newsminer.com

FAIRBANKS — A stampede of hunters hoping to bag a late-season cow moose in the Granite Mountains near Delta Junction forced the Department of Fish and Game to cut the season to just two days before it even opened.

The registration permit hunt for cow moose in the Jarvis and McCumber Creek drainages will open today and close 11:59 p.m. Saturday.

“We’ve got a 48-hour season,” said Dave Davenport at the Department of Fish and Game in Delta Junction.

As of Thursday afternoon, the state had issued about 500 permits for hunt RM797, which is split into two zones. Each zone has a harvest quota of 50 moose. Zone 2 is the area being closed.

Delta area biologist Steve DuBois said a combination of high interest, decent access, and a lot of moose prompted game managers to close the hunt after only two days.

“We’ve issued more permits than expected,” DuBois said in a press release announcing the closure. “We flew last week and saw quite a few legal moose, so I believe the harvest is likely to go pretty fast. We can’t wait until Monday to close it without a high risk of exceeding the quota.”

Hunting in Zone 1, which includes the eastern and northern portions of the hunt area, will remain open, but managers will be watching the harvest closely and close the hunt when the quota is reached. Davenport said access in Zone 1 is more difficult, but he still expects the season in Zone 1 to last a week at the most.

Hunters should call the Department of Fish and Game in Delta Junction at 895-4484 to make sure the season is still open before going into the field, Davenport said.

Hunters are allowed to take only antlerless moose without calves in both hunts.

In a registration permit hunt, an unlimited number of permits can be issued, but hunters are required to report a kill within three days of taking an animal. The harvest is monitored and the hunt is closed when the quota is met or when the season closes. The season in both hunts was scheduled to end on Nov. 25 if the quotas weren’t reached.

A map of both zones is posted on the Department of Fish and Game Web site at www.wildlife.alaska.gov.