VOYAGE TO KODIAK ISLAND

[Music] I mushed from Point Bar through a blizzard of snow. Been out prospecting for two years or so. Pulled into Fairbanks, the city was a boom. So I took a little stroll to the ceiling. The music was clear. The first I had the song she was singing with spring [Music] I reached down and took the snow. I reached for the gall [Music] around the city. [Music] [Music] She kept a man. [Music] [Applause] Pat Sino is off on another of his Alaska adventures. Bumps of anticipation are built up in Pat as he gets ready to board the airplane for Kodiak, Alaska, where he'll hunt for Kodiak Bear. It's raining on this spring day as the flight leaves Seattle, but soon it's clear and he has a magnificent view of the Canadian coast on his 3-hour flight to Kodiak Island. It's a beautiful day as Pat arrives at the old Russian village of Kodiak, one of the oldest settlements of Alaska, and he plans to check into its only hotel. Most of the population of Kodiak Island lives in the town of Kodiak. Except for a naval base, the economy of the town is built around the fishing industry. [Applause] The next day, he has all day to roam around the town and see its many interesting sites and make a few new friends. What could be a more typical landmark for Kodiak than this statue of an Alaska brown bear. [Music] Kodiak with its one main street is famous for its seafood, especially king crab. But it's also an important commercial fishing center. And it's clear icy waters abound with salmon, trout, halibet and shrimp. [Music] Pat finds himself in the middle of a king crab celebration. And here the scuba divers are diving for king crab right off one of Kodiak's docks. The king crab, the largest crab on Earth, is found only in these Alaskan waters and is one of the most delicious of all seafoods. Look at the size of that critter. If the size of the crabs are any indication of the size of the other wildlife, Pat really has an adventure in store for him. Pat still has a little time left before his bear hunt, so he samples the fishing. [Music] [Applause] You guessed it, a fighting silvery trout on just about every cast. And Pat catches them and returns them until his arms grow tired. say, "Isn't that a beauty? [Music] Always making friends." That gives this newly born fond deer got separated from his mother some of that Alaskan hospitality. [Music] Kodiak Island is located in the Gulf of Alaska, separated from the Alaska mainland by the Shilikov Straits and is most famous as the home of the giant Kodiak bear. It's believed to have come over from Asia when the two countries were connected. Pat sees the area on the northwest side of the island where he'll hunt. And as they get airborne, the pilot circle gives Pat a last close-up look of Kodiak on his way to the hunting camp. The warm spring sun is rapidly melting the winter snows, and it's these warm temperatures that bring the giant Kodiak bear out of his long winter sleep. So, he'll now be able to find enough food to satisfy his enormous appetite. [Music] As the airplanes land at the hunting camp on Terror Bay, they're met by the guides who live there year round in the remote area. The outfitter Chris Herson is one of the pioneers of Kodiak Island. He and his son Leonard helping will have a packer along. Now, this isn't exactly red carpet service, but it's the best they can do with the facilities available. [Music] [Music] As Pat views his new temporary home, he wonders how anything could be so beautiful and peaceful and yet have a name like Terror Bay. But he's told by his guy that isn't always quite so peaceful as today. [Music] Too late for hunting that day. So Pat gets settled in his cabin, has time to get acquainted with his guides, and swap a few hunting stories. [Music] Anxiety has built up to its maximum as a day arrives that Pat's been waiting for. After they're out, it's not long before they spot their first bears feeding on the nearby salmon streams. [Music] That's a mother and two cubs. Fine to look at and okay for pictures, but not for shooting. [Music] There's a male, but he's already started rubbing off his winter coat. And that isn't the one that Pat's been looking for. [Music] They're good fisherman, but even a bear don't get a fish every cast. Kodiak's many fish producing rivers are the chief source of food for the bear. This fatty diet is part of the reason why the Kodiak is one of the biggest bears on Earth. [Music] Well, it's back to camp to get ready for tomorrow's hunt. [Music] [Applause] In the days that follow, Pat and his guides Chris and Leonard Helguson will cruise many a saltwater bay and inlet and all the northwestern shore of Kodiak Island. Always looking, always glassing. They see plenty of bear, but pets traveled a long way for a very special large trophy, and he won't be satisfied with anything less. [Music] They look that one over for a long time, but decide to pass it up. [Music] There's lots of fox on the island. This one's digging for clams at low tide. Now, they've spotted something real interesting. It looks like the one that they've been looking for. It's a giant male high up there on that ridge right in the snow. That's the type of bear that Pat's traveled these thousands of miles to see. And now the stalk begins. [Music] Off of the big boat and into the skiff so they can get to shore. [Music] The picnic's over now. And some of this walking can get just a little bit rough. But you just pick them up and you put them down. And you keep shoving that brush out of the way. And before you know it, the boat is only a tiny speck in the bay far below you. [Music] The bear probably won't move much at this time of the day. They try not to overt tire themselves. This busting brush can wear a person down in a hurry. And you just have to rest once in a while. The big bear is laid down for asleep, giving the hunters the needed hours to make their long climb. [Music] The bear must have gotten the wind of them. It looks like he's off. You better hurry, Pat, because if he gets away now, you may never see him again. [Music] The bear headed for that brush thicket and never came out. That means that Pat and the guide will have to move in carefully and may have to work at close quarters. [Music] You want to make that first shot count because he's closed and he could be on you in a matter of seconds. [Music] that signaled that the shot was good and the bear down. [Music] Will you look at the size of that Bruno? That's a fine big bear and certainly worth all of the effort that's been put into it. Pat's a happy man. Certainly proud of this fine specimen. [Music] And he gets a real Alaskan handshake from his guide. [Music] Look at that set of teeth. Those jaws are capable of crushing the largest of bones. [Music] Well, the day's hunting paid off well, and the long trip up the mountain was well worth it for a trophy like that. [Music] There's still lots of work to do and everybody pitches in and helps out with the skinning as it's still a long way back to the boat. Now the work really begins. There's well over a,000 lbs in that carcass. See [Music] The skin now has to be skillfully removed so the taxiderermis can make it into a rug for Pat's trophy room. [Music] While skinning out the bear, Pat's bullets found. It went clear through and laid in a hide on the other side. That means perfect bullet performance. All the energy of that slug was distributed through the body. [Music] [Applause] It's a lot of work getting the hide off a big bear like that. Nobody stops to rest here. [Music] The hide is off and the toughest part of the job is done. Oh no. [Applause] [Music] Wow. [Music] Part of the help goes back to the beach to bring the big boat closer, while Pat and the other guide remain with the hide and prepare to bring it back. [Applause] It's necessary to clear some of that brush to make a path for the packer. [Music] That enormous hide is stuffed into the packboard and the long pack to the beach will then begin. [Music] [Applause] [Music] That ain't no picnic, Mac. That hide weighs 150 lbs. And he can get mighty rough going with a guide carrying equivalent to his own weight. body can be thankful that it's all downhill. [Music] It was a tough hunt, but that's the kind you have the fondest memories of. Back on the boat, they have their first real chance to rest today. [Music] It's a beautiful trip back to camp. That blacktail deer hardly even notices the boat full of happy hunters. Unsurpassed settings such as these can be found only in Alaska. No wonder it's called the great land. The days are long in Alaska at this time of the year, and the sun is just setting as the hunters return home. The next day, the skilled hands of the guides must remove all the fat from the bear hide so it can be cured with salt. [Music] The meat is cut away from the skull because Pat wants to keep it as an extra souvenir. [Music] After the hides well salted, it's then stretched out for drying. Now you can see its true size. It's a 10-footer. No wonder Pat Sino has such a big smile. The whole family turns out to celebrate the occasion. [Music] It's a sad moment when the airplanes return for Pat and he has to say goodbye to his friends. [Music] Pat asks the pilots to fly him around so we'd have another last look at wild Kodiak Island. The island probably has more waterfront than most islands its size. Kodiak has dozens of inlets, rivers, peninsulas, which makes it a paradise for fish and bear alike. [Music] If you ever wondered about the speed of the Kodiak bear, just watch that one go up that hill. [Music] They fly along the beaches and Pat sees unlimited wildlife. Fish, whale, birds, and sea mammals. [Music] Look at those sea lions. There must be hundreds and hundreds of these giant specimens that weigh up to 1,000 lb. Looking at a map of Alaska, Kodiak Island is almost unnoticed in the Gulf of Alaska. But yet, it's truly one of the game paradises of the world, abounding with game of many species, thus attracting sightseers as well as the big game hunter, making the tourist trade one of the most important industries of the island. [Music] [Music] As they approach Kodiak, Pat's pilot tells him that the city was first founded by the Russians and that many of their landmarks can still be seen and that there are numerous Russian names and descendants of these early settlers still live there. [Music] Well, Pat's just in time to say goodbye to his Kodiak friends and to join the crowds and the hustle and the bustle at the airport as they plan to board the plane. On Pat's first trip to Kodiak, he made friends with a military officer. And by coincidence, he's able to ride to Anchorage on the same flight with this officer that's being transferred. A change of planes and back to Seattle. Heat. Heat. [Applause] Pat Sino is a veteran of many big game hunts. Every hunt thrilling and unforgettable. But even so, Pat has many reminders of his adventures. He can sit down and let his thoughts wander back to Kodiak Island, to those beautiful bays and inlets and mountains and rivers, and to the hardships and enjoyments of the hunt. The special feelings and memories that only the big game hunter can know.