On opening day, Sept. 15, eight moose were reported in this year’s Unit 1D moose hunt, making Friday one of the biggest harvest days in recent memory.
“So far so good,” said Carl Koch, Alaska Department of Fish and Game wildlife biologist. “Opening day was right up there with one of the biggest I’ve seen in eight years. Top two at least.”
Koch said the first day of the hunt averages between three to five harvested moose. This year, opening day saw clear, sunny weather after a string of rainy days. Koch said moose were likely moving around after poor weather conditions lifted.
Haines High School student Jackson Long shot a moose on the first day of the hunt, his first harvest from the Chilkat Valley.
Long’s mother, Pam Long, said their family processes the meat into burgers and various sausages such as bratwurst, pepperoni sticks and breakfast sausage. The harvest will help keep their family fed for a year.
As of Wednesday afternoon, 15 moose have been harvested in six days. Three moose were reported on Sunday, one on Tuesday and two on Wednesday. The harvested moose include 10, three-brow tines, one with antlers more than 50 inches, and four spiked forks.
“I just talked to a hunter at the airport and they said they didn’t think moose were moving around a lot,” Koch said on Tuesday. “One hunter took one that came right to the call. They’re starting to get ready for sure.”
Koch said no sublegal moose have been reported, but several moose were a close call.
“I encourage folks to take their time,” Koch said. “There were a few questionable ones that ended up being legal. Take a really good look at the moose and don’t shoot if there’s any doubt.”
Koch said he’ll likely let the hunt continue until 25 moose are harvested. Estimates from last November’s aerial moose survey are a population size of 352.
“That’s a pretty good number. I saw over forty bulls when I did my survey and I surveyed about ninety percent of the valley,” Koch said. “I would have liked to have seen more calves, but in general I think the population’s doing pretty good.”
The brown bear hunt is also ongoing, after opening on Sept. 15, and will close after two male brown bears or one female is harvested including any bear shot in defense of life or property. Typically, the hunt lasts until Dec. 31, but Fish and Game managers instituted a new management plan after 2020 due to excessive brown bear mortality. So far this year, three bears have been taken out of season.
“A non-resident hunter was in Skagway and mistook a brown bear for a black bear,” Koch said. “Hunters should make sure what species of bear they’re targeting. That’s the first time that’s happened to me in Unit 1D. Unfortunately, it counts as a dead brown bear because that’s what it is.”