Another critical factor in choosing a viewing site is visibility of the bears–how close you can get, and how clear your field of view is likely to be–preferably free of vegetation and other people. Visibility is also critical to safety, not only while viewing, but also while approaching or leaving a viewing site. Visibility varies from site to site and time to time depending on habitat, vegetation and terrain, weather and season, hour of the day, and behavior of the bears.
Vegetation
Tall, dense vegetation–trees, shrubs, grass, etc.–can hide people from bears and vice versa. This vastly increases risk of surprise close encounters that could prove dangerous. Worse, it can tempt people to view from closer than is comfortable for some bears. Viewing bears in dense vegetation is best done from an elevated vantage out of reach of bears or from afar. For example, in early spring, when bears feed on newly emergent succulent plants in avalanche chutes, or in fall when they feast on hillside berry patches, we watch from across a canyon or valley, or perhaps from higher altitude looking down the slope. Bears feeding in valley bottom meadows and bogs may also be watched from higher elevations.
Personally, I prefer open habitats–for instance alpine tundra, meadows, beaches, or intertidal zones–where bears and I can see each other while still hundreds of yards apart, minimizing surprise encounters and giving an opportunity to leave or ignore before we get too close.
Watching bears in a forest, for instance on a berry patch, may require that you be within 50 yards, which is too close for safety under most circumstances, especially for lone viewers or pairs. Bears that consistently find people at specific sites tend to be especially tolerant, but even sites consistently used by viewers may be visited by bears with low tolerance for people.
Habitat Type
Alaska has hundreds of salmon streams along thousands of miles of shoreline. Most of these streams run through dense brush or forest where bears are hard to see from a safe distance. The chance of surprise close encounters is just too high, and opportunities for prolonged viewing are generally too poor, to be worth the effort and risk of viewing there.
However, there are some exceptions --streams where visibility is good enough that close surprises are uncommon and where bears are so used to people that occasional surprises don’t bother them much. These are fine places to view bears.
Visibility is often even better along the sea shore. One of the best habitats is an estuary downstream from a glacier, where the river mouth is bordered by a broad delta. If the delta is low enough to flood during especially high tides, it will likely be covered with sedgegrass, goosetongue and other favored bear foods. Some of these meadows, such as the one below McNeil Falls, are grazed by so many bears that you might mistake them for a herd of grazing cattle or bison.
Some intertidal zones also offer good viewing, even if you stay hundreds of yards away, sitting on the beach or in a boat. In a few areas, you can walk to within a hundred yards of clamming bears without disturbing them as they forage for clams and other marine invertebrates, or chase salmon and starry flounder. I have spent many a pleasant hour watching bears in these areas.
Viewers can also look for bears by cruising lake shores, ocean beaches and tidal flats. These are frequented by bears over most of Alaska’s coast and presumably that of British Columbia. Where beaches are frequented by hunters, bears may be too wary for good viewing.
Weather
Cloudy-bright weather is often the most comfortable and the best for photos. Bright sunny days are prettier; but they create harsh, high contrast lighting and strong glare off water. Worse, they can roast you, even in Alaska.
Although any part of that may have bright, sunny days, there is no place on the Alaska seacoast south of Anchorage where you can count on this, or even on rain-free days. In many areas, July is the driest, warmest month; but what you lack in rain might be made up in fog – at least in Southeast Alaska. This is something else you should ask about before deciding which site to visit and when to do it.
Rain, fog and cold can reduce visibility, both by naked eye and by fogging up eyeglasses, binoculars and camera lenses. Come prepared to keep yourself and your equipment dry and clean.
Day Length and Time of Day
The farther north you go, the greater the seasonal variation in day length, and the longer the summer days. At the latitude of Kodiak Island, for example, there are only about two hours of darkness at Summer Solstice, beginning around 1 to 2 am. By late August, there are several hours of darkness.
I prefer long days because they provide more hours for viewing and fewer hours of restless sleep inside my tent wondering which sounds outside are being made by a hungry bear.
Because summer days are so long, bears and most other wildlife tend to be active around the clock. Unlike many animals at lower latitude, ours may lack activity peaks near dawn and dusk, with a long rest in between. This vastly increases your chance of seeing most kinds of behavior, especially during 8am and 8 pm, when most guided tours take place.
Behavior of the Bears
Aside from the factors mentioned above, the main thing determining visibility of bears is their own behavior, perhaps in response to food abundance, weather (e.g., staying in shade during the hottest part of the day), tidal level, or the presence of people. Hunted bears are the most likely to avoid people. The less you disturb bears those you do see, the more likely you are to have hours in which to enjoy watching them.
(6) VISIBILITY OF BEARS
What was Cooper watching in the pond - his own reflection?
(c) 2005 S. Stringham
