December 11th, 2011 — Caribou, Hunting
For experienced hunters or new hunters alike, caribou hunting is an adventure. Those who are experienced hunting other game animals like deer or elk will find a lot familiar about caribou hunting and yet it will be unlike anything they’ve done. People new to hunting will find caribou hunting an exciting sport.
Caribou hunting is less talked about than things like deer hunting, elk hunting or even moose hunting. But caribou meat is delicious, and their hide is valuable as well. The horns of the caribou can also be sold so there are many practical reasons for hunting caribou. The sheer size of the creatures and their stealth and cunning make them a challenge as well.
For the new caribou hunter, a guide is essential. Whether you’re going to go with a paid guide or just a friend or acquaintance who’s a very experienced caribou hunter, the tips and tricks you’ll learn are invaluable. If you don’t have any close friends or acquaintances who caribou hunt, then investing in a guided hunt is probably one of the best things you can do to make sure that you will enjoy caribou hunting for years to come.
Outfitters will set you up with a guide and take you to the prime hunting spots. They can’t guarantee that you’ll find a caribou or get a shot at one but the odds of this are maximized when you go on a guided hunt with a very experienced guide. They can also help you avoid some of the pitfalls of caribou hunting such as not understanding all the laws surrounding it and complying with them.
Some areas have strict limits on caribou hunting while others are more relaxed. But you’ll need to follow local gun laws and any requirements as far as how you dress the caribou in the field as well as the weapons you use to hunt the animals. The last thing you want to do is have a successful caribou hunt and end up with a hefty fine because you used improper ammunition or you improperly butchered the animal. An experienced guide can lead you through that maze of technicalities.
You’ll also get one-on-one instruction in how to find caribou tracks and figure out where they’re most likely to be found. Through droppings, tracks, and scrapes and rubbings on the sides of trees, guides can pretty much show you the paths that the caribou take each day. Depending on where you hunt, you may be limited to using either a rifle or a compound bow. Areas that allow both typically have a very distinct season for rifle hunters and a distinct season for those who use a bow.
A guide can tell you the best type of ammunition to use as well as the best weight and point weight of arrows, depending on what you choose. This is an important choice because it will determine how quickly and mercifully you kill the animal. A guide or mentor can also teach you how to properly field dress the animal after a successful day of caribou hunting.
Photo Credits: j_silla
Originally posted 2010-04-08 03:14:44. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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November 27th, 2011 — Hunting, Hunting Trips, Moose
Your first moose hunt is bound to be exciting. This is true whether you’re experienced in hunting things like deer and elk or if you’ve never been hunting before. If you’re used to hunting things like deer, then hunting a moose is very similar except the sheer size of the animals is so impressive. Some deer can be quite large but they can’t compare to the size of a fully grown moose. The sense of moving up to that size game can feel like a step up after you’ve been hunting smaller animals. If you’ve never been hunting before, then you’re starting out with a really big game animal by choosing to moose hunt.
Moose have very good senses of hearing and smell. They’re smart animals and not easy to get. And just their size alone makes them very intimidating especially for new hunters. Being close enough to shoot one of them also means you’re close enough for it to charge at you. Fortunately, this is rare and not something to worry too much about. Just be aware that it’s a possibility.
A moose hunt can be very challenging because the animal is so large and smart. The best time to hunt this animal and when they are typically in season is during their rutting season. All animals are distracted during the rut. They’re so focused on their own scent-marking and the scent of the opposite sex that they just don’t have the mental resources available to be as alert for hunters as they normally are.
A moose hunt typically takes place early in the morning or late in the evening because that’s when the animals are most active. And during the rut, the males are so focused on challenging other males and finding suitable females that it’s much easier to get a shot. In fact, a bull moose might know that you’re there but be so focused on a scent that they disregard you for a short period of time.
A guided moose hunt is a good idea for your first hunt especially if you’re an inexperienced hunter in general. You also need to be prepared with the correct ammunition that can bring something as large as moose down, as well as a tarp and a sharp hunting knife so that you can field dress any moose that you get. It’s virtually impossible to drag an intact moose out of the woods so you need to remove the innards in the wild to make it possible.
You also can’t decide that it’s too much trouble and leave the carcass there. You must eat what you kill and you can even be fined or arrested in some areas for not doing so. It’s also a sign of respect of the animal to use as much of it as possible. Be prepared for these things before you go on a moose hunt and you’ll end up having a much better time. Even if you don’t choose a guided hunt, take someone experienced with you who can help you find the moose as well as properly field dress it.
Photo Credits: Aske Holst
Originally posted 2010-03-29 03:06:52. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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November 19th, 2011 — Big, Bison, Hunting
Alaskan bison hunting is just one of the big game hunting sports in the state. Bison are huge animals that stand about 6 feet tall at the shoulder and weigh over a ton each. Bison are easily recognizable because of their larger and heavier front quarters and their smaller hindquarters. Most people are only familiar with seeing a dark brown bison. The dark brown coat is their winter coat. It lightens up toward spring. Bison also have huge curving horns that point upward.
Bison have an excellent sense of smell that allows them to survive the winter as long as they are healthy and they do get in a good area with food beneath the frozen snow. They are able to smell food even under inches of snow. Then they use their large head and upper body to shove the snow away from the food to get to it. Since they can smell so clearly through the snow, catching the scent of a hunter isn’t much of a challenge.
When you’re bison hunting you need to be sure that you’re not carrying a strong set. Wash in unscented soap, don’t wear cologne or aftershave or even heavily scented deodorant, and make sure your clothes don’t carry a scent from detergent or fabric softener. Try to avoid getting very sweaty in your clothes and stay away from things like campfires so you don’t absorb the smell of the smoke and cooking food. Bison are very difficult to stalk as you need to do a successful hunt so give yourself a better chance of success by eliminating your scent. Bison are also one of the more difficult animals to actually bring down. They are the hardest one in Alaska, at least. Their sheer size makes it difficult to kill one of these animals.
Hunting is allowed to control the population. Bison aren’t native to Alaska but were brought there instead in 1928 and quickly multiplied. Without hunting, experts believe that they would take over the areas where they live and start to do damage to the ecosystem. Bison hunting keeps that from happening.
Those who have problems with Alaskan bison hunting say that nature can take care of itself. But since bison are an introduced species and they have no natural predators to thin the herds, hunting bison is considered a necessity. Bison may look large and lumbering out on the plain but they’re actually very aggressive when they feel threatened. The only predators that have any hope of taking down the bison are wolves and bears and then they can only generally take down the young. Neither of these predatory animals will attack an adult bison because of the large horns and the size.
Some bison live in protected areas because the fear is that hunting will thin them too much as it has done in the United States. The settlers’ bison hunting actually thinned them down so much that their survival in the United States has been questioned. But Alaskan bison hunting is how the population is kept under control and something hunters are welcome to do in the frozen north.
Photo Credits: Alan Vernon.
Originally posted 2010-03-24 03:12:25. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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