Alaska Brown Bear Viewing by Dyle Warren

In 2006 my friend and I booked a bear viewing tour with Hallo Bay Wilderness Camp. That September we flew to Anchorage, Alaska and drove down to Homer, located on the Kenai Peninsula. Our tour included our one-hour flight from Homer to Hallo Bay, located at Katmai National Park, and over three hours of bear viewing. Initially we booked an eight hour tour but due to inclement weather we weren’t able to fly out of Homer at the scheduled time.

As soon as our plane (single engine) landed on the beach we went to Hallo Bay Camp and signed releases. Or shall I say " sold our souls." We soon learned guns are forbidden on Katmai and guides carry only bear deterrent flares. It seems park officials and only those authorized can carry guns so unfortunately, I had to ditch my .47 magnum.. .☺

As we were walking down the beach, our guide told us the bears were going through what is called, “hyperfasia.” The theory is, during that time, they are too focused on gorging themselves on salmon before hibernation to pay any attention to us. Hyperfasia, is a period where the bears are drunk with lust for Omega fats and will eat non stop. If food is in short supply and there’s nothin’ but people around my guess is bears know where their next meal is coming from.

Ahead of us, approximately two miles down the beach, we spotted a bear in the creek bed …then another…and another. What a strange feeling that was, walking towards these bears rather than high- tailing it the other way. Shortly thereafter, our guide had us assume a” passive” position by sitting on some logs nearby…totally out in the open. Why does the guide find it necessary for us to assume this passive position? It was at that time my mind was beginning to punch holes in this hyperfasia theory. That year, we were lucky that the bears primary food source was in abundance; not scarce like it had been three years earlier when Tim and his friend were killed. *

That afternoon we saw approximately 8-9 bears and got really very lucky when one sow decided to get up close and personal (20-25 feet). She sat down in front of us, fished, romped and played in the water completely ignoring our small group of six people and guide. She would take a few quick paces after a salmon, change her mind, sit down and scoop them up with her paws. Dead fish littered the beach and these bears were starting to get picky. Since the salmon were so abundant in the creek beds they now were going for the roe and throwing away the rest, even though the skin is what they normally crave.

While they did look focused much of the time, when they looked in your direction it was an uneasy, queasy feeling. Particularly this one male that brought his catch up over the bank about 50 yards to the left of where we were sitting. We were about to leave but before we stood up our guide whispered to us to just keep walking down the beach, don’t stop to take pictures or even look at the bear. She had her flare ready but yours truly had to sneak a glance at him…I could have wasted us all right there! Not funny, especially if you read some of those true stories of bear attacks by Stephen Herrero. Those stories take the word Grizzly to a whole new level! As we walked by him he continued to hover over his food, never taking his eyes off any of us. You could tell he meant business…

I think I later suffered a bit from PTFS (Post-Traumatic-Fright-Syndrome) when I returned home after reading that Timothy Treadwell (Grizzly Man) was killed about ten miles from Hallo Bay, on Kaflia Bay. He and his friend Amie Huguenard were killed three years earlier in 2003. It was even particularly tragic for Amie who was reluctant to go and terrified of the bears. They believe the primary reason for the attack on these two people was because the salmon were few that year and the previous year. This created a short supply of fish within the creek beds that flow into Katmai’s interior causing the bears to come out in search for food.

Honestly though, everyone was so wrapped up in taking pictures, even with their point-and-shoot cameras that we didn’t have any real fear as our adrenaline was high at the sight of them.. Admittedly it was a strange feeling walking down the beach towards these bears…and sitting out in the open…..so very surreal. The only really uneasy time was walking passed the bear who was up on the bank.

I don’t know if every time a person sees a bear if they become more apprehensive or comfortable about it. I think I would feel like my luck was going to run out eventually. Although, if we should get another chance to go bear viewing we’ll go in a heartbeat!

Our trip, even with the risk, was an experience to die for! Well, maybe not exactly; but words could never describe it………you had to be there.