Haul Road 2014 transportation

[colonel00]

I might be looking for a job in a year or two

 

[Mike7]

Good info Brad. Thanks.

 

[elkeaterco]

Heading up to do this hunt Aug 3-13. Anyone else going to be in the area?

 

[mossyhorn]

I see this thread is from earlier this last winter. But thought I'd add in a point...

I've done this hunt 5 times as a resident and between my wife and I, we've killed 4 bull caribou. Having a vehicle is of your own is crucial for this hunt. You cannot expect to drive up and have someone drop you off and hike out and expect there to be caribou. The road is very long and there may only be caribou in one small section. So you will need to be able to drive and find the animals before you take off on your hike.

One particular trip up two years ago in early September yielded only a handful of caribou seen and they were cows and calves. It became a glorified camping trip. In talking to the pilots that were flying hunters out, the caribou were all about 50 miles to the west and not moving towards the road.

I would not do this hunt without a vehicle that I could use daily.

Another thing to consider, this road can be very tough on vehicles. My first trip up I was actually on my way back home and a rock from an on-coming big rig slipped through my grill and hit my radiator. I was dead in the water on the side of the Haul road. After sitting there for 24 hours the tow truck finally showed up and hauled me back to FBX. Waited over night for a radiator flown up from Anchorage and back on the road home 3 days and $1500 later! I've been lucky in my 5 trips with that being my only issue, that and one flat tire... Make sure you have a solid rig and tires. A cheap rig off craiglist may leave you stranded 400 miles from civilization.

 

[Snipershirt]

Good advice mossyhorn...heard about your radiator issue previously, talking about unforeseen!

 

[KINGSNAKE]

For the guys that have done this hunt. What seems to be the success rate. We are considering this as a back up plan in 2015 if we don't draw NM elk tags.

 

[elkeaterco]

I see this thread is from earlier this last winter. But thought I'd add in a point...

I've done this hunt 5 times as a resident and between my wife and I, we've killed 4 bull caribou. Having a vehicle is of your own is crucial for this hunt. You cannot expect to drive up and have someone drop you off and hike out and expect there to be caribou. The road is very long and there may only be caribou in one small section. So you will need to be able to drive and find the animals before you take off on your hike.

One particular trip up two years ago in early September yielded only a handful of caribou seen and they were cows and calves. It became a glorified camping trip. In talking to the pilots that were flying hunters out, the caribou were all about 50 miles to the west and not moving towards the road.

I would not do this hunt without a vehicle that I could use daily.

Another thing to consider, this road can be very tough on vehicles. My first trip up I was actually on my way back home and a rock from an on-coming big rig slipped through my grill and hit my radiator. I was dead in the water on the side of the Haul road. After sitting there for 24 hours the tow truck finally showed up and hauled me back to FBX. Waited over night for a radiator flown up from Anchorage and back on the road home 3 days and $1500 later! I've been lucky in my 5 trips with that being my only issue, that and one flat tire... Make sure you have a solid rig and tires. A cheap rig off craiglist may leave you stranded 400 miles from civilization.

Mossyhorn, thanks for the intel. We talked to two rental companies that make vehicle specially for this road. (heavy off road tires, two spare tires, CB radio, and so forth) It's going to run us close to $2000 for 9 days. Do you know who flies this area? We would be willing to pay a little bit for some intel from a local pilot. thanks much

Jake

 

[colonel00]

Who did you talk to for your rental? Check with GoNorth as they were the cheapest I could find. I have a reservation this year for 9-10 days and it will only run me like $1200. We used them two years ago and the truck did great, was fairly new and had a shell on the truck bed.

In regards to fly out services, there are a few that fly out of Happy Valley. 70 North is the one I see most commonly recommended as an air taxi.

http://seventynorth.com/home/

 

[mossyhorn]

For the guys that have done this hunt. What seems to be the success rate. We are considering this as a back up plan in 2015 if we don't draw NM elk tags.

I think a success rate is hard to put on this hunt. It's different than most other hunts in that there may be a lot of caribou or there may be absolutely none and nothing you can do will change your chance of success. It is by no means an easy hunt. There is little to no cover in most places and the terrain can be pretty flat to rolling. It's all a matter of getting a caribou in the right spot to put on a good stalk.

Mossyhorn, thanks for the intel. We talked to two rental companies that make vehicle specially for this road. (heavy off road tires, two spare tires, CB radio, and so forth) It's going to run us close to $2000 for 9 days. Do you know who flies this area? We would be willing to pay a little bit for some intel from a local pilot. thanks much

Jake

The main guy that flies this is 70 North. They do a good job from what I hear with the caribou hunters, but you're going to pay anywhere to $1500 to $2000 a person for a flight out. That may have changed since it's been a few years since I got a quote from him. Another outfit is Deltana, they do drop hunts but are pricey as well. I do believe they allow you to take 2 caribou with their fee. There are a couple smaller outfits that operate out of Happy Valley but I can't recall their name. You might want to do a search over on the Alaska Outdoor Forums as there is a ton of info on that sort of thing over there.

I wouldn't be too put off by $2000 for 9 days on the truck rental. If you can split it 3 or 4 ways, that's cheap. Figure in your gas too! Gas in Coldfoot is over $5.00 a gallon and Deadhorse is as well.

 

[elkeaterco]

Who did you talk to for your rental? Check with GoNorth as they were the cheapest I could find. I have a reservation this year for 9-10 days and it will only run me like $1200. We used them two years ago and the truck did great, was fairly new and had a shell on the truck bed.

In regards to fly out services, there are a few that fly out of Happy Valley. 70 North is the one I see most commonly recommended as an air taxi.

http://seventynorth.com/home/

Brad, we ended up going with Alaska Auto rental, it was 1600 plus .31 a mile, for a crew cab, off road truck. It fit our needs better then the other company I talked to that had a Ford Escape jacked up specially for the haul road. That one was the same price but included 250 miles a day. Hope we have a shell but if not we will just pick up a tarp in town.

Thanks for 70 north contact. I'll give them a call when we get back from camping Wed.

I'll update this page with our experience once the fat lady sings.

 

[elkeaterco]

The main guy that flies this is 70 North. They do a good job from what I hear with the caribou hunters, but you're going to pay anywhere to $1500 to $2000 a person for a flight out. That may have changed since it's been a few years since I got a quote from him. Another outfit is Deltana, they do drop hunts but are pricey as well. I do believe they allow you to take 2 caribou with their fee. There are a couple smaller outfits that operate out of Happy Valley but I can't recall their name. You might want to do a search over on the Alaska Outdoor Forums as there is a ton of info on that sort of thing over there.

I wouldn't be too put off by $2000 for 9 days on the truck rental. If you can split it 3 or 4 ways, that's cheap. Figure in your gas too! Gas in Coldfoot is over $5.00 a gallon and Deadhorse is as well.[/QUOTE]


Thanks for the info. I'll give them a look this coming week.

 

[colonel00]

Brad, we ended up going with Alaska Auto rental, it was 1600 plus .31 a mile, for a crew cab, off road truck. It fit our needs better then the other company I talked to that had a Ford Escape jacked up specially for the haul road. That one was the same price but included 250 miles a day. Hope we have a shell but if not we will just pick up a tarp in town.

Thanks for 70 north contact. I'll give them a call when we get back from camping Wed.

I'll update this page with our experience once the fat lady sings.

Cool. Just for reference for anyone else that comes across this thread, here is the link to GoNorth and their rates. Not too bad at $119/day which includes 100 miles. A 10 day trip would be right at $1200 before taxes and other fees and you would have 1000 miles. Depending on your intended hunt and whether you plan to drive the road a lot, prepay for another 500 miles for $175.

http://www.gonorth-alaska.com/index.php?id=215

Oh, and make sure you book it early. They only allow you to "hunt" with the pickup truck so there is limited availability and they book up a year in advance since moose season opens right around the same time as caribou as I understand it. The 25% deposit isn't chump change but worth the money to lock in a vehicle. For me this year, I waited too long because I wasn't sure what dates would work. When I finally had dates, they were mostly booked up so I had to shift the hunt back 3-4 weeks. If your dates have to change a little, they can try to work with you on it.

 

[Nick Muche]

Any reports from this August yet? We are headed up this week for 10-12 days. Hopefully it's a good time!

 

[Stid2677]

Nick,,

Have a friend working at Happy Valley,, he sent me this yesterday.


Lots of caribou out east on the Canning, and hunters are flying back with plenty. They are definitely moving south, seeing more along the road up north as well.

 

[Nick Muche]

Oh my, my heart is pounding. Thanks for the update Mr. Steve!

 

[Stid2677]

Oh my, my heart is pounding. Thanks for the update Mr. Steve!

I saw 2 HUGE bulls right at the top of the Beaver Slide,, west side of road, so keep your eyes open.

 

[Nick Muche]

That far South? Wouldn't that be a treat

 

[Nick Muche]

Anyone else hear anything encouraging, headed up today... Looking pretty dismal on the AOD Forum, but that's ok...

 

[colonel00]

Keep them north fir a few more weeks please

 

[elkeaterco]

My buddy got it done the second to last day. We hiked up two rivers and pack raft out to find this guy along the main river. Big shout out to http://kokopelliraftco.com for a bomb proof pack raft.

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