My Barren Ground Alaska Caribou Hunt

Beth Shimanski, Savage Arms Marketing Director, tells the tale of how her Alaska caribou hunt went from 4 months to 45 minutes to 4-5 seconds! Months of training turned into minutes of execution and success in a way she could only imagine. 

Although I consider myself a rookie in the hunting realm, I am told that I have some sort of luck in this field. That held true on my recent adventure to tackle the tundra of Alaska and chase barren ground caribou. But before we get to that, let’s backtrack to the process that occurred in the 4 months leading up to the hunt, to make me ready for whatever we encountered.

February 2020, I learned that we had the opportunity to partner on a hunt for Alaska caribou. Emotions were off the charts. Excitement, awe, nervousness, uncertainty, you name it, I felt it. So I did what anyone who feel this way does, I Googled it!! I immersed myself into what the hunt would entail, the landscape, and the gear I would need to be prepared and successful.

First thing I learned from studying hunts online were the physical demands this hunt would entail. Long hikes, hill climbs and more challenging, the terrain itself. I kicked my training plan into gear in late February by hiking or walking with a pack. Starting at 15 pounds in the pack and working my way up to 35 pounds. Over the 4 months leading up to the hunt, I logged nearly 580 miles walking or hiking and another 320 miles biking to get my legs and cardio ready.

As I worked on getting physically ready, I talked with many in our industry to ensure that I had the gear needed to be successful. I was also very fortunate to learn that industry vet Josh Dahlke (and fellow Minnesotan) would be joining me. My rifle was a no brainer, the Savage 110 Ultralite in 308 Win all the way! Hornady 178 gr. ELD-X would deliver what I needed in the moment, and the Leupold optic with my CDS would give me the confidence I needed at various ranges. Then came the hard part. Boots, waders, sleeping gear, rain protection, warm weather gear, water filtration, and the list went on. Over the months, I was able to secure what I needed, and the packing challenge began as the excitement continued to grow!

Josh and I had the chance to head to the range a few times before we took off for Alaska to get some rounds through our Ultralites. The first session, we got MOA at 100 yards, and started getting dialed in to longer distances. Session 2, we achieved sub-MOA at 225 yards. We felt ready! Once we hit Fairbanks we did one final range session and both got MOA at 335 yards. We were confident in our gear and the fact that we had done what we needed to give ourselves the best chance, if we were fortunate to get in range to harvest a caribou. We were now off to the wild country!

As we flew two hours north of Fairbanks, and then jumped into the bush plan for another 90 minutes to our camp, we did not see a single caribou. Honestly, that made us a little nervous. But one thing I heard from many during my preparation, was to trust our guide. And I was 100% willing to follow whatever our guide, Hunter challenged us with.

We arrived into our spike camp a day late due to typical Alaska fog, wind and rain. Already missing a day of hunting, we were ready to hit the river the next morning and go see what we could find. It was 8:15am when we pushed the raft off of the river bank to set off for a few mile ride to our glassing ridge. About 20 minutes in the trip, our guide abruptly killed the motor and said the words we had been wanting to hear, “there’s a bull.” We looked to the shoreline on our left and slowly climbing a steep ridge was a bull caribou. Our guide said he wasn’t sure if it was a shooter, but that it was a ‘representative animal’. My hunting partner Josh quickly chimed in and disagreed, he was confident it was a bull either of us would be proud to harvest. We watched it walk up to the crest of the ridge for a minute, and we gauged it at 200 yards. Neither my hunting partner nor I got good eyes on it before it disappeared over the ridge. We could just see enough that it looked like a “nice” bull. As it dipped behind the ridge, we moved the raft to the shore and made the call that I would get a shot at this caribou over Josh, since my gun was readily available (He had a grizzly tag as well so he had his bear rifle ready, as I only had caribou, my Ultralite was closer). I tried to be nice and let Josh go after it, but I think he would not live down if he took a caribou before the woman on the trip, so I take it as a chivalrous gesture.

Either way, we left most of the gear in the boat and started the trek. Gun over my shoulder, Josh had the camera in hand, and we started our first stalk through the tundra wilderness. Thick, tough, unforgiving, are just a few words to describe the landscape. But when you are on the chase, none of that matters. We made it to the top in about 5 minutes, and slowly came over the crest to spot the bull across the valley. Josh ranged him at 300 yards. We had sighted in comfortably at 225 yards and event took some shots at 335, so I felt really good at that yardage. It’s go time. As Josh set up the camera behind us, Hunter and I did the infamous army crawl a few yards to get on solid ground. He threw down his pack in front of me, and my rifle quickly followed. Deep breaths, slow the heart rate after the hike, all while moving quickly, as it was very clear that we were upwind. Our time was limited. Hunter whispers, 295 yards. I turn my Leupold CDS to 3. 100% confident in my shot. The trophy we’ve worked months for is in my optic, 45 minutes into our hunt, and the moment comes that I’ve dreamed about. I’m not sure how long I had him in the scope, but it felt like 4-5 seconds. Crisp trigger pull. That “thump” that we all love to hear. A few wandering steps, and he’s down. Quick reload, stay on him, and try to take it all in. The heartrate is back up, but this time it’s for the reason we all hunt for. That moment when the work you’ve put in, gear you tested and invested in, and team you’ve surrounded yourself with, all come together, and you get your bull. There is no better moment.

Less than an hour into our Alaska hunt, I walked up to my barren ground bull. Truly blessed for the experience, and the amazing animal that I was able to harvest. The last four months have been another truly rewarding evolution of my hunting journey. I’m proud of the hard work I did to prepare and appreciate all the help I had from so many friends, partners and passionate guides and outfitters. As I scan my phone, watch Josh’s video yet again or tell the story to another colleague, I find new ways to relive the moment of success and everything that led up to it. I can’t wait for the next adventure.