More areas closed to sheep hunting

The negative hunting news continues. There are more closed areas in Southeast Alaska for mountain goat hunting and now the National Park Service is closing areas for Dall sheep hunting just days before the season is scheduled to open. Never a dull moment when trying to hunt in Alaska!

I was reading an article online on the Outdoor Life website, which was written by Tyler Freel, a staff writer and resident of Alaska, which called my attention to this situation. Quoting from Freel’s writeup, “Dall sheep season generally opens August 10 in Alaska, at which time many sheep hunters will already be in the field. If the National Park Service has its way, however, some of those hunters’ plans will be foiled. On July 28th, the Yukon-Charlie National Preserve office of the National Park Service filed WSA23-05 which asks the Federal Subsistence Board for an emergency closure of all sheep hunting in Alaska game units 20E and 25C within the Yukon-Charlie Preserve. Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game Deputy Commissioner Ben Mulligan tells Outdoor Life that because this is an ‘emergency request,’ there will be no public hearing or board meeting on the matter.”

Continuing, “The past few years have seen the cascading closure of millions of acres of Alaska public lands to both caribou and sheep hunters—nearly all of which have been opposed by the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game. Many in the state view these events as an overreaching power grab by the federal agencies and the Federal Subsistence Board that’s controlled by their regional directors.”

“This latest closure request, WSA23-05, will be decided without the normal allowances for public input only days before the season opener. In a memo from Mulligan, the department states firm opposition to the proposed closure, arguing that it is not supported by scientific evidence or studies. It also points out that the department—which is responsible for managing sheep populations in the area—was not consulted before this request was filed….”

Finally, “Although sheep populations in much of Alaska are generally depressed due to large weather-related die-offs in recent years, Alaska’s management strategy of only harvesting older mature rams is shown to have minimal hunter-influenced effect on populations. Further, according to ADF&G, the entire area the action would close averages only 1 to 3 rams per year taken by hunters—a minimal impact in the 2.5-million-acre area.”

“Little information is available on when WSA23-05 will be decided, but it’s likely that hunters will lose access to yet another few million acres of their public lands in Alaska.”

The last several columns have had nothing but sad news for outdoor enthusiasts because of either poor population numbers or federal intrusions into established programs. First, we have reduced numbers of mountain goats in several areas of Southeast, sparking reductions or closures of hunting efforts to protect the remaining animals in these areas. This is done based on biology and is intended for the future wellbeing of animal populations.

Then, we see the Biden administration cutting off federal funds to schools with programs like Archery in the Schools or Hunter Education programs which are designed to teach safety and improve a child’s self-confidence. This is being done to bolster Biden’s anti-gun and anti-hunting agenda. The outcome will see more harm than good for our youth.

And finally, we see the Federal Subsistence Board and the National Park Service closing areas to sheep hunting for no valid biological reason and smacks of politics and the Park Service’s anti-hunting stance. The 2024 national elections can’t come soon enough! Hopefully, life as we know it in Alaska will be repairable once the Biden administration is thrown out of office.

On a more pleasant but still frustrating note for me personally, the walls are up on my rebuilt storage building. However, the contractor won’t be able to get the trusses built and delivered until some time in September. I received the check from insurance to have my riverboat repaired, but the way things are going, I’m thinking I’ll be lucky to have the boat back by the end of August.

Regarding my motorhome repairs, the last I heard, I was second in line to get the work done. That was three weeks ago and not one word from the company about where I stand in the lineup for work. I have effectively lost the summer for use of these two items because of the delays. To say I am not a happy camper (literally) is an understatement!