An Adventure In Bear Hunting In Southeast Alaska

?If you are looking for the best adventure of your life, bear hunting in southeast Alaska can be exhilarating. Research the area before you leave home, even on the type of bear hunting in southeast Alaska that you are interested in doing. As there are several different types of bears to choose from, it all depends on which one appeals to you most.

Learn the bear body language. This will certainly help you if you surprise one while out hunting, or encounter a Mama bear protecting her cubs. If you do encounter a bear, watch for signs that indicate you are too close. These signs include ears back and looking you directly in the eyes. It may also make woofing, barking, or moaning sounds to reinforce that they feel threatened. If this bear is not up to trophy standard for you, listen to the guide for how to retreat from a bear.

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Be prepared for any eventuality while bear hunting in southeast Alaska. Do not try to outrun a bear as it can reach speeds of 30 to 35 miles per hour. If a bear snaps its teeth and appears extremely agitated, it will most likely charge you. Often, bear charges are bluff charges. This means the bear will either stop short or veer off and run right passed you. Be warned, however, that this may happen many times before the bear leaves or attacks from a different angle. If the bear knocks you down, he or she is trying to eliminate a threat and will use whatever force it feels necessary to remove it.

One thing that you will be told by your guide while bear hunting in southeast Alaska, is that females with offspring and the offspring themselves are not to be killed. What you harvest in terms of bear meat must be thoroughly cooked to prevent a parasitic disease fatal to humans called trichinosis. Trichinosis is mainly caused by eating improperly cooked wild game meats, like bear and elk. Trichinosis is also more resistant to freezing, so this method may not kill all worms and diseases.

You may wish to spend time scoping prospective bears prior to shooting while bear hunting in southeast Alaska. Check the fur for poor quality hide – bare spots, mainly. This will also prevent you shooting a cub or a female with cubs. Eventually, you will find a bear to harvest that is a quality trophy for your den.

Your foray into the depths of bear hunting in southeast Alaska will prove fruitful if you use an accredited, experienced guide. Check into the reputation of all the potential guides. Most will be happy to provide references.

Goose Hunting Tips To Get Started Right

If you are new to the sport of goose hunting it is important to learn a few basics to help you understand how to be as successful as possible on your hunts. The first thing is to learn a few basic goose hunting tips that can be used in a variety of settings and locations, then refine these to meet the exact hunting requirement that you have. Remember that not all goose hunting tips will be applicable in all situations, but learning a variety of strategies will allow you to pick and choose what will work the best.

Some of the tried and true goose hunting tips include:

• Place your decoys in a J, U or X shaped pattern (called a spread) to most closely approximate the normal positioning of feeding geese. Remember that geese in the later part of the season will become very wary of decoys and you will need to be a bit more creative in strategically placing the decoys.
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• One of the most important goose hunting tips is to scout the area that you are going to hunt at least three or four days before you plan to hunt. Watch the movement, look for feeding fields, and study the large bodies of water to see where the flock typically flies to and from. If you have never hunted the area before consider using a local guide at least for the first time.

• If you are going to use flags to bring in flocks of geese, be cautious about how much action you put on the flag, especially when the flock is close. A gray or black flag can be used to mimic geese in a field, but it will not fool the flock when they get close. You may wish to consider a decoy with wing movement or a decoy on a spring mount and stop flagging when the flock starts heading your direction.

• If you are using calls do so carefully. Geese have different calls to indicate feeding, flocking and danger, so make sure you are giving the correct type of call. If you plan to use an electronic caller make sure they are allowed and legal in the area you are hunting.

• When using blinds be sure to have them set up well before first light. Choose blinds that have a low profile and are similar to the terrain and coloration of the surrounding area. Geese are likely to fly away and not land when the area looks disturbed or different, and blinds are often a dead give away that danger is present, especially into the season.

To get ideas for goose hunting tips for various areas consider using an online forum or joining a hunting club in your area. Many of the clubs provide information about other areas as well as offer discounts to guides and guide services in various areas.
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Alaska Bear Hunting From A Floating Base Camp

?Alaska Bear hunting will provide you with some of the best hunting stories you could ever hope to imagine. An adventure most just dream about can become a reality for you with just a few clicks of the mouse and some time spent searching for Alaska bear hunting opportunities and locations.

Here's something unique for an Alaska bear hunting opportunity, vessel based hunts, conducted off a floating base mobile camp. The floating base camp is a 60' Little Hoquiam charter yacht. New areas for Alaska bear hunting can be found daily. Additionally you can participate in world-class bottom fishing for the likes of Halibut and Ling Cod.

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This unique way to hunt is located in Homer, Alaska and they depart from that harbor to cruise the Kenai Peninsula. The usual routine is to glass the shoreline for bear as most are taken on the shoreline. These bears are spotted and then stalked in a fair hunt. With 18 – 20 hours of daylight each day, Alaska bear hunting can't get any better than this. Your fish catch will be vacuum packed for freshness. Hunters are responsible for the cape and meat from their harvest themselves.

One thing to remember if you do book an Alaska bear hunting trip, is that Alaska is famous for its bad weather. So, arrive in Alaska a day or two before your hunt starts, and make sure to leave room at the end of the hunt as well for weather delays. This is more prevalent in the Spring, but a Fall hunt can have its moments as well.

Other things to note for your Alaska bear hunting trip are: you stand a better chance of having a good hunt if you are in good shape. All staking is done on foot and a lot of rough ground is covered. You may also be out camping for several nights in spike camps. You should bring warm gear, but don't necessarily need "arctic gear". The most important item is a fur-lined hat with flaps to cover the ears. Some outfitters provide you with artic gear, and that saves you packing it. Check with your chosen outfitter before you leave for your Alaska bear hunting adventure.

Keep in mind that some Alaska bear hunting methods are perfect for a hunter who prefers close-range weapons like the bow, muzzleloader, or handgun. There's a slight element of danger that makes it all the more exciting.

If you hunt with a gun or bow, whatever you'd use on deer works fine on bears. A low behind the front leg shot drops a bear within 50 yards just about every time. Remember, any shot you do get is often at close range under low light conditions. Sight your weapon accordingly.

Hunting For Good Hunting Dogs

?How does one choose good hunting dogs without getting stung? Many dog breeders are like horse traders—you get what you get, and too bad if that isn't what was listed. So a dog breeder's reputation, letters of recommendation or phone calls, looking at siblings or mother and father of the dog means a lot when looking for good hunting dogs. Make sure they have some form of guarantee and for how long they guarantee the puppy or dog.

But what is good for one hunter may not mean the same for another, so make sure you know what you want before going out and looking. Do you want versatile good hunting dogs for all-purpose hunting, or one that is excellent at squirrel hunting or coon hunting? Look at where they will be living the remaining time—will it be a family member? Make sure the breed you want is one you have information on and have done your homework on. Just because grandpa had one doesn't mean you know what you need to know regarding the purchase of good hunting dogs.

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Good hunting dogs need to be disease free and have clean genetic lines, regardless of the breed. Make sure routine worming has been done as a puppy, which has usually been done from two weeks. Also, look at their shot records. Did they receive a two-week puppy shot series with only two weeks between them, beginning around five or six weeks? Once the puppy is weaned from its mother, its immune system becomes compromised, and it is up to the breeder to maintain that system up to eight weeks of age when it leaves the nest. A breeder who sells before then is not worth his or her weight in salt. Good hunting dogs mean exactly that—a good hunting dog, not one that is haphazardly bred to make a quick buck. Georgia is famous for good hunting dogs, as most Georgia hunters think more of their dogs than anywhere else, but make sure you don't get a bad breeder anyway.

Capers With Squirrel Hunting Dogs

?Hunting dogs and their owners have stronger bonds than most owners and dogs, with the hunting the added adhesive. With squirrel hunting dogs it is stronger than most. Breeds that are best for squirrel hunting tend to favor the curs and feists, with some terriers being good at it also. The best squirrel dog that is able to track the scent of the squirrel to where it is located, and then notify the remaining pack and hunters, is considered an excellent one at "treeing the squirrel." The squirrel hunters feel if a dog is good with squirrel hunting traits, it really doesn't matter the breed, even though once they find one they stay with it.

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Squirrel hunting dogs demonstrate an abundant energy and stamina, an excellent sense of smell, and are able to maintain a highly alert hunt with their eyes and ears. Excellent companions to their owners, they are part of the family, due to their high responsive behavior to commands and their ability to require less discipline than most other breeds. Squirrel hunting dogs are part of a hunting field all its own, with little in common with the other hunting types.

The rule of thumb is hunting dogs that hunt game well, other than squirrel, are usually not as good at squirrel hunting. Once this dog is found, squirrel hunters will breed this dog down for generations to maintain this natural squirrel hunting instinct. The physical characteristics of a feists, one of the best squirrel hunting dog, is a small dog that weighs less than 30 pounds, and stands 10-18 inches at the shoulder. The feists breed is a short-haired type with a variation of solid or mixed and makes a top-notch favorite for squirrel hunting dogs success story.

Another favorite breed for squirrel hunting dogs is the cur, which many non-hunters refer to as a low-class mutt due to their lack of knowledge of hunting dogs. This breed was developed during the medieval times in Europe, and was known as a favorite of the peasant farmer and herders. The dog came to the New World with the settlers, with squirrel hunting as one of its best functions.

They have a high sense of smell allowing them to hunt with their head up, and are powerful and courageous fighters, having developed an instinct for family protection. Weighing 40-60 pounds, and standing 17-24 inches at the withers, they are considered a short-haired strong muscular dog in an assortment of colors. This dog also is known as an excellent hunter for bear and wild hogs, but their intelligence is best used for squirrel hunting, instead of brute strength.

Squirrel hunting lasts about two to three hours tops, with an estimate of more than a dozen to two dozen squirrels hunted during that time. But if the squirrels are denned in the trees, the dogs cannot get a scent so the hunt will not be as productive as if they are down. Known as being highly unpredictable, a hunt is always a wild guess. It is one of the few sports when the noise of the hunters and dogs do not deter the hunting of the squirrel.

Choosing High Quality Bird Hunting Dogs

?For those who enjoy hunting and taking their best bird hunting dogs with them, where to hunt is always an issue in crowded areas or during particular times of the year or seasons. Advertisements galore offer wild game habitats where an ongoing wildlife management practice is enforced to maintain the population of big and small game species. And if a dedicated hunter signs up with a commercial outfitter operation, usually generous bag limits and large areas of private land offer more of a change of success with a person's bird hunting dogs.

The type of bird hunting dogs that a hunter chooses to use will depend a lot on what type of bird a person enjoys to hunt. Choosing a highly trained hunting and gun dog is very important to "when that person hunts successfully."

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Additionally, knowing the environment your new dog will be in at home will help this decision to be made also: Will the dog be kept outside in the natural elements, or will it be inside or in a warmed kennel? Will there be more than one in the kennel, or will it be by itself in its own kennel? Will it have a large kennel run for exercise, or will it rely on its owner for walking or some alternative form of exercise? Many experienced hunters keep their bird hunting dogs acclimatized to the same atmosphere they hunt in at all times.

There are the many types of bird hunting dogs in regard to their levels of individual training, from raw puppies with no training, to young dogs with some early training, to finished or broke hunting dogs, and finally Field Trial Dogs. It is said that gun dogs can be purchased at any time during their gun training, but it is very important on this level to look for high-quality bird hunting dogs that are good with the specific bird-type they are built to hunt for. If the new dog is bred from a Quality Field Championship line, it can be expected to hunt upland game birds, compete in field trials at Local levels, Regional levels, and National levels.

Alternatively, a person can buy his bird-hunting dogs as puppies, and train them himself. It is a step-by-step process: buy it right, start it right, retrieve training needs to be done right, and point training needs to be done right. This whole process will in turn teach the bird hunting dogs to be "steady to wing and shot," according to professional dog trainer, Kenneth C. Roebuck in his book, Gun-Dog Training Pointing Dogs.