Chirikof Island Government Killers
By Trent LoosI have received many inquiries in the past three weeks about the “wild cows” on Chirikof Island. I have been somewhat silent, waiting for developments to happen without causing any problems. Today I can report the last developments.I was on Chirikof Island from Oct 19- Oct 26. When we left, the boat was to be at the beach within twenty-four hours loading the 80 head that were in a 100 acre pen caring them back to the mainland. It is a thirty boat ride from Kodiak Island...200 hundred miles out to Chirikof Island. The boat arrived about two days later than expected. Now the rush is the winter weather. Evidently, the Pacific Ocean is not an ideal road if you know what I mean.
Tim Jacobson, the Maverick in charge of this operation, is working against all odds. Every oldtimer in Kodiak Island was already circulating the stories that you wouldn’t see hide or hair of Tim or the cows until the weather broke in the spring. Weather impeded the progress of load and leaving the Beach of Chirikof Island until Nov 24th, but in fact he did it. Tim got 35 cows aboard and off the beach headed for Kodiak Island.Fighting 30 foot waves with winds that I can only image what was like, Tim, 35 cows three horses and two dogs made a little over half way to Kodiak when they were forced to land at Old Harbor, the south end of Kodiak Island. Upon arriving in Old Harbor you could say the feces hit the fan. Tim found a few individuals to purchase eight head. One person is evidently already telling everyone it is the best beef he has ever eaten. One other individual is telling everyone he has already contracted cancer from these wild beasts.
Someone is leaking information to the Alaska press about the happenings. Anchorage and Fairbanks wrote stories this past weekend, quoting the people involved in the project. I immediately called them only to find out they didn’t know the articles had been printed and said they definitely did not talk to anyone in the media.So what is really at work here? Upon writing this, the boat had gotten away from the port at Old Harbor and heading for Kodiak Island fishing boat port only have received a phone call in the 11th hour that it was against Kodiak city ordinance to have domestic animals in the port. Who and why is working against the success of the removing cattle from this Island?!?
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife have reportedly said the cattle must be removed from Chirikof Island. They claim they want to the Island to the indigenous state of the year 1400. What 1400, as I am sure the Native people of Alaska would appreciate that sentiment for the entire state, I have to ask why? These cattle have been self sufficient on this Island since mid 1800’s. If a species survives on their own for 150 plus years in one and is not considered indigenous then I do not know what is.The U.S. Fish and Wildlife is supposed to be a government agency. Instead, they run around acting like portraying some mob like figure from the 1930’s throwing their weight around. They have already threatened that if Tim Jacobson is not successful in removing these cattle within one year, they will go in and slaughter them. I, for one, do not think they are buffaloing because they already did the same thing in the 1980’s in other parts of the Aleutian Islands.Forget the endless research about the only herd of bos touras cattle left in the world without human intervention for the purposes of research. Why in the year 2003 all of sudden to these cattle present a threat to some form of bird species that does not exist on the Island? If the birds have not been there for 150 years, how they are indigenous?
Furthermore, after my two trips and two weeks spent on Chirikof Island, I see a hundreds of young Bald Eagles. Bald Eagles that exhibit their youth, before they are bald. No there is absolutely no logical reason that the cattle roaming the mountainous Island without a United States government intervention to start now. Furthermore they attempted to send an individual in as a scapegoat and say see we tried. The problem with their grand plan is they found probably the only individual that solely can pull this off. Mr. Fish and Wildlife, I know Tim Jacobson, and he will not rest until his job is complete. It just so happens that this rancher sees the value of leaving the cattle home.
