Wandering Into a Bears Picnic

Wandering into a Bear’s Picnic 20 May 2007

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Wandering into a bears’ picnic

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Grizzlies, bald eagles, glaciers . . . Roderick Eime encounters them all in the Alaskan wilds

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Catch of the day: Bear with salmon; a bald eagle; and below, Wrangell township in its sheltered bay

BEYOND the well-trafficked sea lanes and cruise-ship haunts of Alaska’s Inside Passage lies the true Alaska, a wild frontier where, if you stroll in the woods, you take a cut lunch and a .303. ‘‘Walk loudly, sing songs, whatever,’’ says the young ranger at Anan’s visitor station. ‘‘You don’t want to surprise the bears. If they hear you coming, they’re a lot more relaxed.’’

We’ve just arrived at the Anan Bear Sanctuary in Jim Leslie’s 600hp jet boat, Chutine Warrior.

The trip took less than an hour from the quaint seaside village of Wrangell, tucked delicately into a sheltered bay on the island of the same name.

It’s here that Leslie and his wife Wilma operate Alaska Water, a tiny tour company that caters for small groups and independent travellers in search of the ‘‘real’’ Alaska.

For many, the postcard-perfect fishing hamlet is just another whistle stop on an Inside Passage cruise aboard a big ship.

Australians are travelling to this part of the world in record numbers — the vast majority aboard huge luxury liners that ply the Inside Passage between Vancouver and Anchorage — but I’m here for a longer look at the charms of small-town Alaska.

I watched as the enormous Norwegian Sun disgorged its cargo of 2000 sandal-clad tourists on to the wharf at Wrangell.

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I saw them disappear into the little stores and boutiques while others were whisked away on whirlwind tours to the local museum and native monuments.

All the while, I wondered what they were really experiencing of the wild, untamed Alaska that lurked a few kilometres away.

Back at Anan, Jim Leslie corrals us together for the short trek to the viewing station. The path is a plain dirt track leading into the woods and along the edge of a rushing stream overflowing with spawning salmon.

Leslie slings his .303 rifle over his shoulder, but his big can of pepper spray is our first line of defence. ‘‘I’ve never used either so far,’’ he admits.

Around the first corner, we sight a huge grizzly sitting in the middle of the stream.

We immediately gasp in unison, some of us clutching nervously at one another, but Leslie invites us to linger a moment and watch. ‘‘Hey, buddy!’’ he yells at the big carnivore, making sure he knows we’re there. ‘‘Howya doing?’’

The bear turns momentarily in our direction, but just as quickly goes back to playfully swatting salmon with his huge paw. He’s completely unconcerned about our presence. ‘‘The only time you’ll get into trouble,’’ Leslie reminds us, ‘‘is if you get between a mother and her cubs or their intended destination, whatever that is. The bears are so full of salmon, they’re not interested in eating you.’’

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CANADA Anchorage

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Wrangell

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Wrangell, Alaska

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Getting there: Alaska Airlines’ twice-daily service from Anchorage, or a selection of cruise and coastal shipping.

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a scant five days — I’ve explored glaciers, caught salmon, hung on for dear life while we shot the rapids, and experienced daily life in a little town when it wasn’t thronging with tourists.

You’ll see a lot of grand scenery from the deck of your cruise ship, but step off and you’ll discover the true wonders of wild Alaska.

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Each of the tall pines encircling the lake contains one or more juvenile bald eagles.

These magnificent birds are here for the smorgasbord laid out for them; overhead, many more wheel in formation just for the heck of it.

It gives me pause to reflect that during my stay with the Leslies —

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she deftly extracts a salmon from the stream. The trio then trot off into the woods to enjoy the meal.

This scenario plays out several more times as mothers and cubs come to feed on the plentiful supply of salmon.

The river spills into a small lake where corpses of expired and halfeaten salmon wash up on shore.

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More: Alaska specialist Spectrum Holidays (03) 8804 2420, (www.spectrumholidays.com. au) can arrange trips to Wrangell.

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The viewing station is little more than a picnic shelter, but gives us somewhere to hide from the light rain that continues to fall.

It’s not long before a female black bear and two gorgeous cubs amble past the station en route to the fish-laden river.

Barely glancing our way, she leaves her cubs on the bank while

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Stay: Stikine Inn, Zimovia B&B, GrandView B & B, Rooney’s Roost B & B, Fennimore’s B & B, Thunderbird Hotel.

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Activities: Hiking, fishing, sightseeing, golfing, bicycling.

Splendour: Traces of snow cap the mountains overlooking the valley near Wrangell. Inset below, the jet boat Chutine Warrior

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www.sundaytelegraph.com.au THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH escape May 20, 2007 21

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