Getting fish & meat home from Alaska

Okay, if you don't know it already, I'm pretty much a tightwad. I hate to spend money on things that I don't need to.

I've been looking at my options on hopefully bringing back a black bear skull and some meat from POW this spring along with possibly some fish if we end up tagging out early enough to do some fishing.

Flying from Lubbock, there is only one flight that I can book roundtrip that gets to Ketchikan and back in a day and that is via American Airlines. The flight is very reasonable at $657, but American is VERY expensive on excess baggage fees. It's $60 each way for the first 2 bags under 50 pounds and then $150 for the 3rd bag and $200 for the 4th+ bags. If you go over 50 pounds it is an extra $100 for each bag. If I hauled home all the meat from a bear and had a couple good days fishing I could end up spending more on baggage fees than on the ticket.

My other option is to book to Seattle on Southwest and switch airlines in Seattle going and coming. On the way there it wouldn't be too bad, when it is all said and done it would take 2 hours longer and I would have to recheck a firearm at the Seattle airport.

Coming home, I would end up with a 7 hour layover in the Seattle airport from 10:40 pm to 5:30 am. If I was successful I would need to do something with a few boxes of meet during this time. The overall flights would take just 5 hours longer getting home and be under 24 hours though.

Doing it this way the baggage fees would be just $50 for the first 2 bags on Alaska Airlines and then $75 per bag on the extras. With Southwest the first 2 bags are free and then $75 for the extras. Even having to pay the $75 twice it ends up cheaper because both Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines don't add the overweight charge if they are already charging the extra bag fee. So I could make those extra bags up to 100 pounds each.

Assuming I ended up with 200 pounds of meat/skull/fish to take home with me, I would be spending $1,110 for baggage on American Airlines vs. $350 for Alaskan/Southwest Airlines assuming I can pack the boxes close to 100 pounds.

I'm leaning toward booking via Alaskan and Southwest, but I'm not sure how much of a pain it would be dealing with the boxes of meat and rechecking my rifle in Seattle.

FedExing stuff home would be about as expensive as bag checking it with American. DHL seems like it would be a little cheaper, about $175 per 50 pound box. If I sent my backpack and hunting gear home via UPS I could save one bag worth of cost, but that seems like putting a bandaid on a bleeding artery.

If I end up unsuccessful I will end up spending some quality time in the airport in Seattle instead of being on the red eye flight from Seattle to Dallas all for nothing, but the success rates on this hunt seem pretty good.

Anyone dealt with something like this? Am I crazy thinking about spending the night in the Seattle airport with a rifle and several boxes of meat/fish? Am I crazy to think I can pack a couple 100lb boxes of meat/fish or should I plan on making them lighter and just paying more?

Thanks, Nathan

Did you check Alaska Air Cargo? Might be an option (usually about $1/pound to ship), or maybe fly out of a different airport that is serviced by AK Air? Not sure if they fly to Lubbock, but they fly out of Amarillo and Abilene.

Checking and rechecking bags isn't that bad. I've done it a few times. Really if you have enough time, its not that much of a hassle.

I would rather walk than take American Airlines. They suck that bad...

The closest Alaska Air Cargo gets is Dallas or Albuquerque. The flight price doesn't change much from either spot but I would be adding 5 hours of driving each way to the trip on either of those options.

Amarillo has a connection with United instead of American but their schedule sucks.

I would have almost a 4 hour layover in Seattle to swap airlines on the way there and close to 7 hours on the way home so I think I have plenty of time. I would actually be using points instead of $ on Southwest so that would save me a few bucks too.

I checked a couple of the fish processors online and they show to have a 100lb size box. Just not sure how sturdy they would be. I guess if I brought a couple rolls of duct tape I could make about anything sturdy enough for a one time use.

There's a walk-in freezer at Seatac. Your airline would know about it.

npaden said:

Doing it this way the baggage fees would be just $50 for the first 2 bags on Alaska Airlines and then $75 per bag on the extras. With Southwest the first 2 bags are free and then $75 for the extras. Even having to pay the $75 twice it ends up cheaper because both Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines don't add the overweight charge if they are already charging the extra bag fee. So I could make those extra bags up to 100 pounds each.

Assuming I ended up with 200 pounds of meat/skull/fish to take home with me, I would be spending $1,110 for baggage on American Airlines vs. $350 for Alaskan/Southwest Airlines assuming I can pack the boxes close to 100 pounds.

Click to expand...

Better check that bold part again. I think they add the overweight in addition to the extra bag fees. At least that was my experience when getting elk meat home via Southwest this fall.

I think driving somewhere you only have to fly with Alaska Airlines is the way to go. I think it will be cheaper and a 5 hour drive is better than sleeping in the airport, then having to re-check all the bags, etc. in my opinion.

Looks like there is an 11hr Alaska flight, less than $400, DFW-SEA-KTN, that would be my choice.

One thing to possibly look into would be getting an Alaskan Air signature visa. There is a $75 yearly fee, but you can get a $100 credit your first year. Signing up gets you 25k points which is enough for a round trip from SEA to KTN. You also get one free checked bag each way with the card. Another benefit is a free yearly companion fare. Last night I booked tickets to hunt blacktail on POW for my wife and I round trip out of Billings to KTN for $790 total.

I did have a concern with my layover on the way back being 4 hours at the end of August. Should I be concerned with the meat? We will have everything frozen solid before we leave. I have heard of people using fish boxes or coolers any recommendation?

Jwill said:

Better check that bold part again. I think they add the overweight in addition to the extra bag fees. At least that was my experience when getting elk meat home via Southwest this fall.

I think driving somewhere you only have to fly with Alaska Airlines is the way to go. I think it will be cheaper and a 5 hour drive is better than sleeping in the airport, then having to re-check all the bags, etc. in my opinion.

Looks like there is an 11hr Alaska flight, less than $400, DFW-SEA-KTN, that would be my choice.

Click to expand...

It is pretty clear in Alaskan Airlines policies that they only charge 1 fee. It isn't as clear in Southwest policies, but I called and they double checked with a supervisor and said that there is only 1 fee. If I checked 2 bags that were under 50 pounds and a 3rd bag that was over 50 pounds they would charge $75 for the 3rd bag. If I only checked 1 bag under 50 pounds and 2 bags over 50 pounds they would charge the $75 overweight fee for the 2nd bag and then the excess bag fee of $75 for the 3rd bag.

I would rather sit in an airport for 5 hours on one flight segment than drive 10 hours round trip and pay parking for a week but I'll double check on the option from Dallas. Last I checked it wasn't that low of a price. That's cheaper than the flight from Seattle to Ketchikan which is crazy.

Jwill said:

Looks like there is an 11hr Alaska flight, less than $400, DFW-SEA-KTN, that would be my choice.

Click to expand...

I'm only finding a $747 flight from DFW to KTN. Leaving out on May 28th and coming back on June 6th. Connections are pretty decent, but would still be looking at 10 hours roundtrip of driving and dealing with parking at DFW with that option. I'm a little flexible on my dates, but checking a few days earlier and a few days later I wasn't seeing anything close to less than $400.

I was picturing myself catching some Zzz's with my stack of boxes and luggage first in line at the Southwest Airlines Ticket counter at the Seattle airport from 10:40 pm until they opened the next morning.

Didn't mean to confuse you, that was one way, RT would have been $700-800.

Southwest hit me for $300 for checking 5 bags, only one was overweight. I might call customer service to check on that, might get me a $75 refund.

I live in a pretty small market for air service. So instead of driving 1hr and going AA, United, or Delta, I drive 3-4 hours to get Southwest out of Charlotte or DC. I've pretty much accepted that as how I'll do my trips out west. I can see where you don't want to do the 10 hours of driving.

Could you get Alaska baggage fees if you book through them out of Amarillo?

Jwill said:

Didn't mean to confuse you, that was one way, RT would have been $700-800.

Southwest hit me for $300 for checking 5 bags, only one was overweight. I might call customer service to check on that, might get me a $75 refund.

Could you get Alaska baggage fees if you book through them out of Amarillo?

Click to expand...

Okay. I was trying to figure out where you got a roundtrip for under $400!

The way they explained it to me you should have only paid $225 for 5 bags with only one overweight. 2 bags free and then $75 per bag for the 3 extra bags regardless of weight (as long as they are under 100 pounds).

I can book Alaska out of Amarillo via United, but the times aren't good. I think it is an 18 hour trip coming home with an overnight in Seattle. That's pretty much the same thing I would be on via Southwest.

Bambistew said:

I would rather walk than take American Airlines. They suck that bad...

Click to expand...

What he said...

I don't think the layover in Seattle will be that bad. A good solid fish box with some duct tape is the way to go.

Well, It looks like I'm going to do the mix of Southwest and Alaskan Airlines. Went ahead and applied for the Alaskan Airlines credit card, if nothing else it will save me about $400 on this trip and I can cancel it before the year is up. Looks like I will have to wait a few weeks before they credit the points to my account though.

Booked my flight to Seattle on Southwest today and it cost $11.20 plus 28,310 points. I still have over 200,000 points with Southwest so I don't think I'll miss those points too much.

I'm really thinking that a Caribou or Moose trip to Alaska may be in the future so who knows I might hang onto that Alaskan Airlines credit card for a few years.

Thanks for the input everyone.

Nathan

Jwill said:

Better check that bold part again. I think they add the overweight in addition to the extra bag fees. At least that was my experience when getting elk meat home via Southwest this fall.

Click to expand...

npaden said:

It is pretty clear in Alaskan Airlines policies that they only charge 1 fee. It isn't as clear in Southwest policies, but I called and they double checked with a supervisor and said that there is only 1 fee. If I checked 2 bags that were under 50 pounds and a 3rd bag that was over 50 pounds they would charge $75 for the 3rd bag. If I only checked 1 bag under 50 pounds and 2 bags over 50 pounds they would charge the $75 overweight fee for the 2nd bag and then the excess bag fee of $75 for the 3rd bag.

Click to expand...

When I booked the flight they had a link to excess bag fees. I think the phone call I made was worthless as I'm pretty sure they gave me incorrect information even if they talked to their supervisor. Looks like you do get charged a $75 fee for each bag over the 2 free ones and if any of the bags are overweight they charge a $75 additional fee.

Southwest will accept the first two checked bags for free provided that the bags do not exceed 50 lbs and 62 inches (L+W+H). Overweight items from 50 to 100 pounds and oversized items in excess of 62 inches but not more than 80 inches will be accepted for a charge of $75 per item. Only one $75.00 charge applies if the piece is both oversized and overweight, regardless of the weight as long as it does not exceed 100 lbs. Excess baggage which is also overweight or oversized will be charged excess baggage plus the applicable oversize or overweight charge.

Click to expand...

So for 4 bags with 2 overweight it would be $300. Still a zillion times better than American, but not as good as Alaska Airlines. Looks like I will have to pay $450 to get 200lbs of fish and meat home. Still cheaper than sending it FedEx. I might look into air cargoing it home from Seattle, I could save a tiny bit but probably not worth the hassle of finding the air cargo facility and messing with hauling it over there.

This is what I'm hanging my hat on for Alaskan Airlines that they will only charge $75 each for a 3rd and 4th checked bag that is between 50 - 100 pounds.

Note: If a checked bag falls into more than one fee category (piece number, oversize, overweight), only the higher, single fee is charged.

Click to expand...

Can anyone confirm that is the case with Alaskan Airlines?

Thanks, Nathan

I don't know if you are going solo or with a crew so that may change things for you....But when we did our float hunt in AK we went to the "Shipping Store" in Anchorage and bought a 4'x4' pallet. It could be something like 6' tall too..... They truck it to the coast where its placed on a barge to Seattle and then trucked across the country to a shipping depot typically in all the large cities one of which should be close to you. Since it isnt going thru Canada, you can include your firearms in the pallet. We were able to put 5 sets of Caribou Antlers, 1 set of moose antlers and (2) sheds, (4) guns and ALL our hunting gear which was a pile all just had to be under 800 Lbs. We were at like 740lbs! All for $750.00..... Split that between 3 guys and its cheap.

That allowed us to use our Checked Luggage for Meat in which we purchased (9) Coleman Coolers which would hold about 45lbs of Frozen solid meat in each. Best way I could get all the meat and gear back to Michigan.

If you were going in the Fall there is a service Called Alaska Meat Express or something similar that will put a WHOLE moose or caribou and antlers on a pallet in a refrigerated truck and drive it back to the lower 48 for $750.

That does sound like a good option if going with a big group. I'll just be going with one guy and he is flying out of Montana so not really an option to pack everything together like that.

I had read about the Alaska Meat Express and that really does sound like a good option. They stay pretty far north on their route, but I have a friend in Powell, WY that could probably run up to Billings and hold the meat for me until I went up there to go hunting in the fall or I could probably pay a meat locker something to keep it for me somewhere along the route.

Definitely something to consider if the Moose/Caribou hunt plans ever materialize.

npaden said:

Can anyone confirm that is the case with Alaskan Airlines?

Thanks, Nathan

Click to expand...

Yep, I fell in to that category last year with one bag being both overweight and an extra bag, and was only charged the $75.

I should add that Alaska Meat Express was our Primary option but fell thru.... I called from our Sat phone the day we knocked down our Moose and was told he was FULL! So we were shit out of luck. So instead of relaxing the final 4 days of our Alaskan Adventure at my Sisters place and doing some fishing we processed (6) Caribou and a Moose so we could package as much as we could and bring it home. I was initially pretty ticked off we weren't given a spot on the truck after I told them to reserve one, but it is 1st come 1st serve. However he told me in all his years doing this, he had never filled up...Well Murphy's law

Ouch! When did you kill your Moose? Might make it worth hunting a little earlier to make sure he still had room.

One of my other options would be to send all my bear meat to Greenhorn since he likes it so much.

Knocked down the Moose September 24th...Day before it closed. Later in the Rut is better for moose responding and catching the Caribou Migration. Downside is I guess you get last shot at the meat truck annnnnndddd the temps were COLD!