Think about standing only a few ft away from an enormous brown Grizzly bear, its highly effective kind transferring gracefully via the plush Alaskan wilderness.
Bear viewing in Alaska is not only a visit; it’s an exhilarating journey that immerses you within the uncooked great thing about nature.
From the beautiful landscapes of Lake Clark Nationwide Park to the most effective salmon I’ve ever eaten, this distinctive wildlife tour makes an unforgettable expertise.
Whether or not you’re planning a day journey from Anchorage or an extended tour, this information will allow you to uncover the most effective spots for an in depth encounter with these majestic creatures.
Associated learn: The Magic of a Day Cruise at Kenai Fjords Nationwide Park, Alaska
Right here is an outline:
You too can take heed to our podcast about bear watching:
Why Bear Viewing in Alaska is a Should-Do
Experiencing bear viewing in Alaska is an journey that you just can’t miss. Whether or not you’re embarking on a tour from Anchorage or heading to Katmai Nationwide Park, the joys of seeing brown bears of their pure habitat is unmatched.
I went to Lake Clark, the place you possibly can usually see bears fishing for salmon in the summertime months from late July until mid September. Excursions normally final a day, providing ample alternatives for wildlife images and unforgettable moments.
In case you’re in Homer, don’t overlook to discover the close by creeks the place bears are incessantly noticed.
Simply be ready for the unpredictable climate—layers are a should! I needed to study this the ‘chilly’ approach. 😉
Whereas the thrill will be overwhelming, sustaining a secure distance is essential for each your security and the bears’.
This expertise not solely highlights Alaska’s beautiful landscapes but in addition deepens your appreciation for wildlife. So seize your digital camera and embrace the wild!
The Finest Areas for Bear Viewing in Alaska
Alaska is the place to be in the event you’re dreaming of an unforgettable encounter with bears.
Lake Clark Nationwide Park and Protect
Lake Clark Nationwide Park and Protect presents distinctive alternatives for bear watching alongside its shoreline, the place massive teams of brown bears collect to feed.
At Lake Clark Nationwide Park, guided excursions carry you up shut to those magnificent animals whereas prioritizing your security.
The journey itself is a spotlight. A floatplane journey from Anchorage to the beautiful Lake Clark Nationwide Park and Protect takes about one hour and ten minutes.
Nestled on the headwaters of Bristol Bay, Lake Clark Nationwide Park and Protect encapsulates the genuine spirit of Alaska’s untamed wilderness. Spanning a powerful 4 million acres, this park boasts towering volcanoes, rugged mountain ranges, breathtaking glaciers, wild rivers, cascading waterfalls, and a vibrant array of wildlife. That is what you possibly can anticipate to see from the aircraft already – merely beautiful!
There are a number of places to look at bears:
Crescent Lake
Nestled within the coronary heart of the Chigmit Mountains, Crescent Lake is a paradise to identify bears and likewise for sport fishers.
That is the place I went (Redoubt Bay Lodge), and also you’ll discover a extra detailed description beneath.
In the course of the salmon run, each brown and black bears go to the shorelines seeking ample fish.
Crescent Lake lacks developed trails or roads. Most guests navigate the lake utilizing motorboats or kayaks offered by their guides or lodges. Whereas strolling round Crescent Lake is feasible, it’s not advisable on account of thick vegetation that makes shore strolling difficult and considerably dangerous; thus, most bear viewing happens from boats.
Brown bears usually frequent the shoreline throughout salmon runs, giving photographers in boats loads of possibilities to seize beautiful photos.
Silver Salmon Creek
Positioned halfway alongside the park’s Cook dinner Inlet coast, Silver Salmon Creek presents implausible sport fishing alongside top-notch brown bear viewing. Brown bears will be noticed grazing in sedge meadows from late spring to mid-summer, fishing within the creek throughout salmon runs in late summer time, or digging for clams on the seaside all year long. Moose, wolves, foxes, ermines, and marine mammals have additionally been seen at Silver Salmon.
Lodges within the space transport friends utilizing trailers pulled by ATVs. Different guests should stroll between websites on foot. Be ready to traverse sandy terrain for a number of hundred yards from the seaside to achieve the closest sedge meadow or fishing space. You may stroll two miles or extra forwards and backwards throughout salt marshes, tidal flats, and creeks whereas looking for bears or fish.
Shelter Creek and Tuxedni Bay
These two areas alongside the Cook dinner Inlet coast of the park provide wealthy habitats for bears however are tougher to entry and thus see fewer guests.
Bears which can be much less accustomed to human presence usually tend to shrink back from shut encounters. In case you resolve to go to these spots, proceed with excessive warning.
Chinitna Bay
Located on the southern finish of the park’s Cook dinner Inlet shoreline, Chinitna Bay is famend for its distinctive bear viewing. Guests could spot as many as twenty coastal brown bears from a single vantage level.
Touring between bear viewing spots in Chinitna Bay is usually completed on foot, though some native lodges may present car transport alongside the seaside for his or her friends. Be able to trek via sandy terrain for a number of hundred yards from the seaside the place your aircraft lands to achieve the closest bear viewing space. You possibly can end up strolling two miles or extra forwards and backwards between websites on the salt marsh or tidal flats seeking bears.
Redoubt Bay Lodge – Lake Clark Nationwide Park
I took the floatplane with Rust’s to the Redoubt Bay Lodge, the place you possibly can expertise the joys of observing Alaska’s black and brown bears of their pure surroundings.
The flight to get there’s already a spotlight in itself. The floatplane journey from Anchorage to the lake takes round one hour.
Enjoyable Truth: Anchorage is the capital of floatplanes, as there are 500 primarily based there.
The flight is superb, because the view onto the lakes and mountains are merely beautiful.
Your expert pilot can be a information and provides you with a number of info in the course of the flight. Be ready for some “dry” jokes as properly.
You’ll then contact down on the Redoubt Mountain Lodge, nestled by the beautiful blue waters of Crescent Lake, the place you’ll spend your day immersed in nature.
When you arrive, you’ll be greeted by a educated bear-viewing information who will take you on a lined pontoon boat to prime lakeside spots the place bears collect to feast on the spawning wild Alaska salmon.
There are three sorts of salmon they go for:
- Contemporary-caught salmon, which is the toughest to catch in a lake.
- “Zombie” salmon, which is simply wanting dying and which swims slower and is due to this fact simpler to catch.
- “Floaters” are those who’ve already died and float on the floor. Clearly, they’re the best to catch, however they’re additionally not of their very best quality anymore. So very often, you see that the bears eat solely components of the floaters, until they’re nonetheless very hungry and wish extra meals for his or her winter break.
Redoubt Bay Lodge is an enthralling handcrafted lodge nestled inside an enormous 171,000-acre crucial habitat space.
It’s conveniently located 70 miles southwest of Anchorage, proper on the beautiful entrance of Lake Clark Nationwide Park and Protect.
This space is famend for internet hosting one of many highest concentrations of bears which can be simply viewable in all of Alaska.
As your bear-watching tour kicks off, you’ll be aboard a lined pontoon boat, guided by educated naturalists, navigating via the picturesque chain of Huge River Lakes, the place sockeye and Coho salmon thrive and entice the native bear inhabitants.
This prime bear viewing spot additionally attracts in quite a few fishermen alongside the bears.
The journey to view these magnificent creatures is an easy day journey from Anchorage to the Redoubt Bay Important Habitat Space.
You possibly can take pleasure in an attractive half-day expertise with departures obtainable within the morning or afternoon, lasting round 6 1/2 hours (with choices for prolonged and in a single day packages).
The climate modified whereas we had been there, so our journey needed to finish a little bit early, however it was nonetheless an ideal expertise. When you’ve got the chance to remain in a single day, do it. Staying in such a distant place is exclusive and a really particular expertise.
Your package deal features a scrumptious scorching lunch served in the principle lodge. We had been served baked salmon, and it was the most effective salmons I’ve ever had. The colour itself is one thing you don’t usually get, however then it was served with a honey and candy chili sauce. The photograph doesn’t do it justice. It was so scrumptious!
Katmai Nationwide Park
If you end up in Anchorage, take into account day journeys (and finest keep for 2-3 nights) to locations like Homer, recognized for its beautiful landscapes and wealthy wildlife.
An important location for bear viewing is Katmai Nationwide Park, the place you possibly can marvel on the iconic brown bears fishing for salmon at Brooks Falls. It’s a wide ranging sight that by no means will get previous.
The federally-protected Katmai Nationwide Park and Protect is famend for its distinctive alternatives to look at Alaska’s brown bears. A few of these beautiful wilderness spots can solely be reached by air, showcasing Alaska in its most unspoiled state.
This bear-viewing tour at Katmai takes you to Brooks Falls, the place three viewing platforms linked by raised boardwalks present an up-close, unobstructed, and noteworthy expertise of watching bears of their pure habitat.
Throughout July, when the salmon are spawning, you may spot as many as fifty bears alongside the 1.5-mile stretch of Brooks River directly.
Though the bear viewing at Brooks Falls is self-guided, park rangers are readily available to offer a complete briefing upon your arrival and can be found all through the park to reply any questions you might have.
When customer numbers peak, a waitlist for the Decrease River Bear viewing platform could also be implement to keep up a top quality viewing expertise. Which means generally the areas can get crowded, and the ranger may ask you to shift to a different platform. Nonetheless, there’s ample area in Katmai general to take pleasure in observing the bears.
Though Brooks Falls is probably the most famend location on this park for bear-watching, it’s definitely not the only possibility; different locations reminiscent of Hallo Bay, Geographic Harbor, and Moraine Creek additionally present implausible viewing alternatives. These areas are merely extra secluded. You may must trek a number of miles, and also you most likely received’t encounter as many bears in a single space in comparison with Brooks. The upside? You’ll be far-off from the throngs of individuals and have the possibility to look at bears of their pure habitat.
Every location presents distinctive viewing experiences, from tranquil creek settings to rugged wilderness. Whereas bear viewing will be crowded throughout peak season, the joys of seeing these magnificent animals of their pure habitat makes all of it worthwhile.
I went in mid-September and would advocate this season. There have been fewer individuals, and seeing Alaska in autumn was superior, with all the coloured leaves. As you need to gown in a number of layers anyway, I didn’t thoughts the climate that a lot. There have been additionally fewer mosquitoes than at different instances of the yr.
When to Plan Your Journey for Optimum Bear Sightings
Timing your journey to view bears in Alaska could make all of the distinction in your expertise of those majestic creatures up shut.
The height season runs from late Might to early September, with the most effective alternatives for recognizing brown bears round Katmai Nationwide Park and Lake Clark.
In case you’re planning a day tour from Anchorage, take into account visiting in the course of the salmon run in July and August when bears collect in droves alongside the creeks.
Remember the fact that climate situations will be unpredictable, so have a versatile itinerary.
In case you miss the height months, go to in Might or September for fewer crowds and an opportunity to see bears throughout their lively feeding instances.
Right here is an outline of the place to go bear viewing in Alaska in every month:
- Might: Chinitna Bay
- June: Chinitna Bay, Redoubt
- July: Chinitna Bay, Redoubt, Katmai, Lake Clark (finish of July)
- August: Chinitna Bay, Redoubt, Lake Clark
- Until mid-September: Chinitna Bay, Redoubt, Lake Clark
Ideas for an Unforgettable Bear Viewing Expertise
For an unforgettable bear viewing expertise in Alaska, planning is essential.
Start your journey by choosing the correct tour to fit your pursuits—whether or not it’s an exhilarating day journey from Anchorage or a multi-day tour in Katmai Nationwide Park. I extremely advocate testing the guided excursions that take you to well-known spots like Brooks Falls, the place brown bears collect in the course of the salmon run. Otherwise you hop on one of many pontoon boats, which will get you very shut.
Deliver a great digital camera with a zoom lens; the very last thing you need is to overlook capturing these majestic moments up shut!
I simply had my smartphone with me, so it is best to be capable of take higher photographs.
Gown in layers, as Alaska’s climate will be unpredictable, and don’t overlook waterproof gear. Throughout my go to, I encountered sudden rain and it was a lot colder than I believed. However it didn’t dampen my spirits; the wildlife continued to amaze regardless of the drizzle.
Subsequent time, I’ll hear when somebody recommends that I carry alongside a hat and gloves.
How To Get To The Bears in Alaska
From numerous places and lodging, you could have the chance to journey by boat.
You possibly can go for a floatplane from Anchorage or Homer that can contact down on the water. That alone is a spotlight already.
Alternatively, there are wheeled planes that may land proper on the seaside, otherwise you may desire a helicopter that may choose a sandy shore or expansive grassy fields. Helicopters provide the additional advantage of panoramic 180-degree views via their massive entrance home windows, the potential to fly at decrease altitudes, and customarily present a extra snug journey.
Security Precautions Whereas Bear Viewing in Alaska
When embarking in your bear-viewing journey in Alaska, understanding security precautions is completely very important.
There are a number of necessary factors to recollect, whatever the circumstances.
Firstly, it is best to by no means get shut to those creatures or attempt to make your self noticeable in any method, even when they seem pleasant or calm. Keep away from leaving meals unattended or attempting to feed them.
All the time hold a respectful distance from these magnificent brown (Grizzly) bears; preserve not less than 100 yards to make sure each your security and theirs.
It’s necessary to keep calm in the event you encounter a bear—by no means run, as this may increasingly provoke curiosity or aggression. As a substitute, again away slowly whereas talking in soothing tones.
Becoming a member of guided excursions can improve your expertise, as educated guides will train you about bear habits and guarantee secure viewing practices.
Areas like Katmai Nationwide Park and Lake Clark are famend for his or her wildlife encounters, however it’s clever to learn about seasonal patterns and bear exercise.
All the time carry bear spray simply in case—this small precaution could make a big distinction throughout sudden encounters. While you do a guided tour, you received’t want the spray, as your information ought to be ready.
Different Actions to Improve Your Alaska Journey
In case you’re desirous to dive deeper into the Alaskan wilderness past bear viewing, there are many different actions that can improve your journey.
Take into account a day journey to Seward or Homer, the place you possibly can discover beautiful coastal vistas or seize recent seafood from native eateries.
For a singular expertise, head to Katmai Nationwide Park, the place wildlife images fans will discover limitless alternatives right here, so be sure that your digital camera is prepared!
In case you’re in search of one thing extra adrenaline-pumping, kayaking round certainly one of Alaska’s serene lakes presents each tranquility and the possibility to identify extra wildlife, together with seals and sea otters. I did a day cruise to the Aialik Glacier within the Kenai Fjords, which was one other beautiful and recommending expertise.
Every of those experiences provides one other layer to your Alaskan journey, guaranteeing that your journey is as memorable as it’s thrilling.
Don’t miss out on these options that completely complement your bear-viewing journey!
Folks Additionally Ask
The place is the most effective place to see the bears in Alaska?
In case you’re seeking to see bears in Alaska, Katmai Nationwide Park is a high contender. The park is famend for its unbelievable brown bear inhabitants, particularly in the course of the salmon runs in July and September.
Then there’s Lake Clark with its completely different spots. I had the possibility to go to this beautiful wilderness on the Redoubt Mountain Lodge, and it didn’t disappoint.
One in every of my favourite experiences was watching the bears from the pontoon boat, the place they acquired their salmon, additionally for his or her cubs.
For a extra distant expertise, take into account heading to Kodiak Island. The Kodiak brown bears listed below are bigger, and you may usually discover them of their pure habitat, foraging for meals.
I like to recommend reserving a guided tour, because the guides know the most effective spots and might present beneficial insights into bear habits.
What’s the finest month to see bears in Alaska?
In case you’re desirous to catch a glimpse of bears in Alaska, the most effective months to plan your journey are usually Might via September.
Throughout this era, bears emerge from hibernation, and their exercise peaks, particularly in late spring and summer time when meals sources are ample.
In Might, brown bears are sometimes noticed foraging for early greens and rising salmon, making it a good time for wildlife viewing.
As you progress into June, the bears turn into extra lively, with many moms and cubs seen alongside the coast and riverbanks. It is a implausible time to see these lovely cubs studying to navigate their surroundings.
July is the height season for salmon runs, significantly in areas like Katmai Nationwide Park and Brooks Falls. Right here, you possibly can witness bears fishing for salmon—a really unforgettable sight.
By August, the bears proceed to feed closely in preparation for hibernation, and also you’ll seemingly see them gathering in bigger numbers, additionally on the lakes.
Irrespective of if you go, the expertise of observing these majestic creatures of their pure habitat is bound to be a spotlight of your Alaskan journey!
Nonetheless, take into account that the climate will be unpredictable, so it’s clever to pack accordingly.
How seemingly is it to see a bear in Alaska?
Seeing a bear in Alaska is kind of seemingly, particularly in sure areas and through particular seasons.
I anticipated to see possibly 1-2 bears, and confidently, much more. Ultimately, we noticed 9 bears, together with a number of cubs, and that in simply 1 ½ hours. If the climate hadn’t modified, we might have gone out for extra bear viewing within the afternoon to see much more.
Alaska is dwelling to a few species of bears: black bears, brown bears (together with grizzly bears), and polar bears. The probabilities of an encounter rely largely on the situation, time of yr, and your actions. In nationwide parks like Denali and Katmai, bear sightings are frequent, significantly in the course of the summer time months when bears are foraging for meals.
Keep alert in case you are mountaineering and all of a sudden see a grizzly bear simply off the path, foraging for berries within the brush. The secret’s to remain alert and hold your distance; bears will not be typically aggressive however will be unpredictable if caught off guard.
Whereas driving alongside the Seward Freeway or in Kodiak, you may also catch glimpses of bears close to the roadside or alongside riverbanks.
It’s important to respect their area and observe from a secure distance to keep away from any harmful encounters.
In case you’re planning to go bear-watching, take into account guided excursions, which regularly improve the probabilities of sightings and supply security suggestions. Keep in mind, whereas the probability of seeing a bear is excessive, it’s essential to prioritize security and comply with native rules relating to wildlife encounters.
The best way to see bears in Alaska on a funds?
Seeing bears in Alaska generally is a thrilling expertise with out breaking the financial institution. One of the vital budget-friendly methods is to go to nationwide parks like Katmai or Denali, the place you possibly can usually spot bears of their pure habitat.
Whereas guided excursions will be expensive, take into account mountaineering the paths in these parks—many have accessible paths the place bears are recognized to roam. Don’t overlook your bear spray! Tenting is one other economical possibility. By staying at campgrounds inside or close to the parks, you not solely save on lodging prices but in addition improve your probabilities of bear sightings. Deliver your personal meals and equipment to chop down on bills.
Simply take into accout the particular “bear guidelines” if you go tenting. No meals within the tent!
Be certain that to securely retailer all meals, food-related objects, cooking utensils, clothes, and every other aromatic private belongings in your automobile, RV, or cabin. Leaving objects exterior can draw bears and different wildlife.
So lock it up within the automobile or cling it excessive on a rope at a tree, finest a bit away out of your tent. In case you’re in search of a extra distinctive expertise, try native bear-viewing platforms or lodges that supply day passes. These will be extra inexpensive than full-package excursions.
Moreover, touring in the course of the shoulder season (late spring or early fall) can yield decrease costs on lodging and actions. I’m actually completely satisfied that I’ve been to Alaska in autumn, the place the panorama was these superb fall colours.
