What does it cost to do an Alaska caribou hunt?

[NW Jamie]

What does it cost to do an Alaska caribou hunt?

To understand the cost of non-resident tags is an easy task, but what about the whole rest of the cost. The guide service, bush planes or boats, food and supplies,handling the meat and getting it home, etc.? I lived on the Kenai Peninsula for several years in the eighties and know that you just don’t drive up and walk out into the bush and go hunting, as well of the guide requirements for non-residents. It would be a trip of a lifetime and I am trying to understand just what it will/would cost, thanks in advance for your input.

[eman614]

i hear you can do self-guided hunt for alot of the game in alaska. i'm pretty sure that caribou is one of the. that being said. you can hunt them from the road going up the dalton highway i believe. alaska is broken into different zone you have to find out which zones have a huntable herd in them. thats all i know . good luck .

[John/Alaska]

There is not a guide requirement for non resident US citizens to hunt caribou in Alaska. Only for Grizz/Brown bear, goat & Sheep would a guide be required unless you are a non-resident alien then you would need a guide for all big game.

Actually there are a few places that you can "drive up and walk out into the bush and go hunting". The haul road is a good example as well as the 40 mile herd from both the steese & the taylor highways.

Go to the AK F&G site. There are a bunch of herds here and that site will tell you where )gmu) and the season on them.

[NW Jamie]

Originally posted by John/Alaska:
There is not a guide requirement for non resident US citizens to hunt caribou in Alaska. Only for Grizz/Brown bear, goat & Sheep would a guide be required unless you are a non-resident alien then you would need a guide for all big game.

Actually there are a few places that you can "drive up and walk out into the bush and go hunting". The haul road is a good example as well as the 40 mile herd from both the steese & the taylor highways.

Go to the AK F&G site. There are a bunch of herds here and that site will tell you where )gmu) and the season on them.

Thanks John,
I will check out the fish and game site; I was under the impression that you had to have a guide if you were non-resident; with you putting that straight then it may well fall into something that I could afford. Thanks.

[cch]

I hunted there in 03 and it cost me from Seattle food and air service just under 3000.00. That was out of Illiamna the flight from Anchorage to Illiamna was more than the flight from Seattle to Anchorage.

[akdd]

No guide requirements for caribou if you are a non resident. If you are a nonresident alien then you are required to have a guide. Look around this site.  http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/  There are some hunt planners that frequent this site to. They will assist you in arranging a DIY hunt.

[eman614]

is it possible to get caribou tags for this year as a non resident?

[akbow]

I don't believe there is ever any limit on boo tags for non res. hunters. Most first time hunters should plan on having a flying service take them out. they know where the animals are at any given time and have lots of options as to where to put you. the cost will vary by air service but plan on spending $1500 to $2000  once you reach anchorage. Be sure to ask about additional charges for things like flying meat out, storage of meat if picked up early and having them drop by to check on you half way through the hunt. You will Find a fly out hunt to be a great experience weather you get a animal  or not, and it will most likely improve your odds greatly over a "road hunt"

[eman614]

the reason i ask is i will be in fairbanks the first part of august. my grandparents have a cabin up there. is there a reasonable herd to hunt near there. i'd sure love to give them a try. thanks for the info.
eric

[akdd]

In August the cheapest way from Fairbanks would be to drive up the haul road. Archery only within 5 miles of the haul road. Be warned that the haul road is 500 miles of gravel road with one service station in the middle. If you are planning on driving it you need to be well prepared. If you are renting a car they probably won't allow you to drive it on the haul road. If you wanted to do the fly out you can go out of Bettles into the Brooks Range. Here is a couple of links for operations out of Bettles. I know nothing about either of the two outfits but have read some good reviews about them both for what that is worth.
 http://brooksrange.com/services/index.htm
 http://www.alaska.net/~bttlodge/

[NW Jamie]

Originally posted by akdd:
In August the cheapest way from Fairbanks would be to drive up the haul road. Archery only within 5 miles of the haul road. Be warned that the haul road is 500 miles of gravel road with one service station in the middle. If you are planning on driving it you need to be well prepared. If you are renting a car they probably won't allow you to drive it on the haul road. If you wanted to do the fly out you can go out of Bettles into the Brooks Range. Here is a couple of links for operations out of Bettles. I know nothing about either of the two outfits but have read some good reviews about them both for what that is worth.
  http://brooksrange.com/services/index.htm  
  http://www.alaska.net/~bttlodge/  

Thanks, I will check that out. At best it will be a year plus away, but worth starting to plan, thanks again for info.