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Bears at Your Feet"A BK Big Fish, " I said to the cashier at Burger King. I was back in Seattle now, where you have tall buildings, cars, lots of people and fast food places of every imaginable kind, not to mention specialty coffee. Just the day before, I had been in Southeast Alaska, a land made distant not so much by just being thousand miles apart as by its way of life and environment. There, I watched how wild bears get their fish. Mark, wearing sunglasses the whole time, is a dead ringer for the actor Sam Elliott. Check out his height, built, hair color and more noticeably the voice and manner of his speech. It turns out that he has been in Alaska for over 30 years, having come from the 'lower 48.' The hour ride gives you unbelievably fresh air, snow capped mountains, virgin forests, the big blue sky, and water and greenery for as far as your eyes can see. Most of all, it offers you space, a sense that you are there alone with nature. IF YOU GO Getting There Where To Stay What
to Do For More Information
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JustSayGO Travel Show
It is 8:30 in the morning. I am at the tour office
of Alaska Waters in the City of Wrangell. There are six others waiting
with me. We look at each other and give instant recognition and bonding,
as if knowing we will be on an adventure together starting just moments
away. We introduce ourselves. Ruth is a retired nurse from New York.
Chris and his wife are from Reno. Carol is a school teacher from
Illinois. Just then Wilma Leslie approaches the group and announces, "We've got
sightings. Let's go down to the pier." A five minute walk takes us
to Mark, who is standing next to the jet boat that will be our mode
of transport from Wrangell (pronounced 'rango') 35 miles south through
the Eastern Passage to the Anan Bear Observatory in the Tongass National
Forest.
On
arrival at Anan, we disembark and place all our food and drink, except
water, in a metal locker. We then follow Mark on foot for about a half
mile through the rainforest to the observatory. The two levels of the
observatory offers views from various angles of the creek below. I
opt for the lower level first. We can see countless pink salmon swimming
in the water. A group of black and brown bears appear, with two cubs.
They are no more than 30 feet from me. They put fishermen to shame
as they catch their prey easily, one at a time. Right then and there,
they eat their catch, fresh and tasty. No adding batter, no deep frying,
no tarter sauce. The bears seem to know something about food and nutrition
that we humans don't.
After about two hours of watching the bears playing in their natural habitat and feasting on fresh seafood, we start our trek on the same trail back to the jet boat. There we pick up the food and drinks and have a feast of sorts ourselves. One fellow traveler even has a canned tuna sandwich. This tour to the Anan Bear Observatory is not to be missed. Peak of the season is July 5th through August 25th, where entrance is by permit only and is limited to 64 per day by the US Forest Service. Both the public and tour companies may apply for the permits equally. After August 25th, viewing is available through the first week of September.
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