Discover Alaska's Bear Country

This itinerary showcases two popular Alaska cities, Anchorage and Homer. But the wildest attraction are visits to Katmai National Park and Preserve and Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, where thousands of brown bears are intent on catching enough salmon and other food to fatten themselves up for the cold winter ahead. This itinerary requires a car rental for the first several days.

Day 1: Anchorage

Start your Alaska-sized adventure by exploring the extensive trail system in Anchorage. Rent a bike downtown to cruise along the beautiful Tony Knowles Coastal Trail, an 11-mile paved trail that hugs the coastline and connects downtown to Kincaid Park, a sprawling wooded park popular for mountain biking and hiking. Keep an eye out for wildlife including moose, eagles, and sometimes black bears. If you’d like to get up into the mountains, head up to the Glen Alps Trailhead to climb Flattop Mountain in Chugach State Park for panoramic views of Anchorage, the Turnagain Arm, and surrounding Chugach Mountains. Always be bear aware and follow proper bear safety when viewing bears in the wild. Finish up your day with a some freshly-caught seafood at one of Anchorage's many amazing restaurants. 

Day 2: Homer

Head south from Anchorage on the Seward Highway for a four hour scenic drive to Homer. Make a stop at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, located 50 miles south of Anchorage, to view Alaska wildlife up-close. This wildlife sanctuary rescues and rehabilitates orphaned and injured animals and has an excellent bear viewing area where you can watch the antics of black and brown bears from raised walkways above their large enclosures. If you time it right, you can watch staff feeding the bears or even feed them for yourself on a Bear Encounter Tour. Continue your drive to the coastal town of Homer, which boasts a stunning location on Kachemak Bay and offers recreation opportunities in the nearby state park of the same name. Homer is also famous for the Homer Spit, a 4.5-mile strip of land extending into the water that is lined with restaurants, gift shops, outfitters, and fishing-charter operators. Visitors can camp right on the spit or reserve at room at one of Homer’s many hotels, lodges, or B&Bs. Spend your evening in Homer by checking out the Spit's many sights.

Day 3: Homer

Embark on a full-day bear viewing trip to Lake Clark National Park and Preserve. This off-the-beaten-track national park is accessed from Homer by a short but scenic plane ride across Cook Inlet. Your experienced pilot will land the small bush plane on a remote beach where you will spend several hours watching brown bears feed along the tidal flats and rivers. After a full day of bear viewing, head back to Homer to enjoy dinner at one of the amazing restaurants along the Spit or grab a drink at the local breweries or winery.

Day 4: Anchorage

Drive back to Homer, breaking up the drive with a stop at the Portage Glacier area. Here, you can learn about the area's wildlife and glaciers at the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center, hop on a 1-hour boar tour to get up close to the face of Portage Glacier, or go for a hike on the Trail of Blue Ice or the Byron Glacier Trail. Keep an eye out for black bears, which frequent the area. Head back to Anchorage and spend the evening in the “big city” before embarking on your next bear adventure. If you have time, visit the Anchorage Museum and the Alaska Native Heritage Center to learn about Alaska’s history and Alaska Native culture. Overnight in Anchorage.

Days 5 - 7: Katmai National Park

Today you will journey to Katmai National Park & Preserve, inhabited by an estimated 2,200 brown bears. The world-renowned Brooks Camp offers some of the best views of the world’s largest land predator. Access is strictly regulated, so make reservations early for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to watch giant brown bears scooping salmon out of crashing streams and rivers while newborn cubs frolic nearby. You have two options here: either take a day trip from Anchorage, traveling on a small plane to the park for several hours of bear viewing; or maximize your time with the bears by flying on regional air carrier from Anchorage to King Salmon and then a short floatplane ride to Brooks Camp, and then spending a couple of days bear viewing while camping or staying at the lodge at Brooks Camp. If staying overnight at Brooks Camp, it's recommended that you stay two nights so you have one full day of bear viewing. 

Optional Add-On: Kodiak

If you haven’t had your fill of bear viewing, consider a trip to see some of the biggest of them all: Kodiak brown bears. Book a flight from Anchorage to Kodiak and join a bear viewing trip in Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge, home to some of the largest bears in the world. Kodiak brown bears are genetically unique to other brown bears in Alaska, weighing up to 1,500 pounds and standing 10 feet tall. Book a trip with the Kodiak Brown Bear Center, an Alaska Native-owned lodge and tour operator that focuses on small-group bear viewing trips and other activities, or join one of the many other remote lodges and tour guides that offer bear viewing in the area.

Wildlife Note: You’ll see the most bears when the salmon are running. Usually that’s July to September, although the timing can vary a bit each year. Give bears a healthy amount of respect and distance — remember, they are wild, unpredictable animals — and make sure you’re familiar with bear-safety precautions before traveling in Alaska’s bear country.