ak hanback stalk

It’s premiere week on Sportsman Channel, and new episodes of BIG DEER TV begin airing this Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. ET. Set your DVR!

In episode 1 this week, show producer Justin, cameramen Bill and Christian, and I set forth on the biggest and boldest BIG DEER adventure yet, a do-it-yourself hunt for blacktail deer on Kodiak Island, Alaska.

ak fly in

Last October we flew into the town of Kodiak and from there took a bush plane to Larsen Bay, where we met up with Mike Flores, our captain and transporter. We boarded the 47-foot Arctic Endeavor, our home for the week, and motored out into Larsen Bay and the amazing waters beyond.

ak boat hunt

I had hunted in Alaska 5 times, but not for many years and never for Stika blacktail. This was my first to the Kodiak region. As we motored out, the sky was clear and spectacular and vast, the seas calm. Whales danced and dove alongside the boat. We spotted a few deer, and then the ultimate symbol of Kodiak, a 1,000-pound brown bear.

Ak feeling small

As you’ll see when the hunting begins, it’s not easy. Kodiak is big and rough and thick and wild and raw–the way hunting country ought to be. You sink in bogs, bust brush, climb hills and mountains that never end. You slip and fall and sweat and bleed and cuss, and you love and savor every minute of it.

Set your DVR right now to record every episode of BIG DEER every Wednesday at 7:00 pm ET, beginning June 29. Thanks for watching, I truly appreciate your incredible support.