Inside Bear Haven, Alaska’s Lodge for Bear Viewing and Photography

I’m huddled with a small group of photographers—enthusiasts and professionals—on a creek bank in Alaska. We set up by finding spots to sit or kneel amongst the rocks. It’s not comfortable, but everyone is so locked into the intensity of what is unfolding in front of them, that the rocks barely register.

Photographers seated on a rocky Alaska creek bank aim their cameras at a brown bear and three cubs directly in front of them. — Getting the shot while your heart is racing is no easy feat. Photographers share a rocky creek bank with a brown bear and three cubs in Alaska. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

Thirty Feet From a Mama Bear and Cubs

In front of us, maybe 30 feet away, is a large Alaskan Coastal brown bear; her cubs are another 5 feet behind her. She’s trying to catch a salmon; her cubs are impatiently waiting to be fed. Thirty feet does not feel like thirty feet under these conditions.

“I Know You Are There”

As the mama bear chases down bright red sockeye salmon, every so often she will glance at us and hold the stare: “I know you are there.” The look is terrifying and calming.

Tight close-up of a wet brown bear looking directly toward the camera with a red sockeye salmon held in its jaws. — Photo by Ken Baldwin

A Chance to Witness Something Extraordinary

This was an August day on Moraine Creek in Katmai National Preserve. If you are not familiar with Katmai National Preserve, it is a roughly 654-square-mile area in remote southwest Alaska. And because of the salmon run and wild rivers within the preserve, it’s also a place where a lot of bears congregate..

I Want to Do That

The experience I had that day in August happened because of Bear Haven, a lodge that specializes in guided bear viewing and photography. It puts you in the kind of landscape you’ve seen in National Geographic, Disney, Our Planet, and the work of world-class wildlife photographers on Instagram.

But it’s not just for professional photographers. It’s for outdoor enthusiasts who want to experience wild Alaska, or a painter who wants to capture not just what a bear looks like, but the energy that radiates from an animal of that size and power. That's a real thing, and experiencing it firsthand can give an artist more to bring to the canvas than appearance alone.

Brown bear sitting in water beneath leafy branches, holding a partially eaten sockeye salmon in its clawed paw. — We were so close that you could hear the crunching of the salmon between the bear's teeth. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

It’s also for writers looking for a story—or maybe you are someone who simply wants to watch bears go about their lives. It’s a chance to experience what few people do.

Photographer in the foreground aims a camera at a brown bear shaking off water, a cub feeding beside it near a rocky bank. — Getting the shot while your heart is racing is no easy feat. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

Are You Ready to Be Around Wild Bears?

You need to be comfortable outdoors, can stay calm around large, wild animals, and follow your guide’s directions. You don’t need to be in top athletic form, but you do need to be able to hike, carry a backpack, get up from a squat, and spend a full day outdoors, sometimes in challenging weather. If your guide says, “Get up and move, now,” you’d better be able to get up and move—NOW.

If you can do all that, the rewards are worth it. This is an experience that can blow your mind and even change you in some ways. I’ve seen that happen. And if you’re a photographer with a zoom lens reaching 200mm, you may come home with some once-in-a-lifetime images.

Photographer wearing waders stands in a creek beside a tripod-mounted camera with a long telephoto lens. — You’ll have opportunities to take once-in-a-lifetime photos. A Peak Design travel tripod, and a lens reaching at least 200mm helped me get photos that were clear, close and detailed. | Photo by Forrest Carpenter

When Bear Viewing Meant Roughing It

Years ago, I guided bear-viewing camps for photographers. It was exciting, fun, and definitely an adventure, but it took a lot of planning and effort, and nothing was ever smooth. It involved tents, freeze-dried food, poor sleeping conditions, a lot of physical work, and going days at a time without conveniences.

People work around tents beside an Alaska river, with windblown fabric and paddles mounted on a blue frame in the foreground. — Setting up camp in 30 mph winds is hard work. Trying to sleep with those winds whipping the tent fabric all night is harder. After three days, you are sleep-deprived, worn out, and much of the fun has gone out of the trip. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

Bear Haven Improves On the Tent Camps.

Bear Haven was built to provide bear viewing experiences for adventure travelers and photography enthusiasts who want to get out into wild Alaska and have a good place to come back to. It’s not roughing it. It’s not glamping. It is an intense wilderness adventure with a real Alaskan lodge waiting for you at the end of the day.

Aerial view of a wooden lodge with a red roof above a winding river, surrounded by dense green forest beneath cloudy skies. — The guides take you to the bears, and at the end of the day, you return to a warm, rustic lodge in the middle of the tundra. | Photo provided by Bear Haven Lodge

Experienced Guides and Staff

The people running Bear Haven know these waters from years of guiding anglers. The same creeks where the good trout fishing happens are also the waters that the bears frequent to catch salmon. Years of experience mean they know where to find bears and how to guide people around them.

A guide leads guests up a grassy lakeside trail, with a red-winged floatplane resting on the water behind them. — Photo by Ken Baldwin

The Lodge: A Place to Recharge, With Good Food and Company

After an intense, physical day around bears, exposed to changing weather and adrenaline rushes, you return to your own warm, dry room. It's rustic and mostly wood, with a private bathroom, shower, and a comfortable bed. Step onto the porch, and you'll see the river and tundra stretching out to the mountains. Having a place to restore your energy, review your photographs, recharge your gear, and prepare for the next day is invaluable.

Wood-paneled guest room with two beds, bear-patterned quilts, a bedside lamp, and a bathroom area with a sink and shower. — Coming back to this after a cold day on the tundra is gold. | Photo provided by Bear Haven Lodge

Winding Down

A hot shower never felt better, and you are still high from being so close to bears, maybe even getting the best photos of your life. You grab your computer and head to the lodge's main room. It serves as a social area with snacks, coffee, food, workspace, and has comfortable leather chairs in front of extra-large viewing windows.

Wood-paneled lodge lounge with leather chairs, a dining table, log pillars, and windows overlooking a river and forest. — I made some good friends, had great food, and shared an excellent bottle of bourbon while taking in that view. | Photo provided by Bear Haven Lodge

Other photographers show up, and you talk about the day—the funny or amazing stuff that happened, and the great shots you got and missed. Soon, you’re looking through each other’s photos. You don’t go too deep into it. Most of you are exhausted and just winding down, waiting for dinner.

The Food Is Part of the Experience

Chef Ryan Milton prepares your dinners. He knocks it out of the park with his dishes, many of them featuring local Alaskan ingredients, wild game, and fish. My favorite meal of the week was the wild halibut. I'm a sucker for desserts, and he knows how to do that too.

Dinner After a Day in Wild Alaska

I really believe food tastes better out here, for three reasons. First, Chef Ryan is a highly skilled chef who prepares hearty meals that celebrate Alaska. Second, you’ve earned it. After a physical day in the tundra and whatever the weather throws at you, those rich flavors and generous meals are especially satisfying. Third, there’s the company. You’re still buzzing from encounters with wild bears and sharing stories with others who are riding as high as you are. Good food brings it all together.

A guest holds a dinner plate piled with meat, asparagus, zucchini, and other sides in the lodge dining area. — Chef Ryan Milton makes sure you eat good during your week at Bear Haven Lodge. | Photo provided by Bear Haven Lodge

The Main Room

This is the lodge’s epicenter, and you can't get this in a tent camp. This room is part lounge, part dining room, and a place to socialize; plus, you can set up workstations to organize and edit photos.

My favorite part of the evening was sharing a bottle of fine bourbon while going over the day’s photos with better photographers than me. When you’re all in it together and passing around the bourbon, knowledge and expertise flow easily. I learned more during those evenings than any workshop or book has ever taught me.

The De Havilland Beaver

There are no roads or convenient transportation options out here. You either hike, fly, or take a boat. Bear Haven Lodge uses a classic De Havilland Beaver floatplane to get you where the bears are. It is a beautiful, old-school bush plane built for the demands of remote wilderness flying. Flying in one takes you back to an older Alaska.

The engine rumbles like a Harley Davidson - you can feel it in your seat. The body looks retro, and the cockpit is filled with old-school analog gauges, levers, and switches.

Sometimes you are flying only feet off the ground. It’s a heck of a ride. The plane can take off and land in tight spaces and, equipped with floats, turns Alaska’s lakes and rivers into landing strips. Flying in one takes you back in time and is a cool part of the adventure.

Bear Haven Gets the Balance Right

You spend the day out in wild Alaska, having bear encounters that can wear you out and leave you invigorated at the same time. Then you return to the lodge, get comfortable, eat a good meal, and talk over the day with people who were right there with you. Bear Haven gets the balance right and makes adventure travel accessible for the person who wants to get out into the wild and end the day with comfort and good food.

One More Thing for the Fly Anglers

I know most of my readers are fly anglers. The idea of going to Alaska and not fishing—especially when you’re walking creeks and rivers stuffed with world-class wild rainbow trout—would feel like cruel and unusual punishment.

But bear viewing and getting some good photos sound appealing, too. Maybe two days watching bears and the rest of the week fly-fishing?

Royal Wolf Lodge

Next door to Bear Haven, on the same property, is its sister lodge, Royal Wolf, a premier, dedicated fly-fishing lodge run by the same management and crew that operates Bear Haven. At the Royal Wolf Lodge, you can book a week of mostly fishing with some bear viewing. Bring a fly rod, bring a camera; you’re in one of the best places in the world to make both experiences happen. ~ KB

Follow me on Instagram @KenBaldwin7. I share the stories behind my articles, photos from my fly-fishing adventures, lots of Alaskan Brown Bear photography, gear I’m testing, and the outdoor places that inspire them.

"Slow down...listen to the hoppers...be patient with yer wife...eat sardines with hot sauce... catch “Gagger” trout!!!" – Flip Pallot

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