Kodiak blacktail hunt Oct 2018

A group of us have booked a trip with Alaskan Coastal Marine for the 3rd week in October this year, our general hunting area will be the southern most tip of the island in and around the Alitak bay area.

I know we will be early for the rut, but I am curious if anyone here has been deer hunting in the area that time of the year and where you found deer that time of year? Still high, down lower getting ready for the rut, or in transition and scattered everywhere? That time of the year were the deer responsive to calling?

Also, I think that I am reasonably well set up for gear although I do need to get a better set of rain gear and will probably swallow the bitter pill and buy a set of Sitka Stormfront gear. I would be curious to know if any of you guys that have been carried a spotting scope and if you used it? For mule deer, elk, antelope I tend to use my glass a lot but I've never set foot on the island before.

Last, was there anything else you wouldn't leave home without or any other tidbits of info that you learned along the way that you wish you would have known sooner?

Thanks everyone, really looking forward to the trip!

I got by with an Patagonia clearance sale jacket and Red Ledge rain pants. Stayed dry enough. The only spotter we had on the trip was the one the boat transporter had on board. We did not take it ashore with us.

Get tough gloves, I preferred DIY waxed leather, and learn to ID devil's club...

Can't comment on the hunting aspect, but as far as rain gear is concerned if you are out all day in the rain any breathable DWR is going to eventually wet out. My Sitka downpour, Arcterxy Beta, and Sitka Delta Wadding jacket all eventually soaked through while on various trips in Iceland, Scotland and AK. Personally, I looking at Grundens and Helly Hansen rain gear for upcoming hunts on Adak and POW.

I’ve read quite that comment about Grundens and HH gear a few times, but I just can’t imagine hiking several miles and 1000’ in elevation with a pack and gun on in that stuff? I think I’d be so full of sweat that rain gear would have been pointless in the end? Does that stuff somehow breathe that I’m not realizing?

My HH does not breathe. It’s a pick yer poison type of deal. When it is misting I usually go without or something water resistant. Once it starts raining for real I put on the HH.

3rd week of October - deer will still be mostly high. The rut doesn't cause bucks to lose altitude, snow does. Having said that, it doesn't mean you won't see a good buck low, just that the majority will still be high. I like a deer bleat call (I use a "deer in a can" call) - it doesn't necessarily call deer in, but when used, deer will pop out of the high grass or alder thickets to see what is going on - curiosity doesn't just kill cats.
Rain gear - the best part about waterproof gear (HH or Grundens) is that it will dry out overnight - lots of breathable gear won't (at least mine didn't). It's pretty hard to find an Alaskan guide that doesn't carry HH or Grundens rain gear. They might hunt every day in Sitka (or similar) clothing, but they have the HH in their packs for when it RAINS. That's all I'll say about that.
The south end of the island is pretty wide open - a spotter could prove useful.
Good luck - it should be a good year on the south part of the island.

badlander said:

I’ve read quite that comment about Grundens and HH gear a few times, but I just can’t imagine hiking several miles and 1000’ in elevation with a pack and gun on in that stuff? I think I’d be so full of sweat that rain gear would have been pointless in the end? Does that stuff somehow breathe that I’m not realizing?

Click to expand...

Honestly I think "breath-ability" is the biggest scam in the history of the outdoors industry. Aside from pit vents i have never had rain gear or for that matter a soft-shell that didn't feel like a hiking in a trash bag. If you are exerting yourself no matter what kinda gear you have your only real option for avoiding a greenhouse is to shed all your layers at the beginning and start off your hike cold, that and openning up your vents and/or unzipping your jacket.

I hunted Kodiak in 2016 in late November on the east side, Kiluda Bay, and wore Sitka Cold Front pants and Jacket and stayed dry. I was based out of a lodge so i was at least able to hang them up each night. Next trip i will take a spotter for sure. I wore leather boots and wish I'd taken waterproof treatment to treat them every night.

Good luck on your hunt! One of my dream hunts is for Kodiak Blacktail in Alaska!

The south end of the island where you'll be hunting is much more open terrain compared to the rest of the island. The majority of the deer will be up high, but you will find them scattered throughout. If you're only interested in filling tags, leave the spotting scope behind. If you're interested in shooting some "gagger" bucks, then I would highly recommend bringing the spotting scope. The deer are responsive to rattling, grunting and doe bleats. These deer are more responsive than most just because of the lack of interaction with hunters. If you are using doe bleats, stay mighty alert as the islands largest resident responds well to those calls as well!

Good rain gear and boots are a must have in my opinion. I've been to Kodiak four times and I wear KUIU Yukon pants and jacket. My buddy wears Sitka gear, I believe Stormfront. I always wear the pants and the jacket is either on or easily accessible in my pack. A good base layer of merino wool will keep you warm even if it somehow gets wet. As for boots, everyone has there favorite. I prefer Kenetrek Mountain Extremes with 400-grams of Thinsulate. I triple or quadruple seal them prior to the hunt because they are going to be constantly touching wet vegetation. These boots with a quaility pair of gaiters have never let me down. I bring enough wool socks and liners for a fresh change every other day.

It doesn't get bitterly cold on Kodiak, but it is almost always cold, wet and windy. A good pair of warm, waterproof gloves/mittens will help keep your hands warm if your sitting and glasses for several hours. I've had really good luck with Outdoor Research's Arete gloves. They keep my hands dry when it's raining and I can work the safety and trigger easily with them on.

As for "must have" items, I never leave home without my treking poles. They come in handy in so many situations. Since you will be hunting out of a boat-based camp, most of my other "must have" items do not pertain to your situation. Something that I've seen several hunters forget were harvest tickets. When you purchase your license, the harvest tickets do not print out with your license. You must print them out prior to your arrival or go to the Fish & Game office on Kodiak and get them.

One last thing to consider, I would strongly suggest have a day or two buffer on each end of your trip as the weather on Kodiak can kibosh plans quickly. Looking back on my four trips to Kodiak, only once have I not experienced a weather day on either end of a trip. On two of the trips, I experienced a weather delay (1 day each time) on the front end of trip and on one trip, I experience an one day delay on the front end of the trip and a three day delay on the back end of the trip. Just food for thought. Should you have a weather delay on the front end of your trip, just walk down to the Kodiak Brewing Company and enjoy the atmosphere and local brews! Good luck!

I worked on Kodiak Island and shot a nice buck in the Karluk Lake area in 2011, I just went back and looked at the image data from the photos and saw the date of Oct 16th. The Karluk Lake area has very dense alder, salmonberry, and other vegetation around the lake and up the slopes for ~1500'. Above that it's mostly alpine and that's where I saw most of the deer all summer and into the fall. Deer will certainly use the denser vegetation down lower, but it's difficult to see them and I think they're much more likely to run from any noise you make while approaching as bears occasionally catch one in the brush.

I can't overstate how important good raingear is for Southwest Alaska. Spend the extra money and get a good set of bibs or chest waders and a jacket. I would make sure the brand you choose has a lifetime warranty on their gear, so that when/if you shred it in the brush you can get it replaced for free. Also layer with wool or wool/synthetic blend clothes. It was very wet and cold in the fall of 2011.

Expect bears to show up at the kill site inside of 2 hours. Anything you leave behind there will be converted into bear scat by morning. I'm speaking from firsthand experience! Also, elkrchr is right. You should expect your flight out of the backcountry to be delayed several days due weather. I've been stuck on the Katmai coast for over a week waiting on a flight.

Finally, you'll want to be in excellent physical shape. The mountains on Kodiak are not very tall, but they are steep. Just walking through the brush to get up to the alpine zone can be exhausting if you don't find a good bear trail.

I forgot to mention one thing in my earlier post. The big, mature bucks are much larger than people give them credit. As an example, the buck I shot on Oct. 31, 2015 yielded 78 pounds of boned out meat. That was verified by Fish and Game as they weighed our deer on the transporters scale upon our return. We also ate the tenderloins off my deer while camping, so it would have been pushing 80 pounds of boned out meat. My buddies buck yielded 69 pounds of boned out meat. It would have been more, but he had some unsalvagable blood shoot/bullet shreaded meat loss.

Thanks everyone, great info. I’ve got a great pair of Lowa boots, i’ll make sure to waterproof them well and Mr. Newberg here sold me on trekking poles last year as well. My 1st deer, i’ll probably not be too picky, the first mature deer will come home with me. After that I’m interested in a good buck so i’ll probably plan to pack my spotter. I am going to plan for the flight delays at work, and once there just going to roll with the weather.

Elkrchr - that’s a pile of meat. We hunt mulies in MT every year, and I hunt at home in N MN and I don’t know that we get that much meat off of them here. I know AK requires us to take the rib meat but other than that we don’t usually leave much but bones and entrails for the coyotes.

Any other tidbits - pass them along! Or, if you just want to post a few more of your pics - I wouldn’t be offended either!!

Badlander, if you go to the Deer Forum and scroll to page 68, you'll find my complete write up (with lots of photos) from my 2015 Kodiak trip. It was posted on 11-13-2015 and is called "Back from Kodiak".

I did think of one last suggestion. Make sure you have bear spray and keep it where you can access it quickly. Know how to use it and be prepared to use it. Do not keep it your backpack or in a pocket.

https://onyourownadventures.com/hunttalk/showthread.php?265999-Back-from-kodiak!!!

Elkrchr: Thanks for pointing me to your write-up. I have seen that one before ad enjoyed looking thru it again, guys like yourself who have done such great write ups have certainly help fuel my fire for this trip. I', going there for a black tailed deer but I'd sure like to get a few sea ducks and have a chance to catch a halibut or two while i'm there as well.

Were you able to pick up your bear spray right there in Kodiak at the sporting goods store? I assume that they sell it there since we cannot take it on the plane? I do plan to have a canister strapped to my hip belt.

Yes, you can buy it there. Most transporters have lots of it in storage as you are not allowed to fly commercially with it. Just ask your transporter if he/she has some you can borrow. Be sure to take a couple each in case someone has to use one.