Bears & Wildlife — Wild Ayakulik

Walk With Giants

The Wildlife.

Kodiak Brown Bear, Ursus Arctos Middendorffi, is its own unique subspecies of Alaska Brown Bear. Genetically isolated since the Pleistocene, Kodiaks are THE BIGGEST BEARS IN THE WORLD! Reaching weights of over 1,500 pounds, they are truly a force of nature. At Ayakulik Wild, you will walk in the footsteps of GIANTS, a truly humbling and primal experience. Because the Ayakulik river is such an incredibly rich and diverse ecosystem, it attracts bears from all over Kodiak Island, beginning with a huge influx of sockeye salmon in early June.

With the salmon runs kicking into full swing and gathering momentum all summer, these bears will double their body weight by the end of October, layering up over 6 inches of fat! The opportunity to photograph bears in a wild setting with complete solitude, and no people, or planes around is unparalleled.

With the Ayakulik's relatively open country and short vegetation, the hiking and nature viewing is awe-inspiring beyond description. Solitude, tranquility, and clarity of mind are quite abundant. When climbing atop the high ridges, you can see 50 miles all the way across Shelikof Straight to the Alaska Peninsula. It truly is one of the most powerful experiences in Nature.

The kaleidoscope lens that is the Ayakulik is boundless and vast. On a given day you may hike a 12,000 year old bear trails while traversing forgotten mountainscapes as ptarmigan cackle and wildflowers bloom into a specticle of color. Witness the bounty of nature as bears and eagles gorge on salmon all day. Perhaps you may spy a heard of caribu thundering across the tundra, as swans, otters, and puddle ducks of all variety dip, dive, and weave through the river. Nature is around you all the time, radiant and alive!