Quote from: Jamie.270;153388Holy cow!

 PS: Somehow I think these people got the idea that they own the bison.

There is a "game ranch" in the same vicinity that offers "pet and shoot" for elk and buffalo. (They actually DO own the buffalo.) They charge $2600 for a "mature bull". Pretty 'nice' of the People of the state of Alaska to provide the herd of buffalo to the Wild Rose ranch FOR FREE so they can charge essentially the same as the business that has to care for a herd of buffalo.
 
I'm pretty 'annoyed' by this, but... 1) There's not a thing I can do about it, and 2) It's VERY typical of Alaska. Namely, if you get an "in" with the State, they will BREAK THE LAW to 'assist' you, AND, those that participate in the BUSINESS of hunting in Alaska are the second greediest people on the planet. The most greedy are commercial fishermen, which also get an INCREDIBLE  GIFT from the politicians of Alaska.

I was inclined to write "un!@#$%^&*ing" real, but the fact is, this is all TOO REAL for hunting in Alaska.

It probably should be said that because this is private land, AND there is no way to keep the bison off of the private land, the Wild Rose ranch COULD forbid hunting at all. In which case, every buffalo in the Delta herd would soon reside solely on their property.

I don't have a solution to the problem of human greed. I DO NOT think the government should "make a law" prohibiting land-owners from exploiting a PUBLIC resource and gouging the public. Oil companies, logging companies, commercial fishermen, etc., do this ALL THE TIME. It's "The American Way". By the same token, it's "wrong" to be greedy. "Wrong" has NEVER IN HUMAN HISTORY stopped people with a genuinely greedy heart. I do have a thought though, and it comes from how the State treats oil companies.

EVERYONE "hates" oil companies because of their obscene profit margins. Because "we" hate them, BUT we don't like to make laws that "inhibit" COMMERCE, we extract our 'pound of flesh' in the form of taxes. (Actually, the "hate" of politicians is just their anger at not getting a piece of PROFIT.) The same is true of other natural resources owned by The People; like fish and timber. However, both fish and timber exploiters get HUGE financial breaks from politicians. So, on this topic: Since the buffalo actually belong to THE PEOPLE of Alaska, I propose that the State impose a TAX on those exploiting The People's property WHEN the PROFIT made through that exploitation exceeds a certain (to be determined) threshold.

Don't get me wrong: I am experienced enough in life and politics to KNOW that 1) individual politicians would find a way to "help" the land-owners as long as the land-owners "helped" the individual politician, and 2) the land-owners would find a way to "game" the system. It's the Way of the World. As I said; I don't have a 'fix' for human greed.

You may detect a note of bitterness in the above. It is the same form of bitterness that the American Indian must have felt as they were forced to stand by helplessly and watch their land be pimped out to the the greedy exploiters.

Paul

Sounds like a camping trip to me.

The problem with a 'camping trip' is that it's unlikely that there are any buffalo where you can 'camp'.

Paul

Quote from: gitano;153396The problem with a 'camping trip' is that it's unlikely that there are any buffalo where you can 'camp'.

Paul

So where are you going to stay?

I think I would stay home.I don't like buffalo meat any more than beef anyway. I'm aware the feeling of killing a bison with a gun you built yourself is worth more than a pile of meat. At least it would to me. It always felt good to me knowing a gun I built for a specific purpose did just what I built it for. .......Paul H

It took me 30+ years to draw the tag. I'm not staying home.

Paul

Quote from: sakorick;153397So where are you going to stay?

There are lots of places to stay. This is not the only private property that offers lodging for buffalo hunting. The nightly rates for the Wild Rose ranch lodging is tolerable, but the $2000 "trespass fee" is obscene. A friend of mine that did this hunt stayed in a motel in Delta Junction. I'll probably do that.

Paul

If I was younger I wouldn't stay home either if I was drawn for a bison hunt. I would go even if I had to walk. The Rose ranch sounds like they're gonna milk a hunt for every nickel they can squeeze out of it. Sounds like greed to me. The bison cost them nothing and the only feed they provide is whatever the bison can scrounge on their property. ........Paul H

Here is a map of the joint. I noticed what looks like an old Army rifle range. That would be a handy place to set up your shoot!:jumpingsmiley:

Hmmm...


Paul

New map shows the bison boundary.

Here is what the real Bison area looks like.

The Game Management Unit (GMU) in which the Delta buffalo herd can be hunted, (hunts 403 and 404), is Unit 20, sub-unit D (that area outlined by the red line with black dashes). Within that unit, ADF&G has established the "Bison Range". The Bison Range was created to provide a 'place' for the public to hunt bison, that is not privately owned, and within which they could conduct research. The Bison Range is outlined in dark blue.

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, these are "plains" bison. They are NOT the "right" bison for this environment. Back when they were introduced, the biologists just considered all bison the same. The "right" bison for this environment is the Wood Bison. The state is trying to establish a herd of wood bison on the lower Yukon. The stupidity of that politically-motivated placement was noted, and ignored, and the inevitable problems predicted have in fact been borne out. But that story is for another venue.

In the map below, the pink outline is roughly where the Delta herd roams. The blue outline is roughly where the Bison Range is. MUCH of the land within the pink outline is privately owned - like the Wild Rose ranch. As my hunt dates approach, I'll be checking to see if I can find out where most of the herd is. If it's on private land - most likely, because THEY GET SHOT ON THE BISON RANGE SO THEY AVOID IT, then I'll have to pay some kind of 'trespass fee', or 'do without'.

Paul

So I got my permit and other paraphernalia in the mail today. In going through it, I was reading about the "backup hunter" that ADF&G recommends. Sakorick is planning to come up and be this backup hunter. Turns out, the backup hunter must have a valid hunting license on them. A non-resident hunting license is $160. Don't worry Rick, I'll be happy to cover that for you.

Paul

No problem.