2018 Drop Camp 26A

[Merc]

I want to thank everyone for their advice and insight. I spent the past month and a half overseas at work but started my travel home yesterday....or the day before I guess. I'll make it home to Anchorage this evening and start doing my bag drag and laying things out.

I'm taking the pick up on the road from BRA so fuel isn't a problem. I'll be leaving my driveway either Thursday or Friday a week from now depending on how the weather is looking but will update here while I can.

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[weekender7]

Welcome home and best wishes on a successful hunt.

 

[AKBorn]

Merc,

Welcome back to town! It can be hectic to be away from home for so long and then run out on a remote hunting trip. I’m betting that you have almost everything I will mention already covered – please take my thoughts in the spirit of wanting to help ensure you have everything you want to bring.

I like to have a comfy camp even when remote, so several of these things are not necessities, but I didn’t see them and wanted to mention them for your consideration…seeing how you are going solo and have plenty of room for extras in the 206.

Silk Long Underwear – To sleep in, it’s nice to get completely out of the hunting clothes and let them hand and air out overnight in the tent.

Belt – Am sure you were gonna bring one, but didn’t see it, so wanted to mention it.

License, locking tags, and harvest tickets

Transfer of possession forms

Small gun cleaning kit with oil/rag/patches

Nitrile Gloves – 4-5 pairs for the kill kit

9’x9’ Tyvek Meat Tarp – I cut a 9’x9’ piece from a roll of Tyvek, soak it in the clothes washer for a couple of hours, then run it through a wash/rinse/spin cycle without detergent. It takes the noise out of the Tyvek, and you’re left with a soft, light, 9x9 tarp to set your pieces of meat on when breaking down the caribou.

Empty 32 ounce Gatorade bottle – When it’s raining cats and dogs outside and I need to take a leak, this lets me do so without leaving the text. You can pour it out each morning around the tent perimeter to help with bear deterrence, scent is not typically as crucial on a caribou hunt as it is with moose.

2 large trash bags – To put your game bags inside when packing them (if you aren’t able to use the sled), to keep blood and blood scent somewhat off your backpack.

Hand Sanitizer – to clean your hands before eating meals or after cleaning game

Newspaper – I put a couple of sheets, loosely crinkled, into my boots at night, and in the morning they are dry on the inside. If I pull out the newspaper carefully and spread it out in the tent, it’s dry by nightfall and can be sued for 2-3 more nights.

Tent Lamp – Since you have room and weight space, a small battery-powered lamp is a slight upgrade in the tent from a headlamp

Mess Kit – I’m sure you were bringing, but didn’t see it listed – pan/pot, plate, mug, knife/fork/spoon, paper towels, a few Ziploc bags for snacks

Detailed Food List – Might want to list everything out so nothing gets left behind. On a 6-day hunt – with flyin and flyout days on either end - I will typically pack 9 breakfasts, 9 lunches, and 9 dinners, just in case I am weathered in. Then list the snacks you plan to eat through the day also, and coffee/tea of you drink it. Also bring a box of Saltine crackers, great with Mountain House meals and also help with an upset stomach if you happen to get one.

Bear Fence – I always bring one, don’t always set it up (sometimes the terrain doesn’t allow it. If you bring one may want to bring a fence tester also, to test the charge you are getting – you can get significantly different readings depending on where you put the stakes.


Again Merc, please take all of these thoughts in the spirit of wanting you to have the best time possible. Happy to answer any questions this post may generate, and have a great hunt! Share your story with us when you return.


Michael

 

[Merc]

Michael,

I always take advice and a few of those I hadn't thought about and will be adding. Especially the Gatorade bottle, hadn't thought about that.

I'll post here my menu as I finalize out the last of it and get everything laid out.

Thanks again,
John

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[adventure907]

Some great tips Michael!!

 

[Merc]

Fell behind on this as I got back from work a week before I headed out. I posted a recap on another forum I'm going to copy paste over here.

BLUF; successful but had to work for it. Transporter stacked us in like sardines.

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[Merc]

This maybe a 3 parter followed by pictures....

So, I had originally planned this hunt with one of my coworkers and was going to follow it up with a moose hunt. Things changed and our R&R's didn't line up and I'm not exactly the smartest out there and not afraid of a challenge so I called the transporter to confirm that we were going to still be able to set me in solo. They have no issues with it as I'm a resident now an hunting under the registration am allowed 5 caribou a day.... But they'll transport up to 2 in one load so no cost change.

I got home from work middle of August, just over a week before I was set to get dropped off and immediately started laying out gear and packing. Going in solo on my first fly in hunt I went a bit overboard on making sure I had what I needed and the safety blanket (backup) items.

Friday rolled around, I loaded up the truck and started my uneventful 11.5hr drive to the dirt strip they would be picking me up on. I ended up camping just south of the Yukon river and finishing my drive Saturday morning calling the service as I pulled in on the sat phone. They told me I'd have to hang out for a bit till weather cleared there in Bettles. Jay showed up in the 206, we loaded up and hopped over to the hangar where I'd end up spending the night under a Cessna 140 waiting for weather on Sunday to go in.

Met a couple nice groups there in Bettles coming and going, a fishing guide out of P. Mansfield and brothers from Anchorage and Montana, and a group from west Virginia and Pennsylvania. Ended up with great weather Sunday and after a little confusion on who was going where and with which pilot, I shared a beaver flight with the brother duo and ended up on a lake next to the easterners (more on that later). Uneventful landings and offloading (waders help) I watched the beaver depart, leaving me semi alone 150ish miles from town. Got camp set, practiced casting and went for a bit of glassing since there's no hunting same day you fly.

Woke up Monday morning to the tent getting peppered with a bit of rain, geared up and started walking. The area I was in was a pretty wide valley with a lot of rolling hills. Reminded me of antelope hunting, except wetter and the animals didn't stay put. I would walk to a couple different vantage points set up and glass looking at mainly small baby bulls and a few cows and calves. Had one opportunity on a smaller bull after lunch about a mile from camp but decided to pass and see how the week played out.

Tuesday was more of the same as Monday, off and on rain, mostly cows and calves and the only bulls I could find I had to study to make sure that's what they were.

Wednesday actually slept in while it was raining waiting for it to stop while I let my boots dry out some (the tundra was rough with random potholes). Finally got out of the tent about 9am, and started for a higher vantage point, hoping that the mature animals were staying high. About 11, it started sprinkling again and I'd made it a good way up the valley side (about 2mi straight line from camp) set up my tarp and started snacking and glassing.

I spotted with my binos on a ridge to my west about a mile away 5-9 nice bulls, the kinda animals you see and know are big. I grabbed my rifle, and started hauling butt (as much as you can in tundra) to try and cut them off. Said I wasn't very smart and left my pack set up under the tarp. I probably only made it 400yrds when a group of cows and calves came in from my left shoulder working their way between me and the bulls that I'd lost behind a terrain roll. Well the cows didn't like me and high tailed it straight towards where them bulls were....

I kept pressing that way and never saw them again, pretty sure the cows that busted me pushed them off. I ended up on a rocky knob, the highest point nearest my camp 3000'. And like any great defeated hunter decided to hike around it and see what I could see. That's where I saw the first of the eastern guys a few hundred yards away, waved at each other and he started the other way leaving me there on the mountain top alone. I found a few small sheds and

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[Merc]

and started back around towards my pack came around a corner and looked ahead and down a little and thought to myself 'damn that looks like 3 nice caribou' 'shit, that IS 3 nice caribou' dropped to a knee, and high crawled to a little high point as I pulled my range finder and hit them at 354yrds (perfect).

Pulled up the rifle, clicked the safety off, took a quick look through all 3 even though the middle was taller and more mass than the others. Settled the crosshairs right behind the shoulder, took a deep breath, focused, placed my finger on the trigger, gun went boom. Realized I forgot to put in my ear plugs. Racked another round in as I'm looking over the scope at all 3, they take a few trotting steps forward, not showing any effects, think 'damn I know I was solid'. Get back behind the gun and decide to try and put it at the base of his neck in front of the shoulder as he's quartering to pretty good now and anchor him before they take off down the wrong side of the ridge. Start my squeeze, gun goes boom and my ears start ringing again even worse. And I see his legs fold up before recoil pulls me off him. He's down and doesn't even twitch.

First caribou ever is down, my packs about a mile away, and he's 2.6mi straight line from camp... made my way down to admire him and offer a little payer of thanks to the powers that be. Took a couple of quick pictures and headed for my gear so I could get to work. Got back to him, a few more pictures with the help of the tripod since I didn't have a camera guy.

I took my time breaking him down to make sure I complied with salvage and proof of sex laws. Laid out all but the tenders, straps and a front shoulder a couple hundred yards closer to camp under a smaller drop cloth down in a rock crack where they'd get some good airflow and be protected from the drizzly rain that started. I stated my way back to camp just after midnight and he hit the deck around 1730. I didn't make it to my tent after setting up my meat cache until around 0200 Thursday morning.

I slept in and ate a good breakfast getting ready for the heavy work that waited ahead. Completely emptied my pack of everything but my emergency gear, snacks and water. And started back a more direct route (couple deep creek crossings) in my waders with my boots in tow. Made it across the deepest creek (over knee) stopped to change shoes and the kept hiking and hiking pole pole vaulted across the second. From there I went maybe another 600yrds and ran into the father son pair from West Virginia who were having lunch outta the wind. We b.s.ed for a bit, they like me hadn't been seeing much and one guy from their group had killed a smaller bull the day before. I advised them to move further up for a better vantage point and told them I'd look out for them once I had my meat load.

I made it to my meat cache (both rears, a front, ribs, trim and the head). Trying to be harder, not smarter I loaded it all up and started back. It was all down hill till the second smaller creek crossing so "easier"... part way back I jumped a few ptarmigan and thought about taking one with the 10mm, but with all the caribou meat on my back thought better of it and the other guys were still hunting. We crossed paths again as they were heading up to a better glassing spot. And I kept trudging down and made it across the smaller creek waded right through it and stopped to drop about half my load since it was going to be up and down the rest of the way to camp. Made my drop at camp uneventfully and headed back for the rest. Could see the father son duo making their way down to the left as I was looking, figured they'd spotted something and were making a move, I was going right of where they were headed so I didn't think I'd interfere. Made it back to my last load, strapped up and started back.

Was coming up on a hilltop and spotted the son on the right side, hunkered down stalking in. I dropped to my knees (antlers were on upside down so I knew I was safe) to watch. Lost sight of him as he pressed forward and then heard his rifle go boom.

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[Merc]

Stayed put for a minute and didn't hear anything else so figured he was solid or missed and they were gone. I got back on foot and made it maybe 50yrds when he shot again and I heard the meat smack, knew he had a good hit then. A few seconds later had a small/med bull and cow run not 30yrds from me. Not sure where the dad was and knowing he hadn't killed yet and not knowing where the son was, I left the pistol holstered leaving him the opportunity. He didn't take it, and good thing I didn't shoot as the son wasn't exactly in line but close enough I'd have been uncomfortable had we been swapped.

I hung out and helped them break him down, sharing techniques lending a hand where I could before my freezing wet feet sent me for the tent and warm sleeping bag with dry socks. Ended up in bed about 2100 to a crystal clear night that got into the high 20's perfect for the hanging meat. I called the flight service and due to the lack of bigger animals asked to get pulled out Saturday when the easterners on the lake next door got pulled out. And spent the day Friday laying things out to try and dry and rotating meat. Packed up Saturday morning passed a couple weather reports and waited of the Otter to show up and take us back to Bettles.

Made it to my truck around 1900 and loaded up and headed for home. Saw a sow and 2 cub grizzly on the side of the road (of course I didn't see any hunting). Grabbed a nap in the truck south of Fairbanks and made it home late Sunday morning after a bunch of beautiful scenery in the crystal clear sky's around Denali.


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[soggybtmboys]

We must have just missed you in Bettles. We flew into Bettles on the 18th, stayed overnight and got flown out to the Slope on the 19th. We got picked up on the 28th. We got dropped off on Inyorurak Lake, there were guys in other camps, but weren't any closer than 5 miles out, maybe a tad longer. I think we missed a decent push before we got in and by the end of the week and some cooler weather coming down, it was starting to pick up. Our last evening prior to extraction, was by far some of the most action we had all week, they were on the move decent enough, and the following morning there were some groups cruising thru.

 

[Merc]

Soggy Bottom Boys, yeah just missed you by a couple days. We're y'all up in 26A? They ended up putting me in 23, just across the border (according to onX).

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[soggybtmboys]

Soggy Bottom Boys, yeah just missed you by a couple days. We're y'all up in 26A? They ended up putting me in 23, just across the border (according to onX).

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Yes, we were in 26 A, big group of us...our camp had 8. The dropped us into Inyorurak Lake/Pass.

 

[Merc]

Yes, we were in 26 A, big group of us...our camp had 8. The dropped us into Inyorurak Lake/Pass.

Sending you a PM

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[rlmmarine]

Awesome thanks for letting me follow along

 

[Dexter Grayson]

Glad you had a great hunt! Soggy, we hunted inyourak last year. Really cool spot, but definitely a blow hole as there is nothing between you and the Arctic Ocean besides tundra.

 

[BillB]

Thanks for sharing the story and glad you had a good hunt. I hunted with BRA last year in the NE corner of 23, about 3 miles from the "line". Beautiful country for sure. Sounds like you at least had some decent weather.

I couldn't make it up this year but putting it together for next year -although my usual hunting partner can't make it so I'll be doing it solo.

 

[Merc]

Thanks for sharing the story and glad you had a good hunt. I hunted with BRA last year in the NE corner of 23, about 3 miles from the "line". Beautiful country for sure. Sounds like you at least had some decent weather.

I couldn't make it up this year but putting it together for next year -although my usual hunting partner can't make it so I'll be doing it solo.

Sounds like we would've been in about the same area. Solo is fun, just gotta know your limits.

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[BillB]

BRA called the lake "Ellsworth Lake" but neither my top0 nor Inreach had it named.