Yep, were still making images for the masses.....

Gonna finish up our rounds here and leave the two oldest and the youngest home with a ton of sewing to do, and get with making more fur on the Seward peninsula, where we move to at the end of each January, as the suns up enough to have a day of it and the ice is thick enough to be on lakes, rivers and the Ocean.

Thanks for the positive and future plans ,hope and pray you have a good catch. smith

I really enjoy watching your portion of the show. You keep family involved in everything.
Good job.

Chip , I really enjoy your segment of the show .

Thanks, guys.

Doing this now for 6 years, its fairly easy, as its just us being ourselfs, with added editing , overtalking, music and commercials..........LOL!

It's actually easier now that I am not screwing around with Black Powder Substitutes or even being a felon anymore, I can be my normal 'Hunter' self.

The wife has it easier as well, not having to pull triggers to make our world work, 'cept in the Ocean on Seals and such, but she loves that kind of hunting.

One girl in collage and one headed there next Fall, the one thing the show did for us was to afford those things I never thought I would, now that I dont have lawyers bills sucking the $$ outta my pockets.Since everything in our lives previous to LBZ is flat out owned by us,'Cash and carry' or make it yerself, we have very little overhead outside of motor parts, gas, and in the village, utillitys, and were allready self supported, so we just bank it for some other day.
Our 16 year old Carol is gonna join us, shes hooked on getting out, camping traveling, hunting here and there and catching something,no matter the temps........ She's good for me to take along, since the sons have been outta the house for so many years, and the 5 years I couldnt use/teach riflemanship to her or the other kids.

I wish I could post more about our doings, but I have to restrain to just off production stuff, but theres plenty of that. I dont mind questions about what you see, though.

Stan Z, You and I have mutual 'production' friends I think....Fox, Carper, maybe Grieber......the few eps Ive seen of Yukon men were those fellas on laptops in tents, when the weather was 'N-tents' LOL!
I do like your Youtube biographys, very interesting, for sure.

Your part on Life Below Zero is the best part but your posts on the Alaska forum before TV were off the chart. Very interesting. Not just your show but several shows seems the production guys want to show people missing alot while hunting. I know better.

Chip- I was watching an episode one day and had to run some errands. It was the episode where your family set up a windbreak around a tent when you were getting set to hunt caribou. Whole bunch of wolf tracks on the skidoo trail Did you catch up to some of those wolves?

Goatman,
Ive always loved to write, as much as I love to read . Im glad you liked the writeups, although the show has sorta restricted me on such, I lurk and comment, here and on other forums.... although Im free to write about what happens off camera, and I still post a little about such.

Ryan,
We likely didnt get the particular Wolves that made those particular tracks, but we get a good score the next morning.............although we didnt get them on camera, so the 2 we got ''Didnt happen" LOL!! but a camera man cant always be there, either.

I had a ''pizz post' I sunk into the ice, in a wide spot in the river with a nice cliff to back side it. Sooted and muddied up the post to blacken it , placed my dog 'Monster' s crap and yellow snow around and set 3 legholds.
I went to check it the next morning, though still sorta dark and stopping above the set I had one in irons and 3 more running away, but some tracking and 20 minutes later I had 1 more.
I popped the one in the trap with my .22, as a Wolf dead in the trap is worth more than 3 running away.....and there was no way I could let him stay trapped and flipping out for another hour or so, while I go get a cameraman to make me look good.

Theres no way to leave fleeing Wolves to get a camera guy......LOL!!

The trails we make from the coast to the trees are often used by Wolves, as the snowgo tracks harden.

That’s cool stuff chip. I love that feeling of discovering fresh tracks on a day old trail.

Caribou - We do have those mutual friends. Some of those guys I filmed with I consider lifelong friends now. Grieber for instance was my main cameraman for almost 2 years. Back then they lived in the village full time. He was the first of a few I coined "world class camera/outdoorsmen". People sometimes think these guys slow us down but most of the time we just traveled together , usually just two of us, running the trapline etc. and made better time cause we would help each other. While the show may have been corny to seasoned outdoorsmen I had a great time traveling with great guys after a life of mostly trapping and hunting by myself.

All the fires around here a few years ago or the warm winters or something has us doing more marten for less effort than the last 45 years of trapping. The marten crashed all over here just prior to the fires so nice to see this.

Stan,

There is a fair amount of research in the literature indicating that after fires, the vole populations (and berries) come back in quickly. Arguably this supports higher marten populations. It can be problematic to some degree for acreages of high intensity burns such as you guys had in 2015, but even so, the edges are generally real productive in that regard, as are the mosaic patterns of more lightly burned areas.

My experience has been that yes, marten populations come back quickly, but I get worn out cutting my way through the burns!

Pete

Indeed. Stan Z, there are a few that would deserve 'world class' and just plain good people, good coworkers, good company.

You hit on exactly why I ask for Griber, when I can, as his skills can get a fellow close up and personal and hes not in the way. In my experience, alot of the guys were sent are literally "in the way" until trained .....LOL!! and we weeded through those that could and those that want to be out there, making work into play, and things roll along naturally.

This Fall I took him duck hunting by kayak, like I could never do with'' the caravan'' as we call 'em, when they film in force. Our main DOP is Danny D, and he's a mountain/Xgames/winter man that makes hunting with someone a joy.
He'll be back in AK, Im sure, hes the type that just drops in.

Nice Pile of Fur there!! We have very few Marten around, I usually get them incidentally, as I dont target them specifically.
Its good to see that your as normal as portrayed ........and as I feel...LOL!

Regards!
Chip

That looks good Stan ! Lots of miles there

Anybody know how Andy is doing. Heard rumours he had a run in which the law?

Andy had a run in with a massive infection in his leg.He was recovering and on crutches then
I met him last July in Anch as we passed through for home, after a long trip from Juneau from a visit with my younger brother, and then Barrow for the doings there.
First 'Vacation" the wife and I ever had. She attended the ICC there, I was just a dragalong........
Had dinner with him and his GF, the wife and several NatGeo.BBC folks, but didnt get to talk with him much, he struck me as pretty Cool.

I'm still watching yer vids Muskrat, and so does my neighbor Dave.

Nice pile of fur Stan

Very nice pile of fur!!! Outstanding

Scott

I have to say, I've watched the show since it came out and its a true HONOR to actually meet any of you guys that live out there! Wish ya'll all GOOD LUCK!

I’m quite jealous. That would be a dream come true for me.