Just a side note for people who want to see a lot of bears and cant get into Katmai. We took a plane into Lake Clark from Anchorage and saw lots of bears on the beach and a few got very close. It was a 1,000 per person and we used Alaska Air Services.
If you fly in rather than taking the boat to the park I strongly suggest you take ear plugs if you are sensitive to noise. Float planes can be extremely loud.
Oh yes! They fly lower so the scenery is really nice, but they are loud! We were lucky in that the day we went was calm. I can easily imagine being tossed around a lot on a windy day!
Make sure you pick the right season if you want to see salmon jumping. It does vary a bit year to year. Around July 4th worked great for us. You do have to contend with more people at the platform between 10 and 4 though.
Thanks for sharing the wonderful experience of bear watching 😀 We are going for a day trip to the park this late June. Could not get a spot in the lodge though. (The management office told us that July and August are fully booked for not only 2021, but also 2022 already🙃)
Have fun! Very late June should give you wonderful views of bears catching salmon. You may have to be patient because you are going to be a "day tripper" and will be there when it's most crowded but all of it is well worth the trip!
I watch the Katmai bear cam every summer. I was surprised by how many people visit the park. It is so remote and hard to get to I just couldn't imagine it got that many visitors unless you were really hard core. A lottery just to find a place to sleep is ridiculous.
Yeh... hard to get to and very expensive, but to see it live is just precious! Hard to appreciate how big and yet nimble they are unless you see them in person.
@@JourneytoAllNationalParks This is a bit off topic for this particular video but I was wondering what you would think of visiting Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Oklahoma. I was thinking it might be a fun video because it used to be, at least part of it used to be anyway, Platt National Park. It was a national park before it was downgraded to a national recreation area. It is still a part of the national park service but no longer a national park
I've heard of Otis.... Didn't realize that was the bear! They are just so fun to watch and if you get to know them, I'll bet it's satisfying to watch them year after year.
The lottery is even more difficult to win than when this video was made. I entered the 2023 lottery, had very flexible dates in September, and I'm about number 300 on the waitlist. The lottery entries have grown dramatically. We're making other plans because we may never get in at the lodge, and we really want to visit the AK peninsula.
Wow!! Looks like you will need to make day trips to Brooks Falls. One option is to go to Lake Clark NP and get a tour from there to Katmai. We went to Lake Clark and stayed at the Farm Lodge. They had day trips to Katmai. We were very lucky to get July 1-2 dates for 2019 by entering the lottery in January of 2017. I didn't realize the rush to National Parks reached all the way to Katmai!
@@JourneytoAllNationalParks Yes, we're definitely going to make other plans. I'm not going to wait for years to try to beat the odds and get into the lodge. We want to visit the all the parks in the peninsula next year anyway, not just Katmai, so we'll be all over. Thank you for the tip.
4 days and 3 nights. One day at Brooks Falls, one day on the tour of land with 10,000 smokes. The first and last days were mostly travel from Anchorage through King Salmon.
Yes. You can go as many times as you want. You only have to wait if there are others waiting. If you stay there over your, after the day trippers leave, there usually isn’t a wait.
You should put your name on the lottery list now. When we did this, the lottery took place in January of 2018 for summer of 2019. If the same thing holds, they should do the lottery in January of 2021 for summer for 2023.
@@stacyk.9389 Here is the link to the 2022 lottery, which is now over, but it will be updated on Dec 1 for the 2023 lottery: katmailand.com/brooks-lodge-lottery/
No risk there, at least not on the platforms. They make it a point to teach people how to behave and have not had any serious incident since the 1930s. When you are up close, these animals are much bigger than what you see on video or pictures
Just a side note for people who want to see a lot of bears and cant get into Katmai. We took a plane into Lake Clark from Anchorage and saw lots of bears on the beach and a few got very close. It was a 1,000 per person and we used Alaska Air Services.
Thank you for this video! Excellent explanation of what to expect. Saved a lot of time and money
You're welcome!
excellent quality and content, ty
If you fly in rather than taking the boat to the park I strongly suggest you take ear plugs if you are sensitive to noise. Float planes can be extremely loud.
Oh yes! They fly lower so the scenery is really nice, but they are loud! We were lucky in that the day we went was calm. I can easily imagine being tossed around a lot on a windy day!
Well done.excellent summary
Thanks for watching. Have you been to Katmai? Also checkout this video on Katmai: ua-cam.com/video/Y3-VsogWs1k/v-deo.html
Excellent video! well put together! thank you so much for sharing!.....Can't wait to go!
It’s a dream of mine! ❤
Great video. Hopefully a day trip for me in 2024
Make sure you pick the right season if you want to see salmon jumping. It does vary a bit year to year. Around July 4th worked great for us. You do have to contend with more people at the platform between 10 and 4 though.
Thank you! Great info for our trip in 2 weeks!
nice! will you be staying there overnight?
Thanks for sharing the wonderful experience of bear watching 😀
We are going for a day trip to the park this late June. Could not get a spot in the lodge though. (The management office told us that July and August are fully booked for not only 2021, but also 2022 already🙃)
Have fun! Very late June should give you wonderful views of bears catching salmon. You may have to be patient because you are going to be a "day tripper" and will be there when it's most crowded but all of it is well worth the trip!
Very informative video! Pictures were helpful to understand the process. Thanks!
Glad it was helpful!
Wow $$$$. Excellent presentation.
Thank you. Yes, it is expensive but if you are into this stuff, it's a bucket list item!
Trop beau ❤
We came in by boat. Of course they were private boats and small 14 foot Lund, what an adventure we started at King, Salmon.
Thank you!! I’m in Egegik for tender season and had no idea I was this close!! I won’t go home until I get to see this!!!
Good suggestions!! I just went last week and all of this is true!
Glad it was helpful! Did you enjoy it? Was the salmon jumping in August?
Nice avatar! From there?
@@JourneytoAllNationalParks Yes, the salmon run was delayed so we saw up to 30 bears a night at the falls
I watch the Katmai bear cam every summer. I was surprised by how many people visit the park. It is so remote and hard to get to I just couldn't imagine it got that many visitors unless you were really hard core. A lottery just to find a place to sleep is ridiculous.
Yeh... hard to get to and very expensive, but to see it live is just precious! Hard to appreciate how big and yet nimble they are unless you see them in person.
@@JourneytoAllNationalParks This is a bit off topic for this particular video but I was wondering what you would think of visiting Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Oklahoma. I was thinking it might be a fun video because it used to be, at least part of it used to be anyway, Platt National Park. It was a national park before it was downgraded to a national recreation area. It is still a part of the national park service but no longer a national park
We won the lottery fir July 2023. So excited!!
I have flown on a seaplane. Worth the experience I assure you
Yes! The flight is part of the fun
@1:17 that bear is Otis, one of the most popular bears at Katmai.
I've heard of Otis.... Didn't realize that was the bear! They are just so fun to watch and if you get to know them, I'll bet it's satisfying to watch them year after year.
The lottery is even more difficult to win than when this video was made. I entered the 2023 lottery, had very flexible dates in September, and I'm about number 300 on the waitlist. The lottery entries have grown dramatically. We're making other plans because we may never get in at the lodge, and we really want to visit the AK peninsula.
Wow!! Looks like you will need to make day trips to Brooks Falls. One option is to go to Lake Clark NP and get a tour from there to Katmai. We went to Lake Clark and stayed at the Farm Lodge. They had day trips to Katmai.
We were very lucky to get July 1-2 dates for 2019 by entering the lottery in January of 2017. I didn't realize the rush to National Parks reached all the way to Katmai!
@@JourneytoAllNationalParks Yes, we're definitely going to make other plans. I'm not going to wait for years to try to beat the odds and get into the lodge. We want to visit the all the parks in the peninsula next year anyway, not just Katmai, so we'll be all over. Thank you for the tip.
Keep trying!
Holy shit. I had no idea it was THAT hard and expensive. I definitely do not have 3.000 dollars...
It's expensive to get there! And everything in Alaska is more expensive, but the sights / wildlife are great.
Man. So expensive. I didnt know it would be 3400 just to make it there and to spend a night
Yes.... it is expensive.
Yeah... anything that involves aviation isn't cheap.
do they have any cell reception out there ?
Not when we visited in 2019. Nice place to disconnect and go off line for a while!
So, if you stay in the campground is there any type of fencing to protect people sleeping in a tent from the bears ?
Yes. There is electric fencing around parts of the campground.
How long did you spend there?
4 days and 3 nights. One day at Brooks Falls, one day on the tour of land with 10,000 smokes. The first and last days were mostly travel from Anchorage through King Salmon.
So you only get an hour ? Can you return for another hour ?
Yes. You can go as many times as you want. You only have to wait if there are others waiting. If you stay there over your, after the day trippers leave, there usually isn’t a wait.
Thank you
How far in advance can you enter the lottery? We were hoping to go in 2023.
You should put your name on the lottery list now. When we did this, the lottery took place in January of 2018 for summer of 2019. If the same thing holds, they should do the lottery in January of 2021 for summer for 2023.
@@JourneytoAllNationalParks thank you, will do.
How do you get on the lottery list?
@@stacyk.9389 Here is the link to the 2022 lottery, which is now over, but it will be updated on Dec 1 for the 2023 lottery: katmailand.com/brooks-lodge-lottery/
@Stacy K. enter dec 1st to 31st... there's a fb page for it. They had double the entries for 2024, so I'm out ☹️
Who wants to risk life and go close to bears
No risk there, at least not on the platforms. They make it a point to teach people how to behave and have not had any serious incident since the 1930s. When you are up close, these animals are much bigger than what you see on video or pictures
honestly me
Me… wildlife photographers.
How lovely that experiencing things like this is limited to the wealthy. 🤦♂️