A bear catches a salmon. Bears are a common sight at the Anan Wildlife Observatory.
Two black bear cubs doing some exploring.
Dee Galla going over some safety guidelines before beginning the hike to the wildlife observatory.
A brown bear enjoys a snack as he floats down the creek.
A black bear waits on a rock for its next catch.
From left to right: Paul Robbins, Leslie Skora, Michael Saxton, Dana Roth, Dee Galla, Tory Houser, and June Leffler.
Early on Thursday morning, several members of the U.S. Forest Service left Wrangell with some guests for a trip to the Anan Wildlife Observatory. Present on the trip were Michael Saxton and Leslie Skora with the Katmai National Park. They were visiting Anan for an "information swap," they explained. They wanted to learn about some of the best practices in wildlife observation they could take from Anan, and also provide some tips to the Forest Service in the Wrangell district. Acting Deputy Forest Supervisor Dana Roth, Tory Houser with the Forest Service, Public Affairs Officer for the Tongass National Forest Paul Robbins and June Leffler with KSTK also were on the trip.
The Anan Wildlife Observatory is located south of Wrangell Island on the mainland along Anan Creek. According to the Forest Service's website, the creek has the largest run of pink salmon in Southeast Alaska. This glut of fish leads to a large number of bears living in the area, especially in the summer. Bears are the main attraction for visitors, but there are a lots of other wildlife to see in the area, as well. The salmon also attract bald eagles in large numbers and seals can often be seen in the nearby harbor.
The group from Wrangell was lead to the observation site by Forest Service member Dee Galla. Before beginning the hike, she went over some safety guidelines for everyone to follow. The bears around Anan are accustomed to seeing humans, she said, but they are still wild animals and need to be treated with caution. The basic safety rules are to never leave the trail, leave all food behind, and to not act out of the ordinary if a bear appeared on the trail.
"I can talk about this all day long, but until you're face to face with a bear you don't know how you're going to react," she said.
Galla also said that it is important to make sure bears are aware of your presence on the trail to avoid spooking them. During the hike she would occasionally call out "Hey bears!" into the woods. She said talking was a good way to make noise to keep bears at a distance. Some other forms of making noise, such as wearing bells on clothes, she said was probably more of a detriment at Anan than a benefit.
"That's actually a really bad idea," she said about the bells. "It's an unusual sound and they're like, 'what the hell is that?' It is useful in other places ... but they're curious up here."
While leading the group up the trail, Galla also talked about how they worked to keep Anan a special place for both people and wildlife. During the peak season, between July 5 and August 25, the Forest Service only allows 60 people a day to visit. There have been several recent improvements to the trail, such as an outhouse that was constructed last spring. They also had a survey done recently to see about replacing boardwalk sections of the hiking trail with gravel. The Forest Service has also recently completed plans to enlarge and improve the viewing area of the observatory, which they will soon be seeking funding for. However, Galla said that they are reluctant to increase the number of visitors to the area.
"We're trying really hard not to increase our cap[acity]," she said. "That's what makes Anan what it is."
To learn more about Anan, or how to apply for a permit to visit the observatory, visit http://www.fs.usda.gov and search for "Anan Wildlife Observatory Site."
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