Bears 2016 - Gerlach Nature Photography

Bears of Katmai
Sept 1 - 6, 2016 - Limited to 11 guest
2466 S 1100 E, Hagerman, Idaho 83332 Phone 208-244-1887 [email protected]
The Fabulous Coastal Brown Bear Photo Tour at Geographic Harbor
I traveled with Chuck Keim who owns and skippers the Coastal Explorer three times in the past three years.
Chuck is the first captain to lead coastal bear viewing and photo trips. Nobody has more experience at
finding the bears than Chuck. Two trips took place in early July and the other was in early September. The trips
were hugely successful, the fall trip features the bears fishing for salmon. Many of the images are posted on our
instructional Facebook page. To view, please go to www.Facebook.com/GerlachNaturePhotographyWorkshops.
The Coastal Explorer
Our small ship is a floating hotel for about a dozen people. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are included in the
price while aboard the ship. Since the boat is already near the best bear viewing areas, we won’t have to sail the
open sea too much. I am prone to seasickness, but don’t find the Coastal Explorer to be a problem as Chuck
avoids rough water and knows where all of the sheltered bays are located. Since we are photographing the bears
along the shore, it is easy for Chuck to avoid rough water.
The Bear Photography Experience
Most likely we will spend our time at Hallo Bay and Geographic Harbor where the salmon are spawning and
where many Coastal Brown Bears live. They are feeding on salmon, and spend a lot of time near the rivers. These
bears are habituated to humans, which allows a close and safe approach. Our guides carry bear spray, but have
never needed to use it. In some cases, the shore may be too rocky to land, so we will approach the bears closely by
water and photograph them handheld from the skiff. In this case, an
image-stabilized system is helpful for producing sharp images.
Our group will use a small boat (skiff) to land on the beach. Then
we will slowly walk among the bears to search for the best ones to
photograph. There are always plenty of adult bears to photograph.
About two dozen were present last year. We like to keep our distance,
so we try to stay at least 40 yards from the huge bears, which allows
photographers to easily fill the frame with the impressive animals.
However, bears sometimes wander closer. Obviously, 40 yards is
plenty close to a 1,000 pound bear. We stay in a close group for safety
and to avoid putting pressure on the fishing bears.
Since we are living on the boat, if other bear locations prove to be better for photos, then we will move on to
the best spots. Sea Hawk Air runs one-day bear viewing trips and they know where the best concentrations are
found. This information is relayed to Chuck, so he knows the most productive spots at all times.
Bears are actively fishing most of the day and easily provided photo opportunities. When the bears are
present and the weather and tide are favorable we will go out photographing the bears. We will return for lunch.
During our evenings with the bears we will stay out until we lose the light when the sun sets below the horizon.
Camera Gear
You don’t need a lot to photograph bears. The ideal lens is a Nikon 200-400mm or a Canon 200-400mm lens.
You want to have 400mm available for more distant bears and hopefully some bears running up the river. A
tripod is helpful for holding the camera and lens in position while awaiting an attractive pose. If you are using a
camera with a crop factor (small sensor), consider what it does to your focal length. If your camera has a 1.5x crop
factor, the field of view of a
300mm lens is similar to a
much longer 450mm lens. The
focal length is still 300mm, but
the bear will be much larger in
the viewfinder!
Here is a list of the
equipment that I am taking.
You do not need to duplicate
this list. It is meant only as a
guide to help you decide what
to bring. Remember, I typically
favor long focal length lenses,
but keep in mind all of my
cameras have full-frame
sensors, so I need the reach of
a 400mm to make the bears
large in the image at times.
Barb’s Nikon Gear
This is what Barb will bring
Nikon D4 and D4S
Nikon 200-400mm lens
Nikon 1.4x and 1.7x teleconverters Nikon 24-85mm lens
Gitzo tripod
Kirk BH-1 ball head
Wimberley Sidekick
Nikon SB-800 flash
This is my list - your guideline - I don’t expect you to have all this - bring comparable.
If you use Canon Gear
Here are some suggestions
Two Canon Cameras
Canon 200-400mm lens with built-in 1.4 teleconverter
Canon 24-105mm
Gitzo tripod
Kirk BH-1 ball head
Canon Flash
Wimberley Sidekick
Your guideline - I don’t expect you to have all this - bring comparable.
Miscellaneous Items to bring
Here are some suggestions
Laptop computer with 1.5TB external hard drive for storing images
Battery charger for the AA batteries
Chargers for camera and computer
Lens cleaner, blower for sensor
What to Wear
Alaska is often cool and wet, especially in September. You won’t be too hot. Don’t overdo what you wear.
Hiking boots that resist water, rain pants, rain jacket that can go over your normal warm jacket, and a rain hat
for both your head and the camera will come in handy. Even waterproof gloves might be helpful. Bring
warm clothes to prepare for the worst. On our last visit in September, it rained a couple of days
and we enjoyed temperatures in the low fifties. Again, prepare for the worst and hope for better! The boat
provides hip boots for making wet landings where you must step out of the small boat and wade a short distance
to dry land.
Getting to the Coastal Explorer
Fly to Anchorage and then take a connecting flight to Kodiak. If the weather is good, it is possible to
overnight in Anchorage and take a morning flight to Kodiak. At the airport in Kodiak call Sea Hawk Air
at (907) 486-8282 and they will pick you up. The flight to Kodiak is not included in the package price.
However, the floatplane fare of $550 is included in the package. It takes about one hour to fly from
Kodiak out to the Coastal Explorer. The plane lands on the water near the ship.
I don’t trust the weather, so I will be arriving in Kodiak one day early. I will stay at the Shelikof
Lodge for one night. To get to the hotel while at the airport call the Shelikof Lodge at (907) 486-4141.
They will pick you up if you decide to arrive early. Let me know if you plan to do this so we can get
together, but please make your own reservations at the lodge.
Heading Home
The floatplane will pick us up around noon on Sept 6 and return to the Sea Hawk Air dock. From there
we are transported by van to the airport in Kodiak. Then we plan to take a flight to Anchorage. It might
be possible to connect with a night flight to fly on to your final destination, so do check into this
possibility. Otherwise, you will need accommodations in Anchorage. Do not book your flight out of Kodiak
before 5 PM.
Daily Schedule
Sept 1-Sea Hawk Air flies you to the boat and will let you know that morning what time your flight is
scheduled. It usually happens around noon.
Sept 2-5-All days will be on the boat with shore excursions to photograph the bears.
Sept 6-Usually around noon, Sea Hawk Air picks us up and flies us back to Kodiak where we will be driven
to the airport or a hotel if you prefer to overnight in Kodiak.
Meals
Three delicious meals a day are served on board the boat. No food is allowed when ashore due to bear visitor
safety concerns. The bears leave humans alone and we want to keep it that way! We don’t want to teach bears that
humans have food to eat.
Tour Cost - $6100 per person
What’s included:
Roundtrip Sea Hawk Air floatplane flight out to the Coastal Explorer boat
6 - breakfast
7 – lunch
6 – dinner
Lodging on board the boat (double occupancy)
Intensive photo instruction from Barbara Eddy (Gerlach)
What is not included:
Items of a personal nature
Transportation to Kodiak and return
Tips to the boat staff
Motel rooms in Alaska should you wish to use them
Sleeping accommodations
The boat can handle a total of 11 guests plus Barbara. For our guests, we have five double staterooms, so you
must have a roommate. It is no big deal because you spend most of the time on shore photographing bears or in
the boats spacious community room where we work on computers and eat our meals.
I know you will find this bear photography trip to be tremendously fun and productive. I hope you
will join me! Space is strictly limited, so please call us now at 208-244-1887 or email [email protected]
to secure your spot.
Have a delightful day!!
Warm Wishes and Big Hugs,
Barbara Eddy (Gerlach)
2466 S 1100 E, Hagerman, Idaho 83332 Phone 208-244-1887 [email protected]