Jul 08
21
Black Bear Pursuit
The end of the hunting season had come, and my departure to the lower 48 was drawing nigh, but my thirst for adventure was not quite quenched, so one more outing proved necessary. The trip plan was to boat across the lake, hike up a mountain, have Stacie shoot a ram, and then either I would return with Stacie with the sheep meat, or Preston would return with her, and I would stay and hunt black bear. Either way it seemed to be a great opportunity to check out some new terrain, and get to have a chance at a black bear. A good experience either way.
So bright and early, about five am, we departed Dice Bay, on our way to the mountains. It was a chilly September morning, with fog still laying quite thickly across the lakes glassy surface. But with compass in hand we arrived at the other side in short order, got our equipment loaded on out backs, and began our trek. Now I was still a bit of a green horn, or cheechako, as the Alaskans call it, and even in my second year of being in Alaska, I still had a lot to learn. One of those things that became quite clear to me on that trip was correct clothing. I was wearing leather boots, with cotton khaki pants, and cotton shirt. the terrain that we were hiking in contained several bogs and small creeks, which I was able to avoid for the most part, but upon reaching the base of the mountain, we came into contact with short brush and alders. Being that it was morning, everything was covered in dew, and also quite soaked from the recent rains. Another factor that came into play was my determination to get to the top. Now I do not view myself as an extremely fit person, but my feet seem to get away from me. Although hiking with individuals with needs of slower speeds and frequent stops, actually helps me to regulate the rate of ascent and helps to keep me from over exerting myself. So that being said, as we began up the slope, it was slow going, and almost immediately I spotted a black spot upon the peak of the mountain side. A black bear.
So, needless to say I saw this as an excellent opportunity, so at quite a rapid pace, I set of to overtake the bear, and the top, and bag me a trophy. However, in my over determination to reach that goal, I made no inclination to put on rain pants to ward off the water logged knee high grass, and also proceeded to wear myself down considerably. So I reached the top in record time, but unfortunately, the bear was gone, and I was soaked with sweat, and the dew had drenched my pants from above the knees down. And to make matters worse, A thick fog had settled in around me, and in very short amount of time, proceeded to cut off all visibility. I had arranged with Preston to wait for them above the tree line, but after waiting for nearly an hour, I was at a loss, and could not locate them. So I began hiking for the very top, with absolutely zero visibility.
The top was quite flat, so I made my way around, sort of wandering, looking for any sign of life. I sat down at the top of what seemed to be a large cliff, and waited. I began whistling, to somehow alert my compatriots on my wareabouts. this went on for quite some time, until I finally heard a reply. following the sounds, I nearly stumbled onto their tent in the fog. They had hiked past my previous location, and could not find me, so they had set up their tent to wait. I was overjoyed to be joined once more, and proceeded to set up my tent to wait out the fog. A couple hours later the fog burned off, and with a clear route to follow, we packed up and headed out. back down the mountain, and back up the other side. Unfortunately we were somewhat short on water, so we had to fashion it a bit. By the time we reached the opposite slope, it was nearing dark, so we made camp and slept away, resting our tired feet. During the night I had my pants hanging in my tent, with hopes that they would dry out, but it was for naught, because in the morning not only was it cold, it had begun to snow. So with shaky hands I proceeded to done my stiff wet pants, and sweaty clothes, and prepared for a chilly day.
The change in weather prompted us to make an early decent, but we decided to keep to our plan, and I stayed out an extra day to have another chance at a bear. I found a good vantage point and made camp. The evening waned, and the morning came slowly, but no bears showed themselves. Wearily, I began the trek back to the lake, to be picked up by Preston. However as I was beginning the decent into the mass of alders, I chanced a glance to the top of the mountain, and sure enough there was a nice big black bear, right in the same spot from the previous day. I thought about it for a moment, but many things kept me at bay, the lack of adequate water, the wet pants, and the sea of alders that separated myself from the black bear. So broken hearted I descended my mountain side perch. I still had a lot to learn about the environs of Alaska, and this was a very good learning experience for future trips out into the wild. I realized the extreme importance of proper hydration and packing plenty of water, clothing that wicks moisture and dries quickly, and plenty of warm clothes to prepare for any type of weather that mother nature can throw at you.
