Located in the far northwest of the continent and separated from Siberia by the narrow and often frozen Bering Strait, Alaska is very much North America’s last wild frontier. Here wildlife still exists in an abundance and diversity not seen elsewhere on the continent since the arrival of the white settlers. Alaska is perhaps the ultimate bear viewing location, home to the largest Brown Bears on the continent if not the planet, including arguably the biggest of them all, the near mythical Kodiak Bear, as well as its inland/alpine cousin the Grizzly Bear. The resourceful Black Bear, and in the far north, the mighty Polar Bear complete this ursine cast of characters.

In Alaska bear viewing is generally conducted on foot, in small groups (e.g. maximum 6 people), and in the company of expert guides. Nowhere else in the world can you safely come face to face with more and bigger bears than in Alaska. Here it is possible to sit quietly while giant Coastal Brown Bears catch salmon or graze on estuarine sedge grasses only yards away. While organised bear viewing is in its infancy elsewhere in North America, it has been carefully developed in Alaska for more than 2 decades so the bears have become accustomed to human observers and no longer see them as a threat.

While it is often said that everything is bigger in America, in Alaska it is quantifiably true. As well as the biggest bears, the Alaska/Yukon Moose is the biggest of its ilk, and Alaska is also home Mount McKinley, at a staggering 20,320 feet (6,177 meters), the tallest mountain in North America. Alaska encompasses an incredible diversity of habitat from temperate rainforest and taiga forest, to alpine and arctic tundra. This diversity is reflected in its terrestrial wildlife which includes Coastal Brown Bears, Grizzly Bears, Black Bears, Polar Bears, Wolves, Wolverines, Artic Foxes, Lynx, Moose, Caribou, Mountain Goats, Snowshoe Hare, Pica, Arctic Ground Squirrels. It also offers outstanding birding opportunities with Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle, Gyrfalcon, Peregrine Falcon, Horned Puffin, Tufted Puffin, Storm Petrel, and Parakeet Auklet just a few of the species that can be seen here.

Surrounded on 3 sides by the Pacific Ocean and Bering, Chukchi & Beaufort Seas, Alaska's coastal waters are also incredibly rich and are home to Sea Otters, Seals, Steller Sea Lions, Walrus, Minke Whales, and Orcas. They also play host to visiting giants including Humpback Whales, Fin Whales, and Bowhead Whales. Alaska also has some of the most important seabird nesting sites in North America. Many are on remote rocky islands where safe from mammal predators, the birds can nest safely on the ground or in burrows.

Whether you want to enjoy up close and personal encounters with Brown Bears in Katmai National Park or on Kodiak Island, see Alaska’s “Big 5” (Grizzly Bear, Wolf, Moose, Caribou, and Dall Sheep) and the splendour of Mount McKinley in Denali National Park, or see Sea Otters nurse their pups, Humpback Whales breach, and Glaciers calve on the Kenai Peninsula, let Bear Trails take you on an adventure of a lifetime to North America’s last frontier. We can arrange tailor made tours combining Alaska’s best bear viewing, whale watching, scenery, and cultural experiences.