Image a pristine location where we don't have to compete with anyone else to view and photograph brown bears. Well...this is exactly where we will be. A bear trail next to our cabin guarantees close bear viewing even from the comfort of the cabin living room. The bears can be seen rubbing up against the trees. A short hike gets us to where the salmon run. That is where we can see the bears hanging out an fishing during the peek salmon run in August.

You probably know that at 1,600 pounds Brown Bears are the world’s most massive terrestrial predators, so the chance to view them up close is lifechanging. We offer safe viewing from very short range. Safety is very important and we take it seriously! We will always be accompanied by a highly-trained guide that not only will carry powerful bear spray but also terrifyingly-bright marine signal flares. These flares are foolproof protection against the exceedingly rare rogue bear. Bearwatching guides have used these flares successfully for decades in Alaska and Canada. Over the past 25 years, there has never been a single bear incident. Rest assured the bear guide is there to keep us safe and let us enjoy the best bear photography.

Most other tours start in Homer but we will pick you up in Anchorage. Our naturalist guide will drive us from Anchorage to Homer and we will look for wildlife along the way. Beluga Whales, Great-gray Owls, Moose and other opportunities await! After we overnight in Homer, we take a private flight across Cook Inlet, passing active volcanoes and massive glaciers before landing on a pristine beach. The stretch of sand is empty, except for the brown bears that live here—and we often see them roaming the meadow or ambling along the shore before we even land. Nearby, our bear cabin provides a base for exploration in the very midst of the bears. We will spend 4 nights here giving us plenty of time to explore the various opportunities available and also account for variable weather.

We will be on private land close to Lake Clark National Park, one of the world’s most renowned bear-viewing destinations. Against the backdrop of the ice-clad Aleutian Range, our cabin offers rustic luxury and total solitude—with enough bear thrills for a lifetime!

After a thrilling time with the brown bears, we return to Homer for another day of exploring the wildlife near this town. we can expect to see moose, sea otter, red fox, bald eagles and more! On our last day we make the journey back to Anchorage with our driver and naturalist. Once again we will take out time to find wildlife along the way. The tour ends when you are dropped off in Anchorage.

Itinerary

The itinerary below is primarily to give you an idea of the logistics and transfer days/times. For location info and details of possible photographic opportunities, please read the section above.

Day 1 (August 3)

Arrival in Anchorage and transfer to hotel. Option to explore Anchorage (Uber, walking) depending on what time you fly in. Please note: the hotel in Anchorage and transfer to hotel is not included; we recommend Uber or organizing the hotel's shuttle. There are several hotels in Anchorage, near the airport. We will provide recommendations in the tour details document.

Day 2 (August 4)

12pm Private transfer with our naturalist bird guide from Anchorage to Homer. We will make stops along the way for wildlife and food (self-pay). Check into hotel. Explore Homer’s peninsula, have some local dinner (self-pay). We will spend the evening photographing around Homer (sunset is around 10:22 PM). Overnight in Homer.

Day 3 (August 5)

This morning we begin early in our search for wildlife around Homer. After breakfast, we take our scheduled flight around 10AM (10:32 Low Tide). This is a private transfer across Cooks Inlet to our brown bear destination. The last 15 minutes of the flight, once we've crossed the inlet, will offer spectacular scenery of the western shore of Cook Inlet and its mystical mountains and salt marsh meadows. The bear guide and vehicle on stand-by should therein case of delays/postponement. Overnight at Bear Cabin.

Day 4, 5, 6 (August 6, 7, 8)

During our stay at the bear cabin, we will have plenty to do. Mornings will start with a hearty breakfast. After which we will begin to explore outside the cabin with our bear guide. Make sure you are ready for some close encounter with the bears! If you choose to hang out at the cabin at any time, there will likely be bears using the bear trail right by the cabin. Don't worry, you can view them safely from inside the cabin. We can expect to see a variety of behavior. The most exciting should be the bears catching salmon. We may also have the opportunity to see them clamming. This location is a little further away but we have access to an ATV that will save us the hike. Keep your cameras handy even in the cabin so you don't miss any forest scent-marking and tree-scratching action; behavior you can capture under guide supervision with the doors open or from just outside the cabins. Bear viewing can continue until sunset which is after 10pm. We will make sure to get some rest and have plenty to eat as well. Rest assured, you will get your fill of brown bears!

Day 7 (August 9)

After a hearty breakfast and last-minute bear viewing, the group will transfer out to the landing spit on ATVs to wait for the plane to land. Flight around 12pm (12:00pm Low Tide). The naturalist guide will be waiting with the van at the airport to meet the group and take us to the hotel, wildlife spots, or a delicious spot to eat. Overnight in Homer.

As is typical for Alaska, the weather may cause a delay or 1-day postponement of our flight out from the Brown Bear Bay. We recommend planning some buffer time; meaning booking as late a flight as possible on the 10th of August, or planning to spend the night and fly on the 11th.

Day 8 (August 10)

After breakfast, we take an easy drive to Anchorage, stopping for some targeted wildlife search with our naturalist guide. Arrive in Anchorage by 7pm. We can be dropped straight at the airport if you are taking a flight that evening or to a hotel if you are flying out the next morning.

* A single supplement is available for the 2 nights we spend at Homer: one at the start of the tour and once at the end. Cost of a single supplement is $400.

**Forced Overnights at Bear Lodge: In case of inclement weather, if we are not able to fly out from the bear lodge, a discounted fee of $500 per person per night will apply.

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