Bowhunter – September 2019

BOWHUNTER.COM 43

I LOVEBOWHUNTINGwildandexciting

places.KodiakIslandadventuresareon

the topof my list,becauseyoumustbe

preparedforanythingfrombrownbear

encounterstohurricane-forcewinds.

So, whenmy friendBobAmeenaskedif

I’ dliketojoinhimona Sitkablacktail

hunt,I wasexcited.However,I needed

tocheckdates,discussdetailswithmy

wife,Miriam,andcallBowhunterPub-

lisherJeffWaringtoseeif he wantedto

senda cameramanalongto filmanepi-

sodeofBowhunterTV.

Igot thethumbs-upfromboth

MiriamandJeff,andtheplanwasto

meetBobon October14 in Kodiak,and

cameramanMattYoungon October15.

After meeting up with Bob, I learned

that Matt was stuck in Anchorage due

to fog, so Bob and I bought supplies and

prepared for Matt’s late arrival and our

flight with Island Air. We’d be flying in a

rubber-tired Cessna 180 and landing on

a beach during a midday low tide. Two

flights were required to get the three of

us and our gear to the hunt area.

Despite the fog, Island Air told us to

bringourgearandbe readyto fly.Once

loadedup,we satintheplanewaiting

for airportemployeestochaseseagulls

offtherunway.I grinned,andthought,

It ’sjustasmallpartof thisadventure.

Minuteslater,we tookoffunderlow

fog,butas we circlednorthandtothe

westthefogdissipatedandthesun

shonebrightlythroughpuffyclouds.

Surprisingly,it wasa fairlysmooth

ri detoBumbleBay,whereourpilot,

Taj, dida f lyovertocheckthelanding

area.Onthebeachinfrontof us were

twohugeboulders.I relaxedmy white-

knuckledgriponthewindshieldsup-

portbarandstartedbreathingnormally

after we swoopedoverthebouldersand

gently bounced onto the beach. We un-

loaded quickly, and then we watched as

the Cessna 180 roared down the beach

and quickly soared upward and out of

sight.

I turned and looked up the steep

100-yard trail leading up to Bob’s cabin

and thought,This will be an adventure.

Bob built his 12 by 16-foot cabin on a

steep hillside using a pick and shovel to

Every hunting experience has its ups and downs.

The best plan is to just roll with it.

#DEERWEEK 2019

Monday Sept 16 – Sunday Sept 22;
7pm-12am Airs on Outdoor Channel
& Sportsman Channel

Featuring the best deer hunt program-
ming on TV, #DeerWeek will be hosted
by Jeff Danker and country music star
Jon Langston. Additional #DeerWeek
programming is available on MyOut-
doorTV throughout September. You’ll
also find videos, articles, tips and prize
giveaways across our social media
platforms.
For programming schedules, contest
information and more, visit deerweek.com