00:00:04.860 --> 00:00:06.120
- Easy river traffic,

00:00:30.120 --> 00:00:32.730
- We will be doing a bit of
up and down, up and down.

00:00:32.730 --> 00:00:34.110
You get high and listen

00:00:34.110 --> 00:00:36.990
'cause you're, you'll hear a
lot better the higher you get.

00:00:36.990 --> 00:00:39.390
And we'll drop down to find him.

00:00:39.390 --> 00:00:39.810
This one

00:00:43.410 --> 00:00:44.580
that's 1202 there.

00:00:44.580 --> 00:00:46.770
So that's the female silver female

00:00:57.120 --> 00:01:00.120
right now we're mainly looking
for listening for that Riley,

00:01:00.120 --> 00:01:02.670
she's got her and a and
another male with her.

00:01:04.260 --> 00:01:06.990
So we're listening for them.
This will be their home turf.

00:01:06.990 --> 00:01:09.570
Been around a while. Really thought this

00:01:09.570 --> 00:01:10.680
was gonna be her last winter.

00:01:10.680 --> 00:01:12.810
I mean, when you see a wolf limping

00:01:12.810 --> 00:01:14.130
and limping like she would've limping.

00:01:14.130 --> 00:01:16.740
I mean she wasn't limping like
ow. I got a thorn in my foot.

00:01:16.740 --> 00:01:18.240
She was, her whole leg was off the

00:01:18.240 --> 00:01:19.620
ground for all winter long.

00:01:21.030 --> 00:01:23.340
A single healthy wolf has the word cut out

00:01:23.340 --> 00:01:25.410
to survive in, in this country.

00:01:25.410 --> 00:01:27.000
So when they get an injury

00:01:27.000 --> 00:01:30.120
and they're still single, that's
kind of the piss of death.

00:01:30.120 --> 00:01:30.840
Pretty much

00:01:36.960 --> 00:01:37.800
right here, somewhere on

00:01:37.800 --> 00:01:38.800
- Circle.

00:01:38.800 --> 00:01:39.160
There

00:01:55.380 --> 00:01:58.230
- I am, you know, I've
been up here 39 years

00:01:58.230 --> 00:02:01.980
and I'm still blown away by
how abruptly fall comes on

00:02:01.980 --> 00:02:05.610
and the colors, how intense
and fleeting they are.

00:02:24.860 --> 00:02:28.260
I will take a little different
route. We'll go this way.

00:02:31.620 --> 00:02:34.080
The better stuff is down the trail.

00:02:42.390 --> 00:02:46.410
Everybody in the Denali area
is gonna be trading their

00:02:46.410 --> 00:02:50.970
various forms of cranberry
sauce and cranberry liqueur

00:02:50.970 --> 00:02:55.140
and cranberry strudel and everything else.

00:02:55.140 --> 00:02:58.990
Christmas I,

00:02:58.990 --> 00:03:02.440
I always feel like I
wanna leave a fair amount

00:03:02.440 --> 00:03:06.970
for the squirrels and the
birds and the little bowls

00:03:06.970 --> 00:03:10.480
and lims and shrew that are
obviously also eating these.

00:03:21.220 --> 00:03:22.690
Look at these little empty shells.

00:03:22.690 --> 00:03:25.510
I would just love to know how
they suck 'em out like that.

00:03:26.710 --> 00:03:29.860
But, huh.

00:03:34.570 --> 00:03:36.730
This is my idea of food security.

00:03:39.100 --> 00:03:41.200
A little moose meat and
a lot of cranberries

00:03:41.200 --> 00:03:42.850
and we're good to go for the winter.

00:04:00.760 --> 00:04:05.420
Wow, man. These lichens sure
have loved these recent rains.

00:04:07.240 --> 00:04:09.640
You know, depending on what
part of the world you live in,

00:04:10.510 --> 00:04:12.760
like when Chernobyl occurred, all

00:04:12.760 --> 00:04:17.530
that radioactive fallout came
over into Western Alaska.

00:04:17.530 --> 00:04:19.900
And you know, the lichens
don't have a rooting system

00:04:19.900 --> 00:04:22.660
so they absorb all the nutrient moisture,

00:04:22.660 --> 00:04:24.580
whatever's in the air
goes into the lichen.

00:04:24.580 --> 00:04:28.570
And all that radioactive
fallout went into the lichen

00:04:28.570 --> 00:04:30.400
and caribou eat the lichen.

00:04:30.400 --> 00:04:34.150
And the native people were
told to stop eating caribou

00:04:34.150 --> 00:04:35.950
and stop nursing their babies.

00:04:35.950 --> 00:04:39.190
And they didn't have
much for alternatives.

00:04:43.690 --> 00:04:46.300
The Denali herd of caribou is kind of one

00:04:46.300 --> 00:04:48.890
of the only non hunted herds of caribou.

00:04:48.890 --> 00:04:51.250
It'd almost be better if they were hunted

00:04:51.250 --> 00:04:52.450
and there weren't so darn many

00:04:52.450 --> 00:04:54.850
of them concentrated
in the wolf townships.

00:04:54.850 --> 00:04:57.490
Knowing darn well that's
where the wolves are gonna be.

00:04:57.490 --> 00:05:01.990
You know, wolves go where the caribou go

00:05:01.990 --> 00:05:04.780
and that's where the caribou
go, the Denali herd anyway,

00:05:04.780 --> 00:05:08.980
you know, and yeah, it's
pretty convoluted situation

00:05:28.420 --> 00:05:29.920
just knowing there's places

00:05:29.920 --> 00:05:31.780
where there's enough land set aside

00:05:31.780 --> 00:05:36.160
that they can live a
natural life without being

00:05:36.160 --> 00:05:39.220
harassed by everybody.

00:05:43.150 --> 00:05:45.100
I wish, I wish that was
more the discussion.

00:06:06.140 --> 00:06:08.960
- So that's the wall of snares and traps.

00:06:08.960 --> 00:06:12.950
And like I said, it's not

00:06:14.670 --> 00:06:16.580
easy that anyone can do it.

00:06:16.580 --> 00:06:19.160
There's a a few billion

00:06:20.270 --> 00:06:21.860
six inch circles out there

00:06:24.290 --> 00:06:26.000
and you're asking an animal to put his

00:06:26.000 --> 00:06:28.580
or her foot in a certain spot.

00:06:31.370 --> 00:06:36.370
And that is the finest

00:06:36.380 --> 00:06:37.640
wolf trap made today.

00:06:37.640 --> 00:06:40.700
It's an Alaska number nine was
invented by a man in Alaska.

00:06:40.700 --> 00:06:44.360
It's still built in Alaska. Yeah.

00:06:44.360 --> 00:06:48.440
I'll show you how it
works. I can set this trap.

00:06:48.440 --> 00:06:53.210
Let's do it on a smaller
scale that's called the dog

00:06:53.210 --> 00:06:54.230
that holds the pan.

00:06:54.230 --> 00:06:56.150
And the pan is what triggers the trap.

00:06:57.050 --> 00:07:00.290
And the nice thing about this
trap is it's got a free jaw.

00:07:00.290 --> 00:07:03.440
So you, you can set it safely
without hurting yourself

00:07:03.440 --> 00:07:05.570
should you accidentally snap it.

00:07:06.410 --> 00:07:07.490
It's not gonna catch you.

00:07:09.620 --> 00:07:12.380
So anyhow, that's how trap works.

00:07:12.380 --> 00:07:14.960
You set it, you set it up

00:07:15.980 --> 00:07:17.180
where you think they're gonna come.

00:07:17.180 --> 00:07:19.820
Say there's a pile of snow there
that they've been peeing on

00:07:21.710 --> 00:07:26.580
and they'll walk along and
they go to pee on that thing

00:07:26.580 --> 00:07:29.270
and they step in the pan and catches them.

00:07:37.190 --> 00:07:41.840
No. Hey buddy, I'm gonna have

00:07:41.840 --> 00:07:43.760
to go radio silence.

00:07:43.760 --> 00:07:46.580
What's going on? Silence.

00:07:46.580 --> 00:07:51.230
I'm, I'm about to talk to a
couple of ladies about all

00:07:51.230 --> 00:07:54.140
of our wolf problems in Denali, Alaska.

00:07:55.670 --> 00:07:59.540
Both of them. Okay. Alright. Bye.

00:08:02.000 --> 00:08:04.850
I am a hunting guide

00:08:04.850 --> 00:08:09.050
living in the stampede
corridor surrounded by

00:08:09.050 --> 00:08:10.790
Denali National Park and Preserve.

00:08:10.790 --> 00:08:15.440
I've been here about 28
years and I like hunting

00:08:15.440 --> 00:08:18.500
and trapping and fishing
and being in the outdoors.

00:08:22.490 --> 00:08:26.660
To me, hunting is a natural
thing, you know, and,

00:08:26.660 --> 00:08:30.080
and I'd really like the
benefits that come from it,

00:08:30.080 --> 00:08:32.390
especially flesh or fur.

00:08:32.390 --> 00:08:35.210
And this area is renowned
for having really nice fur

00:08:35.210 --> 00:08:38.480
because it gets fairly cold subar.

00:08:38.480 --> 00:08:41.450
So the animals have to fur
up real healthy to survive.

00:08:43.280 --> 00:08:46.760
That's why we bought the
state f primarily early.

00:08:48.590 --> 00:08:50.150
It's not drunken slobs riding

00:08:50.150 --> 00:08:52.640
around in the woods on
snowmobiles, throwing beer cans

00:08:52.640 --> 00:08:54.960
around and just throwing steel out.

00:08:54.960 --> 00:08:58.170
There's a bit of an art form to it.

00:08:58.170 --> 00:08:59.730
You have to know where to put it

00:08:59.730 --> 00:09:04.080
and you, you have to know
how to camouflage it.

00:09:07.680 --> 00:09:11.280
A snare has what's called a

00:09:12.360 --> 00:09:14.760
snare lock and a snare luck.

00:09:14.760 --> 00:09:16.440
You have to have a thumb to operate it,

00:09:17.700 --> 00:09:19.410
otherwise it only goes one way.

00:09:20.970 --> 00:09:23.940
No thumb, it won't back
up like a regular loop.

00:09:23.940 --> 00:09:26.700
It only goes one way and a wild animal.

00:09:27.990 --> 00:09:30.600
It doesn't have a big
synthetic collar on it.

00:09:30.600 --> 00:09:33.240
It strangles themselves
pretty quickly and it's over.

00:09:33.240 --> 00:09:36.030
And if you don't have a
thumb, you can't get it off.

00:09:36.030 --> 00:09:37.590
Just like, I'm not getting this one off.

00:09:37.590 --> 00:09:39.930
Some people would be happy about that.

00:09:49.080 --> 00:09:53.370
The park has 6.4 whatever
million acres they're

00:09:53.370 --> 00:09:54.960
calling it today.

00:09:54.960 --> 00:09:57.210
That's plenty of space.

00:09:57.210 --> 00:09:59.970
There's no hunting and trapping in there.

00:09:59.970 --> 00:10:01.800
They make a controversy outta something

00:10:01.800 --> 00:10:04.200
that I don't think should
even be a controversy.

00:10:04.200 --> 00:10:06.300
Man, there's plenty of wolves around.

00:10:10.290 --> 00:10:14.610
- The Denali Wolf buffer
issue has been long

00:10:14.610 --> 00:10:16.560
contested in Alaska.

00:10:16.560 --> 00:10:18.480
This issue is something
I'm passionate about

00:10:18.480 --> 00:10:21.060
because it's, to me,

00:10:21.060 --> 00:10:23.490
the reason why I live in Alaska.

00:10:26.160 --> 00:10:30.360
We live in this really magical
place where you can walk

00:10:30.360 --> 00:10:32.610
outside and see some

00:10:32.610 --> 00:10:36.090
of the most iconic wildlife in the world.

00:10:39.360 --> 00:10:43.500
Come here. Why I do the work that I do

00:10:43.500 --> 00:10:45.810
and why our organization exists is

00:10:45.810 --> 00:10:49.380
because we also believe
creatures deserve to exist.

00:10:49.380 --> 00:10:51.990
Not for the benefit of any human,

00:10:54.750 --> 00:10:58.470
but for the benefit of them
simply existing in the world.

00:11:00.480 --> 00:11:01.500
Yeah, you want it.

00:11:05.610 --> 00:11:09.780
We are a small nonprofit
that works to protect

00:11:09.780 --> 00:11:13.440
and conserve wildlife using
ecosystem based management.

00:11:13.440 --> 00:11:17.850
So that's making sure that
we're managing our wildlife not

00:11:17.850 --> 00:11:20.970
for the benefit of a single
species or a single user,

00:11:20.970 --> 00:11:23.940
but for the health of
the entire ecosystem.

00:11:26.340 --> 00:11:29.220
If we protect wolves
in this specific area,

00:11:29.220 --> 00:11:31.710
the wolf townships and
the stampede corridor,

00:11:31.710 --> 00:11:35.580
then it would be the only place in Alaska

00:11:35.580 --> 00:11:39.450
where we could have an intact ecosystem

00:11:39.450 --> 00:11:41.280
of which wolves are a centerpiece.

00:12:14.680 --> 00:12:18.430
- There's really almost
nowhere in the world

00:12:18.430 --> 00:12:22.330
where you can find a relatively
intact wolf population

00:12:22.330 --> 00:12:26.650
with minimal levels of
harvest, meaning human hunting

00:12:26.650 --> 00:12:28.420
or trapping or some other impact.

00:12:32.320 --> 00:12:35.950
Here in Denali, we have
large tracks of areas

00:12:35.950 --> 00:12:38.800
that are protected and remote

00:12:38.800 --> 00:12:41.290
and really don't have
a lot of human impact.

00:12:41.290 --> 00:12:45.430
That is really unique
globally understanding

00:12:45.430 --> 00:12:48.730
how wolves function and
interact in their ecosystem

00:12:48.730 --> 00:12:51.970
and with their prey in
an area without that

00:12:51.970 --> 00:12:54.340
outside influence.

00:12:54.340 --> 00:12:57.280
This is one place where
that could probably happen.

00:13:04.420 --> 00:13:06.760
- The way we're collecting
the data right now is pretty

00:13:06.760 --> 00:13:08.920
consistent to how it's
been collected since

00:13:08.920 --> 00:13:10.000
the early eighties.

00:13:10.990 --> 00:13:14.290
That was the time when radio
callers came on the scene

00:13:14.290 --> 00:13:17.230
and that allowed researchers
to call our animals, be able

00:13:17.230 --> 00:13:19.330
to track them in real time, gain lots

00:13:19.330 --> 00:13:21.640
of information about
not only where they are,

00:13:21.640 --> 00:13:23.110
but then be able to actually see

00:13:23.110 --> 00:13:24.250
them and what they're doing.

00:13:32.470 --> 00:13:34.360
- Yeah, I'm more or less
getting it towards the

00:13:34.360 --> 00:13:36.190
flat top peak on the,

00:13:36.190 --> 00:13:39.460
- We've had wolves here in
the park when wolves were

00:13:39.460 --> 00:13:42.490
essentially exterminated in other areas

00:13:42.490 --> 00:13:43.630
of the United States.

00:13:43.630 --> 00:13:48.250
And so it's been a whole
different dynamic here where,

00:13:48.250 --> 00:13:49.780
you know, we've had an ability to see

00:13:49.780 --> 00:13:52.720
what wolves are like
under natural conditions.

00:13:54.880 --> 00:13:57.130
They're a large predator.
They're this iconic

00:13:57.130 --> 00:13:58.180
keystone predator.

00:13:58.180 --> 00:14:00.910
They're, they're at the top of
the food chain in many ways.

00:14:03.310 --> 00:14:04.810
In order to take down the animals

00:14:04.810 --> 00:14:07.630
that are quite larger than them, they need

00:14:07.630 --> 00:14:09.850
to often cooperate and hunt in a pack.

00:14:12.130 --> 00:14:16.030
We've seen packs of more
than 20 in the park.

00:14:16.030 --> 00:14:18.430
So when conditions are really good, a lot

00:14:18.430 --> 00:14:20.860
of wolves can do well by staying together.

00:14:24.250 --> 00:14:27.460
We've also seen conditions
though, where the lone wolf does.

00:14:27.460 --> 00:14:27.820
Well,

00:14:43.050 --> 00:14:46.570
let's see where 1202 was
when we heard her yesterday.

00:14:48.430 --> 00:14:50.830
Oh, yep. So up the Savage River.

00:14:51.860 --> 00:14:54.080
- Yeah. I'm surprised we didn't
hear her after we crossed.

00:14:54.080 --> 00:14:57.260
- Yeah, because we were
her from over here,

00:14:57.260 --> 00:14:58.280
right when we were up here,

00:14:58.280 --> 00:15:00.590
we could hear her out there. But then

00:15:00.590 --> 00:15:03.590
- When we
- Were the wolf that we would call 1202,

00:15:03.590 --> 00:15:08.090
who's also been dubbed Riley, she's now

00:15:08.090 --> 00:15:12.650
11 years old and she is,

00:15:12.650 --> 00:15:14.270
she's had quite a life in the park.

00:15:14.270 --> 00:15:18.310
She is been successful as a
matriarch of her own pack.

00:15:18.310 --> 00:15:23.310
- Oh. Oh there, hello? Oh,
so we can see if you collar.

00:15:23.430 --> 00:15:26.010
It looks like a collar at
that. I wonder that. 1202

00:15:27.110 --> 00:15:29.810
- Oh hi sweetie.

00:15:29.810 --> 00:15:30.860
That's quite a cute look.

00:15:32.660 --> 00:15:35.480
The classic nose print
right into the camera.

00:15:40.900 --> 00:15:43.970
Yeah, there she's, yeah.

00:15:43.970 --> 00:15:47.840
You can even tell how she's
just a lower slumping there.

00:15:47.840 --> 00:15:52.100
Her back is always seeing
a wolf that is say seven

00:15:52.100 --> 00:15:55.040
or eight years old is pretty uncommon.

00:15:55.040 --> 00:15:58.190
And so a wolf that's even
older than that is really rare.

00:16:05.240 --> 00:16:06.770
A wolf's life is really hard

00:16:06.770 --> 00:16:08.990
and it's evidenced through the fact

00:16:08.990 --> 00:16:10.910
that she has a pretty
noticeable injury as well.

00:16:10.910 --> 00:16:14.750
So she's been limping
around for almost a year now

00:16:14.750 --> 00:16:18.380
with a pretty at times unusable rear leg.

00:16:18.380 --> 00:16:20.570
Probably the, the fact that she has lived

00:16:20.570 --> 00:16:23.210
so long has given her a wealth
of experience to be able

00:16:23.210 --> 00:16:26.150
to survive under those conditions.

00:16:34.940 --> 00:16:37.730
- Off our left wing out
there, I see a kill in there

00:16:37.730 --> 00:16:40.940
that a bear's dug up, an
area buried its kill there.

00:16:40.940 --> 00:16:43.010
So she's feeding scraps
off of that probably,

00:16:43.010 --> 00:16:44.810
which means she's probably
laid up right next to it.

00:16:44.810 --> 00:16:47.570
Somewhere in the trees
there. We'll see you.

00:16:52.280 --> 00:16:54.590
Oh, there she is. Yeah,
I just seen her too.

00:16:54.590 --> 00:16:57.580
And look how sack she is. Okay.
She's totally out. I think.

00:17:00.860 --> 00:17:03.170
Yeah, this winter was very impressive

00:17:03.170 --> 00:17:04.280
to do what she did on her own

00:17:22.010 --> 00:17:23.010
- Denali.

00:17:23.010 --> 00:17:24.830
It's a big park,

00:17:24.830 --> 00:17:28.670
but not only is the majority
of that park above treeline

00:17:28.670 --> 00:17:30.650
and it's above the fern line

00:17:30.650 --> 00:17:33.500
and you know that's areas
that are locked up in ice

00:17:33.500 --> 00:17:34.550
and snow year round.

00:17:34.550 --> 00:17:36.110
It's not habitat for anything.

00:17:38.450 --> 00:17:41.030
It's nice scenery, but it's not habitat.

00:17:48.200 --> 00:17:49.620
Most of the caribou

00:17:49.620 --> 00:17:54.270
that are here in these alpine
areas in the summertime seek

00:17:54.270 --> 00:17:56.430
resources and protections, food

00:17:56.430 --> 00:17:59.190
and shelter of the
surrounding Boreal forest.

00:17:59.190 --> 00:18:03.570
So they head out of the river
valleys like the techlanica

00:18:03.570 --> 00:18:07.110
and the savage and a
good many of 'em happen

00:18:07.110 --> 00:18:10.470
to winter out here in
this stampede area in the

00:18:10.470 --> 00:18:11.730
wolf townships.

00:18:17.820 --> 00:18:20.310
- This is the sanctuary that
we've been on right below us.

00:18:20.310 --> 00:18:21.780
This is, that's the mouth of it.

00:18:21.780 --> 00:18:24.080
So that's where the sanctuary,
the Technica coming together.

00:18:26.060 --> 00:18:29.220
- So this flows up all
the way to stampede. Yeah.

00:18:29.220 --> 00:18:31.530
- Yeah. So the park
boundary is basically right

00:18:31.530 --> 00:18:33.270
where the mouth of the sanctuary is.

00:18:33.270 --> 00:18:34.410
Okay. So everything between us

00:18:34.410 --> 00:18:36.540
and that little point
between the two there

00:18:37.470 --> 00:18:40.650
we're in the park and then
the corridor state land lays

00:18:40.650 --> 00:18:42.870
between that point between
these two rivers there on our

00:18:42.870 --> 00:18:44.130
right, between that point

00:18:44.130 --> 00:18:46.920
and our side of those
distant hills right there

00:18:49.440 --> 00:18:53.070
- Where the caribou go, the wolves go

00:18:53.070 --> 00:18:56.730
once these caribou crossed
that wilderness boundary

00:18:56.730 --> 00:18:58.830
and the wolves follow.

00:18:58.830 --> 00:19:02.370
These wolves are open season
for hunting and trapping.

00:19:14.160 --> 00:19:16.620
- Things are swell in denial Alaska.

00:19:19.230 --> 00:19:21.300
So this is what my boys told me.

00:19:21.300 --> 00:19:24.870
They thought they saw the
park plains chasing wolves

00:19:24.870 --> 00:19:27.870
that way or or hurting
something that direction.

00:19:27.870 --> 00:19:29.220
They said, well I was in town.

00:19:29.220 --> 00:19:32.640
It looked like that's common occurrence

00:19:34.290 --> 00:19:38.040
just adds a dimension to the whole thing.

00:19:38.040 --> 00:19:41.520
I hope we got enough gas
girls, we got way enough.

00:19:57.090 --> 00:19:59.970
You know what I'm wondering is
if they changed the season on

00:19:59.970 --> 00:20:04.320
me, I don't want to do something illegal.

00:20:04.320 --> 00:20:07.890
Hey man, I'm wondering if these
might not have changed the

00:20:07.890 --> 00:20:10.860
regs for 20 C versus 28
where we normally aren.

00:20:10.860 --> 00:20:12.060
No, just look. It's good.

00:20:12.060 --> 00:20:14.880
- Yeah.
- Okay. I never trust the

00:20:14.880 --> 00:20:16.290
government not to fuck me.

00:20:27.030 --> 00:20:28.380
This is my trap line.

00:20:32.400 --> 00:20:34.560
But whenever I get off a, a main trail

00:20:34.560 --> 00:20:38.880
where I'm gonna put traps, I'll
put up a sign so people know

00:20:38.880 --> 00:20:40.170
a few hundred yards after this,

00:20:40.170 --> 00:20:42.750
I would typically start putting
some traps out if it was

00:20:42.750 --> 00:20:45.210
winter time and I was out here trapping.

00:20:45.210 --> 00:20:46.740
So I'd do a big loop.

00:20:46.740 --> 00:20:48.640
So someone comes mushing out here

00:20:48.640 --> 00:20:51.640
and they see the sign
they can turn around,

00:20:55.840 --> 00:20:58.930
okay, sports fans, should
we move down the trail

00:20:58.930 --> 00:21:01.480
and trying to find some
wolves to shoot that.

00:21:05.590 --> 00:21:10.360
So my friends from Minnesota

00:21:10.360 --> 00:21:14.320
we're up here visiting and
they meet this couple in a bar.

00:21:14.320 --> 00:21:16.900
So they strike up
conversation and da, da da.

00:21:16.900 --> 00:21:18.280
And it's real, real friendly.

00:21:19.780 --> 00:21:21.430
Oh, well where are you guys staying?

00:21:21.430 --> 00:21:24.730
Oh, we're staying at some
friends down on stand. Oh really?

00:21:24.730 --> 00:21:26.440
Well we know a lot of people in Stampede.

00:21:26.440 --> 00:21:29.260
Who are you staying with? And he, he said,

00:21:29.260 --> 00:21:30.400
go get your A wallets.

00:21:30.400 --> 00:21:33.340
And he goes, it was like a fucking cloud.

00:21:33.340 --> 00:21:35.140
Went over her face, man.

00:21:35.140 --> 00:21:39.520
She went from nice and
friendly to vi and vulgar

00:21:39.520 --> 00:21:42.610
and she started in on, you know,
he shoots his horses, blah,

00:21:42.610 --> 00:21:46.180
blah, blah, and haul them
out along the park border,

00:21:46.180 --> 00:21:47.260
et cetera, et cetera.

00:21:47.260 --> 00:21:50.500
And it was one of the incidents
where I had caught a park

00:21:51.400 --> 00:21:53.800
wolf using one of my old horses

00:21:53.800 --> 00:21:56.680
who had died at like 41 fucking years old,

00:21:57.700 --> 00:21:59.890
which is really old for a horse.

00:22:01.090 --> 00:22:06.010
Anyhow, we used

00:22:06.010 --> 00:22:07.480
him for bait and caught a park wolf.

00:22:10.870 --> 00:22:11.870
But anyhow,

00:22:18.940 --> 00:22:21.340
- Why are you letting
me fill me cook? I don't

00:22:21.340 --> 00:22:23.050
- Care.

00:22:23.050 --> 00:22:25.390
That means no one else
is gonna tell this side

00:22:25.390 --> 00:22:26.470
of the story about me.

00:22:26.470 --> 00:22:28.180
And I've been living it for 30 years.

00:22:28.180 --> 00:22:31.390
So if the truth hurts, I'm here

00:22:31.390 --> 00:22:32.920
to deliver some pain for you.

00:22:34.450 --> 00:22:38.410
The truth can be painful
sometimes children, mom

00:22:38.410 --> 00:22:41.020
and dad weren't lying when
they told you the truth hurts.

00:22:43.740 --> 00:22:45.490
And I'm here to hurt your feelings.

00:22:50.860 --> 00:22:52.480
This is a good spot down here, boys.

00:22:54.520 --> 00:22:56.110
Let's go see if we can shoot one.

00:22:59.890 --> 00:23:02.020
Last time I called here with a client,

00:23:02.020 --> 00:23:04.450
I had two nice wolfs coming
behind me right here.

00:23:09.700 --> 00:23:11.260
We're gonna place some noises to try

00:23:11.260 --> 00:23:12.820
and get a wolf to come to us.

00:23:34.810 --> 00:23:38.920
Typically it's like 20 to 25 stands

00:23:38.920 --> 00:23:40.360
for every time you shoot an animal.

00:23:40.360 --> 00:23:42.730
This is called a stand where
you sit down, you play the call

00:23:42.730 --> 00:23:44.530
for a half hour, 45 minutes

00:23:44.530 --> 00:23:47.990
or whatever, you know.

00:23:47.990 --> 00:23:49.850
And then sometimes you go out
and you set the call down.

00:23:49.850 --> 00:23:53.360
The first time you play
it, animals show up

00:23:53.360 --> 00:23:55.910
and the guys think, wow, this
is gonna be a great week.

00:23:55.910 --> 00:23:59.450
It's like, calm down. You
might not see another one.

00:24:05.060 --> 00:24:07.400
If there was wolves in the area,

00:24:07.400 --> 00:24:10.460
we would probably see 'em coming
from a long, long way away,

00:24:11.330 --> 00:24:13.850
like maybe way up there.

00:24:13.850 --> 00:24:17.150
And if they were coming, they'd
be coming like thinking that

00:24:17.150 --> 00:24:18.740
that's a moose that's hurting.

00:24:26.780 --> 00:24:28.130
You are in their living room.

00:24:28.130 --> 00:24:29.750
You know, Wolf would've trouble killing

00:24:29.750 --> 00:24:30.860
us in our living room.

00:24:30.860 --> 00:24:34.430
We have trouble getting
them in their living room.

00:24:34.430 --> 00:24:36.620
They're extremely intelligent and wary.

00:24:41.060 --> 00:24:43.910
Can you imagine trying to take
a moose down with your teeth

00:24:43.910 --> 00:24:45.380
as a hundred pound animal

00:24:46.400 --> 00:24:48.290
and they're trying to kick your head off

00:24:48.290 --> 00:24:52.070
and they're probably getting
it done about as often as not.

00:24:53.710 --> 00:24:54.710
Mm.

00:25:30.380 --> 00:25:33.590
- This is 3, 3, 5. I'd like
to open my back country plan.

00:25:42.650 --> 00:25:43.880
Copy. We'll talk to you then.

00:25:49.160 --> 00:25:51.380
That's all I have to say. Hi.

00:25:53.270 --> 00:25:57.860
Fancy seeing you here. Good.

00:25:58.850 --> 00:26:03.050
- I think really Denali
chose me as a place to work.

00:26:04.280 --> 00:26:07.610
I had done some other
seasonal work in other places,

00:26:07.610 --> 00:26:09.230
but it was coming to Denali

00:26:09.230 --> 00:26:10.580
and really coming to Alaska,

00:26:10.580 --> 00:26:12.650
that was the first place
that felt like home.

00:26:12.650 --> 00:26:15.020
- Any recommendations for which way to go?

00:26:15.020 --> 00:26:16.820
- You know, we're gonna
drop down onto the,

00:26:16.820 --> 00:26:18.740
the gravel bar here.

00:26:18.740 --> 00:26:20.780
This little drainage that
comes in on this side is

00:26:20.780 --> 00:26:21.830
really pretty as well.

00:26:21.830 --> 00:26:23.030
And great.

00:26:23.030 --> 00:26:26.330
Can see caribou down on
the actual gravel bar

00:26:26.330 --> 00:26:28.820
or up in the up just on that bench too.

00:26:28.820 --> 00:26:29.820
- So terrific.
- Yeah.

00:26:29.820 --> 00:26:30.740
- All right, thank you.

00:26:30.740 --> 00:26:32.600
What are, what are you guys working on?

00:26:32.600 --> 00:26:36.200
- So we are actually heading
up to check out some cameras.

00:26:36.200 --> 00:26:39.020
We have deployed up here at a,

00:26:39.020 --> 00:26:41.090
at a wolfden site up
the river a little bit.

00:26:41.090 --> 00:26:43.800
And then we have a film crew here with us

00:26:43.800 --> 00:26:45.620
as well. Awesome. Yeah,

00:26:45.620 --> 00:26:46.970
- So have a cool thing.

00:26:46.970 --> 00:26:48.560
Thank you very much. Yeah, the hike.

00:26:56.840 --> 00:26:59.680
- Hmm. What a gorgeous day.
Yeah, it super nice day.

00:27:25.890 --> 00:27:28.350
- I've observed in myself,
if I'm going along yelling,

00:27:28.350 --> 00:27:32.640
Hey bear, it makes me think
about scary bear encounters.

00:27:32.640 --> 00:27:35.220
Yeah. And if I say, excuse me, wildlife

00:27:35.220 --> 00:27:39.360
or Bonjour, then I feel like
I'm more in that mindset

00:27:39.360 --> 00:27:42.120
of I'm visiting and
I'm trying to be aware.

00:27:42.120 --> 00:27:46.050
Yeah. And I'm trying to
be polite and, you know

00:27:46.050 --> 00:27:47.050
- Yeah.

00:27:47.050 --> 00:27:47.850
A little more deferential than like, Hey,

00:27:48.750 --> 00:27:50.340
- I'm announcing myself.

00:27:50.340 --> 00:27:51.340
Yeah, exactly.

00:27:58.920 --> 00:28:01.640
- Ooh, nice. Cool. Oh,

00:28:24.300 --> 00:28:25.260
well that is awesome.

00:28:30.330 --> 00:28:32.280
- That was great. I,

00:28:53.640 --> 00:28:56.910
I wasn't the first one to call her 1202,

00:28:56.910 --> 00:29:00.030
but I was there to, to
handle her at that time.

00:29:00.030 --> 00:29:02.670
I had no idea how her
future was gonna play out.

00:29:03.750 --> 00:29:08.750
Even at that point when she
was first collared showed,

00:29:08.970 --> 00:29:11.790
you know, quite a fierce personality,

00:29:11.790 --> 00:29:13.620
quite a strong personality.

00:29:13.620 --> 00:29:15.840
And that's really played
out through the years

00:29:19.110 --> 00:29:20.970
- As the matriarch of her pac.

00:29:20.970 --> 00:29:24.660
A big part of that responsibility
is defending the territory

00:29:24.660 --> 00:29:27.030
from others or even trying
to get more territory

00:29:27.030 --> 00:29:28.890
for your Pac to thrive.

00:29:28.890 --> 00:29:31.530
And so we know that she's killed

00:29:31.530 --> 00:29:33.450
at least three other wolves probably.

00:29:34.350 --> 00:29:37.350
And I, I know that that may sound cruel,

00:29:37.350 --> 00:29:41.110
but for a wolf, having
territories is everything that's,

00:29:41.110 --> 00:29:43.360
that's your power, that's your food base.

00:29:43.360 --> 00:29:45.790
And you cannot allow another pack to take

00:29:45.790 --> 00:29:47.440
that from you at any cost.

00:29:47.440 --> 00:29:49.990
I mean that's, that's your puppy's lives.

00:30:09.590 --> 00:30:13.040
- There's a lot of dirt
in there, kind of fell.

00:30:13.040 --> 00:30:14.590
Some of it was from here, I think. Yeah,

00:30:21.130 --> 00:30:25.180
we've seen foxes use
wolf dens and porcupines.

00:30:25.180 --> 00:30:28.210
We use 'em too. A lot of
times you'll see, you know,

00:30:28.210 --> 00:30:31.120
this mounted area where
they've dug and cleared out.

00:30:31.120 --> 00:30:33.280
This stuff is so clayey

00:30:33.280 --> 00:30:35.650
that it's been a couple years
now since they've actually

00:30:35.650 --> 00:30:36.820
piled dirt back onto it.

00:30:36.820 --> 00:30:38.890
But it stayed not vegetated just

00:30:38.890 --> 00:30:41.200
'cause I don't think much is
able to push through it yet.

00:30:45.820 --> 00:30:48.310
Wolves do still pass through
here quite a bit too.

00:30:48.310 --> 00:30:51.070
And it's good to see
who is passing through

00:30:51.070 --> 00:30:52.750
and when it was,

00:30:54.850 --> 00:30:58.000
our camera's right over there,
so you get some, just kind

00:30:58.000 --> 00:31:02.050
of like glamor shots of animals
traipsing through this area,

00:31:17.320 --> 00:31:19.840
This den site on the East Fork River known

00:31:19.840 --> 00:31:20.950
as the Murry Den site.

00:31:21.880 --> 00:31:24.760
This is where Adolf Murry made most

00:31:24.760 --> 00:31:27.220
of his observations of a wolf pack.

00:31:27.220 --> 00:31:28.870
And that's pretty significant

00:31:28.870 --> 00:31:31.720
because Mur helped us understand wolves

00:31:31.720 --> 00:31:34.120
and the important role that
predators play in a natural

00:31:34.120 --> 00:31:35.260
functioning ecosystem.

00:31:37.360 --> 00:31:40.810
Denali National Park, which was
then McKinley National Park,

00:31:40.810 --> 00:31:44.920
was created in 1917 primarily,
as you know, game reserve.

00:31:44.920 --> 00:31:48.400
At first the focus was on
protecting the doll sheep habitat.

00:31:49.660 --> 00:31:53.440
So when in the 1930s there
was noticeable decline in the

00:31:53.440 --> 00:31:57.310
sheep population, the park
service responded by controlling

00:31:57.310 --> 00:31:58.660
or killing wolves in the park.

00:31:59.740 --> 00:32:01.390
But they were starting to adapt

00:32:01.390 --> 00:32:02.740
and understand the important role

00:32:02.740 --> 00:32:05.650
that predators could
play in these ecosystems.

00:32:07.960 --> 00:32:09.670
In 1939, the park service

00:32:09.670 --> 00:32:11.050
and hired Adolf Murry

00:32:11.050 --> 00:32:13.570
to help determine the
cause of the sheep decline.

00:32:15.730 --> 00:32:18.700
Mur traveled thousands of miles,

00:32:18.700 --> 00:32:21.940
collected over 800 sheep skulls.

00:32:21.940 --> 00:32:25.450
He determined health and age
of sheep at the time of death.

00:32:25.450 --> 00:32:27.430
And he also collected
thousands of wolf scats

00:32:27.430 --> 00:32:30.520
to tweeze apart and
determine the hair bones

00:32:30.520 --> 00:32:31.900
and other fragments they contained.

00:32:33.670 --> 00:32:36.520
What he found was, of
course, wolf prey on sheep

00:32:36.520 --> 00:32:38.620
and other ungulates in the area,

00:32:38.620 --> 00:32:39.770
but a series

00:32:39.770 --> 00:32:42.560
of severe winters had
increased the vulnerability

00:32:42.560 --> 00:32:44.960
of these sheep, which had
a significant role in the

00:32:44.960 --> 00:32:46.130
declining population.

00:32:52.310 --> 00:32:55.640
This downside on the East Fork
River was where he made most

00:32:55.640 --> 00:32:59.210
of his observations of wild
wolves at one time, watching

00:32:59.210 --> 00:33:03.200
for over 33 hours straight
Before this research,

00:33:03.200 --> 00:33:05.540
we understood that wolf
packs were composed

00:33:05.540 --> 00:33:08.000
of a breeding pair and maybe their pups,

00:33:08.000 --> 00:33:10.190
but he saw the role that
additional wolves within

00:33:10.190 --> 00:33:11.240
that pack could play.

00:33:12.710 --> 00:33:14.180
He described their hunting behaviors,

00:33:14.180 --> 00:33:16.400
how they make any unsuccessful attempts

00:33:16.400 --> 00:33:17.450
for every successful hunt.

00:33:18.350 --> 00:33:19.370
And he observed

00:33:19.370 --> 00:33:23.450
how they typically prey on the
more vulnerable age classes

00:33:23.450 --> 00:33:25.130
and how this works towards selection

00:33:25.130 --> 00:33:26.450
of a strong prey population.

00:33:32.910 --> 00:33:35.280
- Such a nice spot. It's a great spot.

00:33:38.750 --> 00:33:41.840
- Good, happy spot. This is

00:33:41.840 --> 00:33:46.160
where Miri made his observations
that were pretty vital

00:33:46.160 --> 00:33:48.290
to understanding the Wolf Pack family

00:33:48.290 --> 00:33:49.730
dynamics that he wrote about.

00:33:51.770 --> 00:33:56.300
It's kind of daunting to know

00:33:56.300 --> 00:33:57.890
that I'm following the footsteps

00:33:57.890 --> 00:34:01.970
of such impressive
naturalists and biologists.

00:34:01.970 --> 00:34:04.130
There's so much work that's preceded me

00:34:04.130 --> 00:34:06.320
and I'm fortunate to,
to step into the role

00:34:06.320 --> 00:34:09.680
and to be able to, to
learn a lot from that

00:34:09.680 --> 00:34:14.330
and just hope that I can
help keep the continuity

00:34:14.330 --> 00:34:18.140
and the integrity of the
studies going moving forward.

00:34:27.200 --> 00:34:31.730
The value of long-term ecological studies

00:34:31.730 --> 00:34:33.440
really can't be overstated.

00:34:35.000 --> 00:34:36.290
We can't assume that

00:34:36.290 --> 00:34:39.560
because we took a look at one time period

00:34:39.560 --> 00:34:43.100
that we understand the
entirety of how wolves operate.

00:34:44.600 --> 00:34:46.400
- Long-term data sets are

00:34:47.270 --> 00:34:49.730
just considered absolute gold in ecology.

00:34:50.750 --> 00:34:53.300
The Denali Wolf study is really special.

00:34:53.300 --> 00:34:55.970
It's one of the longest running
data sets on large mammals

00:34:55.970 --> 00:34:56.990
anywhere in the world.

00:35:03.320 --> 00:35:06.740
Wolves represent a lot of things to people

00:35:06.740 --> 00:35:09.200
beyond just their biological
status as an animal.

00:35:10.040 --> 00:35:11.930
They're a powerful predator species.

00:35:11.930 --> 00:35:15.950
They've been with us in, in
our cultures for a long time.

00:35:15.950 --> 00:35:18.920
A lot of stories, a lot of
beliefs have been handed down

00:35:18.920 --> 00:35:20.780
to people about them Favorably

00:35:20.780 --> 00:35:25.550
and unfavorably add to
that in recent decades,

00:35:25.550 --> 00:35:26.870
as wolves have been on

00:35:26.870 --> 00:35:30.410
and off the endangered
species list in various areas,

00:35:30.410 --> 00:35:33.770
they've really come to
represent federal power

00:35:33.770 --> 00:35:36.410
and federal action to a lot
of people who would prefer

00:35:36.410 --> 00:35:37.620
to have less federal power

00:35:37.620 --> 00:35:39.300
and federal action in their lives.

00:35:41.880 --> 00:35:46.470
In 1917, when Denali National
Park was created, people at

00:35:46.470 --> 00:35:49.800
that time had identified this
corridor on the north side

00:35:49.800 --> 00:35:53.730
of the Alaska range as being
not only visually spectacular,

00:35:53.730 --> 00:35:56.550
but also home to many
of the wildlife species

00:35:56.550 --> 00:35:58.380
that they were hoping to protect.

00:35:58.380 --> 00:36:01.770
And so the initial park was
just this corridor right here,

00:36:01.770 --> 00:36:04.050
and it stayed that way for a long time.

00:36:05.670 --> 00:36:08.340
- Mount McKinley, the tallest
mountain in North America,

00:36:08.340 --> 00:36:11.370
lures hundreds of thousands
of people to Alaska each year.

00:36:12.630 --> 00:36:15.420
The unique sites of the park
attract an increasing number

00:36:15.420 --> 00:36:16.950
of tourists from around the world.

00:36:17.910 --> 00:36:19.620
Three years ago, park boundaries were

00:36:19.620 --> 00:36:21.810
substantially expanded.

00:36:21.810 --> 00:36:23.550
- In December 2nd, 1980,

00:36:23.550 --> 00:36:27.090
the 96 Congress passed
the Ilca legislation,

00:36:27.090 --> 00:36:29.100
which is the Alaska National Interest

00:36:29.100 --> 00:36:31.260
Lands Conservation Act.

00:36:31.260 --> 00:36:35.070
And that expanded the park by
approximately 4 million acres

00:36:35.070 --> 00:36:39.060
and also re-designated the
park's name from the former Mount

00:36:39.060 --> 00:36:40.980
McKinley to Denali National Park.

00:36:42.510 --> 00:36:45.330
- Looking up at the
northeast corner of the park,

00:36:45.330 --> 00:36:48.840
at the time that Anoka was
being written, it was very busy,

00:36:48.840 --> 00:36:50.400
there was a lot of deadlines

00:36:50.400 --> 00:36:51.720
and there wasn't time

00:36:51.720 --> 00:36:55.080
to iron out every little
geographical detail of all

00:36:55.080 --> 00:36:58.200
of these changes in federal
land management in Alaska.

00:36:58.200 --> 00:36:59.730
But it was noted in Ilka

00:36:59.730 --> 00:37:03.510
that the Denali Caribou herd
uses this area quite a bit

00:37:03.510 --> 00:37:06.540
and that it was an important
area to kind of resolve

00:37:06.540 --> 00:37:08.070
that boundary issue in the future.

00:37:09.240 --> 00:37:11.490
Unfortunately, that has not yet occurred.

00:37:11.490 --> 00:37:14.430
And so this notch remains as it was.

00:37:14.430 --> 00:37:17.760
And you have a situation where
state managed land, which

00:37:17.760 --> 00:37:21.150
of course allows hunting
as per state policies,

00:37:21.150 --> 00:37:24.090
is immediately adjacent to park

00:37:24.090 --> 00:37:27.090
and wilderness areas
which have much higher

00:37:27.090 --> 00:37:28.620
levels of protection.

00:37:28.620 --> 00:37:32.190
So that's what sets up
this real stark divide in

00:37:32.190 --> 00:37:34.620
how wildlife is managed
across this boundary.

00:37:36.660 --> 00:37:37.860
You have people who would like

00:37:37.860 --> 00:37:40.140
to see wolves be more fully protected.

00:37:40.140 --> 00:37:42.510
And then you also have
people who view trapping

00:37:42.510 --> 00:37:43.620
as both a legal right

00:37:43.620 --> 00:37:45.450
and part of their personal identity,

00:37:45.450 --> 00:37:46.530
maybe even their culture.

00:37:48.360 --> 00:37:51.780
- I'd rather have it the
wilderness for us Alaskans, instead

00:37:51.780 --> 00:37:55.830
of tying it all up for all
the people in the lower 48

00:37:55.830 --> 00:37:58.770
that don't even bother to
come up here, there's millions

00:37:58.770 --> 00:38:01.320
and millions of acres out here that are,

00:38:01.320 --> 00:38:03.750
ain't even been touched,
haven't even been looked at

00:38:06.030 --> 00:38:08.070
- Besides containing the last great areas

00:38:08.070 --> 00:38:09.960
of wilderness left in America.

00:38:09.960 --> 00:38:13.860
Alaska also has the last
pioneers, people who came here

00:38:13.860 --> 00:38:15.660
to settle a new land.

00:38:15.660 --> 00:38:18.030
People who don't like
being told that they can't.

00:38:20.310 --> 00:38:22.170
- You know, I moved
here for the very reason

00:38:22.170 --> 00:38:23.850
of the sheep hunting on the trapping.

00:38:23.850 --> 00:38:28.320
You know, I wanted to do
old teddy Roosevelt type

00:38:28.320 --> 00:38:30.810
horseback sheep hunts in the
mountains and the wolf hunting

00:38:30.810 --> 00:38:32.280
and trapping is good all around here.

00:38:32.280 --> 00:38:34.260
It's as good over there as it is here.

00:38:34.260 --> 00:38:36.190
Sometimes I like just squat my front door.

00:38:36.190 --> 00:38:38.050
That's why I moved here, you know, and,

00:38:38.050 --> 00:38:40.600
and my wife hates it when I say this.

00:38:40.600 --> 00:38:42.040
She says, I sound like third grader.

00:38:42.040 --> 00:38:44.440
I don't care if I sound like
first grader. I was here first.

00:38:45.370 --> 00:38:47.560
- If we don't take the steps now

00:38:49.600 --> 00:38:53.590
to say some areas of Alaska are wild

00:38:53.590 --> 00:38:55.090
and they should stay that way, well then

00:38:55.090 --> 00:38:56.830
what will we have left?

00:38:56.830 --> 00:39:00.100
Some areas of Alaska are
important enough in their wild

00:39:00.100 --> 00:39:01.600
condition, they should stay that way.

00:39:02.710 --> 00:39:05.260
- They don't even appreciate
what we've fucking given them.

00:39:05.260 --> 00:39:07.600
And I say we, because
hunters brought the whole

00:39:07.600 --> 00:39:08.800
part system to you.

00:39:09.760 --> 00:39:12.820
And I think that the
protectionists have stolen it

00:39:12.820 --> 00:39:15.670
and usurped it and bastardized it.

00:39:15.670 --> 00:39:17.590
- If it's the last
frontier, maybe we ought

00:39:17.590 --> 00:39:19.210
to think about saving some of it.

00:39:20.530 --> 00:39:23.950
Some areas set aside possibly so that

00:39:25.300 --> 00:39:27.820
future generations, if
there are any, beyond,

00:39:29.410 --> 00:39:30.580
you know, 2000,

00:39:31.810 --> 00:39:36.220
- If six point whatever million
acres isn't enough tough,

00:39:36.220 --> 00:39:38.620
you know, you should be thankful
that we gave you that much.

00:39:38.620 --> 00:39:40.810
You can't have more and they

00:39:40.810 --> 00:39:42.010
just want more and more and more.

00:39:46.750 --> 00:39:51.340
- The Denali Wolf buffer
issue has been blown up

00:39:51.340 --> 00:39:54.790
to be a symbol for trying
to stop hunter opportunity,

00:39:54.790 --> 00:39:56.320
which is not what we're trying to do.

00:39:56.320 --> 00:39:59.350
Alaska Wildlife Alliance
has hunters on our board.

00:39:59.350 --> 00:40:01.300
I grew up in a hunting family.

00:40:01.300 --> 00:40:03.700
I know many people who hunt and trap

00:40:03.700 --> 00:40:08.110
and I understand that it's
a way of life for Alaskans.

00:40:11.530 --> 00:40:14.470
There are a couple of trappers
that trap in this area.

00:40:14.470 --> 00:40:15.820
Coke Wallace is one of them.

00:40:17.350 --> 00:40:19.570
He's drawn a lot of attention to himself

00:40:19.570 --> 00:40:21.940
and gotten a lot of
attention from this issue.

00:40:21.940 --> 00:40:25.150
And some of it has been
really harmful to his family.

00:40:26.290 --> 00:40:29.290
And I just, I don't think
that K Wallace is the problem.

00:40:30.250 --> 00:40:32.920
He's exercising his rights

00:40:32.920 --> 00:40:36.490
and what he can do as
authorized by the state.

00:40:36.490 --> 00:40:38.770
And I can't blame him for doing that.

00:40:40.060 --> 00:40:42.130
I disagree about how we spend our time,

00:40:42.130 --> 00:40:44.680
but ultimately Coke is not the problem.

00:40:44.680 --> 00:40:46.240
If an area is open to hunting

00:40:46.240 --> 00:40:48.670
and trapping, people
will trap and hunt there.

00:40:49.810 --> 00:40:52.390
The solution to this problem
is held with the board of game.

00:41:01.130 --> 00:41:03.010
- Okay, ladies and gentlemen,
we're gonna go ahead

00:41:03.010 --> 00:41:05.740
and get started with our
oral public testimony.

00:41:05.740 --> 00:41:08.380
If I can get everyone to, to grab a cup

00:41:08.380 --> 00:41:09.790
of coffee and find a seat.

00:41:11.380 --> 00:41:13.450
You know, this is why I
like to come to Fairbanks.

00:41:13.450 --> 00:41:16.570
There's always a lot of
good interest and issues,

00:41:16.570 --> 00:41:18.190
but we need to get to business here.

00:41:18.190 --> 00:41:20.710
- So the board

00:41:20.710 --> 00:41:23.230
of game has an extraordinary
amount of power.

00:41:24.100 --> 00:41:27.520
They make all of the decisions
on population objectives

00:41:27.520 --> 00:41:30.310
for a certain species on the times of year

00:41:30.310 --> 00:41:33.830
that a species is available
to hunt or trap the methods

00:41:33.830 --> 00:41:37.130
and means that people can
hunt or trap that species.

00:41:37.130 --> 00:41:41.600
- Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I
want to speak to proposal 61.

00:41:41.600 --> 00:41:44.750
Extend the resident Moose
Season con community controlled

00:41:44.750 --> 00:41:47.300
use area 24 B due

00:41:47.300 --> 00:41:50.900
to extreme weather
conditions in late fall.

00:41:50.900 --> 00:41:54.290
The start of the rut
has started in October.

00:41:54.290 --> 00:41:56.360
- A lot of people believe
that those decisions are made

00:41:56.360 --> 00:41:59.210
by scientists and it's not true.

00:41:59.210 --> 00:42:01.850
They're made by political appointees.

00:42:01.850 --> 00:42:04.550
They're a seven member
board who are nominated

00:42:04.550 --> 00:42:07.070
by the governor and
confirmed by the legislature.

00:42:08.450 --> 00:42:12.680
Currently the board of game is represented

00:42:12.680 --> 00:42:15.860
by almost exclusively hunting
and trapping interests

00:42:15.860 --> 00:42:19.520
because that has been the
political climate of Alaska for,

00:42:19.520 --> 00:42:20.600
you know, the past decade.

00:42:21.560 --> 00:42:24.770
But there is a large percentage
of the state, the majority

00:42:24.770 --> 00:42:26.810
of the state, that does not have a single

00:42:26.810 --> 00:42:28.250
voice on the board of game.

00:42:29.150 --> 00:42:31.850
- You know, I supplement my
income by subsistence trapping,

00:42:31.850 --> 00:42:34.730
and I have for I at least 25 years.

00:42:34.730 --> 00:42:36.950
I don't do it as many
days as I used to do it,

00:42:36.950 --> 00:42:39.590
getting older, getting a little harder.

00:42:39.590 --> 00:42:41.060
I have a successful business

00:42:41.060 --> 00:42:45.080
and that takes up some time too, to most

00:42:45.080 --> 00:42:46.370
- People in Alaska.

00:42:46.370 --> 00:42:48.440
Wildlife are food resources.

00:42:49.280 --> 00:42:51.920
We don't have cattle, we have moose.

00:42:51.920 --> 00:42:55.340
And the board of game
is set up to allocate

00:42:55.340 --> 00:42:57.770
that limited resource among
those people that are out there.

00:42:58.730 --> 00:43:00.380
- I'm from rural Alaska

00:43:00.380 --> 00:43:02.570
and we depend on food
from the land to live.

00:43:03.680 --> 00:43:07.790
So it's, I've been brought up that way.

00:43:07.790 --> 00:43:10.520
So maybe I'm a little biased.

00:43:12.020 --> 00:43:15.260
- I think it's important to
recognize a complicating issue,

00:43:15.260 --> 00:43:17.120
which is that the park

00:43:17.120 --> 00:43:19.700
and the surrounding lands,
including state lands,

00:43:19.700 --> 00:43:22.190
are on the traditional homelands of the

00:43:22.190 --> 00:43:23.270
Athabascan Alaskan native peoples.

00:43:24.980 --> 00:43:28.760
- From a very early age, we
were taught the significance

00:43:30.080 --> 00:43:34.670
of the spiritual connection
between the animals

00:43:34.670 --> 00:43:38.060
that we were have for food and our being.

00:43:40.250 --> 00:43:43.550
Some of our clans, are we even named

00:43:43.550 --> 00:43:46.370
after the animals fish clan,

00:43:47.900 --> 00:43:51.230
the caribou clan that feed in the people.

00:43:51.230 --> 00:43:52.250
- To my knowledge, neither

00:43:52.250 --> 00:43:56.480
of the trappers in the stampede
corridor are Alaska natives.

00:43:56.480 --> 00:43:58.130
And those are the trappers
who would be affected

00:43:58.130 --> 00:44:00.830
by any proposals to protect wolves in

00:44:00.830 --> 00:44:03.140
that specific area in
the stampede corridor.

00:44:05.180 --> 00:44:08.930
But it's worth recognizing that
Alaska native people have a,

00:44:08.930 --> 00:44:11.840
a strong interest in
maintaining subsistence rights

00:44:11.840 --> 00:44:14.090
and access to these lands.

00:44:15.710 --> 00:44:20.060
- All indigenous people of
Alaska have spiritual connection

00:44:20.060 --> 00:44:24.470
to our animals that we
honor and we use as food.

00:44:25.820 --> 00:44:30.470
- Since the park was expanded
with the passing of Anka,

00:44:30.470 --> 00:44:33.540
it has greatly reduced the opportunity

00:44:33.540 --> 00:44:37.140
to harvest from the land
camp while lost over half

00:44:37.140 --> 00:44:40.080
of its traditional
hunting area with the park

00:44:40.080 --> 00:44:41.610
and the preserve expansion,

00:44:42.450 --> 00:44:45.870
- Balancing the true needs of subsistence

00:44:45.870 --> 00:44:48.900
and historical cultural practices.

00:44:48.900 --> 00:44:50.550
It's, it's just complicated.

00:44:51.720 --> 00:44:54.660
I think that's why it's important
to have a public process

00:44:54.660 --> 00:44:58.710
for people to talk about how
these proposals impact them

00:44:58.710 --> 00:45:00.570
and their cultures and their way of life.

00:45:02.610 --> 00:45:04.980
- Okay, thank you very much.
- Thank

00:45:04.980 --> 00:45:05.980
- You.

00:45:09.570 --> 00:45:11.640
Okay, now we're gonna hear from

00:45:13.200 --> 00:45:14.670
National Park Service.

00:45:15.930 --> 00:45:17.250
- At the next board of Gay meeting,

00:45:17.250 --> 00:45:20.640
we're bringing forth a proposal
again to address the issue

00:45:20.640 --> 00:45:24.420
of harvest of wolves in the
stampede corridor outside

00:45:24.420 --> 00:45:26.820
of the boundaries of Denali National Park.

00:45:26.820 --> 00:45:27.990
- My name's Dave Shekar.

00:45:27.990 --> 00:45:31.020
I'm representing the National
Park Service today on proposal

00:45:31.020 --> 00:45:32.070
1 52.

00:45:33.210 --> 00:45:34.380
Here's what we're proposing.

00:45:35.520 --> 00:45:37.740
A seasonal closure, hunting

00:45:37.740 --> 00:45:40.800
and trapping closed from
February 1st to August 10th,

00:45:40.800 --> 00:45:41.850
and then hunting

00:45:41.850 --> 00:45:44.970
and trapping wood proceed
the rest of the year.

00:45:44.970 --> 00:45:48.420
According to state fish
and game regulations,

00:45:48.420 --> 00:45:50.700
- We propose to close a hunting

00:45:50.700 --> 00:45:53.640
and trapping in February of each year.

00:45:53.640 --> 00:45:55.440
In order to protect wolves

00:45:55.440 --> 00:45:58.290
during the most vulnerable
period, which is the pre-breeding

00:45:58.290 --> 00:45:59.340
and breeding season.

00:46:01.140 --> 00:46:03.570
The take of one wolf

00:46:03.570 --> 00:46:07.530
to a large population may not
have a significant impact.

00:46:07.530 --> 00:46:12.300
But say you take a breeding
wolf during the breeding season,

00:46:12.300 --> 00:46:15.780
well typically there there may
only be one breeding female.

00:46:15.780 --> 00:46:18.750
So taking that breeding wolf
actually means you've decreased

00:46:18.750 --> 00:46:21.450
reproduction for the pack
for the entire season.

00:46:21.450 --> 00:46:25.860
And there is the small
area outside of our park,

00:46:25.860 --> 00:46:29.310
which we've always recognized
as really important habitat

00:46:29.310 --> 00:46:31.890
for caribou, wolves, bears.

00:46:31.890 --> 00:46:33.570
Now, if we look at the sorts

00:46:33.570 --> 00:46:36.690
of mortality within our study
area, in the past decade

00:46:36.690 --> 00:46:38.130
and a half, about a quarter

00:46:38.130 --> 00:46:41.040
of the resident colored
wolves were harvested.

00:46:41.040 --> 00:46:43.920
And that harvest isn't spread
out throughout the entire

00:46:43.920 --> 00:46:45.630
population or study area.

00:46:45.630 --> 00:46:48.690
A majority of the harvest
locations are occurring outside

00:46:48.690 --> 00:46:51.030
of the northeastern boundary of the park.

00:46:52.080 --> 00:46:54.540
- When people visit
Alaska, they generally hope

00:46:54.540 --> 00:46:56.160
to see wolves or bears.

00:46:56.160 --> 00:46:57.720
It depends on the survey,

00:46:57.720 --> 00:47:00.630
but that is one of their main motivations.

00:47:00.630 --> 00:47:04.260
About 400,000 annual visitors
make the trip to Denali,

00:47:04.260 --> 00:47:07.800
specifically to observe wildlife up close

00:47:07.800 --> 00:47:08.800
- And protect.

00:47:08.800 --> 00:47:11.250
The park Service is obviously
interested in allowing

00:47:11.250 --> 00:47:16.140
for opportunities for people
to experience and see wildlife.

00:47:16.140 --> 00:47:19.110
If a hunting and trapping
closure has the potential

00:47:19.110 --> 00:47:21.870
to increase sighting
opportunities, you know,

00:47:21.870 --> 00:47:22.950
there could be a benefit

00:47:22.950 --> 00:47:26.130
to the tourism economy and industry.

00:47:26.130 --> 00:47:27.660
And to visit our experience,

00:47:29.650 --> 00:47:31.750
- You are greatly good on a good day.

00:47:31.750 --> 00:47:34.480
- Really.
- Yeah, 90% of people do not get this view

00:47:34.480 --> 00:47:35.740
that you're experiencing.

00:47:36.760 --> 00:47:39.550
Favorite the rare day

00:47:40.690 --> 00:47:41.800
be the whole mountain.

00:47:44.770 --> 00:47:49.180
- Here in Denali, we have this
long history of monitoring

00:47:49.180 --> 00:47:50.920
and research, which is really valuable,

00:47:52.810 --> 00:47:55.120
but this is also really unique as a place

00:47:55.120 --> 00:47:56.380
for people to see wolves.

00:47:57.430 --> 00:47:59.350
There are a few places in
the world we can go out

00:47:59.350 --> 00:48:02.320
and see wolves in the wild,
in their natural environment.

00:48:02.320 --> 00:48:04.090
And even the chance or the possibility

00:48:04.090 --> 00:48:05.890
of this really excites people

00:48:12.100 --> 00:48:15.430
- For those visitors who get a
chance to witness that, okay,

00:48:15.430 --> 00:48:17.380
that is awesome for them.

00:48:17.380 --> 00:48:18.430
That's just magic.

00:48:19.270 --> 00:48:21.970
You know, you can't
guarantee wolf sightings,

00:48:21.970 --> 00:48:23.530
but what you can do is you set the,

00:48:23.530 --> 00:48:24.610
you can set the stage for him.

00:48:27.100 --> 00:48:32.100
When Grant Creek was
dening from 2004 to 2011,

00:48:32.170 --> 00:48:35.560
you know, we were seeing Grant
Creek the most consistent

00:48:35.560 --> 00:48:38.860
basis that we've experienced
as far as wolves go.

00:48:38.860 --> 00:48:41.020
And they weren't, you know,
like in Yellowstone when I was

00:48:41.020 --> 00:48:44.110
there, there was competency
Yellowstone wolves from 2, 3, 4

00:48:44.110 --> 00:48:46.570
miles away and having
to use spotting scopes.

00:48:46.570 --> 00:48:49.150
We didn't need spotting
scopes for Grant Creek.

00:48:49.150 --> 00:48:51.580
You know, a lot of times they
would go right by the bus.

00:49:00.460 --> 00:49:02.140
- Denali is not alone in dealing

00:49:02.140 --> 00:49:04.540
with transboundary
management issues adjacent

00:49:04.540 --> 00:49:06.130
to protected areas.

00:49:06.130 --> 00:49:08.320
We saw that there were some effect in both

00:49:08.320 --> 00:49:10.120
Yellowstone and Denali.

00:49:10.120 --> 00:49:14.200
That when there was no hunting
adjacent to those areas,

00:49:14.200 --> 00:49:17.020
we did see a subsequent
increase in sightings.

00:49:18.640 --> 00:49:22.060
- The Denali Park Road
serves as a travel corridor

00:49:22.060 --> 00:49:24.820
and makes the wolf viewing
resource unique in the

00:49:24.820 --> 00:49:26.410
state and the world.

00:49:26.410 --> 00:49:30.610
And in some years, visitors
along the park road, up

00:49:30.610 --> 00:49:35.610
to 20,000 of them have the
opportunity to view wolves.

00:49:35.770 --> 00:49:37.330
- I love to view animals as well.

00:49:37.330 --> 00:49:39.700
I think all Alaskans do, many

00:49:39.700 --> 00:49:41.920
of us hunt, many of us don't hunt.

00:49:42.760 --> 00:49:44.410
I understand what they're saying,

00:49:44.410 --> 00:49:45.700
what they're thinking, what they want.

00:49:46.540 --> 00:49:47.800
I don't think we're hindering that

00:49:49.860 --> 00:49:52.750
- You, you can't just let
these people undermine the

00:49:52.750 --> 00:49:54.370
visitor experience.

00:49:54.370 --> 00:49:56.680
But if you protect the wolves
in the stampede corridor

00:49:56.680 --> 00:49:58.360
or the wolf townships, then

00:49:58.360 --> 00:50:01.930
that sets the stage for wolf viewing.

00:50:01.930 --> 00:50:03.910
But if you don't protect them, you know,

00:50:03.910 --> 00:50:05.320
they still go into that area.

00:50:05.320 --> 00:50:07.600
They're still targeted
by hunters of trappers.

00:50:07.600 --> 00:50:10.990
They still have to avoid the
gauntlet of snares and traps.

00:50:11.830 --> 00:50:14.920
They, the odds are, are way against them

00:50:14.920 --> 00:50:16.090
to be able to consistently do that.

00:50:16.090 --> 00:50:19.480
In fact, it, they're gonna get
nailed one way or the other.

00:50:31.220 --> 00:50:34.190
- You know, I don't think any
visitor should come to Denali

00:50:34.190 --> 00:50:36.260
with the expectation of seeing a wolf.

00:50:37.220 --> 00:50:38.450
Wolves are elusive

00:50:38.450 --> 00:50:41.990
and they're not interested
in entertaining the

00:50:41.990 --> 00:50:43.310
tourism industry.

00:50:49.220 --> 00:50:51.980
This park was set aside for wildlife

00:50:51.980 --> 00:50:55.370
and to protect wildlife resources, not

00:50:55.370 --> 00:50:59.810
to be the economic engine
for industrial tourism.

00:51:01.250 --> 00:51:04.250
But it has seemed to go in

00:51:04.250 --> 00:51:08.990
that direction dramatically
in the last five, 10 years.

00:51:10.110 --> 00:51:11.900
- Yourself, as tall as you can,

00:51:11.900 --> 00:51:13.550
don't stare them directly in the eye.

00:51:13.550 --> 00:51:15.530
That's a threatening gesture.

00:51:15.530 --> 00:51:18.290
Look down to the ground as
you're walking backwards, talk

00:51:18.290 --> 00:51:20.240
to the bear in a deep, calm force.

00:51:21.430 --> 00:51:24.320
Anything you want to say they
do not understand English.

00:51:25.910 --> 00:51:27.020
So get back on the bus.

00:51:27.020 --> 00:51:29.870
Stay in the restroom is
they got strong doors.

00:51:29.870 --> 00:51:31.700
- You know, there's just more and more

00:51:31.700 --> 00:51:35.540
and more people that
wanna visit nice places,

00:51:35.540 --> 00:51:38.030
but there's not more and more nice places.

00:51:39.080 --> 00:51:40.700
- Bright red plant along the side

00:51:40.700 --> 00:51:42.620
of the road is blueberries.

00:51:42.620 --> 00:51:45.140
But now most of the
blueberries have fallen off now

00:51:45.140 --> 00:51:46.880
there's hardly any left.

00:51:46.880 --> 00:51:49.400
That real bright red, low to the ground,

00:51:49.400 --> 00:51:50.450
tiny little round leaf.

00:51:55.340 --> 00:51:59.840
- If we're going to be in
this supreme position on this

00:51:59.840 --> 00:52:03.170
planet to manipulate every environment

00:52:03.170 --> 00:52:08.120
and every species, we better
take the responsibility

00:52:08.120 --> 00:52:12.170
to allow for the existence of some

00:52:12.170 --> 00:52:13.760
of these beings in some

00:52:13.760 --> 00:52:16.880
of their natural surroundings
without us having

00:52:16.880 --> 00:52:17.990
to intrude on it.

00:52:21.080 --> 00:52:24.470
- Okay? Not gonna stay too
much. We got better ones before.

00:52:25.310 --> 00:52:27.290
What we look for in a
day is bigger, better,

00:52:27.290 --> 00:52:28.400
closer, and more interest.

00:53:13.430 --> 00:53:15.010
- Alaska's a huge place

00:53:15.010 --> 00:53:19.280
and you know, 90% of it is
open to hunting and trapping

00:53:19.280 --> 00:53:22.520
and airplanes and four
wheelers and you name it.

00:53:22.520 --> 00:53:24.110
And in this day

00:53:24.110 --> 00:53:28.080
and age where solitude is so compromised,

00:53:29.280 --> 00:53:32.040
we should at least have the integrity

00:53:32.040 --> 00:53:34.470
to protect a few places

00:53:34.470 --> 00:53:38.520
that can still maintain those
unique aspects of wilderness.

00:53:47.010 --> 00:53:49.710
Hey carpe, we already got there.

00:53:51.270 --> 00:53:55.710
Can I have this? No,
come on. Can I have that?

00:53:57.690 --> 00:54:01.860
This smokes your hair?
This one puts almost all,

00:54:03.000 --> 00:54:05.130
I think I'll throw it up in a tree.

00:54:07.530 --> 00:54:10.980
I'll let whole horned owl eat it or lynx.

00:54:13.200 --> 00:54:17.460
Every creature, every tiny minute

00:54:17.460 --> 00:54:21.630
microbe on this planet is interconnected.

00:54:21.630 --> 00:54:25.020
And when you connect to whether
it's a salamander or a robin

00:54:25.020 --> 00:54:28.110
or a grizzly bear, it's profound.

00:54:30.630 --> 00:54:33.060
There we go. Something will see that.

00:54:42.570 --> 00:54:47.310
It's more and more important
for people to be able

00:54:47.310 --> 00:54:48.750
to cultivate that kind

00:54:48.750 --> 00:54:52.530
of caring attitude towards something

00:54:52.530 --> 00:54:55.530
that you don't necessarily
have to consume to enjoy.

00:55:21.390 --> 00:55:25.140
- You see all these
scuff marks, drag marks,

00:55:27.900 --> 00:55:30.750
a wolf wouldn't ordinarily
leave scuff marks like that and,

00:55:30.750 --> 00:55:31.950
and just, you know,

00:55:31.950 --> 00:55:33.930
it'd be one thing if they're
in the deep snow, you know,

00:55:33.930 --> 00:55:35.130
they might drag their foot through it,

00:55:35.130 --> 00:55:37.710
but on the shallow stuff
it should just be a

00:55:37.710 --> 00:55:39.210
neat line of prints.

00:55:39.210 --> 00:55:41.160
And we know she's got that bad leg.

00:55:42.030 --> 00:55:45.120
So these scuff marks and,

00:55:45.120 --> 00:55:46.530
and even the arrangement

00:55:46.530 --> 00:55:49.560
of the prints we do
see is kind of unusual.

00:55:49.560 --> 00:55:51.960
So that is really contributing to my sense

00:55:51.960 --> 00:55:53.940
that it's probably 12 oh two's tracks.

00:55:56.340 --> 00:55:59.850
She's using this nice open
creek bed instead of, you know,

00:55:59.850 --> 00:56:01.800
being in the deep snow
under the trees there.

00:56:03.690 --> 00:56:05.460
These are probably at least 12 hours old,

00:56:05.460 --> 00:56:08.670
I'd say more based on
the frost formation here.

00:56:14.790 --> 00:56:16.380
I look at her GPS locations

00:56:16.380 --> 00:56:19.260
and she's going up and over mountains.

00:56:19.260 --> 00:56:21.750
She's, you know, going
through really rugged terrain

00:56:21.750 --> 00:56:23.440
and it's just so impressive

00:56:36.520 --> 00:56:37.240
For a wolf.

00:56:37.240 --> 00:56:39.250
Every meal is a question mark.

00:56:39.250 --> 00:56:41.170
Every injury could be life ending.

00:56:41.170 --> 00:56:44.800
So to get through over a decade
of that kind of uncertainty

00:56:44.800 --> 00:56:46.360
and have the skill to survive through

00:56:46.360 --> 00:56:47.530
that is just incredible to me.

00:57:01.420 --> 00:57:02.710
As she's gotten older,

00:57:02.710 --> 00:57:04.960
she's more reliant on the
other wolves now to do more

00:57:04.960 --> 00:57:08.860
of the hunting, to do more
of the territory defense.

00:57:08.860 --> 00:57:10.870
But research has indicated
that older wolves

00:57:10.870 --> 00:57:14.530
and packs still play a
tremendously important role.

00:57:14.530 --> 00:57:16.150
Essentially in their knowledge.

00:57:16.150 --> 00:57:17.680
Their knowledge of the landscape,

00:57:17.680 --> 00:57:19.990
where the prey are, where to go.

00:57:19.990 --> 00:57:22.540
So even in old age, she's
still bringing a lot of

00:57:22.540 --> 00:57:25.030
that knowledge and experience
to the wolves that she's with

00:57:25.030 --> 00:57:26.650
who are at this point
all younger than her,

00:57:26.650 --> 00:57:27.850
at least by several years.

00:57:30.580 --> 00:57:33.370
She's slowing down, we
know she's been injured.

00:57:33.370 --> 00:57:35.950
It's obvious it's impacting her movement.

00:57:35.950 --> 00:57:38.590
And she's spending more
time around human areas.

00:57:39.550 --> 00:57:41.410
This, this sort of
scavenging possibilities

00:57:41.410 --> 00:57:44.080
around human developed areas
are becoming more appealing.

00:59:18.900 --> 00:59:21.860
- You know, some animals
you give 'em are rest,

00:59:21.860 --> 00:59:25.190
just like farmers planting,
you know, a certain crop.

00:59:25.190 --> 00:59:26.660
And then they'll give the field a break.

00:59:26.660 --> 00:59:28.820
Same thing like Pine Martin.

00:59:28.820 --> 00:59:32.270
The, their population is
susceptible to peaks and valleys.

00:59:32.270 --> 00:59:34.370
Peaks and valleys. So, you know,

00:59:34.370 --> 00:59:36.230
but it's an animal
that's very easy to trap.

00:59:36.230 --> 00:59:39.140
So you can catch dozens or even a hundred

00:59:39.140 --> 00:59:41.270
or more of those in a year if
you're really targeting them.

00:59:42.440 --> 00:59:45.920
The big animals typically
anywhere from a couple dozen

00:59:45.920 --> 00:59:48.080
to three or four dozen, you know,

00:59:48.080 --> 00:59:51.290
and that's fox links, cat
wolves, wolverine, coyote.

01:00:07.490 --> 01:00:08.930
- Most of the wolves I've killed is

01:00:08.930 --> 01:00:13.220
- With snares followed by
leghold, followed by gun.

01:00:14.150 --> 01:00:18.080
And I bet you I could count on
one hand the ones I've shot,

01:00:18.080 --> 01:00:19.850
quartering to me or quartering away.

01:00:19.850 --> 01:00:22.700
Most of them get it
right in the liberal lobe

01:00:22.700 --> 01:00:23.960
as they're going straight away.

01:00:25.070 --> 01:00:28.520
'cause they know that motherfucker's

01:00:28.520 --> 01:00:29.750
gonna turn me into mittens.

01:00:29.750 --> 01:00:30.830
I gotta get out here.

01:00:47.000 --> 01:00:49.220
- It is not that fucking
exciting really is it?

01:00:53.860 --> 01:00:58.550
You have to have a a want to
do it because it ain't nothing

01:00:58.550 --> 01:00:59.930
but fucking work.

01:01:14.900 --> 01:01:19.220
- I will put some wolf
here in right there.

01:01:19.220 --> 01:01:22.010
If a wolf walks by, he'll
be curious as who it is.

01:01:22.010 --> 01:01:23.450
He'll go stick his nose there

01:01:23.450 --> 01:01:26.360
and hopefully stick his foot right there.

01:01:29.540 --> 01:01:31.900
- Stay tuned. We'll see what happens.

01:01:31.900 --> 01:01:33.590
- That's the art form right there.

01:01:33.590 --> 01:01:37.730
- That's it. Pee po set. Dogs
pee. Where other dogs pee?

01:01:37.730 --> 01:01:38.930
That's the natural thing.

01:01:42.920 --> 01:01:47.600
- Seems easy.
- Seems easy. Sure does.

01:02:03.620 --> 01:02:06.290
- I haven't caught or shot a
collared wolf myself in the

01:02:06.290 --> 01:02:11.150
past few years, but I've
handled a lot of park callers.

01:02:11.150 --> 01:02:12.530
They've caused me a lot of grief.

01:02:12.530 --> 01:02:14.480
It's all just a big damn blur to me.

01:02:14.480 --> 01:02:18.800
I, I'm very unapologetic about it.

01:02:21.300 --> 01:02:22.920
There is no such thing as the wrong wall.

01:02:43.020 --> 01:02:45.180
- So normally I'd have a pair of setters

01:02:46.500 --> 01:02:49.260
'cause I'm getting too old
for this gymnastic shit.

01:02:53.060 --> 01:02:53.280
- Ah,

01:03:09.480 --> 01:03:11.310
- The conditions have been getting weirder

01:03:11.310 --> 01:03:13.470
and weirder all the time, you
know, with the climate change.

01:03:13.470 --> 01:03:15.570
Rivers that traditionally have frozen

01:03:15.570 --> 01:03:17.310
and been safe to travel on and aren't.

01:03:18.330 --> 01:03:21.300
So I haven't been hitting it that hard.

01:03:24.180 --> 01:03:28.650
I'm getting older and slower
and no ws ain't slowing down

01:03:28.650 --> 01:03:30.240
and neither's anything else out there.

01:03:36.600 --> 01:03:39.300
- I'm just trying to make it
look like I wasn't sitting here

01:03:39.300 --> 01:03:41.850
for five minutes, putting
a trap in the trail.

01:03:42.930 --> 01:03:45.720
Get a little snow, they'll
walk right through here. Bam.

01:03:52.290 --> 01:03:56.520
That's Jack. May

01:03:56.520 --> 01:03:57.660
rest in peace.

01:03:59.700 --> 01:04:01.350
I used him for bait.

01:04:04.500 --> 01:04:08.160
This one's gonna get me a
National Geographic again.

01:04:08.160 --> 01:04:09.760
Horse killing, son of a bitch.

01:04:11.190 --> 01:04:13.080
Jack was about 30, I think he was

01:04:13.080 --> 01:04:14.730
- Just 30, 29.

01:04:14.730 --> 01:04:17.010
30. That's a good run.

01:04:17.010 --> 01:04:19.950
It's not a pleasant outcome,
but it is what it is.

01:04:25.350 --> 01:04:28.800
- Well, onward.

01:04:31.080 --> 01:04:32.880
Let's see if we can't find one to,

01:04:35.260 --> 01:04:37.620
so we can return, I can
let you return the call

01:04:37.620 --> 01:04:38.640
to bridge at this time.

01:05:58.700 --> 01:06:00.400
- 1202 is clearly outta the

01:06:00.400 --> 01:06:01.400
- Action.

01:06:02.680 --> 01:06:04.360
That's all she likes it to be.

01:06:04.360 --> 01:06:07.930
- Yeah, she was alive two days ago

01:06:07.930 --> 01:06:09.190
and she's not where she's not

01:06:09.190 --> 01:06:10.810
dead where she was two days ago.

01:06:10.810 --> 01:06:14.240
So that's, that's somewhere.

01:06:23.770 --> 01:06:27.940
- There are many, many,
many, many Alaskans that want

01:06:27.940 --> 01:06:30.550
to see those park wolves protected.

01:06:30.550 --> 01:06:33.910
You know? And there's
really only two trappers,

01:06:33.910 --> 01:06:38.170
three at the most that are
trapping out in that area.

01:06:38.170 --> 01:06:42.100
And how 500 Alaskans can be trumped

01:06:42.100 --> 01:06:43.480
by three trappers.

01:06:43.480 --> 01:06:46.570
You know, it just is
really inequitable, I think

01:06:48.850 --> 01:06:51.460
it just, it's not balanced, you know,

01:06:51.460 --> 01:06:55.240
and they, so that's the part
that's really frustrating.

01:06:55.240 --> 01:06:56.800
It's just really imbalanced.

01:06:58.540 --> 01:07:02.020
- The consumptive side is still ticked off

01:07:02.020 --> 01:07:03.460
that they can't go trap

01:07:03.460 --> 01:07:06.580
inside Denali National
Park with 6 million acres.

01:07:06.580 --> 01:07:08.440
So they're just as frustrated.

01:07:08.440 --> 01:07:10.840
- That park was originally brought to us

01:07:10.840 --> 01:07:12.610
by sheep punters for sheep.

01:07:13.480 --> 01:07:15.760
It's been usurped and bastardized

01:07:15.760 --> 01:07:17.980
and they want to turn it
into a wolf sanctuary.

01:07:19.690 --> 01:07:22.360
Soon as the ink is dry on
this, they won't be happy.

01:07:22.360 --> 01:07:23.500
They'll want more. And you know,

01:07:23.500 --> 01:07:25.960
they'll be happy when the
buffers zone brushes up against

01:07:25.960 --> 01:07:27.010
Canada and Russia.

01:07:28.600 --> 01:07:31.630
- If this specific corridor is protected.

01:07:31.630 --> 01:07:35.980
This would be the one singular
place in the United States

01:07:35.980 --> 01:07:40.480
where we have a consistently
studied intact ecosystem.

01:07:40.480 --> 01:07:43.210
- Unfortunately, a few trappers
would be displaced from the

01:07:43.210 --> 01:07:45.730
corridor, but would still
have access to millions

01:07:45.730 --> 01:07:46.930
of acres of state and federalists.

01:07:46.930 --> 01:07:48.520
- People say, well, they
can go somewhere else.

01:07:48.520 --> 01:07:49.870
The state's huge.

01:07:49.870 --> 01:07:53.020
That's not how trapping
works. If I see a nice

01:07:53.020 --> 01:07:55.840
- Wolf, I'd like to shoot, I'd
like to have the opportunity.

01:07:55.840 --> 01:07:58.090
'cause they're fleeting opportunities.

01:07:58.090 --> 01:08:00.340
- There are those who will
tell you that you cannot manage

01:08:00.340 --> 01:08:02.530
for anything except consumptive use

01:08:02.530 --> 01:08:04.990
and everything else is what the feds want.

01:08:04.990 --> 01:08:08.110
But I believe, you know, that's erroneous.

01:08:08.110 --> 01:08:11.260
- But we are not the feds
asking for this buffer.

01:08:11.260 --> 01:08:12.820
We are Alaskans asking for

01:08:12.820 --> 01:08:13.820
- It.

01:08:13.820 --> 01:08:15.080
- We are hunters, gatherers,

01:08:15.080 --> 01:08:17.030
- Trappers and fishermen.

01:08:17.030 --> 01:08:19.820
We are bird watchers and whale watchers.

01:08:19.820 --> 01:08:22.730
Every single person in
that room could stand up

01:08:22.730 --> 01:08:26.030
and lead the case for Denali Wolves.

01:08:26.030 --> 01:08:29.390
We backpack, we run rivers, we photograph,

01:08:29.390 --> 01:08:31.820
but we all share the
thrill of the potential

01:08:31.820 --> 01:08:33.860
to view Alaska's wildlife.

01:08:33.860 --> 01:08:36.050
And still the board game can make a,

01:08:36.050 --> 01:08:40.430
a judgment call just based on
their own personal philosophy.

01:08:40.430 --> 01:08:44.450
- If and when a buffer zone
is crammed down our throats,

01:08:44.450 --> 01:08:47.720
we would insist on some
sort of compensation.

01:08:47.720 --> 01:08:51.020
- You know, the people that
just see the intrinsic value

01:08:51.020 --> 01:08:55.130
of a natural ecosystem that
goes unmolested by men.

01:08:55.130 --> 01:08:58.280
It's like, why is that so hard to find?

01:08:59.420 --> 01:09:01.460
- I told you in the beginning,
I'm a simple person,

01:09:01.460 --> 01:09:02.630
right and wrong, good and evil.

01:09:02.630 --> 01:09:05.900
That's what I believe in. This
is right and they're wrong.

01:09:05.900 --> 01:09:06.900
So we shouldn't bend.

01:09:10.430 --> 01:09:13.370
- Yeah, I wish you luck. Yeah.

01:09:13.370 --> 01:09:16.460
It gets an uphill battle
until politics swing, which is

01:09:16.460 --> 01:09:18.590
really what irritates
me is the big pictures.

01:09:18.590 --> 01:09:21.830
Why is biology political? I
know. Why should it ever be?

01:09:21.830 --> 01:09:23.570
Why should it be emotional
or political? Right?

01:09:23.570 --> 01:09:26.270
Is it biological? It should
be science. It should be

01:09:26.270 --> 01:09:27.590
- Just
- Facts.

01:09:27.590 --> 01:09:28.590
Yeah.

01:09:30.160 --> 01:09:33.860
- I admit that there's uncertainty
within anything we say,

01:09:33.860 --> 01:09:36.110
but I'm pretty clear about that.

01:09:36.110 --> 01:09:39.380
Like that bears, you know, looking into,

01:09:58.790 --> 01:10:01.310
- I wanna read something
before I go on Mr.

01:10:01.310 --> 01:10:04.220
Chairman, that was stated about a hundred

01:10:04.220 --> 01:10:06.560
and some odd years ago

01:10:07.460 --> 01:10:09.350
by Theodore Roosevelt,

01:10:10.520 --> 01:10:12.890
and this may help in deliberations

01:10:12.890 --> 01:10:15.860
for the upcoming decisions
that you guys make.

01:10:16.970 --> 01:10:18.140
Here is your country.

01:10:19.070 --> 01:10:22.490
Cherish the natural
resources, cherish the history

01:10:22.490 --> 01:10:26.600
and romance as a sacred
heritage for your children

01:10:26.600 --> 01:10:28.790
and your children's children.

01:10:28.790 --> 01:10:30.530
Do not let selfless men

01:10:30.530 --> 01:10:34.340
or greedy interests skin
your country of its beauty,

01:10:34.340 --> 01:10:37.310
its riches, or its romance.

01:10:37.310 --> 01:10:38.900
Much along the same line

01:10:39.830 --> 01:10:42.680
as the Athabascan people
have managed our renewable

01:10:42.680 --> 01:10:46.130
resources over the vast
thousands of years.

01:10:48.800 --> 01:10:51.980
- Okay, next on my list
I have Nicole Smith.

01:10:53.750 --> 01:10:55.190
- The goal of this proposal was

01:10:55.190 --> 01:10:57.500
to recognize both the
desires of wildlife viewers

01:10:57.500 --> 01:10:59.960
and trappers, both of
which are user groups

01:10:59.960 --> 01:11:02.480
that this board is mandated to manage for.

01:11:02.480 --> 01:11:05.570
And this can be done through
a partial seasonal closure

01:11:05.570 --> 01:11:08.150
as represented in 1 52.

01:11:08.150 --> 01:11:09.470
You all have read the proposal.

01:11:09.470 --> 01:11:12.380
I invite any Alaska Wildlife
Alliance has been engaged on

01:11:12.380 --> 01:11:14.220
this issue for decades.

01:11:14.220 --> 01:11:17.910
We are supporting the National
Park Service proposal 1 52.

01:11:19.320 --> 01:11:22.260
The proposal itself is so moderate,

01:11:22.260 --> 01:11:23.880
it's asking for so little.

01:11:27.090 --> 01:11:29.760
The main point is that this
is a scientifically founded

01:11:29.760 --> 01:11:33.510
and genuine attempt at a
compromise that we fully support.

01:11:33.510 --> 01:11:36.750
And I hear rhetoric a lot
about giving up something

01:11:36.750 --> 01:11:38.400
and the need to take something in return.

01:11:38.400 --> 01:11:41.640
And I think that adversarial
language has not gotten us

01:11:41.640 --> 01:11:43.650
anywhere in the last 20 years.

01:11:43.650 --> 01:11:46.350
We've tried shouting from corners

01:11:46.350 --> 01:11:49.770
and I ask today that we
consider a compromise

01:11:49.770 --> 01:11:50.970
that's listed in 1 52.

01:11:52.680 --> 01:11:54.960
- Let me ask you this question.

01:11:54.960 --> 01:11:56.640
If this is such an important area

01:11:56.640 --> 01:11:59.130
to the National Park
Service and all the users

01:11:59.130 --> 01:12:01.920
and visitors, why,

01:12:01.920 --> 01:12:04.800
why wouldn't the National
Park Service do a land

01:12:04.800 --> 01:12:06.240
trade with the state?

01:12:07.910 --> 01:12:11.310
- When I look at the board
of game mandates to manage

01:12:11.310 --> 01:12:13.080
for all Alaskans under the cons,

01:12:13.080 --> 01:12:14.480
- Let, let me just stop you.

01:12:14.480 --> 01:12:16.160
I didn't expect you would have an answer

01:12:16.160 --> 01:12:16.640
- That. Oh, okay.

01:12:17.620 --> 01:12:20.790
- I'm just putting it out
there for you to think about.

01:12:20.790 --> 01:12:24.270
- If I may, I would
like to, as an Alaskan,

01:12:24.270 --> 01:12:27.840
put my faith in this
board as it was mandated.

01:12:27.840 --> 01:12:32.820
I think that we can have more
faith in our state policies to

01:12:32.820 --> 01:12:34.380
manage for all of Alaskans

01:12:34.380 --> 01:12:38.400
and I would really love to
see the state step into that.

01:12:39.420 --> 01:12:41.610
I, I really hope for that with this board.

01:12:42.450 --> 01:12:45.840
- Very good. Any questions?

01:12:47.520 --> 01:12:48.750
I think you're very clear

01:12:50.040 --> 01:12:53.310
and with that we're recess for the day.

01:12:53.310 --> 01:12:55.680
- Thank you.
- Okay, we're gonna step down.

01:13:04.590 --> 01:13:07.050
- I've been to a few
board of game meetings, so

01:13:07.050 --> 01:13:08.580
we'll just sort of wait

01:13:08.580 --> 01:13:12.120
and see how responsive board members are.

01:13:14.940 --> 01:13:18.060
I mean, if this doesn't
pass, I don't know what will

01:13:18.060 --> 01:13:21.330
because it's, it's really
just asking for so little.

01:13:21.330 --> 01:13:24.780
I'm just hoping that they
approach it without their minds

01:13:24.780 --> 01:13:26.340
already having been made up.

01:13:32.700 --> 01:13:34.950
- Any further questions on 1 52?

01:13:37.050 --> 01:13:38.580
Krista, would you poll the board please?

01:13:38.580 --> 01:13:42.870
- Yes. Mr. Chairman, final
action on proposal 1 52. Mr.

01:13:42.870 --> 01:13:47.520
Huntington? No. Mr. Van Dale?

01:13:47.520 --> 01:13:52.520
- No. - Mr. Hoffman? No.
Mr. Barrett? No. Mr. Lamel?

01:13:52.740 --> 01:13:54.990
- No.
- Mr. Burnett,

01:13:54.990 --> 01:13:55.990
- No.

01:13:55.990 --> 01:13:57.000
Chairman's breaker, no.

01:13:57.000 --> 01:13:58.410
- Proposal fails. Zero to seven. Okay.

01:13:59.700 --> 01:14:01.950
- Board members Were a
couple minutes after five.

01:14:01.950 --> 01:14:06.060
You want finish? We got two to
go. We can let these guys go.

01:14:09.430 --> 01:14:10.430
Okay.

01:14:48.460 --> 01:14:50.080
- This is all iced up.

01:14:50.080 --> 01:14:54.040
I do a little, little bit to pry that off.

01:14:54.040 --> 01:14:57.520
Yeah, I got these little
scissors in case we can Okay.

01:14:57.520 --> 01:14:58.270
That point. Oh

01:15:01.950 --> 01:15:03.100
no, that was easier.

01:15:03.100 --> 01:15:04.120
I thought it wasn't too bad.

01:15:09.820 --> 01:15:10.000
Pretty

01:15:10.000 --> 01:15:10.870
- Wet. There you

01:15:10.870 --> 01:15:11.870
- Go.

01:15:11.870 --> 01:15:15.910
- All right. She was

01:15:15.910 --> 01:15:19.150
seen walking down a road in the morning.

01:15:20.200 --> 01:15:22.450
There was a report and then later

01:15:22.450 --> 01:15:26.680
that in the following afternoon
she was seen with injuries

01:15:26.680 --> 01:15:28.510
to her front paws

01:15:28.510 --> 01:15:32.230
and the people who spotted
her, you know, had realized

01:15:32.230 --> 01:15:33.460
that she was in poor shape.

01:15:33.460 --> 01:15:35.830
Both front paws were not being used.

01:15:35.830 --> 01:15:39.010
So as they were, you know, looking at her,

01:15:39.010 --> 01:15:41.890
investigating her, she
moved further down the bank

01:15:41.890 --> 01:15:45.610
and got to a spot where
there was open water

01:15:45.610 --> 01:15:46.990
and actually fell down the bank

01:15:46.990 --> 01:15:48.580
and into the, into the river.

01:15:58.030 --> 01:15:59.050
This morning they saw

01:15:59.050 --> 01:16:02.050
that she had washed up a short
distance away on a shallow

01:16:02.050 --> 01:16:03.580
gravel section

01:16:03.580 --> 01:16:05.800
and they saw, they saw her
there and pulled her out.

01:16:05.800 --> 01:16:09.820
Then water nice here,

01:16:12.280 --> 01:16:13.990
- Starting to soften bit.

01:16:13.990 --> 01:16:17.410
- She was in a cold river.
- Gonna take a while.

01:16:17.410 --> 01:16:20.170
- And just for her to dry too.
- Yeah,

01:16:20.170 --> 01:16:23.590
- Because she's that tail.

01:16:23.590 --> 01:16:26.080
Yeah. I'll mark that color.
Is there. It's really pretty.

01:16:28.240 --> 01:16:30.730
Yeah. I'm just, I'm really
grateful that we were able

01:16:30.730 --> 01:16:33.670
to recover her knowing that
she was going to die soon,

01:16:33.670 --> 01:16:35.830
but that we wanted the
chance to recover her

01:16:35.830 --> 01:16:38.830
and complete the story.

01:16:38.830 --> 01:16:42.790
Complete the story. Yeah. Okay.

01:16:42.790 --> 01:16:47.770
This litter, rest, and
thaw for a little bit here.

01:16:47.770 --> 01:16:48.250
- Yeah, out a bit.

01:17:04.060 --> 01:17:07.960
- I haven't had a
necropsy done with a wolf,

01:17:07.960 --> 01:17:09.350
this old, that much history.

01:17:09.350 --> 01:17:11.030
Okay,

01:17:11.030 --> 01:17:13.670
- So she died yesterday or day before?

01:17:13.670 --> 01:17:15.590
Day before. Alright.

01:17:30.820 --> 01:17:32.070
It's, and you can,

01:17:40.210 --> 01:17:40.750
you know, I,

01:18:01.440 --> 01:18:04.250
- Let's even, before I
do any more, cutting.

01:18:04.250 --> 01:18:07.070
Let's take pictures of
this back leg. Okay.

01:18:07.070 --> 01:18:08.510
- The nature of the injury

01:18:08.510 --> 01:18:10.880
and her back leg, you know,
that's something she'd had

01:18:10.880 --> 01:18:13.190
for a long time over a year.

01:18:13.190 --> 01:18:15.680
It's like an old injury
that had healed over

01:18:15.680 --> 01:18:20.660
and she had really been
making a go with it, you know,

01:18:20.660 --> 01:18:22.070
putting some weight on it.

01:18:23.330 --> 01:18:28.010
And she was primarily probably
eating hairs at the end,

01:18:28.010 --> 01:18:31.100
you know, maybe scavenging
along some moose bones

01:18:31.100 --> 01:18:32.930
and, and hairs.

01:18:32.930 --> 01:18:36.560
She didn't really have
any extra fat on her.

01:18:36.560 --> 01:18:38.210
You know, her muscles
weren't wasting away,

01:18:39.320 --> 01:18:41.360
but it was definitely a lean time for her.

01:18:42.500 --> 01:18:45.410
- Yeah. And there's a recent fracture

01:18:45.410 --> 01:18:48.620
of the upper right hand four

01:18:48.620 --> 01:18:50.600
and lots of wear.

01:18:50.600 --> 01:18:55.430
And it's a broken premolar
on the lower right.

01:18:57.200 --> 01:18:58.340
It'll be an interesting

01:18:59.450 --> 01:19:00.450
- Specimen for you.

01:19:02.000 --> 01:19:05.990
1202 had injuries to
both of her front legs

01:19:05.990 --> 01:19:09.170
and these were consistent
with a gunshot injury.

01:19:10.100 --> 01:19:12.050
Most of the bones were shattered.

01:19:12.050 --> 01:19:14.300
A lot of her metacarpals were broken.

01:19:15.290 --> 01:19:17.750
Additionally, there was
a small caliber bullet

01:19:17.750 --> 01:19:20.360
that had been lodged in her lower jaw.

01:19:22.250 --> 01:19:25.760
She was still moving along somehow

01:19:25.760 --> 01:19:26.900
and actually had kind

01:19:26.900 --> 01:19:31.430
of pushed herself along
a snowbank in trying

01:19:31.430 --> 01:19:34.250
to get away and get into
an open lead of water

01:19:34.250 --> 01:19:36.710
where she eventually ultimately drowned

01:19:44.030 --> 01:19:45.030
- Biopsy.

01:23:03.460 --> 01:23:06.310
- I'm hopeful if the camera
was functioning the way it was

01:23:06.310 --> 01:23:10.540
supposed to, that it will
probably have the last living

01:23:10.540 --> 01:23:11.770
picture, the 1202 on it.

01:23:54.040 --> 01:23:55.900
- So this is definitely her.

01:23:57.430 --> 01:23:59.410
You can see the collar and that injury.

01:24:01.270 --> 01:24:02.800
It is not much left of this kill.

01:24:02.800 --> 01:24:06.520
That's just some little
scrap she's taken away there.

01:24:07.510 --> 01:24:09.160
She didn't really have
anything else, I guess.

01:24:14.580 --> 01:24:18.120
- Oh, well, I guess that's it.

01:24:19.990 --> 01:24:21.700
Last picture of her from the 14th.

01:25:18.280 --> 01:25:20.650
- We put a a thing out
in our newsletter saying

01:25:20.650 --> 01:25:24.010
that trapping is a way
of life for some people.

01:25:24.010 --> 01:25:27.580
We're not trying to end
trapping. We just want setback.

01:25:27.580 --> 01:25:32.500
And I got a very upset letter from

01:25:32.500 --> 01:25:34.930
two organizations in New York City.

01:25:34.930 --> 01:25:37.180
- Oh yeah.
- How dare we consider ourselves

01:25:37.180 --> 01:25:38.200
wildlife lovers.

01:25:39.190 --> 01:25:42.220
When we said that trapping is part of like

01:25:42.220 --> 01:25:45.640
basically yelling at us
being not antit trapping.

01:25:47.500 --> 01:25:51.170
- Good. I,

01:25:51.170 --> 01:25:53.140
I know I'm winning the trapping war.

01:25:53.140 --> 01:25:55.090
What's that? You know you're
winning the trapping war.

01:25:55.090 --> 01:25:58.150
I know I am. Yeah. Are you?
Yeah, he is. I'm still trapping.

01:25:59.590 --> 01:26:02.020
- Hey, what you doing? Fat head.

01:26:02.020 --> 01:26:03.950
- He says, I'm gonna hit you
with this. I'll show you.

01:26:03.950 --> 01:26:07.940
You're not winning the trapping
war. I'm on mom's side.

01:26:07.940 --> 01:26:09.650
Pow. I mean,

01:26:09.650 --> 01:26:11.240
- Who's losing the trapping war then?

01:26:12.080 --> 01:26:14.450
- I don't know. I'm not,
I feel like I'm winning.

01:26:14.450 --> 01:26:16.670
I'm still trapping. I haven't
changed anything. I do.

01:26:18.020 --> 01:26:20.300
Well actually, I
surrendered all this trail,

01:26:20.300 --> 01:26:22.280
which was very, what's the word?

01:26:22.280 --> 01:26:25.250
They would, my wife
would use benevolent, no,

01:26:25.250 --> 01:26:26.300
that's not a good word.

01:26:29.720 --> 01:26:32.750
Anyhow, this used to be my
trap line right through here.

01:26:35.810 --> 01:26:37.370
Catch little a hundred dollars bills

01:26:37.370 --> 01:26:38.570
hopping around the woods.

01:26:46.430 --> 01:26:50.840
- At this point, if we
are to make progress

01:26:50.840 --> 01:26:55.580
for protections for wolves, we would need

01:26:55.580 --> 01:27:00.580
to have a paradigm shift that
includes a responsibility

01:27:00.590 --> 01:27:02.600
to non-humans.

01:27:02.600 --> 01:27:07.520
And that feels pretty far away sometimes,

01:27:10.850 --> 01:27:13.100
but I don't think it's impossible.

01:27:32.750 --> 01:27:34.790
- It's funny, these berries like

01:27:34.790 --> 01:27:37.070
to grow right down in these grasses

01:27:37.070 --> 01:27:39.650
and right in with the Labrador tea.

01:27:42.540 --> 01:27:44.450
It makes them a little harder to pick.

01:27:46.940 --> 01:27:49.550
She has yet to acquire
a taste for blueberries.

01:28:04.670 --> 01:28:06.140
Boy, what a beautiful mix though.

01:28:06.140 --> 01:28:07.190
With the lichens

01:28:07.190 --> 01:28:11.720
and the little dwarf birch, it's turning

01:28:13.310 --> 01:28:14.570
little bush cranberry.

01:28:20.960 --> 01:28:25.100
- Even knowing these things,
knowing how much we've lost,

01:28:25.100 --> 01:28:26.270
how much we're going to lose,

01:28:26.270 --> 01:28:27.770
how fast we're going to lose it.

01:28:27.770 --> 01:28:31.790
It's like the only option really is to try

01:28:31.790 --> 01:28:35.180
or not to try, you know,

01:28:35.180 --> 01:28:38.270
with my time here on earth, I

01:28:39.200 --> 01:28:41.510
feel like those are really
the only two options.

01:28:43.430 --> 01:28:45.440
- Yeah. Yep.

01:28:52.910 --> 01:28:55.250
Nice little patches here and there.