Ever wonder how wild is alaska?

Let me share my experience...

So last week our 17 yr old husky wandered off (he was coming up on his time and he knew it we were planning to let him pass at home with his family). We had just bought a home in August in an Alaskan version of a housing development on the west side of Fairbanks. It was on a ridgeline, so I figured id catch a hiking trail at the bottom and cut through the woods to get to the bottom of the ridge and search there.

Now we are on the western side of the development nothing but trails and woods west of us, but I was within a stones throw of the property lines while I searched. While down there I smelled a bear, found lynx tracks, more moose sign (bed down spots to poop) than I could conveniently count, had something (either moose or bear) huff at me from a deadfall area all within a half mile of homes and roads.

Also on my jaunt I fell into holes I couldnt see that were at least 3 feet deep, but probably the creepiest thing to me was when I shouted for the dog it felt like the wilderness tamped the sound down, whistling traveled a bit further.

All in all I realized that even though I was close to the homes it was stupid to be where I was without a buddy.

In short there are perfectly mundane reasons for the number of people that disappear in Alaska, I still love where we are even with the danger.

ETA: No i never did find him, and that first night he was gone it rained for 18 hours and at his age and with his health issues odds are he passed away that night.

Thanks for sharing that! I'm so sorry to hear of your dog's passing. Yea, Alaska is wild. Very wild!

a reply to: Irishhaf

Sorry about your dog.

He may have wandered off to die alone. Some animals do that.

Hear you about how quickly one can enter "the wilderness". And one doesn't have to be in Alaska. Oh no, not at all.

Cheers

a reply to: Irishhaf

Sorry to hear about your friend.

Yes, the stories around Portlock have always captured my imagination, and that's just one of many in Alaska.

High Strangeness.

a reply to: Irishhaf

I've always wanted to drive up there. Take a month to get there hang out for a week or so then drive back.

a reply to: watchitburn

It is worth it, even the "ugly" parts are pretty amazing to see.

especially once you consider how much of the hemisphere used to be like this.

Sad and good thing about the dog that I havent told the wife yet... she was gone for 3 weeks for reserve duty, I was afraid every day I would wake up to him being dead.

But the old fart hung on to see mommy again before making his choice, he never seemed interested in the woods till a few days after she got back.

I will tell her when she is a little calmer about him being gone.

a reply to: Irishhaf

Sounds like heaven to me. I live in a similar environment way south of you, but 5 to 6 months out of the year it's hot as hell, I have lived where winters were -40°F and prefer that cold. The heat here sucks the life out of me.

a reply to: incoserv

I feel the same way, grew up in the SE and hated the weather, was concerned coming up here because I have 3 disc's in my back fading fast. Turns out this dry cold hardly effects my back, the only hard part is staying in shape when its -40 cause I dont care how you dress it sucks to go outside.

eta: down to -20 I am good to go outside... below that though suckage.

a reply to: Irishhaf

Irishaf, you need to be carrying a Marlin .444 lever action rifle with you. That will stop just about anything in its tracks short of a raging bull elephant.

Damn, since they were bought by Ruger, they only chamber large bore lever actions in .45-70 Government. That will work, too.
Marlin Lever Actions

a reply to: NightFlight

honestly the animals scared me less than the random old holes from dead trees that fell and rotted away.

twice I fell in one and just managed to grab something to not go all the way in, once my toes could touch the bottom and the other my foot went into water.

That was some scary snip!

to give context I am just over 6 foot tall, so lot of my lanky butt went in the hole.

a reply to: Irishhaf

I think that generally speaking, Alaska is beautiful! However, there are just tooooooo many animals up there that could kill and eat you as well as animals that would just kill you for the fun of it like moose.

You should be wearing snowshoes or something like them traipsing through the snow. Your 6 foot + frame could find an 8 foot hole...

a reply to: NightFlight

yea this winter when the snow comes a lady just down the road does snow shoe hikes for some extra cash.

Going to hit her up and learn what I am buying before I pick up and or try to hike in the snow.

I like the part about the smell of bears. It is true, I can smell a bear fifty feet away, they have a particular aroma. I can even smell them in the winter before the snow gets too deep when they are in their den. Immediately I get alert when I smell one during deer season because you do not want to disturb a sleeping bear and have it come after you when I only carried a thirty thirty Winchester for a gun. That is a little under powered for bears. A 30-06 would be better but I do not have one of those.

I am used to walking in the woods, you need to constantly keep your bearing. But I grew up in the country and did a lot of hiking, hunting, and remote area stream and lake fishing. I can find my way out of the woods without a compass most times, but I am a little out of practice now because I am older but I still pay attention to everything when out in the woods.. You can easily get turned around if you do not keep your focus on things.

a reply to: Irishhaf

My condolences on your dog Irishhaf and at his age he knew time was up , it is a hard part of the world to survive in come winter , keep your ears peeled as 2 nights after I buried my old sheep dog I heard him bark out the back of the house , I am not a religious person but a lot of people have claimed similar things ? .

I have a rescue dog at my feet at the moment and he was happily playing about with a husky yesterday on our walk and she was a rescue herself according to her owners , when I got my mutt nearly 4 years ago the home told me he was dressed , the owners of the husky laughed at me and told me their dog would growl at any male dog that was dressed and they were 100 % sure mine was not dressed with the fuss she made with mine .

18 hours of rainfall sounds crazy to some people , not to you and me , I have been to areas where the locals have not seen the sun or a dry day in a month .

Adopt a rescue dog as plenty are getting thrown into centres lately with owners not being able to look after them .

Ps you sure that you never uncovered some of Bob Ros's unmarked graves

Funny thing the weather has seriously reflected my mood, every day since has had like 12 hours of rain, not hard rain but soft and kind of sad.

We will find a dog to adopt once the wife and our staffy our ready.