2018 Hyder, AK

Back to a spot I enjoyed so much in 2014, Hyder, AK. I got here on Saturday. The salmon had not started running strong so there were few in the creek. Bears had been feeding elsewhere where the pickings were better. I went over to Fish Creek Sunday afternoon and soon after I arrived a black bear sow came through with her two cubs. She didn’t stick around long and the cubs were not easy to capture, they stuck close to the sow when they could and the brusk is very overgrown and thick.

We did see another black bear one morning for just a very few minutes, it seemed rather tentative and didn’t stick around long.

After several days of very brief sightings of black bears (maybe one per day) some of us early birds got to see a brown bear come down the creek. Not as early as some I arrived just in the nick of time. This boar is one I saw 4 years ago and is called Dawg Bear.

 

There is a small lagoon near the start of the board walk, on the opposite side from Fish Creek. There is a creek feeding through it and beavers have decided the small outlet would be an excellent spot for a dam. The rangers have broken the dams up but the beavers persist.

The really fun thing for me about the lagoon is that there are at least a couple of otter families that frequent it. One time there were 6 or 7 otters including a few pups there. I’ll continue to watch and photograph them.

Another benefit of the dead fish the bears partially eat is that it attracts the mink. Mink are very elusive and fast but one morning we were able to watch a mink drag pieces of a fish into the brush and finally the rest of the carcass.

 

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2018 Valdez, AK

My stay at Valdez was timed with the salmon run and the first night I was there they were in the weir with the seal lions catching them. As the days went and the run got stronger the sheer number of fish was amazing. Instead of filling maybe 1/3 of the area in front of the weir they totally filled it and you could look outside it and see them.

There were also seals and sea otters in the area but none of them came into the weirs and they seemed to stay away from the sea lions. The sea gulls were everywhere, trying to grab bits of fish.

Every day started out foggy but then it burned off by around lunch time. Early one evening I headed back up the highway to see if the light would be right on Bridal Veil Falls, sure enough it was and I even saw a rainbow in the falls.

I found a good camping spot (no hookups) right across the road from the water and a very short drive to the weir. I made a few trips a day, sort of timed by the tides. High tide the sea lions would come in very close for the salmon, low tide I went further down the road to the large mud flats. That’s where the eagles hang out for the scraps.

 

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2018 Beaver Dam Farewell

Before leaving the beaver dam I spent a bit of time taking images of it and the creek.

Departure day and what do I see when I looked out the back window of the trailer at 0630 but a moose cow and calf next to the pond in addition to two of the beavers working. I grabbed the camera and went out, staying well back from the water. She spotted me and was leery, disappearing into the bushes quickly. She eventually came into sight as she left the area.

As I kept scanning to see her I spotted another cow and calf way across the area near the tree line.

The beavers continued to work on the dam, unimpressed by the moose or me. If I were to rate camping spots this would be at the top, simply the best and the one I’d love to return to some day. 

2018 Beaver Dam

This was such a wonderful place I returned to it after leaving Denali. A lot of time has been spent observing the residents. This Northern Harrier has a female chick who has fledged. Four times I’ve seen the adult fly around with something in its talons and heard calling between her and the chick. Then the chick would fly up and catch the food in mid air as the adult dropped it. I’ve seen and photographed falcons doing this (2016 OR coast) but didn’t know hawks would do it. I was never able to capture the action, not surprising since the adult’s territory covers a large area and they are usually high up and away when it happens. Binoculars made seeing it possible.

The beavers have been industrious as usual, but they don’t keep regular hours, I have to watch for them. One afternoon I was able to capture one eating off a branch it cut down and dragged into the water. Every once in a while it would stop to either scratch or groom. Great fun to watch and every time I look at this image I grin. 

Did manage to see a cow moose relatively close and as she was moving away I realized she had a calf with her, but it was even further away.

I’ll miss this place but have some very good memories to take with me!

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2018 Denali Bears

My last 5 nights in Denali NP were spent at Teklanika cg, 29 miles into the park. Once at the campground you are not permitted to drive around until you leave. In order to travel I purchased a pass, called a TEK pass, that enabled me to hop on any shuttle and go as far as the Eielson Visitor Center which is a 6 hour round trip. That was as long as I wanted to be away from the dogs and provided many photography opportunities. The bus drivers would stop for wildlife viewing whenever possible so it worked out very nicely.

I got to see many grizzly bears, some were simply too far away that while I took photos I won’t upload them. Others are closer to the road and were great subjects.

I saw this bear 3 of the 4 trips out, and sometimes 2 times a day, on the way out and on the way back.

I did include a couple of images of a sow and her 2 cubs laying out in the grass enjoying a sun bath simply because they looked so utterly relaxed.

For the most part I saw sows with 2 cubs, some were born this past winter, others appeared to be 2 or 3 years old. This was the only single bear I got some good images of and it was fun to watch.

 

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2018 Denali Assorted

Denali National Park has spectacular scenery and a variety of wildlife. After spending 6 nights at Riley campground at the entrance to the park I moved inside the park 30 miles to Teklanika campground. Wow! I’m so glad I did. Once at Tek you are not permitted to drive your vehicle anywhere, you must make use of the shuttle buses by purchasing a TEK pass. The pass allows you to get on any bus headed further into the park, distance determined when you purchase the pass. I got a pass that would get me to the Eielson VC, at about mm 66 or so. This was plenty distance for me and it meant a round trip of 6 hours. About the max I’d be comfortable leaving the dogs in the trailer. I used the pass each of the 4 days I was at the campground and it paid off.

This post will be about the scenery,  I’ll admit I do not take enough images of that and some of the wildlife.

There were plenty of Caribou, from the cows and calves to some bulls. Dahl sheep were high up on the mountains, tiny white specks when viewed with your eyes.

I was fortunate to see quite a few bears and will follow this post with one about them once all my images are processed. 

 

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2018 Alaska, near Denali

After a rather long stop in Fairbanks, staying at Chena Lakes Rec. Area except for 2 nights at Walmart I went down the Parks Hwy. to the Anderson Riverside campground. We were literally on the riverside and it was a nice change from Fairbanks. This is the Zenana River. I stayed there 3 nights, several friends with Casitas joined me and left before I did.

Next stop is just south of Cantwell. As I was heading south to one of the state parks that claim views of Denali I passed a huge gravel turnout next to a river. That looked very good to me so I turned around and headed back to it. What a great spot! I can look out the rear window of the trailer to a
beaver dam and mountains. Mountains on all sides, really, but I also have very fast cell signal so I can stay in touch with folks, etc. Good area for walking the dogs and playing fetch with Concho.

I’ve been spending time watching the beavers when they come around to work on the dam. Yesterday morning there were two of them. This morning only one. They travel upstream when they leave so they may have a lodge or another dam up there.

This morning was a really good one. Not long after the beaver left I saw something coming upstream from below the dam, by the the time I got back to the camera (on tripod) I realized it was an otter. It saw me and went under and continued upstream. Oh well, this is an ideal area for otters, too, so I’ll pay more attention.

Went back to the trailer for a bit and noticed something pass by the side window then Concho started looking out the rear window and growling. Had to check it out and it was a fox! I grabbed the camera and got a few shots off through the window. It moved up in front of the truck so I stepped out and stayed by the trailer to get some more images. The fox seemed a bit curious about me and didn’t immediately run off so I was able to get several images. What a thrill. It was so dark I looked it up online. Turns out the Red Fox in AK can have several coat colors including a very dark one called Cross Fox. Its head is extremely dark and this one has a beautiful coat, a bit wet after crossing some water, though.

Turns out I also have a good view of Denali right here. 

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