Bears ffishing for salmon

Old Feb 4th, 2007, 07:42 AM
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Bears ffishing for salmon

Ok, I saw this on the travel channel, where the bears are literally waiting for the salmon to jump out of the water, and the bear are everywhere, there was an observation deck. Was this Denali? When do the salmon run?
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Old Feb 4th, 2007, 09:04 AM
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Katmai National Park
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Old Feb 4th, 2007, 05:00 PM
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Are you sure it was Alaska? I went to a lodge in BC where we watched bears fishing for salmon from an observation tower...it's called Knight Inlet Lodge. I was there in early October and there were still lots of salmon running although I believe it was past the peak.
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Old Feb 4th, 2007, 05:04 PM
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Google search for "bear viewing platform" will tell you of the location of a few of these.
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Old Feb 4th, 2007, 05:25 PM
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As rm_mn alluded to, there are a number of places in Alaska and Western Canada where viewing areas have been set up for this. Most require bush flights to reach. The one at Hyder, AK is on the road system but is fairly remote. What you probably saw on the Travel Channel was Brooks Falls in Katmai NP, one of the locations that requires a bush flight, or at least a commuter flight and river trip.
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Old Feb 4th, 2007, 07:49 PM
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National Geographic had a bear viewing live cam on the McNeil River (AK) this year. It was addicting. Ittp://www.nationalgeographic.com/bearcam/gallery/index.html
It's fly in only and by permit.
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Old Feb 4th, 2007, 10:31 PM
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I'll bet it was Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park. Best to be there between late June and middle July. You can spend the night either in the campground or in the lodge (although the lodge books up over a year in advance). But I think you can also do a daytrip. Pretty Amazing!

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Old Feb 5th, 2007, 07:49 AM
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Mzambo,

It was likely Brooks or McNeil River that you saw on TV, which is located Katmai, Alaska. Brooks is the more accessible because you have to apply for permits, lottery-style, at McNeil and only a limited number are allowed to camp there.

Anyone who goes to Brooks in especially very late June, July or early Sept (not August) will see many bears fishing for salmon and engaging in other activities.

I’ve gone to Brooks three times in early July, mid-July, and late July and each trip has been fantastic with amazing bear viewing—huge males, mothers, subadult cubs, spring cubs, bears catching salmon on the fly, bears diving down for salmon, fighting bears, playing bears, nursing cubs, sleeping bears, and even mating bears despite it being past the season. On my last trip Animal Planet was on the scene at the falls platform.

In addition to viewing bears from a platform at the main falls, there are two other platforms with bear activity. One is just down from the falls and in fact the main falls are still in sight. It is called the riffles and younger bears and mothers & cubs frequent this place, away from the threatening big males. Back near the camp and lodge is a platform near a lake that attracts mothers and young cubs. But the bears can be anywhere—meandering between the cabins, right outside the window of the main lodge where meals are served, on the shores where guests disembark the float planes.

That’s why you have to attend “bear school” upon arrival. You learn how to react when you encounter a bear on the six tenths of a mile trail to the main falls and riffles or outside your cabin. The bears are interested in fish, not people, so it is not a dangerous situation.

I’ve done only 3-night stays at their lodge but you can fly in for the day or camp. If one of your nights is in July, then 3 days is the max allowed in the lodge and 7 is the max at the campgrounds. There is a main lodge where you can buy up to 3 meals a day and eat in a log cabin cafeteria. Great food I thought. There is even a light, less expensive option for each meal.

Reservations start the first working day after New Years for the summer of the following year. That’s 1 1/2 years in advance. There are only 64 beds in the cabins and they go fast. Many cabins are 4 bunks where you share with up to 3 other members of the same sex. You can book private cabins, though, if they are available.

To get to Brooks, you fly from Anchorage to King Salmon on one of several scheduled flights each day (2 hours or so) then take a float plane to Brooks (about 1/2 an hour or so). The day trips may do something different for flights.

Here are the links to Brooks.

http://www.katmailand.com/

http://www.katmailand.com/bear-viewing/index.html

http://www.katmailand.com/bear-viewi...ervations.html

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Old Feb 5th, 2007, 03:21 PM
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Thank you all for all the responses, as soon as I heard Katmai, I knew that was it........ Thanks Atravelynn for all the information.

Now one more question, roughly how much is the float plane flight to get there?
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Old Feb 6th, 2007, 03:35 PM
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Here's the link from Brook's site.

2007, round trip Anchorage-Brooks, $585.
That includes the scheduled roundtrip Anchorage-King Salmon, then the float plane roundtrip King Salmon-Brooks.

Float plane only is for round trip King Salmon-Brooks $172

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Old Feb 7th, 2007, 12:06 PM
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Thanks so much for the info. I was going to post these same questions. Emerald Air just sent us a brochure www.emeraldairservice.com - $540 per person..
We are looking for something out of Homer..OR is there something cheaper - like the floatplane only - no air??
Is there an area you can drive to and look? (in the Homer/Seward/Anchorage area? We will go to Denali and have been fortunate before to see some bears down in the park.
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Old Feb 8th, 2007, 04:43 PM
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Out of Homer, you would take only the float plane to Hallo Bay or similar in Katmai. The regular/float plane combo is to get from Anchorage to Brooks, also in Katmai but a different area than Hallo Bay.

If you were in Soldotna, you can fly into Chinitna Bay in Lake Clark to look at bears too. I think that plane lands on the beach.

I don't know of any place in Alaska that you can drive to for bear viewing of the quality found in Hallo Bay, Brooks, or Chinitna Bay. Denali would be the closest and would offer other varieties of animals.
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Old Feb 8th, 2007, 08:47 PM
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There is also a bear viewing area at Hyder Alaska.
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Old Feb 9th, 2007, 06:17 PM
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Pollyvw,
Tell us about Hyder.
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Old Feb 10th, 2007, 08:48 AM
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I'm not PollyVW but here is a link to my report from my trip to Hyder last summer. It also has a link to some of my photos from that trip. If you have any questions the report doesn't answer, I'll be glad to help.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...dwooddon&fid=1
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Old Feb 10th, 2007, 08:48 AM
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Hyder is a tiny little town (really too small to call a town) on the border where the inside passage part of Alaska meets Canada. There are about a dozen buildings in the town and residents drive across the border to buy gas in Canada. We noticed that one building houses the public school, the library and the fire department.

We found it because our cruise included 'bear watching' there on the itinerary. There is no reason to go there if you are not bear watching. You can get a flight from Ketchican. Just outside of 'town', there is a bear watching area: elevated walkway along a stream (maintained by Natl Park Service). Very nice set-up. Unfortunately THE ONE DAY we were there the stream waters were too high for the bears to fish, so most of us missed them. Others presevered during the incessant rain and came away with fantastic stories, pictures and videos.
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Old Feb 10th, 2007, 08:50 AM
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My attempt to link my trip report in this thread did not work so I just brought the trip report thread to the top for you.
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Old Feb 10th, 2007, 08:52 AM
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Simultaneous typing dwood, but I like your report so much better! Loved the pictures. Job well done.
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Old Feb 10th, 2007, 07:11 PM
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Thanks for the Hyder info. Fascinating.
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Old Feb 18th, 2007, 10:10 PM
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The bears at the famous McNeil River (often seen in National Geographic type shows) are at risk. The following article comes from the Anchorage Daily News. These bears are so used to humans they show no fear yet some hunters want the right to hunt them down.
"McNeil bear hunt opposition grows
SANCTUARY: Board of Game opens nearby lands despite the declining population of tourist-pleasing bruins.
Published: February 12, 2007
For decades, Larry Aumiller led small groups of people into the McNeil River State Game Sanctuary to watch as the largest congregation of brown bears in the world feast on salmon in the summer.
The former sanctuary manager said he emotionally couldn't do it any longer after a decision by the Alaska Board of Game increased opportunities to hunt the bears. Aumiller moved to Montana.
"To be honest, it was so heartbreaking I just couldn't be around it," Aumiller said.If nothing changes, state lands used by the bears near the 114,400-acre sanctuary in Southwest Alaska will be open to hunting as of July 1, clearing the way for a fall hunt.Opponents say it's not sporting to hunt the McNeil River bears, which are accustomed to humans and routinely come to within 10 or 15 feet of small groups of bear viewers allowed into the sanctuary each summer. Supporters say the bears are fair game when they wander outside the sanctuary.The Game Board voted to open the state lands to brown bear hunting at the request of hunters.McNeil, created by the state 40 years ago, is arguably the best place in the world to view brown bears. That's because two things make McNeil exceptional; how close the bears will safely come to humans and how many there are at the sanctuary.The Department of Fish and Game says numbers now are dipping below the threshold where quality bear viewing may be affected.Critics say if hunting increases it is just a matter of time before one of the recognizable bears -- the ones that have been named by staff members over the years -- is killed.
There's Teddy. She is so tolerant of humans she will nurse her cubs just 10 feet from the sanctuary's viewing platform next to the falls.The sanctuary was created four decades ago to protect bear viewing at the falls. In 1993, the McNeil River State Game Refuge was established to the north, providing the bears with another buffer of protection. To the south is Katmai National Park, where no hunting is allowed.The Alaska Professional Hunters Association Inc. proposes keeping the 95,000 acres of state land closed because of the bad publicity that could result by opening them, said executive director Bobby Fithian. As it is, the sanctuary bears get great publicity worldwide, he said.
"From our point of view, the allocation or opportunity to harvest a minimum number of bears is not worth the negative feedback," Fithian said.
"Alaska has plenty of places where brown bears can be hunted without involving lands surrounding the McNeil River State Game Sanctuary," his proposal says.
Bachrach said when he flies he can see bear trails leading from the sanctuary to the state land along the coast. It is where some of the bears den for the winter."Those bears are world famous. Their numbers appear to be in decline," Bachrach said. "Until they know why, how can we open the back door and allow hunters in to kill some more?"
Rod Arno, executive director of the Alaska Outdoor Council, said his group favors the board's decision to open the lands to brown bear hunting."As long as these are state lands and a harvest of surplus of brown bears in the area, the Alaska Outdoor Council would support a regulated harvest of brown bears," he said. Aumiller said, "We are exposing those bears to a danger that they have not been allowed to learn exists," he said. "I think that is wrong."
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