Katmai Brooks Lodge Bear Viewing

We were delighted to see bears at a safe distance in Katmai National Park. The park required visitors to stay 50 yards away from a bear alone and 100 yards away from a sow with cubs. There was a platform where we could see the bear in the falls. The ranger told us he was named Lurch because he steals fish from other bears. At this time no salmon were running so we didn't see any catches. They said he stood in the river for hours just waiting. The other bear was seen walking along the beach in mid-afternoon and after dinner one was napping on the beach. We saw another from a distance rolling in the sand just off the river.

The farther platform was about a mile walk away and I was relieved that we didn't see any bears when we were walking in that remote area. Immediately after landing we were required to attend a bear safety class put on by the park rangers. We were told to make noise, back away slowly, etc. That is all of the usual bear info we already knew but there were many visitors from Italy, Australia, Switzerland and the lower 48 who needed instruction on how to behave.