Alaska 2015 - Bears, Bears, Bears, More Bears, and a Mountain - Page 6 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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Silver Salmon Creek - Day 4 - Still Looking for Bears
Due to the tide schedule, we were able to sleep in this morning, and breakfast was served at 8am. I suppose it's a bit weird to include photos of meals that probably aren't of much interest to others - since you probably won't be trying them anytime soon - but, the food was so good it was a key memory from our trip.
It was another beautiful day, and Lou didn't even wear a jacket as we set off on the morning's search.
No bears at the beach this morning. We drove back to Silver Salmon Creek, where we saw a number of folks fishing. They fish here for salmon, or charter with one of the other lodges to go halibut fishing in season. At first, it looks like there is a bear sitting on the shore ... but closer examination shows it is a folding chair
Back at the beach, we saw this boat go zooming by - I don't know how they can go so fast when it is so shallow:
Chris, our awesome guide, spent the morning looking for bears. He knows all of the individual bears, and is very good at predicting their movements. In the background, the photo buffs are searching for interesting stuff along the beach.
This sign means we called it a morning, and went back to the Lodge for lunch.
After the best lunch ever, there were two options - 1) Take a nap, or 2) Go on a hike into the woods. I picked option 1 - quite happy to get some rest time. Lou chose the hike. While he didn't share any photos, he came back with a big story about how they caught poachers and reported them to the ranger - I guess there were a couple guys up in the woods looking to shoot a bear That clearly was looked upon as a big problem, and the ranger even called in for reinforcements.
An Afternoon Bear Hunt - the One with the Camera
The hikers returned and we went out for a quick look. Our goal was to get at least two, and preferably three bear viewing sessions in each day, if possible.
We came across this lone bear as we crossed the creek. It was working hard, jumping and sputtering in the water - in the 20 minutes or so that we watched, all we saw it catch was a mouth full of water:
Even though the light was terrible for photography, it was fun watching this particular bear. He/She kept trying but never caught a fish - and, I should add that the salmon were plentiful in the creek as you could easily see them swimming upstream.
Our bear finally gave up and decided to go back into the woods. Obviously, this was just a bad outing, because he looked well fed.
If the creek area didn't yield subjects for our cameras, it was time to load up and let Chris take us over the hill and to the beach. We did see another lone bear, out in the shallow water. He was a fair distance away. Rather than try to drive right up to the bear, Chris tries to predict where it is going, then we all setup so the bear walks towards us. This is less stressful on the animals. This bear found a flounder:
It was back to the lodge for a late dinner. Our meal was interrupted by another visit from Looper. I'm guessing you don't go out to the greenhouse after dark!
The group voted to stay in after dinner. Tomorrow was to be our last day, and we had an early start planned. We had fingers crossed since the weather forecast was not the best.
Wow, catching a poacher! The Alaskan version of the Kilamanjaro safari with the elephant poachers!
Right, Colleen - and just wait until tomorrow
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
The scenery and the food are both tantalizing. So beautiful to see the bears in their natural habitat.
Thank you, Cam. I try to show more than just close ups to put it in perspective. This is a very unique place - I can't believe we were lucky enough to visit!
October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
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Silver Salmon Creek - Day 5 - Sunrise, Sea Creatures, and Bears ...
This was our last full day at the lodge, and it was another early start - out before 6AM to see if the sunrise was kinder to us today:
More color than earlier in the week, but still uncooperative cloud cover.
Time to take another look at the intertidal zone, since it was still low tide. I wasn't too excited. Then, as I started walking through the shallow water, everywhere I looked ... was something ...weird! I find this type of stuff fascinating, yet creepy:
Fascinating stuff, but I was glad to get back to bears. We went back to the creek and watched more unsuccessful fishing. I was beginning to worry about these bears - the sure weren't catching much.
We followed the bears around the corner - turned out to be the same Mama Bear and 2 yearling cubs we followed earlier in the week.
Success - some of the first salmon we saw being caught by the bears!
Everyone is happy - all enjoying fresh salmon. But something is fishy here ... that was a little too easy. Taking a closer look:
Hopefully you can see the detail - the bears were eating salmon placed on a fish stringer in the shallow water - to keep the salmon alive and fresh while the fishermen continued fishing. This is a HUGE violation. The fishermen are to put all of their caught fish into buckets or containers away from the water - like the one here:
The bears were across the river from the fishermen and from our line of photographers ... and the Ranger that showed up:
So, what's the big deal if the bears get the salmon, or mess with the equipment:
The last thing the rangers or guides want to see is the bears associating their food source (in this case the fish) with anything to do with humans. Fortunately, the Ranger who saw this activity felt the bears only had a passing interest in the people stuff.
The people who had the fish on the stringer were "day-trippers," having arrived on a flight that morning with a guide who was not associated with the local lodges. The Ranger took down their information, then also visited us at our Lodge that afternoon to get copies of our photos showing the interaction, and in particular, the bears grabbing fish from the stringer. Apparently there were going to be hefty fines, and the guide was at risk of losing his license.
So, more excitement than we wanted. The bears didn't return to the fishing stuff, they actually just walked a short ways and took a nap:
We made tracks back to the lodge for lunch - we still had at least one more opportunity to see bears
Wow, can't believe the fishermen violating the rules like that. And that seems like a pretty 'no-brainer' rule. I'd think there would also be a risk of the. Getting tangled, or snagged on a hook seems like a real risk. Glad the ranger was there, and will be fining those involved.
I love the napping bear pictures!
Wow, can't believe the fishermen violating the rules like that. And that seems like a pretty 'no-brainer' rule. I'd think there would also be a risk of the. Getting tangled, or snagged on a hook seems like a real risk. Glad the ranger was there, and will be fining those involved.
I love the napping bear pictures!
im sure getting tangled in the lines and hooks would be bad too. The ranger lives full time on the island and is continuously patrolling and talking to people. The local guides were indignant that someone would be "so stupid." They want to keep this a safe place for bears and people.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
Wow, I'm glad you guys were able to help out with photos of the violation and I'm also glad to see them taking things like that so seriously.
Yes, it was good to help. The ranger had me email several of the photos, just in case there was a court case.
Because this area is so remote, people forget it is a National Park. There is a fine line between keeping it natural for the animals, and allowing humans to enjoy the experience. Even when we obey the rules!
Great photos of the bears once again! Very interesting with the rules violations as the fishermen were being reckless. It's for the safety of the bears so a pretty serious violation.
__________________
October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Shame that folks break the rules, which are for the protection of both wildlife and humans. I love the bears all grouped together and napping. Sweet! At least from a safe distance.
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I just found your trip report - AWESOME!! Since hubs and I are planning on visiting all 53 National Parks - I am very interested in the information about Lake Clark National Park. I found the lodge's website and bookmarked it for future use. I know my husband would be OVER THE MOON with your bear sightings.
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That clearly was looked upon as a big problem, and the ranger even called in for reinforcements. 
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