our 2006 Hunt Report as a PDF file

 HUNT REPORT
2006 has been quite a year at the Blackstone. We hope you enjoy going through this year’s hunt report.
Our winter wolf hunt was again a great success with a lot of fun had by all. We are getting more and more interest from hunters in doing this hunt as
there may not be a better place to have a chance for a wolf anywhere!
With the diversity of the country we hunt, we have been able to have our hunters enjoy many different hunt styles from our traditional horseback
hunts to the backpack hunts to the float trips through some of the most breath-taking country the northern Yukon has to offer. Our suggestion to our
hunters is to come as flexible as possible and this has given them a greater chance of success. This, for sure, held true this year.
This year’s sheep season was one of the best we’ve had. We had many first time sheep hunters successful in taking their first ram and we’re sure it
won’t be their last. Of the guys who’ve been around the mountain more than a few times, one hunter took a Fannin ram to complete his first grand
slam and another hunter also took a Fannin ram to complete his 9th grand slam! Congratulations Brenton and Butch!
The moose hunting this year was about as strange as it could get. The weather in September was unseasonably warm, which threw the moose rut
way off. We still managed to take some great moose though. We had a couple of hunters take great bulls with their bows! One of the biggest bulls we
took this fall had huge fronts and was taken by 16 year old Kasey Baumann. Congratulations Kasey!
We are seeing a strong trend taking shape in regards to the Fannin sheep population in our area. Our guides and hunters saw more Fannin than Dall
sheep this year. We are seeing many ewes and lambs that are almost pure black. This year about 75% of our rams taken were Fannin rams. We are
still striving to take the oldest ram on the mountain, regardless of color. In doing this we saw the oldest age average we’ve taken at 10.8 years old.
Grizzlies are always an exciting animal to hunt and a few of our hunters enjoyed that excitement. Several of our fall hunters had opportunities at
shooting a wolf, but it seemed to be a year for the wolves!
The mountain caribou hunts in conjunction with the moose and sheep hunts were successful. We took some great mountain caribou this fall.
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Dall & Fannin Rams
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13 • Steven Anderson and guide Blair Chisholm took this heavy Dall ram during our mixed bag hunt on one of our many beautiful September days.
14 • Ken Longacre Jr. had a successful archery moose hunt with us in 2004 and decided to give sheep hunting a whirl. He put in a great effort in some
new country and found this heavy old broomed Dall with guide Ryan Hartling (left).
15 • Maurice Bower returned with the sheep hunting bug. He and guide, Clint Collins found one of the widest flaring rams we’ve ever taken. Maurice and
his twin, Mike, celebrated their 50th birthday during this hunt!
16 • Michael Don horseback hunted in the northern part of our area with guide Josh Butler. They found this great Fannin/Stone ram just in time, as
Michael’s bad knee had had enough.
17 • Bevin & Merilyn Schulz came from Australia for an awesome experience with guide Blair & Natalie Chisholm. Bevin harvested this heavy ram near
the end of their horseback hunt.
18 • Jerry Herman hunted with us 5 years ago for a Dall ram and was happy to find this heavy-based very dark Fannin/Stone ram this year with guide
Ryan Hartling.
We have a very good population of Dall and Fannin Sheep. Many award winning
rams have come from this area. Some of the Fannin's are quite dark in colour and
have the appearance of a true Stone. Mineral licks throughout the region help
contribute to exceptional horn growth. Known for its old, heavy based rams, this
area has excellent potential for harvesting a trophy of a lifetime.
1 • Al Burke returned for the 2nd time to look for a Fannin/Stone ram. He was
successful this go-round with guide Luke Deuling.
2 • Butch Kuflak (left) completed his 9th Grand Slam with this broomed
Fannin/Stone ram with Blair & Natalie Chisholm and wrangler, Dominic
Ragetli.
3 • Collins Kellog Jr. and guide, Brett Lucas backpacked through some
beautiful sheep country to find this wide-flaring Fannin/Stone ram.
4 • Mike Bower backpacked into some rugged country with Paul Weisser and
dedicated pack-dog, Bronco where they harvested this old Dall warrior.
5 • Norman Don and guide, Ryan Hartling picked through the rocks on a
backpack hunt to find this great ram.
6 • Kenneth Godfrey was on a float trip/backpack hunt with guide/pilot Clint
Collins. They found this deep-curled ram not far off the river.
7 • Mark Donovan and guide, Luke Deuling were given the slip by this old ram
early in the hunt, but perseverance paid off and they found him a few days
later.
8 • Dennis Sites with guide Josh Butler, cook Jody Peck and wrangler Luke
Ragetli trailed horses into some country that hadn’t been hunted in years to
find this long, heavy-based Fannin/Stone ram.
9 • Dennis Pahlisch (shown) and his son, Dan, were fortunate to hunt a new
sheep area that was found this year. Both were successful, with Dennis’ Dall
being one of our best for 2006. Guides were Ryan Hartling and Josh Butler.
10 • Scott Hushbeck and guide Brett Lucas took this deep curled, heavy Fannin/
Stone ram on a backpack hunt with packer, Logan Fink.
11 • Philip Ripepi Jr. returned to hunt grizzly with us, but the sheep hunting bug
bit him again. With weather being unseasonably mild in late-September,
Phil and guide Josh Butler were able to do a float trip to find this beautiful
deep-curled ram.
12 • Wayne Hoggard returned from the land down under to hunt with us again
and took this old broomed monarch with Josh Butler early in August.
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The caribou we take are either in the velvet or hard horned, either way they are a great
trophy!
The Porcupine Barrenground Caribou herd gave us the slip this fall. We had to post-pone
all of our caribou hunters to 2007, with hope that the migration is on track for next year.
The weather was so mild in September & October that the Porcupine Caribou migration
was about a month behind their normal schedule. It was a disappointment to cancel the
hunt, especially after the great year we had been having. The caribou did arrive into our area
for the winter in mid-November and they should be around for our wolf hunts this winter.
We would like to thank all of our hunters and crew this fall who put in that extra effort that
made our 2006 season a success!
Grizzly Bear
Mountain Caribou
Grizzly hunting is always an exciting
challenge. It is not uncommon to see
signs of these mountain bears daily.
The Yukon Government and Blackstone
Outfitters have put together an excellent
bear management system that helps ensure
a good population.
Over the years this area has produced some tremendous trophy caribou. We have a healthy
resident caribou herd in the southern part of the area. We hunt these Mountain Caribou
during our sheep hunts in August and the September mixed bag and moose hunts.
1 • Phil Lukert was on his third hunt with us. He and guide,
Luke Deuling, floated the Ogilvie River and found this huge
grizzly. Phil also took a wolf during the hunt.
2 • David and son, Andy Deardorff horseback hunted around
a camp the grizzlies had torn apart. David harvested this
beautiful bear and hopefully ended the camp troubles.
3 • Mike Bower hunted with seasoned guide, Paul Weisser and
found this grizzly while on a sheep hunt in September.
1 • Mark Donovan and Norman Don found these two great velvet caribou during a horseback day-hunt from our base camp. Guides: Luke
Deuling and Ryan Hartling.
2 • Jim Holland hunted moose and caribou and was successful on both with guide, Dave Rivers.
3 • Robert Hall took a Barren Ground caribou with us in 2003 and was successful this year for moose and Mountain caribou with guide/pilot
Clint Collins.
4 • Brett Lucas, (shown) guided Collins Kellog Jr. for this huge Mountain caribou.
5 • Steve Anderson took this heavy-palmated caribou during our mixed bag hunt with Blair Chisholm.
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The Area
Getting There
Operating in a region of approximately
10,000 square miles located in the
northern Yukon, we hunt the North
slope of the Ogilvie Mountains along the
Blackstone, Ogilvie, Peel, Hart, Whitestone
and Porcupine River watersheds. The area
encompasses a wide variety of terrains,
with rugged mountains, beautiful river
valleys, and large tundra flats. Wilderness
in the true sense of the word, hunting this
country can be an incredible experience.
Your adventure begins in Whitehorse, Yukon. Whitehorse has
commercial flights from Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary.
When you arrive in Whitehorse we will take you to the hotel
for an over-night stay. The day before your hunt starts we will
take you to the charter company for your flight to camp. During
August & September, our hunters will be chartered direct from
Whitehorse to base camp. In October, during the caribou hunts,
the hunters will continue on Air North’s scheduled flight to
Dawson City where we will pick you up. We operate our own
aircraft charter service, Nahoni Air, within our area, enabling us
to move you to the places where the different species of game
are located. Our aircraft may be used to resupply a horseback
trip, drop off or pick up a backpack hunter or to move a hunter
to other locations. We strive to make your hunt as efficient and
enjoyable as possible.
The Hunt
Blackstone Outfitters offers a
variety of ways to enjoy your hunt.
We offer traditional horseback hunts, river
trips, and backpack hunts with pack dogs.
A few cabins are scattered throughout
the area and may be used as a hunt base
or stopover. Light backpack dome tents
are used on some of the hunts. All of our
hunts have bush plane support and radio
or satellite phone communication. No
matter what type of hunt you choose, you
can be confident that the equipment and
personnel will be first rate.
Winter Adventures
Your Outfitter
We are the sole owner and operator of Blackstone Outfitters.
We have over 25 years of experience guiding hunters and
fishermen and operating camps throughout western and
northern Canada. Jim is also an experienced bush pilot and has
been flying in the north since 1979. Because of our love of the
country and the game it holds we have made a commitment
to fair chase hunts. We are committed to making your hunt a
great experience with the highest opportunity for success.
Alaska/Yukon Moose
There may not be a better opportunity to obtain a record book Alaska/
Yukon moose. Huge tracts of fantastic moose country remain virtually
untouched. If watching your guide call a big bull in close doesn’t get your
adrenaline going, nothing will! Mature bulls of 60" or better are usually
taken on our limited number of moose hunts.
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Marty DeLattre took this old moose with his bow while floating one of our rivers with guide, Ryan Hartling.
Chris Parisi and guide, Luke Deuling took this long-panned moose on a horseback hunt.
Richard Nagano guided Roger Jobs on the Peel River by jet boat and found this huge-fronted bull.
David Deardorff took this big old bull on a horseback hunt with Blair Chisholm.
Robert Hall and guide, Clint Collins took one of the largest moose of the season on a drop-camp hunt.
Russ Cook and Dean Baumann with Russ’ bull were guided by Brett & Rusty Lucas on a river float trip. Both were successful..
Ron Yeckel took this wide moose with Paul Weisser on a float trip.
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In late winter the northern Yukon is one of the most awe-inspiring
areas of the territory. The vast snow-swept landscape allows for
some truly world-class snowmobiling. With the ability to travel in
excess of 100 miles per day by snowmobile, our clients have an
outstanding opportunity to harvest an Arctic Wolf. They can range in
color from jet black to pure white. The wolf hunt can be combined
with our trapline adventure earlier in the winter, although the days
are a bit shorter and the temperatures colder. These adventures are
an awesome experience.
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Blackstone Outfitters Ltd. • Jim & Adrienne Fink
P.O. Box 31479 • Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada Y1A 6K8 • Phone (867) 633-6268 • Fax (867) 633-6267
email: blackstone@klondiker.com • www.blackstoneoutfitters.com
Our youngest moose hunter ever, Kasandra Baumann, with guides Clint Collins and Rusty Lucas, found
this huge moose in the thick timber. Her bull was the last animal harvested in our 2006 season. This old
bull had exceptional fronts with 7 points on one side and 5 on the other. Congratulations Kasey!
Yukon
CANADA