Economical Grizzly Hunt

I’ve got a Winchester Model 71 rifle. I haven’t had it all that long, but it’s my favorite rifle- made for the north woods and hunting big stuff like moose and grizzlies. And every time I hold it or shoot it I get the itch to go on a grizzly hunt in Alaska. Which brings me to my question....

What should a person expect to pay for a grizzly hunt? Would a Canadian hunt be a possibility for a U.S. citizen, and if so, would it be cheaper? How hard is it to get a tag? I’d love some input on how I might best pursue this hunt, because at some point in the next 2-3 years I intend to do it...

Nonresident Brown/Grizzly Bear $1,000.00
Nonresident Annual Hunting $160.00
Guide Over $10,000

Ouch.......that's spendy.

I have been looking as well at these. Dirt is right there!

Thanks for the replies so far guys. One other question...

Why is a guide required for grizzly bear? I see a non resident can hunt moose and black bear and caribou with no guide. I get that grizzlies can be dangerous, but if it was purely for safety reasons why isn’t a guide required for the other big game? Or is it more of a political thing to support guide services.

Because they eat you

Both. Unguided non-resident hunters many times do things. Inexperienced resident hunters do similar things. It's all problematic. Guides reduce many of these issues.

Does It have to be a guide or can you hunt with Alaskan resident.

Yes, but he has to hold your hand. He can't just cut you loose. 2nd degree kindred or closer.

I guess my daughter would make the cut then. But then again I have no desire to kill a bear.

You would be hard-pressed to find a guided grizzly hunt for anywhere near $10,000. Perhaps there might be a guide in one of the depredation units who would do it for that, but if you want a real hunt it's going to cost you more.

You may want to look into hunting grizzlies in some place like Romania or Estonia, as crazy as it seems some of those places offer very high success rate hunts, and some of them can be quite reasonable.

I agree with Waggler. Some of the eastern European countries can be much cheaper than Alaska. Even Russia has cheaper hunts. The bear are nearly identical too. I have thought about hunting western Russia for a "silvertip" myself. They have bear that are dead wringers for the bears around Yellowstone.....only their claws usualy aren't ivory colored. A couple customers of mine went to Kamchatka bear hunting many years ago. Both shot 10+ foot Brownies. One of them holds a top spot in the record book. Those hunts are $$$$$$$$$$. But they are still cheaper than any Alaskan hunts where you might see, and possibly shoot, an absolute whopper. If your not fussy, and would be happy with a 7 foot bear, you could likely find a hunt that won't bankrupt you too bad......or not!

"Join Us for Alaska’s Premier Yacht Based Brown Bear Hunts!"




P.S. he asked about grizzlies, not brown bears. I know they are the same species, but there is Boone and Crocket and Safari Grizz area. Most of the bears in those areas would be lucky to make 8 foot. The prices reflect this. Price also has to do with the cush factor. Yacht hunts..... High cush factor.

$18,000 to 25,000

Save it up for 5 years like I did

2013 to 2018 Hunt

Worth it!

Thanks Again Waggler, Mark

On the nature shows, they frequently show Alakan brown bears, in large numbers, on the salmon streams, showing no fear of humans whatsoever. They look like they would be ridiculously easy to hunt in those locations. Are brown bears in season during the salmon runs?

Keith

There is one behind every bush. Stop watching television. it wouldn't be very interesting to show nothing for 3 days. Those are bear sanctuaries where bears have been habituated to human presence. Prabably McNeil River or Brooks camp.

Kodiak Coastal Brown would be a dream come true.

Don't forget to add in the taxidermy bill.
Transportation.
Clothing and equipment.

You're probably looking at $20k minimum.

Yes, Absolutely

This, start now it will take 6 years, by then it will go about another $5000 I would guess. One of my bucket list hunts also.

2 guys I Bear hunt with are going on a Kodiak Bear hunt. $30,000 each. Way to much for my taste.

I'm not kidding check out eastern Europe.
Brown bear hunts in eastern Europe are generally well below $10,000, usually in the $5-6K range.
Just one example
https://www.romaniahuntingoutfitters.com/brown-bear-hunting-in-romania/

If you're dead set on an "economical" AK grizzly/brown bear hunt then you have 2 options.

1) raise your income until $40,000 isn't a big deal to you.
2) move to AK, don't leave the state for a whole calendar year to get residency, go hunt your bear for $40. Probably need transportation but now you're looking at a few thousand.

Some guys come dressed in $1000 worth of cloths carrying a $3000 gun and scope and a $1000 pair of binoculars. Probably not impressed with my Walmart ensemble that I seem to make work.

True Dirt. But admit it. The bears in your area are not very sophisticated and their standards are quite low.

Is there a record book for the "Armpit" ??

It appears we have a record low brown bear population these days.

They may have migrated over the Range. Had three in town last week

I'm sure there are more on your side of the range. I've seen them. Didn't used to be that way.

What is moving them ??

They are not moving. We have been over harvesting them for years here.Once for a reason. Now ?

Got it !

Cheaper access on your side may be a contributing factor ???

Yes. Look at our seasons, bag limits, and methods and means.

The regs I have are from the 18-19 season. But your season dates appear to be the same as ours. Looks like they made it Aug 10 to coincide with sheep. Who needs two gizzlies ??

The August opener here which began in around '98 '99 was proposed by the AB in order to increase the harvest of female bears. The two grizzly started here. My proposal. My idea was guy buys two tags he will pop a small one ( hopefully female at the time) and then can still hunt for a big one. It actually turned into marketing success. Non-resident or residents see 2 bear limit in the regs and think " Man they must have a lot of bears there!" Clueless!

P.S. most August hides are not very good.

BTW our season was " No Closed season". Had a guide testify that July hides were good in opposition to the proposal to back to August.opener. Really shouldn't be open till Sept.

I am sure the August hides would end up as floor mats in a truck!

I have always thought the ' boar only' rule was short sighted, depending on what you are trying to accomplish.

I agree about the two bear limit sending the wrong message.

I did taxes for a farm/owner/hand and in the early 2000's he went to Alaska 3 times twice for moose and once for brown bear. About 20 years ago he paid 10K and that did not include getting there and back or the license. The hunt was for 3 weeks and they were fogged in so tight for 18 of those days they never left the tent area. He never raised his rifle or fired a shot and he paid in full. The moose hunt is a whole nother story.

Bryce

"I have seen these guys operating for quite a few years now, CCC, and TalStar Lodge. It has always astonished me to see these guys still in business!!! These guys are the laughing stock of the river system they operate on. They completely trash their lodge grounds and the state land surrounding it. They have no respect for the land and or the animals in it. They break the law at every turn. Their safety equipment is well very lacking!! From the rumors I have heard Cliff Smith and Mark Cooley got in some trouble with the wildlife troopers and Cliff has bailed out leaving Mark and Brandon now the new owners. OMG Look at Alaska dispatch and you can see the rumor has a lot of merit. Found a lot of new charges pending for both Mark and Cliff! Hunters do your do diligence before booking with any or all of these guys!! Mark Cooley Clifford Smith Brandon Strachey Not only call there references call local businesses in the area and get the real truth before you spend that kind of money and get screwed over. These guys are the kind that give Alaska outfitters a bad name!!!!! "

"The 2 people who complained on here are so full of it as is this website based on and focusing only on bad situations but cliff and triple c are top of the line with service, and fishing and hunting. We have been with cliff on 3 different occasions all very professional and clean and the food was grate."


Who to believe?

Their violations are pretty easy to find in the official records so I'm pretty sure about who I would believe.

I thought it was pretty good advice to check with locals for people booking a hunt. Around here I don't think many people knew Cliff's real name. I only knew him by his local moniker "Train Wreck". for years.

Brown bear hunts any where in the USA are not economical, compared to other hunts in the same locations, they are specialty hunts, most are regarded as Trophy or once in a lifetime hunts !

There are sheep hunts in the US that are much the same way and have far fewer chances of success as well !

When saving up for such hunts you must save extra every year to maintain some equality with the prices going up, or you will always be having to come up with extra to achieve the hunt.

By the way most fail to continue to check the outfitters while saving or add in the cost of getting there and any other contingency's that will always affect these types of hunts,

BTW I've never seen any outfitters advertising a Bear or Sheep hunt in Walmart clothes at any show or even in internet advertisements, so probably they are as much to be at fault for all them extra dollars being spent as any one else wanting them extra dollars !!

African hunts for cape buffalo are far cheaper than a griz hunt in north america.

Yes, it is. I think you can do a week-long buffalo hunt for under $10k.

Jim

Cape Buffalo prices range significantly from an all-inclusive game ranch hunt in South Africa to a full blown traditional East African safari. A typical Cape Buffalo 5 - 10 day package hunt cost will range from $9,000 - $20,000. Often the lower end prices are for management bulls. Research your hunt thoroughly to find the hunting conditions that most suit your needs and take note of the excluded extra costs involved in the hunt. On the bigger open territories of Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania and Mozambique, the buffalo package prices range from $12,000 - $20,000. Dangerous game daily rates range from $600 - $1200 per day with a trophy fee of approximately $6,000 - $8,500. Note, the latest trend on the South African ranch hunts is to sell trophies by the inch.

book a cape buf hunt

Wesley mentioned a lever rifle in 348 Win.
Is this enough rifle?

Just thought that needed answered by the experienced.

The short answer is no.
Would I be happy to have a 348WIN if a bear was chewing on me; yes.

This is what you do.

Come here in mid to late June and bring a tent and a VHF radio and wait for the city or Tribal organization here announce they need a party of bear hunters to hunt down the problem bears in and around the village. Sometimes they will provide the gas.

All bears regardless of race, color, age, and gender will be shot on sight.

Again...Mostly browns though.

Love This Answer

I like your sign, Scott. If I could get my hands on a vintage Winchester in the caliber mentioned above I wouldn't hesitate to use it on grizzly bear. More than adequate to knock a bear down, even a big bear.

Posco, it's unreal what rifle calibers were used on Big Bears back in the early days before Alaska's statehood.

Get and Read this book. Amazing Time to live

For sure! Thank you.

I've killed 4 grizzly bears up to near 8 foot with a lever action 308 win. Several moose ( maybe 10). I don't remember how many Blacks ( bears). There, real life experience.

30k hunt. Hmm guess I will have to stick with my expensive public land squirrel hunting. I thought I was spending to much on gas and snacks to drive an hour each way to let the boys shoot a few squirrel. Darn sure is more fun hunting new areas with the large woods vs just on our familiar farm.

Even if I saved 5 years I couldn't spend that for a hunt for me. I would feel bad and do something else with the family. Deer will probably be the only big game I ever get to hunt. To bad elk would be nice.

You know why prices are so high? Market demand. People will pay it. I wouldn't. I'm with you.

Yep As much as I need a brown bear AK has just overpriced themselves I am focusing on Africa. Much cheaper and you get to shoot something everyday If you can live with a skull mount or tanned hide you can save a crap ton of money

Guide license $900
Insurance $1200
DNR camp fee $500
Native Corp Trespass fee $1500
Hunt Report filed with the State $300
Lake and Peninsula Borough $250
My air fare to hunting area $1500

Total $6150

As a guide these are my annual fixed expenses before I add the actual expense associated with the individual hunt. Everyone thinks guides make a fortune, so every governmental agency imaginable has their hand sticking out wanting a cut of the action.

I only conduct one or two bear hunts a year. My basic overhead costs are a little ridiculous IMO.