Alaska Unit 23 Federal Land Status

[Kerrbow]

Does anyone know if Unit 23 Federal lands are still closed to non-resident hunters? Thinking about a hunt out of Kotzebue and don't wont to be confined to the state lands along the rivers.

 

[Ecmiller35]

Yes they are closed until a new decision has been made. However it’s only closed in certain areas within the unit. I believe they are the Squirrel, Eli, and Aggie river drainages and a 10 mile wide swath along the Noatak, but could be wrong. We booked a hunt out of Kotz for the 2019 season.


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[Kerrbow]

Was in contact with a couple of transporters out of Kotz and it was not brought up in conversation, so a little concerned they did not mention it. hoping it gets rescinded soon. Seems kind of like rolling the dice and hoping it comes up with a good number.

 

[Ecmiller35]

Was in contact with a couple of transporters out of Kotz and it was not brought up in conversation, so a little concerned they did not mention it. hoping it gets rescinded soon. Seems kind of like rolling the dice and hoping it comes up with a good number.

Just out of curiosity who were you speaking with? We discussed it at length with our transporter and have a good feeling about it


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[Kerrbow]

Just out of curiosity who were you speaking with? We discussed it at length with our transporter and have a good feeling about it


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We have been talking with Golden eagle outfitters out of Kotz

 

[chucko]

I would not worry

We have been talking with Golden eagle outfitters out of Kotz

The guys at golden eagle will take you to a good spot.I have been hunting out of Kotz for 20yrs with Matt Owen of NAT he has always been awesome caribou are weird and move around a lot I have hunted them on both federal and state lands there is a lot of territory around I would just let them do their job.I look forward to my hunt every year whether on state or federal land.You can pretty much guarantee that they are not going to drop you off on river bar and say hunt to high water mark.I would say go for it these guys are all mostly taking only returning clients so that should tell you something

 

[Larry Bartlett]

Hey guys, those closures can be understood a bit better by this video from a couple of years ago. There should be at least 3 videos with over 1.5 hours of caribou hunting focus inside these GMUs. Hope it helps if some of you haven't viewed them.

lb

if it doesn't embed, here's the link: Intro Narration on Vimeo

[video=vimeo;201352852]https://vimeo.com/201352852[/video]

- - - Updated - - -

The Hunt Part 1: Hunt for Caribou Part 1 on Vimeo

The Hunt Part 2: Hunt for caribou Part 2 on Vimeo

 

[awapiti]

Larry, your mailbox is full. A PM is inbound.

 

[Larry Bartlett]

The Natives have learned how to beat non-local hunters out of the areas they hunt, and they claim they hunt all over up there so they want everything eventually shut down for everyone except themselves. The closures two years ago (above) and the ones on the fence now are simple examples of how the system isn't working to protect federal tax payers in these areas. The warmer it gets the more unpredictable the caribou herd migration...so don't expect these closures to go away.

Because the feds make it so difficult for non-local hunters to have a meaningful voice in these matters by holding the public meetings in remote villages, it's a losing proposition for individuals and groups to show up every year for this bullshit. It's all a big show of policy and fairness, but it is far from a legitimate matter of managing land and animals for all.

I plan to hunt anywhere they close and do it below mean high water unless specifically forbidden by the state of Alaska. The feds can close lands they manage, but the state controls hunting bag limits and seasons AND river access below the flood line even in closed areas which are otherwise legal to hunt.

I'm done spending thousands fighting these closures because they will not slow down and federal policy allows it to continue bouncing on our non-local heads anyway.

Pu trust in your air operators to find caribou around these closures, and get to them before the Natives have a chance to complain about their traditional areas not having any caribou.

 

[Kerrbow]

Pu trust in your air operators to find caribou around these closures, and get to them before the Natives have a chance to complain about their traditional areas not having any caribou.[/QUOTE]

I agree with you. The transporters have to continue to offer reliable hunting opportunities to non-resident hunters to continue sustaining their businesses i would assume. It appears to me that the main area is the Noatak river. Hopefully other areas will continue to be open. Thanks Larry for keeping up with this land grab nonsense.

 

[TEmbry]

Noatak is a controlled use area, No airplanes at all for hunting purposes Aug 15-Sept 30 so unless you plan to hunt first two weeks of August no NR will be hunting there.

 

[Kerrbow]

Noatak is a controlled use area, No airplanes at all for hunting purposes Aug 15-Sept 30 so unless you plan to hunt first two weeks of August no NR will be hunting there.

Setting up for a mid Sept. hunt so figure the transporter will get us into an area away from the closed areas.

 

[Larry Bartlett]

Embry, as I understand the Regs as they are printed in the Alaska Hunting Regulation Booklet the Noatak Controlled Use Area is restricted to 5 miles on both sides of the river from the mouth to Nimiuktuk Creek. That leaves a significant landscape still legally available on the major tributaries of the Noatak River.

You can still hunt inside the Controlled Use Area and harvest caribou below mean high water line according to the state of Alaska. You just can't land a plane within this CUA for the purposes of supporting hunting during the closed dates.