- kURT 12/30/2004, ID=2429

Kurt -- Good choice -- Sitka blacktails are unique animals (NOT just little mule deer!) and a hunt for them provides a good opportunity to explore great country and see a lot of game. While I have hunted them in Southeast and Prince William Sound, Kodiak offers the best chance to see a lot of bucks in my opinion, especially on the south side where the terrain is more open and conducive to glassing and stalking. Deer season runs August through December, but the bucks will lall be high early on and tall grass can make spotting them difficult. The first two weeks of November are usually peak rut, but any time from mid-October through early December can be good. Hunting from a boat offers a number of real advantages. You can move around, so you're not hunting the same country every day, and you can go to sleep at night without wrorrying about brown bears. The only drawback is higher cost, but in my opinion it's worth it. The last issue of Traditional Bowhunter (F/M) has a destination profile on Homer Ocean Charters, a very good outfit. You might want to look that article over. Have a great trip and don't forget to stay on your toes in brown bear country. Don

- David 12/14/2004, ID=2402

David -- First, my apologies for not getting back to you sooner. I won't bore you with lame excuses. First, if you are not a resident of Alaska, you will legally need to hunt with a registered guide, so your decision boils down to the choice of a guide. Second, in terms of area, I would consider a fall hunt in southeast Alaska. Kodiak and the Alaska Peninsula get the lion's share of the press, and if you really have your heart set o a 10-foot bear, that is probably where you would have to go. However, I take the position that any mature brown bear with a bow is a trophy, including an 8-footer from SE. Hunting along the salmon streams then would likely offer multiple encounters at potentially close ranges. I'm afraid I can't recommend a specific guide based on personal experience. Hope you have a great hunt. Don

- Berni 09/08/2004, ID=2371

erni -- First of all, as a non-resident alien, you will have to hunt with a registered guide for any big game in Alaska. Your guide should answer other questions in detail depending on the exact area you plan to hunt. In general, you do not require general hunter education unless you are under 16 years of age and you do not require bowhunter ed unless you are hunting in an area limited to bow and arrow only (unlikely in these GMU's). But likeit or not, you will have to hire a guide. Good luck with your bear. Don

- Susan Moss 08/24/2004, ID=2368

Dear Susan -- Your note brings back a lot of old memories. I spent much of my childhood haunting the halls of the MIB (when I wasn't out hunting and fishing). You will be pleased to know that both my parents are still active in the outdoors, wing-shooting and fly-fishing regularly although they are well into their 80's. I don't really think there's a hard and fast minimum poundage for any game species, because so many other variables are involved. Certainly, accurate shot placement trumps draw weight any day (not to mention quality of arrow flight, broadhead design and sharpness etc.) No doubt a #46 bow could killl any game animal in North America undeer ideal conditions. But since conditions aren't always ideal -- and neither is our shooting -- my standard reply is to shoot the heaviest bow you can shoot without sacrificing accuracy at hunting distances. Caribou are light boned and thin skinned, and I think that with all the qualifications just noted in place, #46 should be adequate. Elk are another matter. I think you could do everything right and still have an unsatisfactory result at that draw weight. I'd consider #55 a minimum. No doubt someone will write back and tell about killing a bull cleanly with a #45 bow, but I still think you need a little margin for error. I'm facing all this on a personal level now. I underwent urgent neck surgery last month that left me with significant weakness in my right arm due to cervical nerve root compression. Strength is returning slowly, but I've told myself I won't hunt elk this season (which opened today) until I can handle that weight again, which is still considerably lighter than my usual. But you gotta draw the line somewhere... Hope you have a great season and please give my best to all my old friends in Cooperstown. Don

- Mark Williams 05/23/2004, ID=2341

I've made the point before that moose don't seem as mentally tough as elk or bear, but they still have thick hides and heavy ribs, so I prefer a heavy shaft. The bow weight you describe should handle a 650-700 gr arrow and that's what I'd aim for. Don

Be sure to visit E. Donnall Thomas Jr.'s Website - E. Donnall Thomas is the hunting editor for Traditional Bowhunter Magazine as well as the author of several bowhunting classics including "Longbows in the Far North" and my favorite "Longbow Country." Don spends several weeks a year hunting his former home state of Alaska and when he is not chasing Moose and Caribou, he can be found bowhunting Africa.