I'm going hunting in Alaska for the first time come this September. A friend of mine who lives there invited me to come up and go hunting with him. After talking with him a few times I kinda get the feeling that he loves to hunt more than he knows how to hunt. He has a home in Fairbanks and one in Valdez. Since this is my first time and I don't know when I'll get the chance to go back, I kinda want to buy a tag for moose, caribou, black bear and wolf. I'd like to at least come back with something! Haha! He says that we'll be hunting in Units 20 and 6. We'll mainly just be hunting Unit 6 for bear. My questions are: Should I not buy so many tags or should I just stick with one animal? Could any of you shed light on what areas or how to hunt Unit 20 and Unit 6? Thanks so much for your help!
Going to Alaska for the First Time
- Thread starter Woody70
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Pucky Freak
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Welcome to HT!
AvidIndoorsman
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You can tag down in AK, so if you buy a moose locking tag you can use it on anything of lesser value ( caribou, black bear, wolf).
As a nonresident you won’t be able to hunt caribou via the road system without a draw permit and that application period passed last December. The units that are walk-in from a road are all draw, flyin aren’t... exception is haul road north of Fairbanks but you have to kill one 5 miles off the road.
Black bear are a draw in 6D, Valdez.
Moose get complicated with antler size restrictions, various unit to unit.
First time I’d just go black bear. If you have money to burn get a moose tag but read the regs regardless 20 and 6 are very complicated areas in terms of rules.
As a nonresident you won’t be able to hunt caribou via the road system without a draw permit and that application period passed last December. The units that are walk-in from a road are all draw, flyin aren’t... exception is haul road north of Fairbanks but you have to kill one 5 miles off the road.
Black bear are a draw in 6D, Valdez.
Moose get complicated with antler size restrictions, various unit to unit.
First time I’d just go black bear. If you have money to burn get a moose tag but read the regs regardless 20 and 6 are very complicated areas in terms of rules.
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Thanks!
AvidIndoorsman
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Also little bit of advice, do not trust your buddy to know the regs for you a NR. Most resident hunters have no idea how things work for non-residents.
If I had a nickel for every MT resident who tried to tell me you could just buy an elk license at Walmart.
If I had a nickel for every MT resident who tried to tell me you could just buy an elk license at Walmart.
Thanks for the input! I'ts got me thinking now.
HAHA!! I hear that! I hunt out of state quite a bit and my resident friends have no clue what is or isn't legal for me.
glass eye
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Welcome !
Where in AZ are you from ?
Where in AZ are you from ?
Gellar
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Welcome to Hunt Talk. Having hunted Alaska multiple times as a non resident and as a resident the regs can seem daunting at first but are understandable if you take the time to read and study them. The AGFD is very helpful if you give them a call wether it is for hunting info or clarification on a law. If it were me I would get a moose tag and a wolf tag for reasons mentioned above. Ask your buddy exactly where you are going; unit 20 has 5 subunits and each have a few differing regs.
Yuma
I just finished going through the entire AGFD regs. That's a ton of info. I'll definitely be carrying them with me. Too much to try and memorize. Thanks for the help!
glass eye
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Howdy Neighbor, from El Centro
muskeg
Active member
You don't have to get all those tags at one time ... a little planning and you can get them as you need them, kinda thing.
No need to learn all the regs. It's a big state lots of different regs for different areas, just narrow it down to the area you will be hunting. It's really not as complicated as some other states. Alaska is big on meat salvage (wanton waste). Also if your packing meat & trophy out in several loads, the meat must come out first and evidence of sex (of a boned out animal) must be remain attached to one of the hind quarters. Are a few of the rules to pay special attention to.
No need to learn all the regs. It's a big state lots of different regs for different areas, just narrow it down to the area you will be hunting. It's really not as complicated as some other states. Alaska is big on meat salvage (wanton waste). Also if your packing meat & trophy out in several loads, the meat must come out first and evidence of sex (of a boned out animal) must be remain attached to one of the hind quarters. Are a few of the rules to pay special attention to.
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glass eye
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I hunt Alaska every year, going on a diy solo kayak camping hunt in Dec.
If you're ever in El Centro stop by my shop and we can talk about Alaska.
Breck Dickinson Taxidermy
If you're ever in El Centro stop by my shop and we can talk about Alaska.
Breck Dickinson Taxidermy
Thanks for the info! I agree with just narrowing things down to a specific area.
I definitely will! I didn't even know there was a taxidermist in El Centro. Do you got a website or Facebook page?
glass eye
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Both ..... Breck Dickinson Taxidermy
Elkhunter24
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Good luck!
N_8
Active member
Solo to cold bay in December. That's is cool. Had a trip planned out that way this spring, just to explore....but well Covid, Ravin tickets...etc
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