Alaska “...having the best time I ever had”
THE ALASKA JOURNALS of Gy Sgt. ROBERT RUDOLPH (Bob) HUTTLE U.S.M.C.R©
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Thursday Nov. 2nd got up at 4.45 A.M. Temp at 5.00 A.M. was 35 above zero, cooked breakfast, gave dog and cats a little to eat and left at 6.30 A.M. towards the Teepee along trail over North Ridge of Birchwood, just out on a scouting trip to see if the Moose are coming dow[n] closer to the lake, also to find out if all the Bears are holed up yet, and if there are any Fur signs it should be a good day as there is about 6 inches of snow and it has not snowed for over 24 hours. Leaving cabin I made Birchwood Creek in One (1) hour and from there One (1) hour and 15 Minutes to the top of high ridge North of Birchwood, half way up ridge seen a Moose track traveling West the wind being from the East so I did not follow Same. following Teepee trail upon crossing two smaller ridges near a small swamp covered with Alders I found a good size Moose track as that of a Bull he was heading East into the wind so after following the track for about a mile and a half I spotted the Moose with my field glasses laying down on a ridge among a small grove of trees, crossed a small swamp keeping a large Spruce tree as a cover got within a 150 yards to him looking him over found him to be a good size Bull but not a very large set of horns, further up hill was a deadfall using that as a cover I got within 60 yards of him, from here I watched him for about 10 minutes he was unaware any one being near, the soft snow being a great help to me in stalking. I finally decided not to kill him as it was to far to pack the meat to Camp, perhaps it would take four to five days by that time the Ravens would destroy largest part of meat, So I called on top of my voice twice Hey he looked around but did not get up, I called three time “Get Up” but all this time I did not show myself, finally I called again he jumped up looking around trying [to] locate the sound but I kept concealed he finally moved away with a slow trot into the wind. As far as shooting this particular Moose there would been no Sportsmanship connected with it whatsoever after calling to him five times to get up from 60 Yards away. Not having my sun glasses along and it looked a[s] if the sky was clearing Sun coming out I thought I better start back as the glare of the Sun reflecting from the snow is very hard on the yes. Covering all this ground I only seen 3 Rabbit Tracks, one Mink track, Two Porcupine tracks and no Bear tracks whatsoever. Returned to camp at 2.30 P.M. found the snow melting on the lower flats, Wind blowing across the lake from the S.E. and by 4.45 P.M. it was a gale, water of lake covered with white caps and very large breakers dashing against the shore. Fed the Dog and Cats At 5.00 P.M. Andrew Berg came over from his trapping cabin at Freemonts having his large Black faithful dog named “Rex” with him, served Andrew supper and found him an interesting “Old Gent” of 64 years of age. he informed me that he came to this part of Alaska in 1891, then just to fish, later started trapping, and also became a Big Game Guide, he was also the Game Warden for sometime. of late years he worked for the U.S. Fish Commission. By 10.00 P.M. it was a real gale surf pounding and our cabin was shaking all over, but the snow was still melting. The Andrew Berg which Bob Huttle hunted with and speaks to in his journals is the same man who came to the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska from Finland in the late 1888 or 1889 when he was 16-20 years old. In 1902, Mr. Berg apparently built his first in a number of cabins on Tustumena Lake and the area, which is now within the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. It is written that in 1910, Andrew berg was a 6'-2" weighing 235 pounds. He was referred to as “a man of prodigious strength and endurance and woodcraft is an open book to him”. Andrew Berg's story has been covered very well in the book Alaska's No. 1 Guide - The History and Journals of Andrew Berg by Gary Titus who transcribed Andrew Berg's journals, and co-authored the above mentioned book with Catherine Cassidy. This book is a hard to put down read. Bob and Andrew appeared to have met on the lake and became good friends, who clearly respected each other. Between Berg's Journals and Huttle's Journals the reader can see a clear picture of life on the Tustumena Lake area. There are numerous Journal entries by each man that speak independently to shared hunts, visits, and events which collaborates their travels during the 1933-1934 time frame on the lake. Bob and Andrew Apparently met up on the lake briefly on October 25, 1933, briefly again on November 1, and then Andrew came by Bob's cabin on Birchwood Creek on November 2 for a formal visit. A portion of Bob's Journal entry for November 2 states: “At 5.00 P.M. Andrew Berg came over from his trapping cabin at Freemonts having his large Black faithful dog named “Rex” with him, served Andrew supper and found him an interesting “Old Gent” of 64 years of age. he informed me that he came to this part of Alaska in 1891, then just to fish, later started trapping, and also became a Big Game Guide, he was also the Game Warden for sometime. of late years he worked for the U.S. Fish Commission.”. Andrew Berg's journal entries corroborates this same event.
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About the Book
As a boy, I was lucky enough to be introduced an elderly gentleman by the name of Robert R. (Bob) Huttle (Mr. Huttle to me). I remember “Mr. Huttle” as a man of many interesting stories, and experiences. Mr. Huttle was a good friend of my father, and for quite a number of years was sort of an informal member of our family, being in attendance for Christmas, Thanksgiving, birthdays, and any other family gatherings. His little home, along with its menagerie of exotic fowl in a little community called Annapolis, Washington was always a most fun place to visit. Throughout his life, Bob was an avid photographer with a genuine interest in people, who religiously recorded all that, was going on around him in his more than interesting life. The walls of his home were covered with pictures and memorabilia of that lifetime. There were times when Bob would take out his old picture albums and show my brother and me pictures of his times up in the State of Alaska. I always remember that these times seemed to be events he treasured, and each picture came with a story that would flow off his lips with obvious pleasure. After coming to America, serving in the U.S. Marine Corp., Bob spent 1933 - 1934 living his dream on the Alaskan Kenai Peninsula near what was then called Birchwood Creek (now Bear Creek) on Tustumena Lake, as a hunter and an “amateur trapper” (as he referred to himself). In January of 1937, Bob was hired as a patrolman with the Anchorage Police Department and 21 days later he had to give up his beat to come indoors as the Acting Police Chief, replacing the then seriously ill Chief of Police Ernie Amundsen.
About the Author
Larry Mikelsen was born and raised in the Puget Sound area of Washington State. For his entire life, he has enjoyed the outdoors through hiking and hunting. Larry met Robert R (Bob) Huttle as a young boy and spent many hours listening intently to Bob's many stories of his incredible life until Bob's death in 1967. Bob bought Larry and his brother their first shotguns, which they both still have today. Much hunting fun and adventure was provided by those double barrel shotguns. Larry is still an avid hunter. He has hunted numerous Washington State haunts, Montana, and Africa. Larry's desire is to preserve the experiences Bob Huttle had during his time hunting and trapping in the Tustumena Lake area in the central portion of the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska. Larry is a member of the NRA, SCI, and the Kasilof Historical Society. He is an NRA Certified Instructor, and Range Safety Officer. Larry has been a Marine Inspector for the Washington State Ferry System for more than 20 years. He lives in Port Orchard, Washington with his wife Cindy.