If you love bears, then Katmai National Park is the place for you! This was by far one of the most memorable trips that I have ever taken. We arrived at Brooks Camp by sea plane (an awesome experience all in its own).
Brooks Camp
There are no roads that lead to Brooks Camp, so this was the only way to get there.
You can stay at Brooks Camp (for a maximum of three nights due to its popularity), or just go visit for the day. We opted to make the most of it, and stay for three nights. We had a small cabin that had two sets of bunk beds, and a small toilet and shower area. There is also the option to tent camp.
Upon arrival, we headed straight to the ranger station to attend “bear class”. There we learned all of the rules of the camp and what to do when close to a bear. This was very important because believe me, you will see a bear!
Just outside the camp area, there is a bridge that leads to a boardwalk platform for bear viewing. If there is a bear nearby, the bridge is closed until the bear passes through, as you have to be a certain distance away from the bears at all times. So be prepared to be stuck on one side of the bridge or the other for awhile! Beyond the platform is a trail that leads to Brooks Falls.
Bears!
We were on the platform at one point when a mother bear and her three cubs decided to come take a nap just below the platform! We were stuck on the platform for hours, but didn’t mind one bit… I mean, who gets to see this in real life? The mother and cubs plopped down literally right in front of us!
After resting, they browsed around for a bit, then to our surprise and enjoyment, mom laid down and started nursing her cubs!!! What an amazing experience to see this happen!!! After their lunch, the cubs were so cute with their milk mustaches. They rolled on the ground for a bit in a food coma.
I could have watched them all day! Baby bear feet are the cutest, and they were so roly poly looking with their cute playful attitudes!
Brooks Falls
Brooks Falls is gorgeous, and there are so many bears there! The bears come each year to Brooks Falls to catch the salmon making their way up the falls. What great photo ops!
I found myself silently cheering the bears on who were trying to catch the salmon. It was awesome seeing them succeed and eating their lunch!
The Valley of 10000 Smokes
Brooks Camp also offers a tour to The Valley of 10000 Smokes. I highly recommended this tour. The valley is filled with ash from a volcano that erupted in 1912. It was amazing to see how high the ash was piled, with the river that cut its way through the ash, making for some amazing scenery.
Yes, that wall on the far side of the river is ash! Incredible isn’t it? The tour guide picked us up in a bus at the bear viewing platform, and drove us the 23 miles to the lookout cabin at the Valley of 10000 smokes. We were given a sack lunch at the cabin. After lunch, it was an option to hike down into the valley to see the ash formations. The hike was moderately strenuous, but totally worth it! What an amazing thing to see!
Overnight Stay
If staying the night at Brooks Camp, a buffet breakfast, lunch, and dinner is available to purchase. No food is allowed in the cabins, or outside the dining lodge, for obvious reasons. Be prepared to have an up close and personal experience with the bears! Our last night in the cabin, we heard a weird noise outside. We looked out the front window and there was a huge grizzly bear on our porch! It stayed right outside our cabin eating the grass for quite some time. Talk about front row seats to an amazing show!
In addition to the bears, there is a huge variety of wildlife at Brooks Camp. Keep your eyes open for bald eagles and many other species of birds. If you’re lucky, you might even see a moose or a wolf! I hope if you enjoy wildlife and love bears, that you have the opportunity to visit Brooks Camp at Katmai National Park. It truly is a once in a lifetime experience you will never forget!
this is amazing!! i love bears and would love to be able to go see them like this!
You should definitely go here then! It was absolutely amazing!!!
Bears are one of my favorite animals! This place looks beautiful.
Great tips here. Your shots of the bears are incredible! I love the ones of him feasting on his hard earned catch! Most excellent 🙂
What an amazing experience! Your photos are gorgeous. Sounds like one for the bucket list.
Awesome pictures! I saw this park featured on a TV show and told my husband that we HAVE to go! What a great experience you must have had. I’m sharing this post!
We love to camp! We also had a bear encounter last year in Mammoth, CA. Not quite like your though! Such beautiful photos. Thank you for sharing.
What an amazing experience! I think I might have freaked out if a grizzly was so close to my door. I love animals though and would loved to see the mama and her cubs.
You are definitely brave to ride on an air boat plane.
Your photos are incredible.
I love the idea once you get off the airplane to go straight to bear class. We’ll have to add this to our family vacation #LiveList
Yes, and to make it more of a thrill, I sat in the co-pilot seat!! This is definitely a place to put on the bucket list!
How cute are these bears! I would love to do this. Thank you for sharing the info!
WOW!!! That is absolutely amazing!! To see them in their natural habitat, and with baby cubs?!?!?! AWE!!!
THIS IS AMAZING!!! I want to go so badly!!!
I didn’t think it was possible to get so close to a bear (let alone the bear and her cubs) and being safe. What an awesome experience!
It was definitely awesome! The people are all up on a high platform, so completely safe from the bears!
Katmai has always been a huge dream of mine! I LOVE bears, and can’t wait to see these cutie pies sometime soon. Loved your post and your photos. I feel inspired to start planning our trip! 🙂
Your photos are awesome! I remember the first time I saw a bear close up in Alaska, it scared me to death!
Beautiful pictures!!! It’s awesome to see that many bears in their own element. I have always wanted to land on water in a plane!
I live near Great Smoky Mountains National Park and encounter black bears quite frequently. Your bears are a whole different story!!! Beautiful animals for sure.
Bears and waterfalls! Sounds like a perfect day for a nature lover. I’ll be checking this place out!
Great pictures. I would not have been able to get that close to getting those shots. I’d be too scare.
This is incredible! Seeing those little cubs, how adorable!
What an amazing experience!! And your photos are beautiful!!
They are so cute and deceivingly cuddly. What a great trip so up close, but not too personal. I love it! I would totally want to check out this place.
Oh my goodness! I would LOVE to see bears up close like that. What a cool adventure.
The bears are so beautiful! Looks like an amazing trip!
What a beautiful place! I imagine it’s both thrilling and relaxing to be there, surrounded by such a peaceful, natural environment. I’m not super outdoorsy but I totally want to go.
What an incredible experience! Alaska is on my bucket list, and now I’ve added Katmai National Park.
What an amazing experience! Thank you so much for all of the in-depth information! I would love to do this one day. I will use your post as a guide for planning.
Bears scare me not sure if I could do this, so I admire you! But your photos are amazing. I can not imagine being able to watch those bears take a nap and nurse so close to you, that was an experience to remember. Thanks for sharing this experience. I did see bears when I went to Alaska from our car in Denali. That was all the bears I want to see. Except in photos.
The cubs are adorable. Loved the photo of the cub with tongue sticking out.
Which air service did you use? Some friends and I are planning a trip and are wanting to find the most efficient way to get there.
Hi Ronny! It looks like our flights were all arranged by Brooks Lodge as a package deal when we went. It was set up using Peninsula Airways (PenAir) from the Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage to King Salmon. Then a Katmai Air Service/Brooks Lodge shuttle bus picked us up at the King Salmon airport and took us to the seaplane service building where we boarded a seaplane for Katmai (I’m assuming which was run by Katmai Air). Hope this helps!!! Have an awesome trip! You will love it there!!
Thank you so much! I really appreciate it!