The Thankful crew was operating like a finely tuned machine yesterday as we divided and conquered our to-do list in Wrangle. The laundry got washed, dried, and folded in the laundromat. Provisioning was done at the supermarket. Beer was purchased at the liquor store. Bug screening was found at the hardware store. Postcards were mailed, and the blog got written. We were sprinting to get our chores done in time to make it down to Anan Bay before the facility there closed for the day at 6PM.
Anan Creek is the site of one of southeast Alaska's largest pink salmon runs, and the bears know it. Approximately forty bears, both brown and black, feed on the migrating salmon at the rapids near the bottom of the creek. The U.S. Forest Service constructed a viewing platform overlooking the rapids where visitors can safely watch the bears feeding right up close. Admission is limited to sixty visitors per day to minimize the impact on the otherwise wild bears, and we were lucky enough to get tickets for yesterday.
Thankful cast off from the dock in Wrangle at noon, unsure if we would make the thirty mile passage to Anan in time to see the bears. Fortunately, we picked up some tidal assist along the way and anchored off of the mouth of Anan Creek at 4PM, plenty of time.
The four of us dinghied in to the beach at the mouth of the creek where we were met by a ranger who took our tickets and gave us a ten minute briefing on the facility. The viewing platform was a half mile inland at the end of a nicely maintained boardwalk through the dense forest. Bears also use the boardwalk, because they don't like bushwhacking either, so we were briefed on how to prevent a bear encounter (make noise), and how to handle one should it occur. We were loaned a can of bear spray, just in case the preferred encounter preventive measures didn't work so well.
Thoroughly flustered by the ranger's warnings and expecting to come face-to-face with a man-eating bear at every turn in the trail, team Thankful marched inland toward the viewing platform. The ladies were singing loudly to warn any bears that might be near of our presence. Eagles perched in the trees stared wide eyed at the strange creatures singing the horribly off-key tunes as they passed. After ten minutes of terror, we approached the viewing platform where we were waved in by the ranger on duty there.
There were seven black bears feeding at the rapids. The scene resembled a Genki Sushi restaurant with the patrons staring at the conveyor belt as a multitude of treats passed by within easy reach. The bears sat in or near the water scooping salmon out of the creek as the fish struggled up stream. They'd eat the choicest parts of the salmon, discard the rest, and return to fishing. There were three cubs there with their mothers, and the mamas were sharing their catch with the kids. One large bear had a foot long gash in its flank. The ranger told us that it was likely a young male that had gotten a little too close to some cubs and was punished for it by mom.
Thoroughly satisfied with our experience, we headed back to the boat. Fortunately, we never encountered a bear on the boardwalk, but we did see some cross it while we were on the viewing platform.
Thankful spent a peaceful evening anchored nine miles further south in Frosty Bay, and this morning we are headed for Meyers Chuck where we plan to hide from another low pressure system that is approaching from the west.
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