Number one on my bucket list was to finally enjoy a bear viewing trip in Alaska. Four years ago I had booked the same trip, but two days in a row the trip was cancelled due to high winds and we could not fly. I was devastated. I had convinced one of my sisters and my friends to go with me four years ago. This time, no takers. I cannot explain the fascination I have in seeing bears in the wild to anyone who can ever understand unless they feel the same way.
I have no fear of flying nor of wildlife as I have tremendous respect for animals and their environment.
While there are multiple bear viewing operators and multiple ways to view the coastal brown bears, I chose Alaska Bear Adventures. I am partial to small business owners and this company is locally owned. My sister and I previously flew K-Bay Air (which is a part of Alaska Bear Adventures) on a Denali Glacier Landing tour four years ago and enjoyed the trip.
Our bear viewing trip was not an easy adventure but one of my most memorable experiences in my lifetime.
Warning! This is a long, two-part posting.
- To just see the bear pictures now, then just click here.
- To read about the entire journey, continue reading and see the bear pictures linked at the end.
Before the trip started, I had to:
- Pay for trip in full, 30 days in advance. (They sell out quickly)
- Fill our lots of paperwork, read and sign a lot of releases.
- Weigh in. (We travel by small plane and the pilots had to balance the weight)
The day of the trip:
- Weighed my back pack and camera. We could not carry anything over 10 pounds. Like really? My back would break with any more weight.
- Our groups were told to empty our backpacks of things we could not take, such as a plastic bag, any aerosol products (plane is not pressurized), any fish smelling stuff.
- Put on on waders (to cross streams and walk in mud)
- Put on personal flotation device.
- Reviewed all rules again.
- Signed another release that we understand there is a chance for injury or death. 😳
- Watched an in depth safety video on how to operate emergency equipment including SOS radio and plane emergency beacon (we were flying get over an open body of water and landing on a beach).























This is another indicator that bears are nearby.

It was 69 degrees.





Click on this link to go straight to the bear photos.






Where is our plane?




very important to me.
I have survived many challenges in my life and this granny had to prove to herself she could do this too. A little slow and definitely worn out, but finished the adventure all the same.
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith”.
2 Timothy 4:7 NIV

I am to have had this opportunity.
“There is the sea, vast and spacious, teaming with creatures beyond number-living things both large and small”.
Psalm 104:25 NIV








Where I went for dinner when my legs just didn’t want to walk anymore. (Thank you Don and Dorothy. 😉)
Link to the bear photos.
Remember, “not all who wander are lost”. J.R.R. Tolkien
The RV Lady