Any Alaska residents here?

[mxgsfmdpx]

More time and effort than Idaho? When did you move? I'm just curious because I've noticed it getting exponentially worse in the last few years. And those that hunted before I started here told me it had gotten bad back then. I don't have a ton of money for that but I have plenty of time.

You love to hunt elk and are considering moving to one of the worst Elk hunting states from one of the best Elk hunting states.

If you said moose, sheep, goat, caribou, fishing, etc. then Alaska can’t be beat. For elk, it mostly sucks.

 

[IdAu]

You love to hunt elk and are considering moving to one of the worst Elk hunting states from one of the best Elk hunting states.

If you said moose, sheep, goat, caribou, fishing, etc. then Alaska can’t be beat. For elk, it mostly sucks.

I love a lot of things. I said a few times I'm more concerned with general access and exploration. If I never see an elk again but everything else is great, I'll be ok.

I'd be happy just to be able to spearfish for giant lingcod again. Or prospect in areas that haven't been hit a million times over or ran through with a bucket dredge. Or trap wolves where I don't have a substantial population of hippies screaming at me and setting off my traps. Or fly fish a section of river that hasn't been fished multiple times in the last week. There are tons of reasons, and elk was only one example.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

I love a lot of things. I said a few times I'm more concerned with general access and exploration. If I never see an elk again but everything else is great, I'll be ok.

I'd be happy just to be able to spearfish for giant lingcod again. Or prospect in areas that haven't been hit a million times over or ran through with a bucket dredge. Or trap wolves where I don't have a substantial population of hippies screaming at me and setting off my traps. Or fly fish a section of river that hasn't been fished multiple times in the last week. There are tons of reasons, and elk was only one example.

Moose>Elk

Fight me folks.

 

[IdAu]

Moose>Elk

Fight me folks.

If I'm being completely honest I don't even care about elk that much. Getting into yelling matches with bulls is exhilarating. But It's just one animal, one small piece of the puzzle. It doesn't matter what it is. I'd rather be able to semi homestead with foraging, hunting whatever, prospecting, and fishing. I'm getting tired of all my friends telling me I belong in Alaska and having never even been there.

I appreciate the info to not hold my breath for elk there. On that note, it's time to head out and go get one here before it's too late.

 

[johnnycake]

More time and effort than Idaho?

The average road system big game hunt in Alaska is exponentially more time and effort than anything in Idaho. Come up and get eyes and boots on the ground, read the regs, see for yourself. But maybe you're one of those stupid lucky bastards that has a 60" bull walk across the Parks highway in front of you during season while you drive to the trailhead.

Moose>Elk

Fight me folks.

Moose are unquestionably bigger. And I hate them all the more for it. Elk are way more fun to hunt than those dumb, belligerent, giant swamp donkeys.

 

[WRO]

Fishing is still good in most of the sides except for kings. Hunting in Idaho is better imho, you can get away from people and you can hunt from sept-Jan, you’re pretty much toast in Ak by end of October. Winter sucks and then there’s break up. Summers rock.


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[Yellowknife]

Summarized very well by most of the above Logistics and planning ahead is the crux. Money sure doesn't hurt either.

It IS absolutely an outdoorsman paradise if you put in the effort though. I just got back from a three day canoe trip on lakes loaded with trout and char... and in 24 miles of travel I saw just one other party. Hard to do that anywhere else other than canada.

View from the tent door on Labor Day looked like this:




That catch is that A.) I drove 200 miles to the put-in, and B.) I portaged between lakes 21 separate times over the weekend. Like most things, the good stuff usually takes some work. The trailheads close to towns will be swamped.

Hunting wise, it's not easy for the new guy, but I have had continuous success for almost two decades now. If you are consistently successful in Idaho, odds are you can figure it out here.

 

[johnnycake]

Fishing is still good in most of the sides except for kings. Hunting in Idaho is better imho, you can get away from people and you can hunt from sept-Jan, you’re pretty much toast in Ak by end of October. Winter sucks and then there’s break up. Summers rock.


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He mentioned he's interested in trapping wolves... There's a lot of that to do all winter long if he gets a ditch banger fan cooled sled. And the bird hunting in the winter might be my favorite thing to do all year up here.

AK Winter > AK Summer
Yeah, I said it. Fight me

Fewer casuals, hippies, and tourists out on the trails. Bird hunting, ice fishing, and trapping that is vastly superior to any of those things in Idaho. The ability to go so many more places that the rest of the year are impenetrable swamps. WINter can't get here soon enough!!!

 

[WRO]

He mentioned he's interested in trapping wolves... There's a lot of that to do all winter long if he gets a ditch banger fan cooled sled. And the bird hunting in the winter might be my favorite thing to do all year up here.

AK Winter > AK Summer
Yeah, I said it. Fight me

Fewer casuals, hippies, and tourists out on the trails. Bird hunting, ice fishing, and trapping that is vastly superior to any of those things in Idaho. The ability to go so many more places that the rest of the year are impenetrable swamps. WINter can't get here soon enough!!!

How much time have you spent bird hunting Idaho? We’ve got fantastic waterfowl and upland in southern Idaho until end of January, you can trap wolves in Idaho quicker out of Boise than out if los anchorage. My hunting partner traps all winter in sight of the Boise lights.

We can ice fish here and fish open water all winter, plus the daylight lasts longer than 5 hours.

Ak does have its pluses although most of the places I hunted as a kid are either over run or closed to non subsistence.

 

[johnnycake]

How much time have you spent bird hunting Idaho? We’ve got fantastic waterfowl and upland in southern Idaho until end of January, you can trap wolves in Idaho quicker out of Boise than out if los anchorage. My hunting partner traps all winter in sight of the Boise lights.

We can ice fish here and fish open water all winter, plus the daylight lasts longer than 5 hours.

Ak does have its pluses although most of the places I hunted as a kid are either over run or closed to non subsistence.

I've done a lot of bird hunting in Idaho and it is pretty great.

But I LOVE me my ptarmigan and +9 month seasons

 

[thinhorn_AK]

The average road system big game hunt in Alaska is exponentially more time and effort than anything in Idaho. Come up and get eyes and boots on the ground, read the regs, see for yourself. But maybe you're one of those stupid lucky bastards that has a 60" bull walk across the Parks highway in front of you during season while you drive to the trailhead.

Moose are unquestionably bigger. And I hate them all the more for it. Elk are way more fun to hunt than those dumb, belligerent, giant swamp donkeys.

My 2nd year in Alaska, me and a buddy got a nice bull moose on a relatively short float trip on the parks highway.

There are also ways to walk in for other animals but you’ll have competition and you’ll need to figure out where those places are.

 

[WRO]

I've done a lot of bird hunting in Idaho and it is pretty great.

But I LOVE me my ptarmigan and +9 month seasons

It’s on my bucket list for 26..


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[Yukon Cornelius]

Ahhh... That's not what I wanted to hear. I have plenty of time, but I don't have the money to charter a plane or boat every time I want to go somewhere.


Are you saying the 4 wheeler isn't great because everyone else can use one to get to the same areas, or it just wont get you very far with the terrain and brush? I'm also going to spend a ton of time prospecting, so I'm not worried about hunting as much as I am general access and exploring.

Everyone owns a 4 wheeler. Hunting the road system you are hunting with 300k other people. All with the same atv you have.

The further you go from a population hub the better your chances become IMO. I chose to hunt unit 21 accessing from the Yukon bridge for moose. After striking out 3 years in a row for moose I went to the Yukon. Punched a tag.

The terrain is brutal out here and it isn’t easy on machines. I’ll never hunt out of an atv. I prefer boats. That’s another issue altogether.

 

[Snowwolfe]

Alaska, you either get it or you don't. The winters can be long and dark. But wow, the spring, summer, and fall sure can make up for it.
In general, you do need big boy toys to enjoy it here and they come slowly. You pick them up when you can afford them. One at a time.

You don't need the toys if your young and in shape and have time to burn. There are still places you can drive to and hike in and hunt sheep, grizzly and black bears, moose, and blacktails depending on what part of the state you live in.

Is Alaska for everyone? No. Plenty of people come here and only stay a few years and can't wait to move out. Some (like the wife and I) think after many decades we want to move to a warmer climate only to discover our hearts belong in Alaska and we move back.

My advice is to move up and try it. You may love it, you may hate it. But you will never know until you try it for a few years.

Our son, and his wife were born and raised here. They moved out in 2013 when they were around 25 years old. They moved around a little, explored the states. Then moved back over 2 years ago and are happy and content.

 

[wyosam]

I'm taking a trip to Anchorage in the Spring to explore and see if moving will work out and have some questions.

Is Alaska everything hunters and outdoorsmen dream of, or overhyped?


How is access out there? If a guy has an ATV is the sky the limit, or is there a ton of vegetation/obstacles that make exploring the vast wilderness extremely difficult?


I looked up success rates online and was surprised at the low %. Do you think a lot of people buy tags and don't hunt, or is taking an elk there just as hard as anywhere else? Either way, I'd be extremely happy just to not constantly bump shoulders with other hunters.


If I get accepted into my Masters Program in Anchorage I'm stuck there. But if not, I'm open to other areas. Any suggestions on must-see places to check out while I'm there?

What's the best way to get all your guns up? Canadian is apparently a no go, so I can't drive them up with me. Ship them individually to myself, or use some type of service to get them shipped all together?


Thanks.

Bolt action hunting rifles can be driven up. Pistols are a no, AR’s and similar also I think. 4 wheeler gets you to the same places the other people with 4 wheelers go, and there’s a bunch of them. The hunting is cool- you can hunt stuff that requires a lot of draw luck to hunt in L48. Don’t expect an annual version of people’s once in a lifetime hunt to Alaska, unless you have a lot of free time, and really deep pockets. If hunting access/opportunity and reliable freezer filling (with game) were my primary driver on where to live, I’d be headed back to Wyoming tomorrow.


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