Bears! (And other wildlife)

[4olivers]

We leave a week from tomorrow! Starting in Anchorage (briefly) then on to Denali for a few days before embarking on 7/16. (Coral) stops in Skagway Juneau Ketchikan ending in VC. In Denali we are :

ATV excursion

19 mile Raft to Talkeetna

Natural History bus offered by princess

Skagway...white pass, dog sled

Juneau...5 glacier float plane and whale watching

Ketchikan...misty fjord tour

 

Having read a lot of trip reports I randomly see posts for bear sightings. Given the areas we will be be, for those of you experienced AK travelers, (not asking you to predict the future here) but what's your experience on seeing bears? )Other wildlife also) - where we will be.

 

Any tips on spotting them?

 

 

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Edited July 4, 2016 by 4olivers

[xlxo]

Hope you have additional time in VC after you debark. There is an additional bear opportunities at the nearby Grouse.

[sherryf]

Hope you have additional time in VC after you debark. There is an additional bear opportunities at the nearby Grouse.

 

I think she's hoping for actual wildlife sightings, not bears in cages. :rolleyes:

[xlxo]

I should add there's a breakfast buffet served next door for that unique experience....

https://www.grousemountain.com/products/breakfast-with-the-bears

[mapleleaves]

you're missing a fantastic wildlife opportunity at Denali by taking the Natural History Tour. Do you realize it only goes to milepost 16 ? The park road is almost 100 miles so you are seeing next to nothing of the park. :(

 

Drop the NHT and pay for the shuttle bus instead, $27. Prime bear territory starts at Toklat so at a minimum take the Toklat shuttle, but better yet is the Eielson shuttle. I've always seen bears, moose, caribou, fox, dall sheep, even on my first trip when I only went to toklat.

http://www.reservedenali.com/play/shuttle-buses/toklat.aspx

 

ATV noise will frighten off any wildlife so don't expect anything there.

 

If you have time in Anchorage, the Wildlife Conservation Center would be a nice viewing opportunity. Granted the animals are in enclosures but it's a beautiful setting.

 

Watch for bears along the drive to Skagway and at Mendenhall Glacier. And watch for moose on the way to denali.

Edited July 4, 2016 by mapleleaves

[SightCRR]

Not sure how you are getting from place to place but if you are driving yourself watch out for stopped cars and pull over behind the line of cars to see what they are watching. Speed right by and you will be missing something and you will see the cars long before you see the wildlife.

[sherryf]

I should add there's a breakfast buffet served next door for that unique experience....

https://www.grousemountain.com/products/breakfast-with-the-bears

 

Do you work for them or are you just a huge fan? :rolleyes:

[Budget Queen]

We leave a week from tomorrow! Starting in Anchorage (briefly) then on to Denali for a few days before embarking on 7/16. (Coral) stops in Skagway Juneau Ketchikan ending in VC. In Denali we are :

ATV excursion

19 mile Raft to Talkeetna

Natural History bus offered by princess

Skagway...white pass, dog sled

Juneau...5 glacier float plane and whale watching

Ketchikan...misty fjord tour

 

Having read a lot of trip reports I randomly see posts for bear sightings. Given the areas we will be be, for those of you experienced AK travelers, (not asking you to predict the future here) but what's your experience on seeing bears? )Other wildlife also) - where we will be.

 

Any tips on spotting them?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

you are making a big mistake with this plan and you wanting to see bears. Not likely with what you have now. Biggest- miss- is Denali. The Natural History tour is worthless, you are all those hours and hours in transit getting there- then NOT getting into the park- which is loaded with bears. Up to you, if you want to make other choices?

[4olivers]

you are making a big mistake with this plan and you wanting to see bears. Not likely with what you have now. Biggest- miss- is Denali. The Natural History tour is worthless, you are all those hours and hours in transit getting there- then NOT getting into the park- which is loaded with bears. Up to you, if you want to make other choices?

 

 

Let me rephrase I guess....first of all we are a large group and the NHT was "included" in our package. This is our first trip to Alaska so yes I'm sure we are ( like every other first timer) going to learn what's great / what we we got right - what we might do differently next time.

 

I was simply asking what the chances are given our plan...of seeing beats/other wildlife. I was looking for more feedback on NHT bc THAT is something we can do a little differently. [emoji848]

 

 

I was asking about bears not necessarily because we are there tracking them or on s mission to see them but just curious because I personally am interested in seeing them in the wild....I have 8 other ppl along so it's not all up to me. (Next trip will be more what just my husband and I want to do)

 

 

 

 

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[newdestination]

We recently spent four days in Denali National Park and took two park shuttles. The first day we went to Eielson and saw lots of caribou, Dall sheep, and moose, but no bears. We also saw Denali that day.

 

On our second trip into the park we went to Toklat and saw a grizzly sow with two cubs and sheep, but very few caribou. Denali was not out that day. We also saw a moose with two calves near the Visitor's Center at the park entrance that day.

 

In Skagway we did a tour to the Yukon with Frontier Tours and saw black bears in two different spots right by the road!

 

The animals are there but it's luck of the draw how many you see, unless you go to a zoo. The more time you spend in Denali NP though, the better your chances of seeing them.

[just hooked]

You should upgrade your tour to the tundra tour easy to do via your travel agent or direct well worth the extra

 

As per the princess booklet

 

Natural History Tour into Denali National Park (option to upgrade to Tundra Wilderness Tour at an additional cost)

[Budget Queen]

Let me rephrase I guess....first of all we are a large group and the NHT was "included" in our package. This is our first trip to Alaska so yes I'm sure we are ( like every other first timer) going to learn what's great / what we we got right - what we might do differently next time.

 

I was simply asking what the chances are given our plan...of seeing beats/other wildlife. I was looking for more feedback on NHT bc THAT is something we can do a little differently. [emoji848]

 

 

I was asking about bears not necessarily because we are there tracking them or on s mission to see them but just curious because I personally am interested in seeing them in the wild....I have 8 other ppl along so it's not all up to me. (Next trip will be more what just my husband and I want to do)

 

 

 

 

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"Next time"??? Why not consider, taking advantage NOW? With the NHT, sorry, essentially very low chance to see bears. Very rare for any and a low wildlife spotting overall, choice anyway.

 

You have to all stick together? And those with other interests, have to miss out? It's not that difficult to split up for most people, and the opportunities are too great to not consider this. With Denali it is ALL about distance. The farther you go, the more you see. Bear habitat is more prevalent between Toklat and Eielson, mile 53 and 66. You are only going 16.

 

It's noted that your tour is included. You have paid for it and as mentioned you can upgrade further.

 

I've heard mixed reports about refunds for the NHT this year, but would be my first suggestion. Then no additional funds are needed for the Eielson Shuttle, which is a huge advantage to get to. Of course this requires a little extra effort, than no every one want to consider.

 

Just putting out factual, general information. Explicit details are available, for anyone, who wishes to see the park, via shuttle buses.

[donaldsc]

]

 

 

I was asking about bears not necessarily because we are there tracking them or on s mission to see them but just curious because I personally am interested in seeing them in the wild....I have 8 other ppl along so it's not all up to me. (Next trip will be more what just my husband and I want to do)

 

 

 

 

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You are probably stuck at this point but if you can, get out of the group and do AK with just the 2 of you. Whenever anyone travels w a group, you end up being stuck w what the group or the supposedly knowledgeable person in group wants to do. The end result is that most of the people in the group end up doing stuff that they do not really want to do because the group has already decided.

 

Is there any way at all that you can get away from the group at least for a few days and have the opportunity to do your own thing. Eight people stuck together for a week or so on a trip anywhere sounds like a trip from hell to me. Hopefully you have not booked all of your excursions off the ship as a group of 8. Just remember, you can cancel ship excursions if you want to and go off on your own.

 

When I travel or cruise with family, my wife and I have several unalterable rules -

 

1) We eat breakfast together if we want to

 

2) My wife and I book excursions and if you want to come along but I will not make any changes just because you want to do something different

 

3) Sometimes we just wander around a city or visit tourist sites. You are welcome to come along but I am not going to go to a place that I don't want to visit or stop for an hour to buy souvenirs because I don't want to.

 

4) We enjoy just sitting at cafes and doing people watching. If you do not like this - tough.

 

5) We will try to have dinner together at night but if you insist upon eating at 6:00 PM, we are not going be there as we just do not eat that early. Also, we might want to have dinner for just the 2 of us in a specialty restaurant. The rest of the group are not welcome as my wife and I like to have time alone for the 2 of us.

 

This post may sound like the grinch that stole the cruise but it works for us.

 

DON

Edited July 5, 2016 by donaldsc

[Planning is Half the Fun]

My buddy saw a bear from the Skagway train and got a decent picture with her cell phone so I think it was reasonably close. She also saw a bear in Ketchikan on a jeep tour, but her husband didn't see that one and there's no pictures. I just have to trust her on that one. She was there about 2 weeks ago.

 

I've just decided the chances are 50/50 if I don't go on a designated bear watching tour. Good enough for me.