AK AK - Steve Keel, 61, missing from hunting trip, from TN - Aug 27, 2022

[RickshawFan]

I can't imagine Alaska telling people from Tennessee they can't come there.

Snipped for focus

In general, un-trained volunteers are not welcome in search areas in the backcountry. They create hazards for SAR, and they can muck up a search.

 

[Strawberryjellyfishb]

That far north Polar bear can definitely be a problem. I've never hunted that far north, but when we lived and hunted moose and caribou in AK the temperatures drop to well below freezing once the sun sets this time of year. As far as walking to a vehicle, at one of our spots it was a 7 mile hike one way through marshy tundra. So bear attack, medical emergency or succumbing to the elements are all a possibility.

 

[5W's]

There's no telling if gunfire would be heard (I doubt there's echo in that landscape), and once you're done with your clip, you're done.

It sounded like SK's hunting partner slept in a vehicle, too, and might not hear a whole lot of anything? And he was probably tired. If you're super-tired from being in the backcountry, you're likely to sleep like a log.

But it was earlier in the day that he went out to the caribou meat but of course as you mentioned his hunting partner later on close to dusk would go to the van.

 

[Strawberryjellyfishb]

Did we ever find out why SK was hiking back to the caribou carcass? Do we know why the hunting partners didn't remove the carcass immediately to their vehicle? I thought this was odd (but know nothing about hunting). It sounded like the vehicle was close, since SK's partner walked there and spent the night there.

If they were planning on continuing to hunt it would be preferable to keep fresh meat hanging-that way the outer most layer dries and preserves the meat. If you put it in your meat in a vehicle for a few days if it hasn't had a chance to develop the dry layer it would cause the meat to spoil. When we got our game home, we would slice off this dry layer and give it to our dogs throughout the year.

 

[RickshawFan]

Another reason why it's very unlikely for gunfire to be heard in that terrain..... it has been foggy there.

 

[RickshawFan]

That far north Polar bear can definitely be a problem. I've never hunted that far north, but when we lived and hunted moose and caribou in AK the temperatures drop to well below freezing once the sun sets this time of year. As far as walking to a vehicle, at one of our spots it was a 7 mile hike one way through marshy tundra. So bear attack, medical emergency or succumbing to the elements are all a possibility.

Yeah, I'm guessing hypothermia, brought on quite quickly by getting wet and the wind, combined with the temperature.
There are wolves, too.

 

[WingsOverTX]

Does anyone know if they used an outfitter to set up the trip or were doing it on their own? I'm puzzled that their vehicle was in walking distance if they were using an outfitting service for air transportation to a campsite.

I wonder if you can even hunt caribou on the North Slope without the use of an outfitting service to increase your chances of making a kill & help get your meat mailed out, etc.?

 

[Strawberryjellyfishb]

There's no telling if gunfire would be heard (I doubt there's echo in that landscape), and once you're done with your clip, you're done.

It sounded like SK's hunting partner slept in a vehicle, too, and might not hear a whole lot of anything? And he was probably tired. If you're super-tired from being in the backcountry, you're likely to sleep like a log.

Actually quite the opposite. If there are hunters in a couple miles radius, you can definitely hear a pistol or rifle shot. There a very small to no trees in this area. If he was in the vehicle after hiking several miles, you're right he may have slept through it. Was his vehicle several miles away? Did he go there looking for his hunting partner? Maybe by the time he got there and realized it was too late to search for him. It gets very dark and very cold very quickly.

 

[Strawberryjellyfishb]

Does anyone know if they used an outfitter to set up the trip or were doing it on their own? I'm puzzled that their vehicle was in walking distance if they were using an outfitting service for air transportation to a campsite.

I wonder if you can even hunt caribou on the North Slope without the use of an outfitting service to increase your chances of making a kill & help get your meat mailed out, etc.?

Very good question, that part doesn't make sense to me. We would get the AK fish & wildlife regs booklet. Alaska is divided into different hunting "units" and the regs are different for each. It would tell you what tags you needed and what animals out of staters needed a guide for. There is probably a regulations guide online at the AK Fish & Game website.

 

[Strawberryjellyfishb]

Another reason why it's very unlikely for gunfire to be heard in that terrain..... it has been foggy there.

The fog would also increase your chance of getting lost too...

 

[RickshawFan]

Does anyone know if they used an outfitter to set up the trip or were doing it on their own? I'm puzzled that their vehicle was in walking distance if they were using an outfitting service for air transportation to a campsite.

I wonder if you can even hunt caribou on the North Slope without the use of an outfitting service to increase your chances of making a kill & help get your meat mailed out, etc.?

It looks like, from the site you gave above, @WingsOverTX , that it would be virtually impossible (especially if you were a lower-48-er) to go on this kind of hunt without an outfitter. For instance, you can't stay at Brooks Camp without an outfitter. The outfitter also scouts the herd for you. You need permits, certified packaging, and evidently a boat trip to get back to civilization.
The outfitter you cite also requires a Garmin inReach. Maybe that's how the hunting partner contacted LE?

 

[5W's]

Very good question, that part doesn't make sense to me. We would get the AK fish & wildlife regs booklet. Alaska is divided into different hunting "units" and the regs are different for each. It would tell you what tags you needed and what animals out of staters needed a guide for. There is probably a regulations guide online at the AK Fish & Game website.

I thought they had hunted in Alaska before (I could be wrong) so if they had then wouldn't they consult that online website?

 

[RickshawFan]

We're discussing AK, and the ads are showing me the Caribbean and Costa Rica, lol.

 

[WingsOverTX]

The fog would also increase your chance of getting lost too...

Wow. I was thinking the environment would be his worst enemy. Maybe he did get lost. Chances of a predator attack don't seem that high to me unless one or more was at or near the carcass site.

Looking at the areas south of Deadhorse fairly close to mile marker 336.5 on a Dalton Highway map, I see the Sag River "near" the road. Unsure if he would have encountered it though.

With winter approaching & the search at two weeks, time is dwindling if he is going to be found this year.

JMO

 

[WingsOverTX]

It looks like, from the site you gave above, @WingsOverTX , that it would be virtually impossible (especially if you were a lower-48-er) to go on this kind of hunt without an outfitter. For instance, you can't stay at Brooks Camp without an outfitter. The outfitter also scouts the herd for you. You need permits, certified packaging, and evidently a boat trip to get back to civilization.
The outfitter you cite also requires a Garmin inReach. Maybe that's how the hunting partner contacted LE?

I think you are correct!

 

[RickshawFan]

Actually quite the opposite. If there are hunters in a couple miles radius, you can definitely hear a pistol or rifle shot. There a very small to no trees in this area. If he was in the vehicle after hiking several miles, you're right he may have slept through it. Was his vehicle several miles away? Did he go there looking for his hunting partner? Maybe by the time he got there and realized it was too late to search for him. It gets very dark and very cold very quickly.

The wind could be going in the opposite direction, though…

 

[GraceG]

I read he was carrying a Glock .45. I know nothing about firearms. Would that have a sound that carries very far if fired?

ETA: Post including Glock info

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0GUcEQ6FckKDnn8Jy5iUCprXBgVMNoGoT1vCewwHseqB8k8HKq8TmGfZ5jm7ucobzl&id=100044302692250

I carry a Sig Sauer .45 for personal protection (I'm a tall woman with large hands so it works for me). The Sig is about 160 decibels, not much different than a 12 gauge shotgun, .380, or 9 mm but more than a .22 rifle (which would be WAY too small for being in bear country). The speed, weight, and powder charge of the bullet determine how loud a gunshot is and the temperature and humidity can also affect it (in my personal opinion, damp foggy air seems to make the sound carry farther). My pistol can be heard about a mile away (my inlaws have a large farm, so target shooting there, I know how far the sound will carry to the house).

 

[RickshawFan]

Did they have a camp separate from where the camp at the car is? They seem really close together to require two sites? If the camp at the car was at close walking distance (as the hunting partner seems to convey), why would you have another camp? You could just walk in every day and have cushy nights at the van….

 

[LauraAnne]

Did they have a camp separate from where the camp at the car is? They seem really close together to require two sites? If the camp at the car was at close walking distance (as the hunting partner seems to convey), why would you have another camp? You could just walk in every day and have cushy nights at the van….

Apparently the caribou were stored 1/4 mile away so that bears wouldn't be attracted to their home camp.

 

[RickshawFan]

Apparently the caribou were stored 1/4 mile away so that bears wouldn't be attracted to their home camp.

The caribou is a third site, as far as I can tell.

As I read it, the hunting partner was at a camp. The caribou was 1/4 mile from here. The hunting partner went to the camp at the vehicle for the night. To me, that sounds like 2 camps.

It also makes the search area exponentially larger, as the distance to get lost in is much bigger. And, if SK was navigating with only a compass and no spacious paper map, he could be anywhere, since direction would not be specific to a point.