Pre duck season rewiew - big game.

Yukon Mike

Yukon Mike

Well-known member
Its still weird to me to start the season off with big stuff and have to wait until Sept 1 to hunt birds. Here's my highlight reel for Aug.

Mac signed up to help out with the first three hunts for an Outfitter up here. Each hunt is 12 days, so I wasn't planning to see him much in Aug. As it turned out, he got back to town early on all three hunts so that was nice.

Loading up the big plane.

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Me and Meg and The Buns did a little float plane trip to scout for sheep Aug 1. I wish I was a comfortable in a tent as that dog.

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My back was really bugging me so I couldn't carry a pack at all and on day two I didn't carry my rifle. It happens. It was one of the funnest hunts I've ever been on and Meg's first float plane experience. She was trying to make her pack look heavy but all she had in there was two raincoats.
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We saw a couple of caribou, about 100 Dall sheep, and a high light for her was the Pikas. She'd never seen one before. We found these two sheds too.

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Getting picked up with the Beaver.

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While we were camping in luxury Mac was busting his butt to get a hunter a chance at a Stone sheep. It was his first time ever as the guide in charge of the safety of one packer and the hunter. He did great, and they got a really nice ram on day 7. Hi fives all around.

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Last week him and I got to fly back into the area Meg and I had scouted to try to find a white sheep for him.

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I love that place. Anyways, the short version is that the sheep weren't there, but we saw 7 different Grizzly bears, a pack of wolves, and 1 wolverine. So we decided to do a little predator hunting.

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That is the kid's first bear, pretty nice one too. One shot kill with his .270. He carried the hide, skull, hinds and backstraps back to camp and its all ground and in the freezer waiting to be sausaged. It just tastes like any other bear, its good. And was he fat!

The next morning it was raining a bit so Mac and I were laying in the tent with The Buns outside digging for gophers. All of a sudden she came ripping back into the tent barking her head off. We were both thinking BEAR so Mac grabbed his gun and got the fly unzipped to see 6 or 7 wolves coming in. He got two shots off before they were gone and hit one. I think that little dog had a close call there.

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I spotted three old caribou racks from a low hill so we went for a walk in the rain just for something to do. This was the biggest one. Mac carried them back to our tent and we left them there for the next guy to dry his socks on.

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And one last one. Here's something you rarely see... Teals resting at 5000'. I guess when you need a rest any old puddle will do.

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Oops I almost forgot. I got a call that a berry farmer was having troubles with a sassy black bear, so I went out to have a look. There was this one girl picking berries all by herself and as we were talking about how she had trouble chasing the bear away the day before out he walks. I told her I didn't really want to shoot it as I only had the one black bear tag left and am saving it for an Oct bear should I get the chance. "No problem" she says, "I bought a tag yesterday, I just don't have a gun." We got her set up with Mac's .270 sitting with Dave Shady's old bipod and after about 20 min she got her shot. BLAM, dead bear at 100yds. She was so excited, she'd never shot anything before, not a grouse or a gopher or anything. I helped her butcher it up and we made a bunch of sausage for her and her mom.

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This duck season has been crazy with more ducks than ever around for the opening. Mac and I must have got 50 Mallards and Pintails as well as a few Specks already. Lots of new people out giving it a try this fall too so that's good to see.

OK that's enough out of me,

Mike
 
Awesome photos and story. I'm glad Buns knows what direction to run when wolves are around.

btw Those are some classy knives you have made.

Tim
 
Thanks so much for sharing. I an remember Mac as a little fella when I started visiting the boards. Its neat to have watched him grow up as well as all the great experiences you guys have had and continue to have!

Brad
 
I most certainly hope you introduced Mac to the berry picker. Never know when she might have other "varmint" issues that needed to be attended to and a strapping young man that can carry his own raincoat as opposed to an old crippled guy who has to have his daughter carry his would be a better call. Never know when a bear might need wrasslin don'tchaknow.

Steve
 
Wow, what a great time with the kids. Bears and wolves, good Bunners has good sense. Surprised be about Meg not having seen pika.... would have thought you had some under the shed in back. Have to get up north again soon!

Those knives look super!
 
I most certainly hope you introduced Mac to the berry picker. Never know when she might have other "varmint" issues that needed to be attended to and a strapping young man that can carry his own raincoat as opposed to an old crippled guy who has to have his daughter carry his would be a better call. Never know when a bear might need wrasslin don'tchaknow.

Steve
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Hahaha made me laugh .....wow....what a great August ....makes me long for cooler temps here.
 
I enjoyed your pictures and stories Mike. You've already had a great hunting season before many of us have even started. I'm still wrapping stuff up in the garden!
 
Mike, Thanks for sharing stories and pics. Love the dog pic in the tent, they do know how to live the good life and we can learn from them. Hope your back gets better, getting old is not for sissies. Nuttin wrong with a .270 for sure.
 
WOW Mike. That is one heckuva pre-duck season review.

Congratulations to Mac on being a successful guide.

So it's mid-September now......where's the bird pictures?
 
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