Helicopter Bear Viewing Safari to the Alaska Peninsula
Homer, Alaska
Rating: 
Trip Type: Helicopter Tours
Duration: 7 hours
Helicopter transport to remote bear viewing locations on the Alaska Peninsula. Experience bear viewing like no one else. Pilot/guides have been leading tours for the past 14 years.
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Helicopter transport to remote bear viewing locations on the Alaska Peninsula. Experience bear viewing like no one else. Pilot/guides have been leading tours for the past 14 years.There is a choice between two different trips. The first leaves early in the morning and the other trip leaves in the afternoon. The office on Beluga Lake is within minutes of walking from downtown Homer. The pilot/guide will greet you when you arrive. A short safety briefing from the guide about the bear activity, location of the trip, how many bears and how close the bears will get to the group, and important points of how to make the day safe and fun for everyone. The client will pick up their company supplied snacks, water, binoculars, rain gear (if required), hip boots (if required), and bug spray and load into the helicopter. After a helicopter safety briefing we depart for bear country on the Alaska Peninsula. Flight time is between 40 and 60 minutes. Keep the camera handy for some spectacular scenery. Maybe even a whale or two could be spotted while flying over the Cook Inlet on our way to our landing location.
Once we land, everyone will disembark the helicopter and walk to a safe location where the group will sit and photograph bears. Depending on the bear activity, the guide may move the group from location to location ensuring the best photography spots. The guides have an intimate knowledge of the flora, grasses, natural history, and plenty of facts about bear behavior and habitat to keep the conversation fun and interesting for the whole tour. The best way to get close to bears is let them come to us. This method provides the least impact on wildlife.
There are two main seasons for bear watching. The first is late spring and early summer, bears are eating sedge grasses located close to water drainages. This is also the time of year when the bigger more mature bears are displaying dominance for mating opportunities. It is incredible to watch big males of 800 to 1000 pounds fight for the females attention. The second season is early to late summer. The salmon have arrived and bears are eager for something that tastes better than sedge grass. Mating starts to take second place to fish and the younger bears, females with cubs, and sub adults become more brave and join the older bears for a salmon dinner.
The flight back to Homer is relaxing and a great time to reflect and review the photos on your camera. With the headsets provided in the helicopter the passengers can talk to each other and ask the pilot questions.
No matter what time of the season you choose for bear viewing, every day is different and we guarantee you will see bears!
Once we land, everyone will disembark the helicopter and walk to a safe location where the group will sit and photograph bears. Depending on the bear activity, the guide may move the group from location to location ensuring the best photography spots. The guides have an intimate knowledge of the flora, grasses, natural history, and plenty of facts about bear behavior and habitat to keep the conversation fun and interesting for the whole tour. The best way to get close to bears is let them come to us. This method provides the least impact on wildlife.
There are two main seasons for bear watching. The first is late spring and early summer, bears are eating sedge grasses located close to water drainages. This is also the time of year when the bigger more mature bears are displaying dominance for mating opportunities. It is incredible to watch big males of 800 to 1000 pounds fight for the females attention. The second season is early to late summer. The salmon have arrived and bears are eager for something that tastes better than sedge grass. Mating starts to take second place to fish and the younger bears, females with cubs, and sub adults become more brave and join the older bears for a salmon dinner.
The flight back to Homer is relaxing and a great time to reflect and review the photos on your camera. With the headsets provided in the helicopter the passengers can talk to each other and ask the pilot questions.
No matter what time of the season you choose for bear viewing, every day is different and we guarantee you will see bears!
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