A Rare Opportunity
Bowhunting Alaska’s brown bears typically consists of
either spotting and stalking bruins in the crunchy snow as
they emerge from their dens in April and May, or sneaking
and ambushing them as they cruise the dense alder thick-
ets along a salmon spawning stream in the fall. Both styles
of hunting are serious business, with serious consequences
should something suddenly go wrong.
And then there’s the price. Alaska law requires nonresident
hunters to hire a licensed, registered big game guide, which does
not come cheap. Te hefy $12,000–$20,000 guide fee makes
this hunt cost prohibitive for the majority of bowhunters.
Indeed, bowhunting brown bears isn’t for everyone.
It’s little wonder that prior to Kendra’s bear hunt, only six
women had ofcially entered brown bears into the Pope and
Young record book.
So, when the Alaska Board of Game opted to open my
home area, the Kenai Peninsula, to brown bear hunting dur-
ing the spring of 2014 in order to provide more hunter op-
portunity, my ears perked and my bowhunting juices began
fowing with possibilities. Increased bear/human conficts,
as well as a population assessment that showed a “stable
and growing” number of Kenai brown bears, motivated the
Alaska Department of Fish and Game to not only hold regis-
tration hunts in our area with over-the-counter brown bear
tags, but to also allow baiting for brownies to Alaska resi-After decades of no or
little hunting, our part of
Alaska is home to plenty
of giant brown bears.
Below: Brown bears often
take over a bait site,
returning several times
daily to fll their bellies.