Hunting season off to good start

MAT-SU -- Monday marks the first of September and what is traditionally thought of as the heart of hunting season. But some Valley hunters are already calling it a season.

Moose, black bear, caribou, sheep and ruffed grouse have already made their way into local freezers, and Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologists are predicting the season will continue to offer solid hunting opportunities.

"We're getting reports of a moose taken here, a moose taken there … some residents hearing shots behind their house," said Gino Del Frate, area wildlife biologist with the Palmer Fish and Game office.

Especially in Game Management Unit 14A, Del Frate said, hunters can expect to run across more bulls than normal. In part, they can give thanks to last year's mild winter that most likely allowed more calves to survive to become spike-forks this fall.

Mild winters have become a trend and Del Frate said the past few winters have been kinder to moose, so people will also encounter more 2- and 3-year-old, medium-sized moose. But they won't be doing hunters any good -- these are the moose that the spike-fork-50 regulation is designed to protect. Bulls that fall in this medium range are at their breeding prime and so are not legal to shoot.

The moose populations aren't looking as strong in Units 14B and 16A, which incorporates hunting grounds up the Parks Highway.

"Number have been declining for the last 10 years," Del Frate said. He said hunters can expect a fairly low density of moose in these areas.

If it's bears you're looking for, though, pick your spot.

"We feel the bear populations, both brown and black, are healthy," Del Frate said. However, he said Fish and Game has not had as many nuisance bear reports as last year, and that, too, is good news.

In local units, black bear season is open year round, including in 14A where the season used to be closed summers. The bag limit remains one bear in this sub-unit, but in others hunters can take as many as three.

Brown bear season kicks off Monday in many local units as well, and hunters are still limited to one bear every four years in most areas.

Sheep hunters haven't had to wait until September, however. Del Frate said sheep season is already past its prime, with many hunters in the mountains earlier this month.

"We saw a good harvest of legal rams that first week of sheep season," the biologist said. "We saw several nice rams, several 9-year-old, good quality sheep. Now sheep hunting kind of tapers off because most of the legal rams have already been taken."

But hunters who seek out the sheer cliffs still have a chance at a hunting trip. Del Frate said the local registration goat hunt begins Monday. Hunters must pick up the registration in person at the Fish and Game office. With the office closed Monday for Labor Day, hunters will have to wait until Tuesday to register.

Caribou are another big game animal that Valley hunters are taking aim at. Fish and Game once again distributed 2,000 Tier II permits for the Nelchina herd. Del Frate said when biologists surveyed the herd this summer, numbers were slightly lower than expected. However, since the season started at the beginning of August some hunters have already filled their permit.

Hunters don't need a Tier II permit to go after Fortymile caribou, however, and Del Frate said this is becoming an increasingly popular hunt. The registration hunt near the Taylor Highway is a long drive away for Valley hunters, but the Palmer office has already issued a number of permits locally.

"But most of those guys are going out to pick berries, because the caribou just aren't around," Del Frate said. "The majority of the herd is in inaccessible areas. At last report, they hadn't shown any signs of wanting to move."

When will the herd make itself more available to hunters?

"We really can't predict caribou migrations. You almost just have to be up there, picking berries, with your rifle, when they show up," Del Frate said.

Closer to home hunters can seek out some smaller game. Surveys indicate ruffed grouse populations are up this year.

"We had a good nesting period, a good brood-rearing period," the biologist said. "We expect to see a few more grouse to be taken this year."

With a good season expected, Del Frate said many hunters are already going after grouse.

"People are road hunting for birds," the biologist said. "And just as a little reminder, you're not allowed to shoot from a road."

Regulations state you cannot shoot from, on or across a road.

"That means you have to get off the driveable surface, and if a bird flies across the road, you cannot shoot it," Del Frate said. He said in most places where there are roads, there are now quite a few houses.

"And there's been a lot of people complaining that they have bullets whizzing through their yards," Del Frate said.

In the range of other small game, snowshoe hares are still at the low end of their 10-year cycle but should be picking up during the next several years. Ptarmigan had a mild winter so may be faring better than last year, and waterfowl season opens Monday and it should be another good year.

"It's probably going to be a busy time around the Valley for waterfowl hunters," Del Frate said. "People need to remember to pay attention to shooting times … and to have both their state and federal duck stamps, and they have to be signed."

Also, both big- and small-game hunters are reminded that the Palmer-Wasilla core area is limited to bow-and-arrow, shotgun or blackpowder and hunters must have the proper certification. Don't forget your hunting license and hunting regulations.

"And be safe. There are a lot more people living in the Valley and a lot of places where people used to hunt now have homes," Del Frate advised.