The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Eastern Interior Field Office will open the Fortymile caribou federal subsistence hunt on federal public lands in Units 20E, 25C and a portion of 20F on October 27, 2023. The Federal hunt will be open in all zones. The BLM made the decision under authority delegated by the Federal Subsistence Board, after consultation with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Eastern Interior Subsistence Regional Advisory Council.
The caribou hunt is limited to federally qualified rural residents hunting on federal public lands only, including federal public lands accessible from the Steese and Taylor highways. The federal subsistence hunt opens at 12:01 a.m. October 27, 2023, with a harvest limit of two bull caribou. Evidence of sex must remain naturally attached until the animal is processed for human consumption. Hunters who took one caribou of either sex in Alaska since July 1, 2023 may only take one bull in the Federal winter hunt. The hunt closes at 11:59 p.m. March 31, 2024.
Hunters participating in the hunt must obtain a RC867 joint State/federal registration permit issued by ADFG. Hunters must obtain a second registration permit prior to taking a second bull. The RC867 registration permits are available online at hunt.alaska.gov and at ADFG offices in Fairbanks, Delta Junction, Tok, Anchorage, Douglas and Palmer and at vendors in Eagle, Central and Tok. Hunters should review the RC867 permit conditions.
Information and updates on the RC867 caribou hunt will be available on the Fortymile Hotline at (907) 267-2310. State or federal closures may occur independently and will be announced on the Hotline. Throughout the winter hunt, we will be consulting with ADFG on herd status and may close the federal subsistence hunt earlier than March 31 if needed.
To qualify to hunt the RC867 caribou hunt under federal subsistence regulations, you must have your primary, permanent place of residence in one of the following rural communities or game management units, and you must have lived in Alaska for the previous 12 months.
- For hunting in Units 20E and 25C—residents of Units 20D, 20E, 20F, 25, 12 (north of Wrangell-St. Elias National Preserve), Eureka, Livengood, Manley and Minto
- For hunting in Unit 20F east of the Dalton Highway and south of the Yukon River—residents of Units 20F, 25D, and Manley
Seasons, harvest limits, methods, and customary and traditional use determinations for the subsistence taking of wildlife are published in the 2022-2024 Federal Subsistence Management Regulations for the Harvest of Wildlife on Federal Public Lands in Alaska.
The BLM advises hunters to be aware of land ownership and ensure that they know and follow off-highway vehicle (OHV) regulations. Maps to aid in locating federal public lands open to the federal subsistence hunt near the Elliott, Steese and Taylor highways are available from the BLM Fairbanks District Office or online at: https://www.blm.gov/maps/georeferenced-PDFs. Choose “Alaska” and scroll down to “Federal Subsistence Hunting Map Series” and choose maps for GMU 25C or 20E. Also, checkout BLM’s other georeferenced PDF maps. Many of the maps include access information and OHV limitations necessary for trip planning. They are a useful tool that shows a user’s location in real time through an application on smart phones or tablets, even in areas where cellular service is not available. To work on your device, both the application and the maps need to be downloaded prior to losing cellular coverage.