My Summer As A Bear Watching Guide

The bear was trying to get around us again. He had approached us twice already, turned away by my fellow guide with a stern word. Our group stood paces up from a wild salmon stream on Chichagof Island in the middle of the Tongass National Forest. The bear, a hefty male coastal brown bear, was…

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Dispatch From The Field: A Trip Into Tongass Bear Country

In May, I was lucky enough to join our good friend Ken Leghorn on a recent trip to Pack Creek, located in the Kootznoowoo Wilderness on Admiralty Island. The name “Kootznoowoo” comes from the indigenous people of SE Alaska, the Tlingit, and means the “Bear Fort” or “Fortress of the Bears.” Ken owns and runs…

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