I've accepted a relocation offer to Anchorage, AK for two years. I'll be driving the ALCAN Highway in a couple of weeks to get up there. Going through the paperwork right now to transition Canada with firearms. Trying to figure out if I've got everything covered as far as hunting and back country. The only hole I'm seeing is nothing for small game between a .22LR and a 7mm Mag. Debating about taking my Ruger No.1 in .25-06 but not sure if I'd really use it and I already feel like the truck will be a rolling gun safe on this trip.

So consulting the all knowing oracle of knowledge that is SigForum.

Marlin 1985 Guide Gun in .45-70 GOV'T.
Winchester 70 in .375 H&H Magnum
Weatherby Mark V in .340 Weatherby Magnum
Winchester 70 Featherweight in 7mm Remington Magnum
Ruger 77/22 in .22LR
Beretta AL390 12GA.
Remington 870 Police Magnum 12GA

Is your wife driving up with you or flying up at a later date? If she’s flying up later, have her fly up with an AR-15 to cover your gap between.22LR and 7 mag. BTW, Alaska Airlines allows 50 lbs of ammo vs everybody else’s 11 lbs of ammo.

As far as your gun list, the Weatherby Mark V in .340 Weatherby Magnum seems redundant to your Winchester 70 in .375 H&H Magnum.

Thanks for the tip on Alaska Airlines.

I know I had a debate with myself about the .375 and .340 and whether I needed both. I usually take a backup rifle on hunts. Either one of those rifles can back the other one up hunting big stuff. The Weatherby is probably more suited to Alaska being stainless. The 340 and 7mm can also back each other up on long range stuff like sheep and caribou. That and well, going to Alaska and leaving the .375 at home just seems fundamentally wrong...

Hmmmm.... Of your choices I would opt for:
Guide Gun. Very capable if properly loaded. And if real 200+ yard shots are not going to happen.
870. Load with lighter shot for small game, slugs / OOB for bigger stuff.

I’d hold off on the 340 and 375s, I thought I’d need one of those and I never use them...ever.

I’d be fine with my 22, 30-06 and 12g but I sheep hunt to so I have some ultralights.

Make sure to get the Alaska airlines credit card, good way to get miles. Flying with guns with them is very painless, we’ve done it several times as have friends who have traveled here to hunt with me and none of us have had a single issue.

As for the guns, I think you’ll notice when you get here that most people up here don’t have huge caliber rifles, before I moved here I thought I’d get a 416 rigby but in the end, I’ve shot a few very large moose and several caribou with a 30-06 and a 308, havnt had a single issue.

I do have a 375HH but it never gets used, I’d use it to hunt bears IF I hunted bears but I don’t so it stays in the closet.

The Ruger 77/22 is a good choice, that’s what I use, I shoot birds and stuff like that with it, I use a 6.5cm for all sorts of stuff from wolves to caribou. When I’m going for moose, like I said I use a 30-06, some guys have a 338wm or a 300wm but I don’t hunt with anybody who uses a 375 or anything like that (I don’t live in anchorage though and they say the closer to anchorage, the bigger the cartridge).

Anyways, for me, the quintessential Alaska gun quiver would probably be:

-77/22
-30-06
-12g
-sheep rifle (308).

Another thing to think about....your job is for only 2 years, it will take you 1 year to be a resident so you probably won’t hunt any large game that first year unless you want to spend an exhorbitaant amount of $$$ on non resident tags (think 20k for dall sheep, 1k plus a guide for moose etc).

So maybe just keep it simple, bring a handgun for hiking, a 22 for small game and a standard hunting rifle for the 1 or 2 times you do get out in the year that you are a resident.

Personally I would take the 375, it is one of the most versatile calibers out there. Plus finding ammo is not that hard.

The guide gun......sure, compact ass kicker, great truck gun.

Beretta....not sure on the AK bird seasons but I would take it.

quote:

Originally posted by 2000Z-71:
Thanks for the tip on Alaska Airlines.

I know I had a debate with myself about the .375 and .340 and whether I needed both. I usually take a backup rifle on hunts. Either one of those rifles can back the other one up hunting big stuff. The Weatherby is probably more suited to Alaska being stainless. The 340 and 7mm can also back each other up on long range stuff like sheep and caribou. That and well, going to Alaska and leaving the .375 at home just seems fundamentally wrong...

Also, sheep hunting isn’t a “long range” game, you need to be able to judge the sheep to make sure if it’s legal or if you actually want to kill it or pass, also, you absolutely need to anchor them instantly so they don’t jump or sprint off and fall of cliffs and die where you can’t recover them. Up in the brooks range where the slopes are more gentle some people take long shots but usually it’s about slowly stalking them to get as close as possible.

dump the 340 wby mag. don't need it in between the 7mag and the 375. might not need the 375, either. and prob don't need 2 12 ga. I'd prob dump the beretta, but you may need an extra barrel for the 870 if you want to hunt with is.

also, you can just buy whatever you want once you're up there if something pops up.

A 7mag will handle your needs for large animals including bears. If you are hunting sheep you will need a rifle in the 25-06 to 270 Win range for a flat shooting rifle.

quote:

Originally posted by fyimo:
A 7mag will handle your needs for large animals including bears. If you are hunting sheep you will need a rifle in the 25-06 to 270 Win range for a flat shooting rifle.

Pretty much anything will work on sheep, 7mag would be fine, I use a 308 and lots of guys use 30-06.

I would bring the 7mm mag, the 870 shotgun, and possibly the 375 HnH. Send or buy a couple of pistols. Glock 20 for the woods, and something for town. I thought that you could become a resident as soon as you move, at least for buying firearms.

quote:

Originally posted by c1steve:
I would bring the 7mm mag, the 870 shotgun, and possibly the 375 HnH. Send or buy a couple of pistols. Glock 20 for the woods, and something for town. I thought that you could become a resident as soon as you move, at least for buying firearms.

I don’t know about buying firearms but to hunt as a resident, it’s one full year after you arrive. For attending universities or colleges, it’s 2 full years before you can get in state tuition and the PFF takes 2-3 years to work for you depending on when you get there.

I bought guns when I’d only lived here for 6 months or so, I’m not sure about that guideline but for hunting it is absolutely 1 year which is why I wouldn’t be so anxious to haul up a huge arsenal of stuff you aren’t going to be able to use....well I shouldn’t say that, the OP may have tens of thousands of dollars he’s planning to use for hunting....Brown bears on the peninsula...25k, dall sheep....20+k, heck even a moose for annim resident is going to be 1300 dollars before you even charter a flight out of town.

12ga is super versatile

about the only thing you don't get are the long range shots (150 yds +)

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I really like this topic but I think your perspective will change a bit once you get up here, I used to think I needed all sorts of specialty guns before moving here, then I got here and i got made fun of a bunch for overthinking my gun choices.

In the end, I think you will be fine with the following:

Some sort of good woods handgun: a 44mag, 45lc or a 10mm glock are all pretty normal here some guys like the 454, I dont have a strong opinion on the handgun thing, I have a redhawk and some 10mm glocks, which one I carry depends on what I'm doing, last sSaturday while I was butchering my moose in the dark at 3am in bear country, I had my redhawk 44 on my hip, often when hiking or rafting, I take the g20 in a chest rig.

A basic hunting rifle: caliber dosent matter much, 270, 30-06, 308, 7mm, 300wm all of them will work on any of the animals here, caribou, moose, sheep, black tails, bears, elk, goats, even buffalo and muskox.

A good 22: I use mine more than any other gun, I like a bolt action, It's just a personal preference, ID have no problem with anything from Ruger or CZ, I like my 77/22 but a Ruger American 22 would be fine too for grouse, ptarmigans and rabbits.

A shotgun: Just a basic 12g pump gun works on ducks and as a camp gun, we always have one with us in the truck, boat, 4x4 etc.

A bird gun: if you plan on geese or want to head down the peninsula on an epic bird hunt for brandts and eiders then you might want a semi auto that takes 3.5" shells.

On Sheep hunting: any caliber will work, I normally use a 308, lots of guys use 30-06, 300wm....ANY CENTERFIRE HUNTING cartridge will work, sheep aren't that big and they aren't that tough (goat is a different discussion), I'm not sure where this talk of needing flat shooting cartridges for sheep is a necessity....you are taking shots under 300yds 99% of the time, Jack O'connor liked the 270.....he also shot sheep with a 375hh....

moose get dropped every year with the old 30-06, native hunters often use 223 or 22-250 without any problems, I believe the current world record moose was killed with a few rounds from a 270, i got my moose a week ago today with the 30-06 (Winchester m70 with a 3x9 scope).

Because my current focus is sheep hunting, I have a few ultralites that I use, Since I'm not rich, my sheep huhts are usually walk in or basic drop off and get picked up after a week with pretty strict weight limits for planes, i lean towards sub 6lb rifles for this stuff due to weight limits on flying in and being able to drop 2 lbs off my pack is a plus too, as mentioned earlier, I have settled on the 308 for sheep hunting, I like that a short action helps keep the weight down and having something in 30 cal gives me a bit of extra comfort in bear country over a 270 although it likely makes zero difference. I like Kimber rifles for sheep hunting, I find them to be accurate and easy to carry, I also like tikkas and weatherbys. If I was getting another 'Sheep" gun right now, I would take a long look at offerings in 300wsm but in my opinion, when it comes to sheep, the rifle dosen't mean a damn thing if you cant get to them. you need to be fit and strong, able to mountaineer, trek, camp etc if you want to get a DIY sheep. Sheep hunting is a passion of mine, not many hours of the day go by when i'm not reading or doing something tied to sheep hunting.

All of this being said, bring a hunting rifle of your choice that you shoot well, don't worry about what caliber, bring one you like. Bring a goood 22cal setup because small game hunting is fun and you can do it all year unlike big game which has seasons. bring a shotgun, bring a good handgun.

Get good boots, good backpacks, and invest in quality clothing for being in the mountains, KUIU, sitka etc all work great for moving on tough terrain and spending time in shitty weather.

bring some sharp knives and good optics too.