Wrangell-St. Elias weighs 10 more days of subsistence moose hunting

Rural subsistence hunters in the Wrangell-St. Elias area could get 10 more days to take a moose this fall, with a decision expected Monday.

The park is weighing whether to extend the federal subsistence moose season for qualified rural residents from Sept. 20 to Sept. 30, and acting Superintendent Joshua Scott is set to announce his decision Sept. 14 on the park's website. The park said it was finishing required consultation over the weekend — with the state, tribal and regional bodies that weigh in on subsistence — before deciding.

The move traces to April, when the Federal Subsistence Board approved a proposal from the regional subsistence advisory council to push the Unit 11 moose closing date to the end of September. But the new regulations carrying that change haven't been published yet, so Scott requested the extension to bridge the gap — as he put it, "in response to the likely delay in ratification" of the April decisions. The same delay affects the moose season in neighboring Unit 13.

If approved, the extension would apply only to hunters who qualify for the federal subsistence priority — rural residents of the 23 communities with subsistence rights in the park. Registration permits are available at the Copper Center visitor center and the Slana Ranger Station through Sept. 20.