SW Alaska Brownie (and some nice fishies)

I've been dreaming and planning on this since I was in elementary school in the 1970s.

Sweet bear and fish.

Did you eat the grayling raw with salt?

If you don't mind where in SW did you go?

Thanks.

We cooked the grayling. Interesting how they curl up violently in the pot after a few minutes when they are fresh (not shown in pic).



I was in the Nushagak River area.

nice bear, what caliber was your rifle

Nushagak is a very nice area.

The hide on that bear looked nice and thick.
Did you keep the meat?

I wanted to keep some, but we had all we could handle getting the hide and skull back to camp before night fell (and we flooded our waders a couple of times). By the next morning, the wolves and bears likely would have had their way with it. Plus, almost everyone tells me that BB tastes horrible. More details here.

.375 Wby. 300gr Nosler Partition at an impact velocity just north of 2,600 fps. The guide weighs in in the thread linked above. It was the quickest brown-bear kill he has seen in 23 years. I know it's fairly controversial, but it made at least one annecdotal argument that velocity can matter. The big bear tried to run, but made it only 25 feet.

Very cool, thanks for sharing!!!

Friggin huge head on those things!! Nice grayling too. Looks like you had an amazing time.

Good man - Thanks for taking the time to share your story.

If you don't mind, what's a trip like that run?

What were the temperatures like? I know you said it was hot and got up to 85 one day but what did the nights get down to and was it in the 80's every day?

Also, does Alaska not have laws against wasting meat? I'm not saying it was wrong to leave it, and I don't see how you had much of a choice in the matter, just wondering what the law is. I'm sure I would have done the same thing.

What is the sidearm you are carrying?

Nice brown bear and trout by the way!

Just an FYI - New Mexico it is not required to pack out meat from Bear or Cougars according to the Game & Fish regs. Maybe same rules apply there as well?

Looks like an awesome trip! Congrats

Wow. That's amazing. You have the tales to tell.... Nice.

Most units in AK you have the choice of taking the meat or hide home on bears.
You do not want the meat if they have been on fish.
It is still edible but tastes like shit.

I am drooling right now. Great bear and fish! That rainbow is gorgeous! The view from the river is spectacular. Wouldn't it be great to have a cabin right there?

Congrats!

Living the DREAM! Congratulations!!!!!!

Sorry it took me so long to get back to you guys. I thought this thread had run its course.

Thanks for the nice comments.

It had rained in the area essentially 60 days straight. Usually during that time frame there (September 6 to 17), the temperatures range from lows in the low 30s to highs in the high 60s. It rains at least half or more of the time.

In this case, we had better than average weather for the first three days (little misty only a little occasional light rain lows in the high 40s; highs around 70). But the last 7 days, it was sunny/clear almost all the time. So, it got fairly warm/hot during the day. And the temperature dropped more at night (as it often does when it’s clear) down to about 30 or so. For that reason, I’m lucky that I got the bear on the first day. After it warmed up, the big mammals became much more nocturnal, and would have been much more difficult to hunt.

The sidearm is a M83 Freedom Arms in .454 Casull loaded with 360gr Buffalo Bore HC bullets. I just chronoed three of them at:
1503 fps
1491 fps
1488 fps
(Factory says 1425 fps, but BB tends to load hotter than published and the 7-12” barrel helps too).



The Alaskan regs say that ”[e]xcept in Brown Bear Subsistence Areas, you are not required to keep the meat of a brown/grizzly bear.” http://www.wildlife.alaska.gov/regulations/pdfs/bear.pdf
There’s a reason for that. Coastal brown bear meat tastes like poop. No one I’ve ever heard of eats it.

It sure would be great to have a cabin right there, if you had a beaver or other plane to get you in and out.
.
You’re normally looking at about $10K minimum—not counting gear, ammo, etc ... It cost me less than it should have for various reasons, including that the guide had to cancel last year for personal & health reasons. Although very dissapointed, I knew that it wasn't his fault, and I treated him with trust and respect in a manner he didn't expect. I think that, more than anything, led him to cut me a good deal for this year. I think, for that area, and for a decent guide, the going rate is around $12K, for the guide and flights to-and-from the bush. I found my guide on the AK Outdoor forum linked in the earlier post. If you are considering such a hunt, that likely is the best place to look for contacts and info and to reference-check potential guides. Let me know if I can help with any more questions.

Thanks again for all the nice comments.

If I may, who was the outfitter? I am heding up for BB in may.

never mind I went to the link.... thxs again.

Congratulations! Well done.

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