AK Sheep, Population Observations

[Sourdough]

It is good that there are still places, on the road system you can park your truck at 4:30 AM start hiking/hunting, harvest a full curl ram before noon, be back at your cabin with the meat hung before sunsets the same day, have a beer with a shot of tequila. Wash-up and sleep well. Same with Caribou, Black Bear, Brown Bear, Mt. Goat, (moose are getting harder to do a successful "one day-hunt" but it is doable).

 

[Thunder]

It is good that there are still places, on the road system you can park your truck at 4:30 AM start hiking/hunting, harvest a full curl ram before noon, be back at your cabin with the meat hung before sunsets the same day, have a beer with a shot of tequila. Wash-up and sleep well. Same with Caribou, Black Bear, Brown Bear, Mt. Goat, (moose are getting harder to do a successful "one day-hunt" but it is doable).

Do you really believe what you type? Just curious…

 

[Sourdough]

Do you really believe what you type? Just curious…

YES........100%

Curious.......What part is hard for you to grasp......???

 

[Bambistew]

Not debating your numbers, but where did you get them? I'd like to be able to look up that kind of info

You can request the raw data from ADFG. They don't calculate the numbers for you, you'll have to dig into it yourself.

The population issue has little to nothing to do with killing rams or who kills them. If it is an issue, then we are all to blame, and all the studies that suggest that mature rams are surplus to the health of a herd are all wrong.

In the couple areas I hunted this year, sheep numbers were similar to last year, fewer legal rams, but about average or a little below otherwise for lambs/ewes/rams. Populations have been up/down for ever. At one time the population of sheep in the Brooks was very low, then it bounced back, and now we are back toward the bottom. The overall trend of the populations seems to be on the decline everywhere though. We however don't have a huge data set to compare historical populations, to really drill down the reason. Is it reduced predator control/trapping, high coyote numbers, climate change, invasion of plants into sheep habitat, low snow, high snow, wetter falls, etc? Is killing off all the old rams hurting the long term survival? Prior to FC regulations we shot 2x as many sheep, and the populations were much higher.

 

[Bambistew]

Do you really believe what you type? Just curious…

It's 100% fantasy land where he lives. He hasn't hunted anything besides a SS check in 10 years, let alone ever walk in off the road and kill a FC ram in a HT area in a day and be home before dinner.

 

[lonedave]

He hasn't hunted anything besides a SS check in 10 years

I'm going to have to remember that one!

 

[Sourdough]

Of course you totally lack the gonads to bet money on that.

It's 100% fantasy land where he lives. He hasn't hunted anything besides a SS check in 10 years, let alone ever walk in off the road and kill a FC ram in a HT area in a day and be home before dinner.

Why would I hunt for my social security check......??? It is deposited automatically every month into my checking account. I'll bet you ten thousand dollars I can prove that has been the case for 12 years plus. Of course you are lacking gonads. I assume you know exactly where I live, but that only proves you know very little if anything about game populations in this area. For another ten thousand dollars, I show you where that pocket of sheep hides. Of course you got no gonads.

The bottom line is I have been hunting/guiding/flying in Alaska it for over five decades, and you whoever you are....are jealous, that I spent a lifetime flying my airplanes all over Alaska, doing game population surveys, and flying for many guiding companies, and ferrying planes back and forth from lower-48.

You might be surprised what a commercial pilot driving super cubs all over Alaska for four decades knows about where there are pockets of Dall Sheep.

Actually two other hunters (one was only 16 y/o) have both walked into this spot, shot full curl rams and out the same day. I have no idea who you are, nor do I care, but high probability, I was shooting Dall Sheep when you were in school, maybe diapers.

It must suck to be as insecure as you are.

 

[Bambistew]

Of course you totally lack the gonads to bet money on that.

Why would I hunt for my social security check......??? It is deposited automatically every month into my checking account. I'll bet you ten thousand dollars I can prove that has been the case for 12 years plus. Of course you are lacking gonads. I assume you know exactly where I live, but that only proves you know very little if anything about game populations in this area. For another ten thousand dollars, I show you where that pocket of sheep hides. Of course you got no gonads.

The bottom line is I have been hunting/guiding/flying in Alaska it for over five decades, and you whoever you are....are jealous, that I spent a lifetime flying my airplanes all over Alaska, doing game population surveys, and flying for many guiding companies, and ferrying planes back and forth from lower-48.

You might be surprised what a commercial pilot driving super cubs all over Alaska for four decades knows about where there are pockets of Dall Sheep.

Actually two other hunters (one was only 16 y/o) have both walked into this spot, shot full curl rams and out the same day. I have no idea who you are, nor do I care, but high probability, I was shooting Dall Sheep when you were in school, maybe diapers.

It must suck to be as insecure as you are.

So you admit you haven't done it, but 2 people did it once, how many years ago? I'm guessing a couple decades? But by your estimation its very common, and there are "pockets" of sheep that get overlooked? Yep, pockets of sheep all over the place, super common. Congratulations? I know a guy that shot 70" bull moose on the highway this year. By your logic anyone that didn't kill a moose is an idiot, they just need to drive around on the highway and find a 70"er. Happens all the time, actually 10,000 times in a year down by Hope. I'm sure you've probably done it twice this year alone.

Flying for your guiding companies? Damn you're stepping up the fantasy for a guy that hasn't done anything in 12 years.

We all know you could beat Jesus 2 out of 3 times at arm wrestling. Probably 3 out of 3 times if you used your arm.

 

[Nick Muche]

Instant Classic

 

[ColeyG]

If Sourdough wants to send me the way point, I will head in there, truth check his claims and report back. Next year of course, sometime after August 10.

 

[Sourdough]

Happens all the time, actually 10,000 times in a year down by Hope.

See......once again you have skillfully shown you don't know much about game population, and nearly zero about the general Hope, Alaska area. There used to be large moose populations, here. So many that in the late 1960's F&G built a series of corrals along the dirt Hope Road (built 1957-58) to study moose feed consumption. There where a lot of moose here till they locked up and closed the hunting of Brown Bears on the Kenai Peninsula. The bear population exploded, and that was in my opinion the destruction of the massive moose population. So once again you are WRONG. And full of deeply flawed information. But this is understandable given you gather your education from the internet.

Perhaps if you got off your fatass and spent more time wondering Alaska you could learn.

 

[Arctic_Beaver]

I can't help but think of someone lobbing pop shots at the rams along the Seward Hwy when I think of "done in a day sheep hunts!" I guess I must have missed the glory years!

 

[rickiesrevenge]

You can look up general numbers easily on adfg back to 2010. I think with the advanced stats you can go back further and parse out non resident vs resident. I think the number of hunters column adds up both res and non res along with both unsuccessful and successful.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've seen that data. But thats a long ways from breaking down res and non res, along with breaking down who non-res hunted with.

 

[Sourdough]

I can't help but think of someone lobbing pop shots at the rams along the Seward Hwy when I think of "done in a day sheep hunts!" I guess I must have missed the glory years!

Yes you likely missed the glory days, Alaska totally transformed in the mid 70's because of the massive influx of workers on the TransAlaskan Pipeline.

But you can still day hunt sheep off the highway system.

 

[Bambistew]

See......once again you have skillfully shown you don't know much about game population, and nearly zero about the general Hope, Alaska area. There used to be large moose populations, here. So many that in the late 1960's F&G built a series of corrals along the dirt Hope Road (built 1957-58) to study moose feed consumption. There where a lot of moose here till they locked up and closed the hunting of Brown Bears on the Kenai Peninsula. The bear population exploded, and that was in my opinion the destruction of the massive moose population. So once again you are WRONG. And full of deeply flawed information. But this is understandable given you gather your education from the internet.

Perhaps if you got off your fatass and spent more time wondering Alaska you could learn.

I'm not sure what you're shooting for with the corrals, or if its just your Alzheimer's is kicking? Let me guess you helped build those corrals and broke half those moose to pull sleds and ride? Where you here when Cap'n Cook sailed up the inlet too?

You got me on the fatass thing. Pretty funny coming from a guy that is a member of about 30 different forum boards (probably more) and posts all day long. When do you have time to get out side? Does the outside just live in your head now? I pray for you Sourdough, pray that you don't get lost in the woods on your way back from fantasy land. I will also never forget that to ReALy sEE aLazKa yOu nEeD a bUSh pLAnE. #pocketsofsheep

 

[eamyrick]

My first non res trip to Alaska was this year. Magical place. Headed back next year for a Caribou hunt. I was blown away by how many mature Grizzlies we saw. Do any of you residents think it would be prudent to allow non-res Grizzly take without a guide. I would come hunt one for sure but the 20k guide fee is awfully steep. Maybe just in areas with sheep predation?

 

[Sourdough]

I'm not sure what you're shooting for with the corrals, or if its just your Alzheimer's is kicking? Let me guess you helped build those corrals and broke half those moose to pull sleds and ride?

The corrals were built to study how much habitat the moose required. The corrals were about 30' by 30' and intended to keep the moose "OUT". That way they could allow the vegetation to grow inside the corral where the moose could not have access to it. For years the vegetation "outside" the corrals was browsed and kept at a height of about (4) four feet tall, this included willows, new growth birch trees, alders, everything was kept trimmed surprisingly uniform height, for decades.

While the vegetation inside the corrals continued to grow. Trees grew to 30 or 40 feet, alders grew to 12 or 16 feet height. This allowed the study of food and habitat required. I have never seen the report of the conclusions from that study. But got to watch it happen. My wild guess is those corrals were built in 68' or 69'. Summer of 70' we established a bear camp in the very back of Cripple Creek, and over into the Little and Big Indian country.

 

[BrooksRanger]

Unfortunately another great thread goes down....Courtesy of Sourdough, aka AKG AGL4now. Seriously I was really hoping to learn something about peoples's experiences and anecdotal observations in the sheep areas that they have hunted THIS year. I don't give a rat's behind about moose corrals. Sourdough....you really ought to write your experiences and knowledge down in a book and self publish like so many other Alaskans do these days. Can you please, quit trolling the forums. I wish I could have lived in the good old days, but that wasn't when you first got here to Alaska that was before Columbus arrived on the continent. In that regards pretty much everyone here is a latecomer; however, since I'm here now I'll have to do the best with what's left and try to leave it a little bit better than I found it.

 

[kaboku68]

What he didn't say is that you have to be a local resident of a subsistence community near one of the National Parks to enjoy those 1 day dingers. Regular joes have to perform a Christmas miracle to find a ram that is any where near legal. I think that the perfect example is Coke Wallace who is a great guy. Coke has a deep tan and probably has lost 40 lbs this sheep season running and running and running trying to make yahtzee out of an area that he has managed successfully for a very long time. There just aren't the sheep numbers that there used to be. Pockets yes. I can find a place for anybody to throw in their hand but the sheep numbers are really down in a lot of areas. They killed a 4 year old full curl sheep with 10 inch bases and 28 inch horns in TMA. Think of that. Just getting the bottom of the barrel in an area that was specifically set up for trophy rams and will probably be closed next year. DCUA was not the magic land of the past. Very competent sheep hunters with lots of time and money were skunked this year. More hunters are pouring into very small areas. There are some diamonds in the woodpile. I wish I could say but I could say that if you spend 4-5K on that Wright Air Helio-Courier that there were some groups that through luck and pluck and covid worked to get 4 out of 4 full curls in a party. But they worked their azzes off.... The good old days of 1000 legal rams taken during a season are gone. Sheep are almost magical animals and while predator control has boosted moose populations in 20A and other areas. Bios are still in Narnia. They need to act fast and work to stabilize different population subgroups and if eagles have to die. So be it. I never liked them anyways. Covid has been a complete disaster for me because they can't find Covid approved subs so I can't freaking go. I am not crying in my milk that is just the cards. But I can tell you that if stuff doesn't get fixed we are in for some crappy solutions. Rant off.

 

[Sourdough]

What he didn't say is that you have to be a local resident of a subsistence community near one of the National Parks to enjoy those 1 day dingers. Regular joes have to perform a Christmas miracle to find a ram that is any where near legal.

Wrong........what I am saying is anyone who can walk up hill (including Anchorage, AK. City hunters), can drive to places (a few on the Kenai Peninsula) and with a basic harvest ticket, collect a full curl Dall Sheep Ram off the road system, in one day.
You don't have to be a "local" resident.