When you think of going on a coastal brown bear hunt in Alaska, you think of all the planning and preparation that takes place. I had just over two months from the time I found out I was going to the beginning of the hunt. Sometimes it really pays to be lucky!
You see, on June 30, 2017, I submitted a video on the Facebook page of DiamondBlade Knives as to why I should be chosen to go on an Alaskan hunt for either moose or coastal brown bear in late September 2017. I made it to the top ten videos, and after a telephone interview, I was selected for the top three from which they drew my name as the winner on July 15th. I would leave Anchorage, Alaska on September 23, 2017.
As part of the hunt, Josh Dahlke with the internet-based hunting show "The Hunger" would be along for documenting the hunt and Caleb Copeland would be filming all aspects of the hunt. This, in turn, meant sponsors of the show would be supplying most gear for the hunt, keeping the good luck rolling!
I have been fortunate to do many self-guided public land hunts in the western United States, so I was able to get myself in condition for the hunt. Being self-employed let me move my schedule around so I could have the time off, and my wife has flexibility with her schedule so she could be home to care for our adult daughter who is physically disabled and requires care from one of us. With the details taken care of, the hunt was on!
I met up with Josh and Caleb in Anchorage on September 22nd, and we boarded a plane for Cordova, Alaska on the 23rd. From there, we were shuttled by a smaller airplane to the lodge. We would be hunting with Mr. Charles Allen, the owner of DiamondBlade Knives and Knives of Alaska and who is also a registered Alaska Master Big Game Guide. He owns and operates the Alaska Expedition Company (www.alaskaexpeditioncompany), where the fishing and hunting operations are based along the Tsiu River, renowned for its silver salmon fishing.
Upon arrival at the lodge in the early afternoon, we bought our licenses, got settled in, and verified zero on the rifle. With those tasks behind us, we went to the river to experience the silver salmon fishing, and experience it we did. The salmon didn’t seem to notice I hadn’t used a fly rod in over 25 years! While watching a few bears enjoy their fishing, we caught many fresh run salmon ourselves.
The next morning involved moving upriver by flat bottom boat, moving through shallow water and stopping to hunt potential bear feeding areas. Seeing bears at 500 to 700 yards upstream was one thing, but stalking close enough for a shot was an entirely different matter. Walking along the river on bear trails with the thick tangle of brush growing right up to the river kept us guarded as a bear encounter could happen at any time. All told that first day, I spotted 17 bears from cubs up to three large boars. As happens so many times, the reality of why they call it hunting would bring me back down to earth.
Day two brought us to hunting with no bear sightings for the first part of the day. We changed locations and hunted a tributary stream feeding into the Tsiu River. This change of scenery didn’t produce any bear sightings. As we ended the day, moving back downstream at dusk, we spotted a large boar at 400 yards along the river’s edge, slinking into the brush. This bear became the only one spotted this day.
The third morning found me riding a four-wheeler with Charles Allen before daylight heading towards the river launch point, stopping and walking to a tall sand dune, and to set up for glassing. Within minutes, we had located several bears from 200 to 600 yards away. The largest boar was at 600 yards, and after some time, he began quartering towards us. We gathered our gear and moved quickly 200 yards towards his travel path, sitting on the edge of a dune. He would pass by within 120 yards in front of our position. As he reached 110 yards, he stopped with a drift log covering the bottom part of his body. I hesitated in taking the shot, knowing to take a heart shot if possible. That momentary hesitation turned into five seconds, and the bear caught our wind, turned, and ran back in the direction he had come from. Knowing opportunities like that may come along only once weighed on me the rest of the day as we saw very few bears with no other mature boars sighted.
The fourth day found our area under a high wind advisory with a front moving in. We did venture out for a couple of hours and fought the driving rain and gale force winds and were rewarded with spotting two bears, one of which appeared to be a good bear at 700 yards.
The sixth morning of my seven-day hunt found us heading to where we had spotted the bear the previous evening. We would park the four-wheelers and walk to set up on a sand dune, hopefully intercepting the bear as he traveled back to the timber for his daytime slumber. As we got into position, we spotted a bear walking towards us from 400 yards out. I rested my gun on the shooting sticks, counting on the bear crossing in front of me at a distance of 100 yards. He meandered slowly, giving us plenty of time to prepare and for my heart to really begin to race. In the coming light, another bear was spotted in the distance from where we had traveled. After spotting the bear again, we pointed him out to Charles and he glassed him for evaluation. After he looked both bears over, he stated that I needed to take the bear that was walking to us from the other direction. I immediately turned to four o’clock from my position, steadied the sticks, and found the bear in the scope. As I found him, the brute had also spotted us and raised up on his hind legs at a distance of 89 yards. As the crosshairs settled on his chest, Charles whispered to take the shot when I could. I immediately fired the .338 Winchester Magnum, hitting him in the chest. As he came down, I followed up with the other three rounds in the rifle as he walked and stumbled for another 20 yards.
After giving him plenty of time to expire, we walked over to see the brute. This was an instance when there was no ground shrinkage upon getting to the magnificent animal! This old boar measured approximately 9 1/2’, and after the 60 day drying period, he measured approximately 1/2” above the Boone and Crockett minimum of 26”. I have received the skull along with the tanned hide and have scheduled to have him officially scored. This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the ages!
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