Alaska Grizzly Bear Hunts

Our Fall Grizzly Bear hunt takes place in the Alaska Range and is one of the best in all of Alaska. Large numbers of Grizzlies arrive in our area during late fall to take advantage of a run of spawning Chum salmon. At times the numbers can be staggering. We have seen as many as 21 different bears the first day of our hunt, all concentrated on a stretch of river less than 2 miles long! Admittedly, this is very unusual even for us but it demonstrates the potential of the area and hunters can expect to see several trophy bears within the first few days of their hunt. We have taken numerous bears that qualify for the SCI and Boone Crockett record books.

Hides will generally square between 7′-8 ½’. We have taken several bears with hides squaring over 9′. I have 2 comfortable and safe 8×12 frame cabins in this area, one on each side of the main fish spawning activity. The largest Grizzly bear ever killed in recorded history was taken less than ½ mile from one of these cabins in 1998. One of our hunters killed the current World Record SCI Grizzly, taken with a hand gun.

These bears are extremely wary and may become nocturnal or leave the area completely if pressured. Therefore, in an effort to keep human scent to a minimum, we hunt only the most productive hours of the day. The oldest and largest bears tend to come out just before dark and this is when we try to anticipate their movements. We have had some success hunting early morning as well. Anyone in reasonably good health can participate in these hunts, as the walking is all relatively flat and distances less than 1 mile. Magnum calibers of .300 or larger are ideal for Grizzly, with bigger being better, provided hunters are comfortable with the recoil and can shoot them well. Quality partition bullets such as Nosler or Swift A-Frame are also strongly recommended. Most shots are less than 150 yards.

Grizzly Bear Combination Hunts

Each Spring we return to the Alaska Range Camp previously described. There are usually several good bears roaming the area looking for salmon scraps left over from the previous fall. This is also a great time and place to take a prime Wolf. The remainder of our spring Grizzly hunts, as well as all of our Grizzly combination hunts take place in the Arctic region near the central Brooks Range. These bears are sometimes referred to as “barren ground” Grizzlies. Due to environmental conditions and the resulting genetics, they do not typically attain the massive size of some of the bears to the South. However, hide quality and color is excellent, and the hunt setting is spectacular.