The bears of Admiralty Island

There may be two thousand bears on Admiralty Island, and not a black one among them, just big brownies and grizzly bears. Bears are the largest carnivorous animals left in the world today, and those of the Admiralty are almost as large as the famous Kadiak bear, a species limited to Kadiak Island. Specimens weighing more than 1,000 pounds and measuring between seven and nine feet tall on their hind legs were taken from the Alaska Peninsula and the southeast coast. During the spring, these large animals live among the snowy peaks, eat grass and roots, and go about their own business. Then, in late July, they head to stream banks, where salmon are madly spawning, to enjoy a rich diet fresh from the icy waters. Then it is that the hunter of cameras must look for them.

One day late, we paddled our canoe to that cabin. We left the good ship to the west, with other eager bear hunters aboard, and docked a few miles in the harbor at Mole. We were to be the first contingent of bear hunters; the rest should have their adventure later. Our guide welcomed us; There, on the floor of the cabin, we spread our beds to sleep for a few hours until, in that black darkness just before dawn, we were awakened as he moved to cook the breakfast porridge. We were soon aligned with that lasting food; We put on our rubber boots and when the sky brightened, we entered the stream by the door of the cabin.

Our guide seemed to know every rock hidden and projected beneath the surface of the churning water, and he walked easily from one foothold to another, while we stumbled behind him. He carefully tore off every fern leaf or devil’s club branch or alder that might brush against us, to kill our scent, and he always made us step on bare rocks or in the water, and, after crossing fallen logs without touching them with our hands, splashing them. with water to remove any possible odor. Our cameras were in backpacks on our backs, and Hasselborg carried a heavy .405 rifle that was used only if we knew a bear who had been shot previously and remembered his hatred of men.

Often, in the hairpin bends of the creek, he would drift well away and look cautiously around him, having no desire to suddenly run into a large grizzly bear or brownie inadvertently. The guide’s caution instilled confidence rather than fear. We knew that he had no desire to be mutilated by a wounded bear. That had happened once when he was collecting for a museum and he was trying to kill the animal without damaging its important skull. About a mile above the cabin we came face to face with our first brown bear.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *