses are and how to hunt them. With the stalk blown we headed back down and out of the mountains and I vowed to return. Fast forward to 2011 a couple buddies and I were on our way up about the same time 1 year later with better gear and a plan of how to get those Alpine Blackies. long story short we were beat up badly by 60 MPH winds and rain for 5 days straight but when the weather cleared on our final morning of the hunt I was able to get the wind right and pulled the trigger on a beautiful alpine Blackie.