|
Last year I flew some friends to Anan Creek to view the bears
that congregate there to eat salmon in preparation for their
winter snooze. Now, they're not guides and have had little experience
with bears but they had a great time - saw and photographed
bears, salmon, seals, and eagles in their natural habitat and
still haven't stopped talking about their experience at Anan
Creek.
footage
of flight & Anan bears
taken by happy guests
George& Annie
Anan
has become a permitted site. This means that everyone going
to Anan must have a permit and only 64 people per day will
be allowed to visit the site. These permits are gobbled up
fast, so don't procrastinate, as soon as you've decided
to go, give us a call to book your trip.
Due to the type of permits available
we cannot offer to guide you on one of these trips. We can,
however, transport you to Anan Creek where you can see the
bears just like my friends did. The photos on this page share
that trip with you.
The flight
is 30 to 40 minutes through the Tongass National Forest and
along Behm Canal and Ernest Sound. On a clear day (yes, we have
some in Ketchikan) you will see majestic mountains in the distance,
virgin forest, islands dense with greenery, muskeg (bogs), and
lots of lakes and water.
The plane
lands at Anan Bay and while we taxi to the beach you will see
eagles in the trees (one time I counted 230), and fish
& seals in the water. As you get off the floatplane, you
will be met by a Forest Service Ranger who briefs you on what
to expect on your hike to the viewing platform. The hike to
the platform is about 20 minutes on a boardwalk and gravel/dirt
trail. Along the way you will be surrounded by old growth forest
and a fresh water stream packed with salmon going upstream to
spawn! Truly the wilds of Southeast Alaska! At the platform
there is another Ranger who supervises the platform and a photo
blind. You will be able to spend 1.5 to 2 hours at the
observatory, depending on your transit time on the trail and
actual flight time to Anan.
When you
go on this adventure you should wear sturdy boots or shoes and
bring rain gear. After all, this is a rainforest. A camera and
plenty of film is a must. Please turn off the camera's flash
so as not to startle the bears. You may not take any food or
drinks on the trail except water. And lastly, prepare yourself
for a fun and wondrous experience in a true Alaskan wilderness.
Before
you come please familiarize yourself with the US Forest Service's
page on safely
viewing bears.
Transportation
price for this adventure is
$475.00 per person (this includes permits)
2 person minimum/4person maximum.
To
reserve the plane exclusively for your party / three
person minimum.
The entire adventure is about 5 hours, this may be amended by
special arrangement.
You may
also want to add on a flight through the Misty
Fjords National Monument (weather permitting) ... an additional
$110.00 per person and adds approximately one half hour to the
tour.
This year
we are also offering add on flights to the LeConte Glacier (weather
permitting). This is the southern most tidewater glacier in
the U.S. and is surrounded by truely magnificent peaks (see
pictures below) and adds approximately one hour to the tour...
an additional $195.00 per person.
 
"We
flew with you to Anan Creek and Misty Fords the first weekend
of August. The bear watching activity was our first adventure
of our 17-day trip to Alaska, and although we knew the adventure
of seeing the grizzlies just across from us in the photo blind
for an hour and a half was pretty extraordinary, we didn't
know at that time that it would be the highlight of our
whole trip! Thank you again."
F & D
Fort Lauderdale, FL
|
