Bear watching recommendations for Homer in September

[Tricia724]

We are currently planning our trip to Alaska next year in early September. Our top priorities are seeing Denali in the fall, spending time in Homer, and doing some bear watching.

 

Right now we have 5 days scheduled for Homer, and we want to book day trips for bear viewing....we are planning (and hoping) to do two different trips. We are arranging our schedule to have "shoulder" days in between for rescheduling in case weather does not cooperate. We are definitely not interested in doing overnights at Hallo Bay, although a day trip would be fine.

 

Does anyone have any recommendations for tour operators out of Homer for bear watching? We have already contacted Emerald Air and have learned that this is their last year doing tours and that they will be retired next year, so they are not a possibility.

 

We would be interested to hear about any great experience anyone has had and the operators who provided them.

 

Pat

[basser]

Look at Smoky Bay Air. They do the transportation to Hallo bay, but I think they do tours on their own. We were scheduled for a day trip to Hallo Bay and couldn't go due to fog. Instead they took us to Lake Clark National Park and we saw over 20 bears. You can see my pics. at http:/burnet60.smugmug.com

[knorrisb07]

I am wondering whether permits are required ahead of time for bear watching tour from Homer

[Pssunshinegal]

I am wondering whether permits are required ahead of time for bear watching tour from Homer

 

Depends on where you want to go.

[Pssunshinegal]

We are currently planning our trip to Alaska next year in early September. Our top priorities are seeing Denali in the fall, spending time in Homer, and doing some bear watching.

 

Right now we have 5 days scheduled for Homer, and we want to book day trips for bear viewing....we are planning (and hoping) to do two different trips. We are arranging our schedule to have "shoulder" days in between for rescheduling in case weather does not cooperate. We are definitely not interested in doing overnights at Hallo Bay, although a day trip would be fine.

Pat

 

I have camped at Hallo Bay and even though you are not interested in that, I can only speak very highly of their organization. Because of them living and working with the bears, I wouldn't recommend anyone else even for the day trip. Hallo Bay knows where the bears are, so they follow the bears. Some of the other organizations it is hit and miss. I think that you are going late enough that the salmon should be running and it may be less of a problem then when the bears are still eating berries.

 

Might I inquire since you have so many days in Homer is there a specific reason why you would want to take two bear trips but yet not go to Hallo Bay for two days. It would almost have to be a wash on cost between two trips and room prices in Homer. I an understand some not wanting to camp there, but just curious.

 

Here are my bear pictures from Hallo Bay.

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/Jmorngstar/AlaskaBearTrip#

 

Have a great time in Homer no matter who you go with. We love fishing there.

 

Janice

[Tricia724]

Might I inquire since you have so many days in Homer is there a specific reason why you would want to take two bear trips but yet not go to Hallo Bay for two days. It would almost have to be a wash on cost between two trips and room prices in Homer. I an understand some not wanting to camp there, but just curious.

 

Planning this trip is an evolutionary process for us....we find our interests and inclinations changing from day to day.

 

Our original bear watching plans a few years back were to overnight for the ultimate experience. We originally looked at Hallo Bay, but as we got older (well over 60) and acquired a few health and personal issues, that option became less attractive. I was all set to go to Brooks this year and stay for several days, but once we decided to travel in September, the better bear viewing is out of Homer....so we're back to the drawing board with new plans.

 

Dollarwise, the two day trips would be somewhat less expensive. Two days camping at Hallo Bay, plus airfare, plus the cost of the supplies you need to take with you is about $1,800/pp compared to two day trips at about $1,200/pp. Even with the cost of a Homer B&B and meals, it will be a little less doing it this way....but money wasn't the primary consideration. It's basically an issue of our comfort level, and these days a nice comfortable B&B is more appealing than a tent.

 

There are also some other things we hope to do in Homer. We're interested in fishing and boat trips, and we want to spend a little time driving around and soaking up the local atmosphere. Alaska is so beautiful that sometimes it's nice not to have a deadline....to just sit with a cup of coffee and take in the view.

 

Thanks, Janice, for your information and great pictures. If you have any other thoughts on making this trip a great experience, we'd be glad to hear them.

 

Pat

[greatam]

I certainly agree that Hallo Bay offers the most CONSISTENT bear viewing for all the reasons Pssunshinegal pointed out.

 

You may want to book the Sea Lion on the Spit in Homer for accommodations. Absolutely fantastic view. While not a B & B, the price is right and you are almost directly across the road from my favorite breakfast place, Happy Face restaurant (second floor above the little grocery store-sit to the far right against the windows and you can watch the fishing fleet in the harbor). You will need to book Sea Lion very early as there are only two rooms and they fill up fast.

 

http://www.sealiongallery.com/cove/index.html

 

http://homernews.com/dining/HappyFace/

 

While the Happy Face is now owned by a Chinese lady, I have never had their Chinese food. But for just plain, old fashioned things like biscuits and gravy, eggs DONE RIGHT, chicken fried steak, and seafood plates, the price is right and the food is really good. Enjoy Homer. One of my two favorite places in the world.

[Pssunshinegal]

Our original bear watching plans a few years back were to overnight for the ultimate experience. We originally looked at Hallo Bay, but as we got older (well over 60) and acquired a few health and personal issues, that option became less attractive. It's basically an issue of our comfort level, and these days a nice comfortable B&B is more appealing than a tent.Thanks, Janice, for your information and great pictures. If you have any other thoughts on making this trip a great experience, we'd be glad to hear them.

 

Pat

 

Pat,

 

I just want you to know that I was 56 when I went. I wasn't crazy about staying in a tent, but I have to tell you, it isn't a tent-tent but more like a permanent structure. When I got into that sleeping bag at night, the bed was very comfortable and I slept like I have never slept before. Now the health problems are another consideration because one could get stranded on any of these fly-in trips due to weather. We event got to stay an extra day because the plane couldn't come get us. There was a couple who left early because the wife didn't understand that she was here to commune with bears and wondered "what else there was to do." We met such interesting people. One day I didn't go but stay at the base camp and read in front of the fireplace, but truly enjoyed myself. I went out to the beach and just for a little walk and saw a mother and cub, but by that time I was well aware of what my limitations were and what to do should I get caught near a bear. Hallo Bay is truly a different experience because you are "with" the bears not just watching them. You can see from my pictures how close we were to the bears and yet how we were not part of their food chain so that there is no "BIG" fear. You know that the guides know what they are doing and provide an experience that you just cannot capture otherwise.

 

So that said, if I was taking a day trip I would still want to go with Hallo Bay because I just think that they know bears better than anyone else and the local color about the bears that their guide provide cannot be duplicated by other tour guides. Can you tell I am prejudiced.

 

Janice

[CarolinaGypsy]

Just to throw out another suggestion, I booked with K Bay Air after reading excellent reviews on Trip Advisor. They have an excellent website that you can find by googling K Bay Bear viewing.

[greatam]

Just to throw out another suggestion, I booked with K Bay Air after reading excellent reviews on Trip Advisor. They have an excellent website that you can find by googling K Bay Bear viewing.

 

While the day "fly in from Homer" bear viewing tours (OTHER than Hallo Bay) MAY provide a good tour, the KEY is knowing where the bears are. I spend a lot of time in the Homer area (I co own a condo there). I know most of these operators. While there is nothing inherently wrong with any of these operators, they LIVE in HOMER (or the surrounding area). So every day they fly people to Katmai, they are HOPING the bears are close to where they were the last trip they made. I have been up with Emerald Air. Flew around and around and around looking for the bears. We spent more time flying than seeing bears.

 

In mid August/mid September, when the silver salmon are running, it would be VERY unusual NOT to find large amounts of bears in the ocean "power feeding" for winter (and the close pictures on the K Bay website are definitely late season pictures). ANY operator will do for those trips. The bears pay you no mind and you can get really, really close. You land on the beach.

 

BUT the rest of the summer, it is truly hit or miss where the bears are. Sometimes they are only in the meadows (lots of walking). Sometimes they move between the meadows and the ocean (when the clams are abundant, before the salmon). Hallo Bay has personnel IN KATMAI every day of the season. They follow the bears. NO guessing where the bears are. FYI.

[Tricia724]

Thanks everyone for your input and information....just what we needed. This is a "winnowing" process for us....taking the hype and promises of the operators and combining them with the experiences of their clients to try to get a realistic view....but in the end it's a probabilities game, and we appreciate your help in trying to increase our probabilities.

 

My friend has contacted all of the tour operators....and then some....who were mentioned, and he was impressed with some of them and not so impressed with others. The Hallo Bay people are definitely our first choice, and we will be making a booking with them shortly. We've also narrowed down a second choice and will probably book them sometime in the future.

 

We hear what you're saying, greatam, about the tour operators. We understand that the people at Hallo Bay are far more than just tour providers, and we also realize that the day trips are nowhere near the experience of camping at Hallo Bay. But I think we can still have a great time....if the weather, the salmon, and the bears cooperate.

 

Even though it's 10 months away, we're starting to get excited about returning to Alaska.

[Tricia724]

There was a couple who left early because the wife didn't understand that she was here to commune with bears and wondered "what else there was to do."

 

We know this woman....she was on our bus in Denali!

 

On our last land trip in Alaska, we took the bus to Kantishna which is basically a 12-hour trip. Most of the people were excited about seeing Denali and the possibility of seeing wildlife....but, you know, there's always one person who is clueless about the whole experience.

 

So as we're driving through the park, we come upon a young moose meandering right down the middle of the road. Everyone on the bus oohs and aahs and tries to take pictures of the moose, and the driver stays back a respectful distance and slowly inches along. The moose was really funny....he'd walk a little ways, then stop and look over his shoulder at us, then turn around and walk a little more. He repeated this several times, and most of us on the bus were really enjoying it. All but this one woman.

 

I guess she figured she had seen the moose and it was time to move on. So, she kept yelling to the bus driver to "make it move." When the bus driver didn't respond, the woman said to her: "Can't you honk your horn or something?" Finally the bus driver turned around and very nicely told her that the animals have the right of way in Denali and that we'd just have to have some patience. In a few minutes the moose got tired of us, walked over to the side of the road, and we moved on.

 

Makes you wonder why some people even go on these trips.

[greatam]

 

We hear what you're saying, greatam, about the tour operators. We understand that the people at Hallo Bay are far more than just tour providers, and we also realize that the day trips are nowhere near the experience of camping at Hallo Bay. But I think we can still have a great time....if the weather, the salmon, and the bears cooperate.

 

 

Guess I didn't explain myself very well. Hallo Bay is the best of the options for DAY TRIPS. They live there all summer. Their pilot does not need to fly around and around looking for the bears. He just calls the base station at the camp and the camp relays info to the pilot where to land for the day. NO guessing because the guides are there 24/7 and take the "campers" out at least twice a day. The Hallo Bay guides and owners KNOW where the bears are minute by minute. Not the same with other operators-they really have to GUESS which area will have bears.

[Pssunshinegal]

We know this woman....she was on our bus in Denali!

 

Makes you wonder why some people even go on these trips.

 

Well come to find out, the husband really wanted to do this and so the way he sold his wife on it wasn't particularly truthful. He paid the ultimate price because between the two I am sure they had $4000 into this trip, which ended after about 16 hours. He thought that once he got her there she would just be okay. Well it wasn't just that she didn't get mellow, but that she started to ruin the experience for the rest of us who paid our money. So when he had to send for another plane to get them, the rest of us were happy.

 

It does make you wonder why people go on these trips.

 

Janice

[Tricia724]

Guess I didn't explain myself very well. Hallo Bay is the best of the options for DAY TRIPS. They live there all summer. Their pilot does not need to fly around and around looking for the bears. He just calls the base station at the camp and the camp relays info to the pilot where to land for the day. NO guessing because the guides are there 24/7 and take the "campers" out at least twice a day. The Hallo Bay guides and owners KNOW where the bears are minute by minute. Not the same with other operators-they really have to GUESS which area will have bears.

 

No, you did a great job of explaining. I understood what you meant, and I knew you were talking about the day trips. I get what you're saying about the difference between someone who is there full time versus someone who is there occasionally. That's what lead us to the decision to book a day trip with Hallo Bay.

 

I was sort of thinking out loud, I guess, but what I was trying to say was that I recognize that the Hallo Bay people are the real deal....not only tour providers but ecologists and environmentalists and animal activists as well. I also recognize that going there for a few hours one day is nowhere near the experience of staying there for several days.

 

I appreciate your time and voice of experience. We are both looking forward to spending some time in Homer, as neither of us have been there before. The last time we only went as far as Soldotna to fish for Kings in the Kenai, so Homer is new to us. Your enthusiasm has me looking forward to it.