Transportation to Herring Cove in Ketchikan?

[AZ Deb]

My group would like to get over to Herring Cove to (hopefully) see some bears while we're in Ketchikan on Sept. 6 (our ship is in port 2pm-8:30pm). What are our options? We prefer NOT to do an organized tour,  just find a way to and from. Depending on who from our group goes with us, we'll have anywhere from 4-14 people, most likely. Thanks in advance!

[BlessedAgain]

On July 1, 2019 at 10:20 PM, AZ Deb said:

My group would like to get over to Herring Cove to (hopefully) see some bears while we're in Ketchikan on Sept. 6 (our ship is in port 2pm-8:30pm). What are our options? We prefer NOT to do an organized tour,  just find a way to and from. Depending on who from our group goes with us, we'll have anywhere from 4-14 people, most likely. Thanks in advance!

We rented a car from Alaska Car Rental and drove there.  We loved the drive all the way to the end of the road....going both ways out of Ketchikan.   No success on our first stop at Herring Cove, but after enjoying beautiful views and even waterfalls, we stopped on the way back and were blessed with some great bear viewing.  Also if you head all the way to the other side of Ketchikan we ended up in a beautiful park that had some nice short hiking trails.

 

[Glaciers]

We rented a car and drove to Herring Cove. No bears but dozens of eagles. The bears are there more frequently in the morning or early evening so most cruisers miss them. Since you have a later departure you may get lucky. The problem with the area, at least when we were there, is that there is very limited parking and it is near a residential area. Some posts indicate they got a cab so they didn’t have to worry about parking.  It’s not prime bear viewing and more of luck if you see them.

[karatemom2]

Renting your own vehicle is the best way. That way you can stop at a couple different times of day if you don’t have success on your first try. Plus you can visit other areas around Ketchikan. If you head the other direction you can visit Totem Bight and Ward Lake. Renting our own vehicle is our go to for our visits to Ketchikan. You just can’t beat the freedom it gives you to explore and control your own schedule. 

[syesmar]

I’ve been to Ketchikan twice.  Last time we took a public bus to Totem Bight / Potlatch Park and a taxi from there to a Ward Creek trail head and a taxi back to Ketchikan from Ward Lake.  LOVED this day!  (Spent the better part of $70 on cab fares...make them use the meter or ask for rates in advance:>).  

 

Next time, we will rent a car for the freedom it gives.  

[Alaska0799]

If you'd prefer to let someone else do the driving so you can just enjoy the experience, we'd highly recommend contacting Ketchikan Taxi Cab Tours.  They use minivans so they can accommodate a small group.  Dave and Kat are great.  I believe you can engage them for a specific number of hours and they'll be happy to help you create a tour that includes anything you'd like to see.  We happened to see a black bear sow and her two cubs at Herring Cove when we were there one July.  And we saw scores of bald eagles in the same area.  Dave also dropped us off at one end of an easy trail (can't remember now just where it was!) and picked us up at the other end.  I recommend contacting Dave directly at 907.254.7286 and telling him what you have in mind.  He is very easy to work with and knowledgeable about the area.  They stay very busy so you may want to touch base soon!