Learning more about Alaska big game hunting

If you’re interested in hunting any of the limited number of animals in many of our Alaskan big game populations via drawing permit hunting, now is the time to apply. Starting this past Nov. 1, the 2026-2027 Alaska Drawing Permit Hunt Supplement was available to use in selecting and applying for these hunts, most of which will occur in 2026 with some going over into 2027, depending on the hunt.

The application period runs from Nov. 1 to Dec. 15, 2025, at 5 PM. The state is only accepting applications received online. No paper applications will be considered. If you need some alternate form of application, contact your local ADF&G office by 5 PM on Nov. 21 and the department will provide accommodations for you.

I would suggest picking up a copy of the supplement and reading the front page in detail. There are a number of rules which must be followed regarding age of applicants, hunter education certification requirements, the number of hunt applications per species one can submit, hunting license requirements, proxy hunting, and other information which, if ignored, will cause your applications to be rejected for this cycle of drawings.

If you’ve never applied for a drawing permit before, there is an established procedure to follow. First, study the supplement to decide what species of animal you want to hunt and where. Each hunt has a specific hunt number which must be listed on your application. You can submit up to six applications total for each species you wish to hunt. You can list all six applications for one specific hunt or one application each for six different hunts, but if you list more than six applications per species, all your applications will be rejected.

You must have your hunting license in hand, or at least applied for, along with any hunter education certifications required before applying. If I remember correctly, you will be asked to list these license and certification number on your application. You will use your credit card online to pay for each hunt applied for. There is a $5 charge for each black bear, brown bear, caribou, elk, moose, mountain goat, and Dall sheep hunt for which you apply. Bison and musk ox cost $10 per hunt. There is no refund for either license or hunt application fees.

There is other important information I didn’t mention listed on the front page of the supplement. That’s why you should get a copy and read it thoroughly prior to applying.

There aren’t many new hunts this year. Bison has one, goats have one, and sheep have seven. Six of the seven new sheep hunts are for nonresidents, so they don’t apply to us. Since my mountain climbing days are behind me, I don’t pay much attention to goat or sheep hunts. If those species are of interest to you, study the supplement to see what’s new about these hunts. Without knowing, I would guess they are probably either a reduction in the number of hunt permits for the specific hunt or some realignment of the actual hunt area.

I think the bison permit is simply a realignment of gender in the hunt. Historically, the department has issued bison permit numbers based on gender – so many female and so many male permits with each being its own permit hunt. This “new” hunt lists so many permits for a bison, with no gender specified. When I drew my bison permit in 2007, I had applied for both a bull hunt and a cow hunt. My permit was for a cow, which I was successful in taking that year.

Know the area where you apply for a hunt. The more easily accessible areas receive the greatest number of applicants and usually result in a less than one percent chance of drawing a permit. The bison and antlerless moose hunts fall in this grouping. Last year, over 33,000 applications were submitted for thirty bison permits. Do the math to determine your odds of being selected. In my antlerless moose area, over 2600 applicants tried for one of ten total permits.

If you have the ability to access some of the difficult to reach areas for a particular species, your odds increase for drawing a permit. However, you need to know whether you can really access the area or if you’re just trying to draw a permit without actually expecting to hunt. Don’t apply if you don’t expect to hunt the permit if successful in drawing it.