Katmai National Park

My daughter and I made a return visit to Katmai National Park. There was drama.

I’ve written previously on this blog about my trip last year and, this year, the difficulty in getting campground reservations. This is how the trip actually went.

The first bit of stress was after we boarded the airplane in Anchorage. The pilot announced while we were still on the ground that the weather conditions in King Salmon were below minimums and we might not be able to land. We took off, approached King Salmon, and had to do a hold while we waited for other traffic to attempt to land. A little late, we landed in King Salmon.

Having made the trip the previous year, we knew the process to use the water taxi. We waited, the van showed up, we rode to the boat launch, we boarded. Naknek Lake was smooth; we had a comfortable trip to the Brooks Lodge area. After watching the video about how to stay safe around bears, we checked into the campground and pitched the tent.

We had three days of cold weather. The bears were less plentiful than last year and we saw no cubs at all. The fish were everywhere in the river, with their deep red bodies easily visible from the bridge. Most of our bear sightings were from the bridge.

Salmon in the Brooks River

There was a very windy day that cancelled all flights and water taxi trips after our second night. I was worried that the water taxi would not run for our return trip to King Salmon, and then we would also miss our return flight to Anchorage. The waves on Naknek Lake were pretty big (for a lake), and the bridge over the Brooks River shook below our feet when we looked for bears. That night as the wind blew it also started to rain. Thankfully our tent stayed upright and the inside stayed dry.

Our water taxi reservation was for 10AM. We knew that the water taxi’s first departure from Brooks was usually 8AM, so we got up early, packed our stuff away in the rain, and hung out at the lodge to try to get an early trip out. I was worried that the wind would pick up again later in the day and halt the taxi. We were able to leave early (and we were the only passengers) and then my daughter and I hung out at a cafe in King Salmon until it was time for our flight. The return flight to Anchorage was uneventful.

OK, time for bears…

Gully

This bear is named Gully because he caught and ate a seagull at some point. Gully was my daughter’s favorite bear this trip because she was impressed at how he parted the waters while sitting at the tom of the waterfall. Gully is bear #903.

747 and Chunk

There were frequent dominance conflicts at the falls. The most dominant bear claims the best fishing position, and this year that spot went to #747. I was fortunate to witness a confrontation between bear #32, aka Chunk, and #747. Sometimes these turn into brutal fights; this time Chunk backed down and moved away.

Near the bridge

There was a group of four bears that lingered in the wetlands upstream of the bridge. My guess is they were recently emancipated. The bears in this group frequently did these faux fights.

One of many fishing bears by the bridge

Most of the time the bears swimming around the bridge just ignore the people watching. This one looked up before passing beneath me.

Brooks Falls

My daughter and I walked over to Brooks Lake on the one day that was sunny. It was so windy on Naknek Lake that the airplanes were landing at Brooks instead, so it got pretty busy there. The bugs were pretty bad that day in spite of the wind.

Staying in the campground was OK. My tent held up well even in the strong wind. Our sleeping bags kept us warm enough. We took showers in the bath house at the lodge and ate our meals in the lodge. The campground was completely full.

Compared with last year, the photography opportunities were disappointing, although I did manage to get a few shots that I like.

I doubt I’ll ever go back to Katmai; I’m glad I had the experience to share with my daughter.