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This is a series of posts that will document my first trip to McNeil River State Game Sanctuary in Southwest Alaska. Given the extent of information here I am breaking it down into three different posts. The beginning which includes my early planning. The day I arrived and what daily life at camp entailed. And the finish which will hold information on what worked and what didn’t. I hope you enjoy this series on McNeil River. It truly is a miraculous place.
To those that are familiar with its name; McNeil River constitutes images of some of the biggest and largest bears in the world — that of Alaska’s mighty Coastal Brown. Their hefty bulk swaying as they stare so intently into the falls before them while they eagerly await their next meal of chum salmon during our annual summer fishing runs. A time when winners of its annual lottery can participate in some of the best bear viewing opportunities in the world as they experience them on an up close and personal basis.
The McNeil River State Game Sanctuary is located on the northern boundaries of Katmai National Park on the Alaska Peninsula in Southwestern Alaska. The Alaska State Legislature designated the area a wildlife sanctuary in 1967 as a means of protecting the world’s largest concentration of this majestic animal. An access permitting system was created that would provide the public with the opportunity to view and experience the wildlife of this area while preserving the land at the same time. The program limits the number of people who may be present to no more than 10 individuals per day between the timeframe of June 7th and August 25th.
Accessible only by float plane or boat, as winners of the McNeil River Bear Sanctuary Lottery you are required to camp out. There is an established “campground” but no bear fence or anything along those lines. One must be willing to sleep within a well known bear preserve with limited resources. No cell / communication service is available though the state employees that work there and help administer the program do have a satellite radio for emergencies. Requirements include packing in all of your camping gear, food and clothes for the period you are there.
It was only during one of my earlier adventures last spring that I decided I would enter to see what was my fate. As luck would have it, I was chosen as a winner for a week in mid-August despite it being my first year attempting to win. Provided by the list of recommended equipment and a list of air carriers that were licensed to travel to McNeil it was shortly after I was notified that my planning began in essence. There were times over the following months that I became overwhelmed with all the requirements and was tempted to throw up my hands and quit. After all, while I have had many camping adventures over my years here this was by far the most remote. And this was also the first time I would be traveling and camping by myself.
Perhaps what continued to drive me during that time was the e-mails I received from fellow winners within my same date period. A couple introduced themselves while many just attempted to coordinate air travel. Did anyone want to charter a plane? What is your experience camping? What kind of food are you bringing? These were questions that were volleyed many times. I was one of the lucky few in that I reserved my plane transport early and began to plan in earnest. While those winners were just names on a screen then, little did I know that upon arrival friendships would be foraged to the level that they were.
The particular company I had picked for transporting me there (Beluga Air out of Homer) allowed for 75 pounds of gear in addition to body weight. Which is honestly one of the most giving carriers out there. I would be flying in a DeHavilland Beaver and was quoted a per seat price and told that anything over 75 pounds would be a dollar per pound. I do admit to being a bit nervous about the equipment weight because a friend who had recently come back from McNeil a few weeks ago prior to me said he carried in 110 pounds and was told that he actually came in light compared to other people. In the end when I checked in I only came in 2 pounds over at 77 pounds and even I thought I had overpacked.
The next big question was what to take for food. Having heard stories of people that packed in alcohol and gourmet food to make the situation I big party, I decided to pack light and my food for the week mainly consisted of backpacking food, nuts, trail mix bars, oatmeal, assorted small bag of hard candy/chocolate and a loaf of bread and small jar of peanut butter to make sandwiches when we were out hiking each day.
Each month at McNeil tends to be different. In June to early July they tend to take the groups out to Mikfik Creek where the bears are feeding on sedge grasses and enjoying the early salmon runs. July was of course mainly found them at the falls where the big boars would catch salmon or fight to defend their territory. The time period in which I arrived found the sub-adults and sows with cubs wandering aimlessly through the rivers. Fishing on late run salmon and eating berries. By that time of year the bigger boars have left the area and most of what we encountered were the sub-adults and sows/cubs.
As the days ticked down, thus began my journey to McNeil.
Alaskan Explorer
