# Canadian/Alaskan Big Game Harvest???



## [email protected] (Jan 10, 2006)

Has anyone ever flown anywhere for big game? Just curious if/how you get it back (Do you ship the meat back or what are the different scenarios/options). Not so much an African thing, but like a Canadian or Alaskan trip. For that matter has anyone been to British Columbia for any sort of big game? How big of hassle is taking your gun to Canada? Thanks for any info.


----------



## ezcaller (Feb 21, 2009)

It has been a lot of years so I don't know whats changed on the regulation front. From Quebec the caribou meat was packed in leak proof boxes and flown home and charged per box. From Idaho I had my elk meat frozen and then the hotel held it in their freezer til I flew out. I then packed it in a large army duffel bag and flew it home as an extra bag . The only meat I lost was a couple packs that were on top. I had to give a few packs away at the hotel to get it all in the bag-You would of thought I was giving away gold ingots to the employees.I forgot- I had lost a whole hind quarter to a bear so I did not have a complete elk to get home. A friend of mine just did a Montana antelope hunt last fall and said that flying his meat home as baggage was still a option he just did not allow enough time to get it frozen and then to the airport so he had the processor ship and it was a lot more that he thought.
I think it will boil down to how far away you are and what size animal you bring home. Good Luck


----------



## bucko12pt (Dec 9, 2004)

Not much for options. Pay to have it flown home with 
you or leave it with the outfitter. Generally they have a waiting list of people for meat, so it does'nt go to waste.

Couple times, I've flown and friends drove up, so they 
brought it home for me all processed.


----------



## giver108 (Nov 24, 2004)

I was going to fly to Manitoba last spring for my bear hunt but after checking it out with the airlines, I just decided to drive. It all boils down to how much money you want to spend. In recent years the airlines have been really socking it to travelers on oversized and overweight bags. For instance, Delta charges $125 (each way) for an item that measures over 62" (length + width + height) which basically means bringing a cooler is going to be an extra $250 in addition to your plane fare. If it weighs more than 50 lbs., expect additional fees for every five pounds there after. Bringing a bow case or gun case? Expect to pay another $250 since it will be oversized too. You have to have TSA approved airline safe case. Checking more than one bag? You're paying for that too. 

There are a couple ways you can save a little money. You can load your cooler on the way there with bulky clothes and pack a big duffel bag to bring them back home. If you bag an animal, put it in the cooler. Saves some money one way at least. After I looked at all these fees, and I'm a frequent traveler on Delta and can get some fees waived (extra bags), I was looking at close to around $750 extra (would have had to buy the guncase) above the fare. This would have been to strictly bring home a bear hide and skull. You can almost forget bringing home any meat if you are flying commercial. Shipping that is very expensive nowadays whether you bring it on the plane or pay a shipping service. It's just too heavy to make it worth it.

The rule of thumb is, if you can take the time to drive where you're going, drive. If that isn't an option, pack as lightly as possible and even look into shipping things to the outfitter via UPS ahead of time. Until I win the lotto, every trip I will make has to be something driveable. It is much easier, you can take whatever you want there and back and eliminates a lot of grief you'll get from the airlines. My trip to Manitoba was 26 hours one way, by myself. It was a blast and the outfitter was top notch but I will never make that trip again unless I have someone to drive with.


----------



## Cuz (Jan 16, 2008)

I hunted British Columbia in 2008. I'm headed back again this year. Great info on the posts here so far. I had no problems getting into and out of British Columbia at all. Just make sure your firearms paperwork is completed entirely and accurately. Fantastic place to hunt and all the people I met were absolutely great.


----------



## TSS Caddis (Mar 15, 2002)

giver108 said:


> For instance, Delta charges $125 (each way) for an item that measures over 62" (length + width + height) which basically means bringing a cooler is going to be an extra $250 in addition to your plane fare. If it weighs more than 50 lbs., expect additional fees for every five pounds there after. Bringing a bow case or gun case? Expect to pay another $250 since it will be oversized too.


Those are the policies, but I have not seen any of them practiced.

I thought for sure last year they were going to zing me on the duffle I borrowed from Cuz, but they didn't. I've only had one time where they almost charged me additional for being 5lbs over on a bag. Some quick repacking and made it back under weight and that was Delta.

If traveling with firearms, do yourself a favor and buy a TuffPak. If your going to eat it on your firearm case being counted as a bag, you may as well be able to pack a bunch of stuff with it.

For firearms, just have a 4457 from U.S. Customs filled out and your good to go just showing up in many countries with your gun in one hand and $$ in the other. I've only traveled with firearms inside the U.S. and to Canada, Argentina and South Africa, but long as you have your 4457, money for any permit, passport and possible "tip" money you are fine.


----------



## Michihunter (Jan 8, 2003)

Just an FYI in case you were unaware: http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10363_10856-73145--,00.html


----------



## giver108 (Nov 24, 2004)

TSS Caddis said:


> Those are the policies, but I have not seen any of them practiced.
> 
> I thought for sure last year they were going to zing me on the duffle I borrowed from Cuz, but they didn't. I've only had one time where they almost charged me additional for being 5lbs over on a bag. Some quick repacking and made it back under weight and that was Delta.


You bring up a good point being that oftentimes you are at the mercy of the person who is checking your bags. Sometimes they let things slide, sometimes they don't. Overweight bags will always get flagged since you have to set your luggage on a scale. Every airport is different I suppose. Smaller airports tend to be a little more strict. Busier airports tend to just want to get you moving.

One point I would like to make is if in fact you want to hunt somewhere that a drive is out of the question (British Columbia), by all means go. I don't want to come off in this thread as a total buzzkill. The airline rules/prices are minor in the grand scheme of things. A few hundred dollars on what is likely a several thousand dollar hunt should not make or break your trip. People do it all the time and manage just fine. It just takes a little more planning ahead of time but once you get there and start to experience a hunt of a lifetime, it will all be worth it.


----------



## TSS Caddis (Mar 15, 2002)

[email protected] said:


> Has anyone ever flown anywhere for big game? Just curious if/how you get it back (Do you ship the meat back or what are the different scenarios/options). Not so much an African thing, but like a Canadian or Alaskan trip. For that matter has anyone been to British Columbia for any sort of big game? How big of hassle is taking your gun to Canada? Thanks for any info.


BTW, if you need Alaska big game information, I'd PM Cuz since he has hunted there quite a bit and guides grizz, moose, etc... there almost every fall.


----------

