But also because I’m from New Zealand (A Kiwi), and each year many Kiwis and Aussies leave their homeland to head to England for an OE (Overseas Experience). Why England? Because it’s considered an easy transition from home, has readily available work visas, and many Kiwis and Aussies have English relatives. But there is more to Europe than England, so lets get out and explore – and these five destinations are a great place to start.

Consider them starting points towards your wider continental European exploration, or just weekend get-a-ways while you’re living and working in England. Even if your born and bred English, if you haven’t visited all 5 of these European cities then I highly recommend you start…

1. Paris, France

Merely a hop, skip, and a jump away from England, you cannot consider going to Europe and not seeing Paris.

Taking the train to Paris from London is really simple, or if you have a vehicle there are ferries which will drop you across the English Channel with the added bonus of getting to see the White Cliffs of Dover from the sea! The cliffs were easily the highlight of my ferry ride to France during the start of my Contiki bus tour a couple years back. Once in Paris explore the unique French cafes, bakeries, parks, museums and art galleries.

Tip: Don’t rush around the city trying to see everything if you only have limited time. Take time to chill out in a sidewalk cafe, sip a coffee and watch the French as they go busily about their way. It’s the little things which are often most memorable, and better to see less properly, rather than more in a rushed manner.

Photo Credit: Trey Ratcliff

Photo Credit: Moyan Brenn

2. Brussels, Belgium

Easily one of my favourite destinations because they make quite possibly the best beer in the world.

My favourite spot to sample Belgium’s best beers was Délirium Café aka The Pink Elephant, tucked away in one of Brussels narrow alleyways this impressive bar offers more beers on tap than you’ll be able to drink in a weekend, and more in bottles than you could manage in a year! When I was here I had an amazing time sampling as many fine Belgium beers as I could manage given my travelling time constraints. Regrettably, since I was travelling by myself at the time, I didn’t get the chance to order one of these huge glasses (pictured below), but if you’ve ever tried one before please do comment about your experience.

Photo Credit: Jim Nix

Photo Credit: Travlr

3. Amsterdam, Netherlands

An absolute must visit for any fresh-faced first-time traveller.

Explore the red light district, chill out at a cafe, cycle around the city and float down the canals, so much to enjoy in Amsterdam. I only spent the one full day in Amsterdam; it was very memorable and I’ve only ever heard positive experiences from other travellers who’ve visited – whether for a short period like me or from those who’ve spent months temporarily living, everyone enjoys the place. Don’t just get stuck in a cafe, make sure you explore the markets, the canals and consider checking out the Anne Frank museum.

Photo Credit: MorBCN

4. Copenhagen, Denmark

Old buildings, canals, Danish people, northern weather; go check it out!

Apparently Copenhagen has one of the highest concentrations of bars and restaurants per capita in the world, no doubt this contributed to its 2006 Most Liveable City in the World (1st) ranking by Monocle magazine, and it frequently appears in other ‘top city’ lists. While not as far north as Norway, Sweden and Finland; Denmark will certainly give you a taste of what you could see venturing further into northern Europe, and if you only make it to the city of Copenhagen, well it still has plenty to offer! While you could ferry to Copenhagen, the airport is close to the city and easily accessible by public transport. So from London I’d recommend getting the Heathrow Express connection from Paddington train station to the airport and you’ll be exploring Copenhagen in no time at all!

Photo Credit: Clark & Kim Kays

Photo Credit: Jim Nix

5. Barcelona, Spain

Just a short flight from England and you can immerse yourself in the Spanish culture!

From all the countries and cities I’ve seen in Europe, Barcelona has a permanent spot at the top of my ‘most awesome’ list; it just has a unique feel to the place. Plus if you really want to see something different, visit for the festival of Saint Joan in late June (23-24 June), when everyone takes to the street at night, lights fireworks and bonfires on the beach and pretty much just go crazy – it’s awesome! I visited on a bus tour which took ‘ages’ to get there, but if you just have the weekend I’d recommend flying.

Photo Credit: MorBCN

So hop on a plane, boat, train or a bicycle and get out there!

Five must see, easily accessed from England, mainland Europe destinations. So book a plane, hop on a ferry, or catch a train; but get out there and explore, because you only live once, and there is no better time than now to see somewhere new!

What has been your favourite short trip from England?

INSPIRE – Basket of Remembrance & Unburdening
Here is a snapshot video:

I’ve been trying to sum up exactly what this was about, but have been getting stuck so I’ll just say it was art, it was community involvement, it was a hippie drum circle, it was kids playing, it was about remembering loved ones, about thinking about what’s important to you, and about thinking about what ‘inspires’ you.

I also like to think it was about making something, and then letting it go. Something to think about if you like to hoard stuff (yes, you people with lots of stuff), I know I have a little hoarder inside me…

I heard  a couple of cool quotes on the night:

“It’s not necessary to cling to the rocks which are falling with you”, now I’m not entirely sure what context Mavis was talking about when she quoted this one, but I like to look at as encouraging you to simplify your life, or not to worry about stuff that doesn’t matter/stuff that will happen anyway…

“And this basket is like your best friend, you can tell it your deepest, darkest secrets and it’s going to do what it has promised to do, it’s going to burn!” – this one is pretty self explanatory, idea was you could write down what ever you wanted on a piece of paper, and it would burn along with everyone elses. To ignite and inspire your ideas, or to burn away your anxieties and road blocks. Use the basket as you wish…

So, not Burning Man, but Burning Basket – and it was fun, although I do still feel the need to attend a Burning Man one day…

Burning Basket Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/BurningBasketProject

Creating artist, Mavis’ webpage - http://www.mavismullerart.com/

Dahab

Once an isolated Bedouin fishing village, this town in South Sinai is the best destination for adventurous, independent travellers. A few luxury hotels have monopolised the beautiful coastal location, so if you’re looking for quiet indulgence, this is your place. But equally, the town has kept its hippy vibe, with plenty of cheap accommodation for backpackers, many of whom come for the windsurfing and scuba diving opportunities, and the town is still the home to many Bedouin people, particularly during the summer when they migrate for the fishing season. And Old Dahab is full of “regulars” – visitors who have fallen in love with the town’s charm and come back year after year.

The Desert

It sounds silly; if you go to Egypt, of course you’re going to visit the desert! But actually, very few people really get the full desert experience, because that requires you to pack up a backpack, grab a sleeping bag and go hiking for a few days. The White and Black Deserts, which are areas within the Sinai desert, are visually stunning, and make great campgrounds, especially if you find a Bedouin tribesman to act as your guide. There is nothing like the experience of trekking with camels, learning how to make Bedouin food and falling asleep under the stars.

Alexandria

Cairo and Sharm El Sheikh are the two Egyptian cities that attract most of the tourist attention. But if you’re looking for somewhere a bit different, Alexandria should be at the top of your list. The Mediterranean city is packed with culture, as you’ll find impressive Roman ruins and catacombs to explore, as well as what was once the world’s largest library. The Lighthouse of Alexandria may not still be standing, but if you visit its location, its easy to understand why this was the sight of one of the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Elephantine Island

This island in the middle of the Nile is a must see for any history buff, as it ishome to the ruins of the ancient city of Abu. Now largely considered part of the city of Aswan, the island is very accessible, but has not yet established itself as a real tourist destination, which is wonderful for anyone who wants to experience a bit of real Egyptian life. This is also a great start point for a Nile cruise, so watch out for tour opportunities that will take you up to Cairo.

Siwa Oasis

Before the ‘80s, the only way to get to this incredible oasis settlement was through the desert on camel back. Now, a tarmacked road will get you there, but the distance from any major city means that the area is wonderfully untouched by the outside world. The unique Berber culture centers around the production of beautiful crafts and jewelry, and the Siwans even have their own language. The hot springs, the lake and surreal mud-brick ruins will give you plenty to look at.

So What Are You Waiting For?

Of course, the traditional tourist hot spots are popular for a reason, and they’re well worth a visit – it’s just that you shouldn’t stop there! Egypt has one of the most remarkable cultures in the modern world owing to its fascinating history, so if you’re visiting the country, why not take the opportunity to explore a little further?

It started out as a cold misty morning, very similar to what I understand most days in Whittier to be like [all day]. But we were lucky, the sun broke through, evaporating the gloominess away leaving us a brilliant sunny day with little wind and sparkles on the blue ocean. “Superb” we thought, as we headed towards the Klondike Express for our 26 Glacier Cruise.

 The Boat

The Klondike Express is the fastest large tour boat running in Alaska, with a cruising speed of 38 knots it can cover significant water, in our case speeding between twenty-six glaciers in a single day. It’s roomy interior offers dinner table seating  and almost 360 degree views out of the tinted windows. Dressed up waiters and waitresses wander around, almost giving the feel of a flash restaurant more than a marine tour. We did feel this boat was more designed for sitting and looking out through the windows (observing from the inside) rather than getting outside and feeling the Alaskan sea breeze on your face – but Alaska can get pretty cold so this would often be a good thing.

The Landscapes

The tours main feature (as highlighted in their advertising and the tour name “26 Glacier Cruise”) is to see twenty-six glaciers. Funnily we only saw twenty-five as our captain made an executive decision to spend longer at an unusually accessible glacier rather than rushing to the twenty-sixth – for which I’m very grateful. Once you’ve seen one glacier, the next twenty-five can look surprisingly similar and as the day progressed we found ourselves less inclined to rush out with our cameras when the national forest service ranger commentator announced we’d come into view of another one. Glaciers are awesome – ginormous hunks of continuously evolving ice,  but I’ve decided that I don’t need to see so many in one day. That said the landscapes you see on this tour are awesome, don’t go because you will get great value in how many glaciers you see, but go because you will see spectacular glaciers.

Our route took us on a 145 mile traverse of the Prince William Sound.

The Wildlife

Barely five minutes after moving off the jetty we were already watching our first humpback whale. It was feeding in the mouth of the harbor, diving for around five minutes and then coming up for air. This particular whale had been feeding for months around Whittier at the time we did our tour. We got some really good sightings of it, better than we’d experienced out of Seward.

We saw a colony of sealions, the size of these creatures is amazing, obviously not like whale size amazing, but certainly the size which can scare the bajeezus out of you if you encounter one close up on a kayak while out after dark (story to come).

We saw plenty of sea otters, floating around in their flotillas. While hard to get a good photograph of they were interesting to watch; laying on their backs basking in the sunlight, they would be cleaning their fur, just watching us or eating off their bellies. The forest ranger who was providing the on board commentary had an adult male sea otter pelt to show us. It was incredible, the fur was so densely packed (highest hair concentration of any animal) and it was large and heavy. It was easy to see the value in the pelt that the early fur hunters had hunted for till the otter nearly became extinct.

We also saw a variety of birds including bald eagles. Sadly no more whales after our promising initial encounter with the humpback.

And a common seal sighting, although brief, seeing ‘him’ swim among the ice floats was quite special.

Conclusion

Overall a very enjoyable tour of the Prince William Sound and I’d happily recommend someone take the Phillips Cruises 26 Glacier Cruise. Pro’s were certainly the glacial landscapes and the speed of the vessel which allowed you to see a lot. Con’s were also to do with the speed of the vessel, because it goes so fast you have limited exterior access while moving and because it’s built for speed there is also less exterior viewing space compared with other tour boats we’d encountered in Alaska.

Tour: 26 Glacier Cruise by Phillips Tours
Available: May 11 – September 13 2015

For me, bears are awesome, I love photographing and filming them doing their natural thing from a distance. Every time has been a great experience, hopefully with some common sense and the information below you’ll have great experiences and be able to love the bears too.

Watch my video on bear safety!

Keep your distance

Keep 300 yards from a grizzly or black bear, further if it’s a sow with cubs.

50 yards was an adequate distance to stay from a brown bear in Katmai during salmon season (they are more use to human presence and have an abundant source of protein rich salmon to eat). If you’re unsure about what distance to keep, consult a ranger or keep a 300 yard minimum.

Always keep your distance, and change your plans if necessary to give the bears ‘their’ distance

If you find yourself too close

You want to back up and put the required distance between yourself and the bear.

If the bear has spotted you, talk to it in a calming voice – reassure the bear that you are not a threat.

You don’t want to act like prey – don’t run, don’t act hysterical, don’t make salmon noises!

Do not throw/dump any of your belongings or food (this will only make the bear think of you as an easy source of food/stuff).

If a bear decides to approach you

You want to make yourself seem bigger and more of a potential threat to the bear, lift your hands above your head, wave them around, clap your hands, scrape your feet, shake a jacket – and keep talking, always use your human voice.

If a bear charges

Do not run. You must stand your ground however difficult. If you run a bears predator instinct will kick in and it will chase you. And they are fast!

Hopefully it will be a mock charge – when the bear stops before it reaches you (if you don’t run).

If a bear attacks

Use bear spray if you have it

Brown/grizzly bear – lie down and play dead.
Black bear – fight back with whatever you have, sticks, stones, fists.

Why the difference? Because brown bears are known for killing their prey and then dragging them off, storing them to eat later. At which point if you’ve successfully pretended to be dead you could try and make a sneaky escape or help may come. Black bears however are known to start eating their prey before they’re dead – you don’t want this!

So make sure you know the difference between a black bear and a grizzly/brown bear!

How to avoid a nasty bear encounter

The key is to avoid surprising a bear. Most bear attacks are thought to be a natural survival instinct when the bear is surprised. Mothers (sow) with cubs are the most aggressively defensive.

So when you are hiking in bear country make noise so that you never surprise a bear. Clap your hands, shout – you can say whatever you want so long as a bear will hear it, try yelling ‘Hey bear’ every 60 seconds. Be mindful of your line of sight, wind noise, thick brush or any other factors.

Camping

Don’t cook near your tent. Don’t store any food or scented items close to or inside your tent. Use a bear canister hidden at least 50 yards away from your tent or provided bear lockers.

With a bit of luck and by taking the right precautions you should have great bear encounters, just like we did.

Have you had a bear encounter?

I’ve been to some pretty mundane places and had fantastic experiences, conversely, I’ve been to some right up there top destinations and had very average experiences. In my opinion, it comes down to two things; the people you’re with, and your luck. Luck is just luck; whether you ‘luck’ into some unexpectedly awesome experience, or not so. But ‘people’ includes people you’re travelling with, fellow travellers you may meet, and of course the locals you interact with. So while you can’t do much about luck, where you stay can have a large influence on the people you meet.

Historically travellers stayed in backpackers/hostel accommodation or hotels if they could afford it. But in today’s digital world there are more options. Couch surfing is one I’ve mentioned before, the organization has revolutionized how I travel and the experiences I’ve had. But it’s not for everyone, or suitable for every kind of travel.

Hotels are good if you’re looking for private space, which you can do as you please with. I.e. good for entertaining people.

Hostels are great if you want to stay somewhere cheap and just do your own thing. I’ve experienced some great hostels in Europe and the United States, but here are some really shocking examples too.

Couch surfing is fantastic for short stays when you’re willing to put in a little effort. A little effort is required to find hosts, and more effort to interact with your hosts. But a little effort can go a long way, and many people, myself included have had amazing experiences – experiences you’d never get without a little local knowledge. Couch surfing is better if you’re flexible to do things with your hosts, and not normally appropriate for stays of longer than a few nights. Personally I believe 3 nights is great; gives you time to get to know them, but not so long as to become an over staying burden on their normal lives.

A further option which has always existed is to rent accommodation, but this tends to be geared towards extended time periods (like a whole year), and often involves tedious paperwork, financial deposits, extended searches, utility setup/bills, and often the purchase of furniture. The idea of travelling slower and actually living in different places is nice, but renting is often just a little too tedious and restrictive.

Wimdu recently contacted me, their motto is ‘travel like a local’, they are looking to revolutionize travel, away from impersonal hotel rooms towards a variety of readily available local accommodation. Essentially anyone with spare accommodation space can list it on Wimdu; whether it be a couch or an entire apartment. In some situations it’s almost like couch surfing, but since you are paying rent for your stay it kind of removes the social obligation to interact with your hosts. My initial reaction was to think of it very much as a paid couch surfing experience, but I now think it serves a very different purpose. Avoid crowded hostel rooms and impersonal hotels, find your own space for the period of time you need with little bureaucracy; and I’m sure if you want to stay longer to really get a local experience in a new place, perhaps a few weeks or months, I’m sure there will be hosts willing to accommodate you. While couch surfing is only good for a few days without ‘overstaying’, with Wimdu you can travel at your own pace; instead of always being a ‘traveller’ you can actually be a ‘local’, but all over the world.

I often hear of people wanting to head to a different country and experience life like a local. For you guys, I highly recommend checking out Wimdu.com to see if anyone has a suitable place to rent that meets your criteria. Or use them on your next holiday, you’ll be supporting the locals rather than a large hotel chain. Lastly if you have no idea what couch surfing is, certainly check out the website and read up on the mission to see if it’s something you’d like to participate in.

If you only have 3 minutes you should watch the video I made showcasing our experience on the Kenai Fjords National Park Tour. If you enjoy, please give it a thumbs up on YouTube and share it with your friends.

Tour Details:

6 Hour National Park Tour provided by Kenai Fjords Tours out of Seward on the Kenai Peninsula.

• Runs from May 10 - September 29, 2013
• 6-hour cruise (11:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.)
• Healthy chicken caesar wrap for lunch
• Wildlife guide
• $144.00 Adults / $72.00 Children (2-11), plus tax and fees

We’d hired a rental car in Anchorage, so with our car we’d driven to Seward and picked up our tickets the day before, then we boarded the boat at 11.15am for the 11.30 departure time. On our way out of the harbor we listened to the brief safety talk while we scoped out our favourite positions to photograph wildlife from. We figured the front of the boat (downstairs access only) would be best for dolphins/porpoises, while upper levels could have better general views and easier access to all sides of the boat. The tour boats will no doubt vary, we had a large catamaran.

We were immediately impressed by free hot drinks and apples, then our stomachs were further pleased by lunch. A chicken caesar wrap with a packet of baby carrots and a muesli/granola bar on the side.

Our Boat

Large comfortable catamaran with good viewing inside and out. We had a calm day with clear skies which made it a very enjoyable ride with no sea sickness.

We would see plenty of wildlife!

Our captain started narration as we neared some rocky islands where stellar sea lions were expected to be hanging out on the rocky sides, sure enough a mass of sea lions were bathing as we rounded the island.

In a large bay we found a mother and pup harbor seal and got our first sightings of puffins.

Around another bay and we spotted a flotilla of sea otters – nervous critters that they are we had to be really quiet around them, when we weren’t or when we were just motoring past they would turn and dive in an instant. Sea otters dive to around 300 feet to feed and live entirely in the ocean so they are more than capable of escaping day tours. That said, they were hunted nearly to extinction by the early Alaskan settlers until they were put under protection in 1911. They’ve since staged a pretty remarkable comeback.

Humpback whales were next as we rounded a headland and saw one, then two feeding. They would breath on the surface and then dive for around five minutes. We could have spent hours watching the whales but the cruise does have to roughly stick to the stated itinerary to please all guests and you never know what else may be out there waiting to be spotted – orcas we hoped.

We went to Aialik Glacier where we easily spent fifteen minutes, probably half an hour chilling out in front of the glacier getting photographs and hoping for calving (when the glacier drops ice into the sea to form icebergs). Make sure you take your sunglasses, the glacier is BRIGHT.

Later we had a brief encounter with a pod of Dall’s porpoise but they didn’t stick around long; playing briefly around the boat and then disappearing. Dall’s porpoises are the fastest small cetaceans around, capable of speeds up to 55 km/hr – they will come and go as they please. We then cruised out farther in the hope of spotting more marine mammals, again we had our fingers crossed for orcas, but alas on this trip we didn’t see them.

On the way back we spotted more sea birds, more stellar sea lions, more puffins, more sea otters and a few bald eagles.

A Day of Beautiful Scenery on the Water in Kenai Fjords National Park

When we weren’t spotting wildlife we were basking in the sun, happy we’d lucked out with such a beautiful clear day and enjoying our pristine surroundings.

Overall – Highly Recommended!

Overall we had a great day on the water with Kenai Fjords Tours, so much so we almost booked to go out the following day as well! Since we were in Seward at the end of the season the 6 hour tour was the only one still operating, if I were to go back I’d visit at a time when the 8 and ½ hour cruise was running so that I could see Fox Island as well.

Girdwood is best known for its winter skiing on Mount Alyeska, but during the summer you can visit for hiking, mountain biking on Mount Alyeska or just to enjoy the quaint little town of Girdwood which boasts America’s best rated laundromat, a nice cafe and the usual scattering of bars and restaurants.

We visited the laundromat, the cafe and a pub, and we also took the gondola up the mountain. It was kind of expensive so in hindsight I’d recommend you walk up (don’t be lazy like us), and here’s a good tip – take the gondola down, they don’t check tickets going the other way! Our laziness was pointed out to us in epic proportion when at the top we learnt that there was an endurance team running race going on; the competitors were running up the mountain and taking the gondola back down for each additional lap. Some competitors had ran up as many as ten times that day before we’d finished fluffing around in town and saw them at the top.

At the top the views are quite spectacular on a clear day. If only I had my mountain bike with me I would have loved to ride down.

Without a bike, my running shoes or a paraglider (for the adventurous) I busied myself taking photographs of the views. When I saw some mountain bikers getting off the chair lifts I decided I’d try catch them in action too.

With my tripod and wide-angle lens I setup on a corner with a small jump and waited for the bikers to come by. Since I was using such a wide-angle lens I needed to be pretty close to the track, there was nothing subtle about my photography attempt but I had a pocket full of awesome business cards from UPrinting which they were kind enough to give me, so I knew if any rider asked me I’d be able to hand them my card. Essentially the cards make me a little more confident in my professionalism and make me more comfortable taking shots of strangers – I’m always happy to share my photos with anyone who might be in them and by handing out a card they can easily get in touch so I can send them a photo later.

Heading down the gondola we’re in a carriage with a group of the runners, most were about to do one final lap up to finish the day. It was exhausting just thinking about it.

That evening we camped beside a creek along a forest walk just outside of the town of Girdwood; it was a spot recommended to us by the cafe barista and our first experience of free camping in Alaska. Something I’ll no doubt touch on again because Alaska has such awesome camping opportunities.

Are you comfortable taking photographs of strangers? Any tips or strategies which make it a more comfortable experience for you?

Reasons to Visit Brooks Camp

1. High likelihood of seeing brown bears feeding on salmon (during salmon seasons)
2. Regular commercial flights (you don’t need to charter a plane)
3. National Park campground (simple to book, safe to stay in)

Where is Brooks Camp?

View Larger Google Map or Click here for a PDF map of Katmai National Park

What Does it Cost?

• $685 Round trip flights from Anchorage to Brooks Camp http://www.katmailand.com/air-services/packages.html
• $12 per night for the campground (safely surrounded by an electric fence) http://www.nps.gov/katm/planyourvisit/plyovicamp.htm
• Showers are available for a fee, it was something between $6-$8 plus a towel deposit (hot water, limited time). Just between you and me, the tap right next to the shower has hot water and no time limit.
• You can cook your own food in which case you will need to buy a gas canister (around $8) or you can buy food at the Brooks lodge $35 for the dinner buffet which is worth doing once, but we didn’t hear much positive news about the breakfast and lunch so we never tried it http://www.katmailand.com/lodging/brooks-travel-tips.html
• If you don’t have a tent you can rent one from REI in Anchorage http://www.rei.com/stores/rentals.html#alaska
• Of course if you have a larger budget you can stay in the lodge (Brooks Lodge), but frankly, if you have a larger budget perhaps you should consider a tour to a more remote area of Katmai National Park or Kodiak Island.

We stayed for three nights and it cost us a small fortune (by our normal travel spending habits), but no regrets, it was amazing seeing so many bears in such proximity and from the costs I’ve outlined above you can see that 95% of your cost is getting there – camping is cheap, and food is as cheap as you make it.

When to Visit?

The bears come when the salmon do. We visited in early September 2012 after a run, the salmon were in the river and the lakes, but they were no longer so active at the falls.

July and September typically offer high concentrations of brown bears in Brooks, July tends to have the bears fishing in the falls and September when we went tends to have the bears more dispersed in the lower river and between Lake Brooks and Nanek Lake. www.nps.gov/katm/planyourvisit/bear-watching.htm

The Experience!

We wanted to be as close to the bears as could be safely managed, that’s why we chose Brooks in Katmai National Park. Here they have a plentiful food source with the salmon so they have no interest in the humans around them. Compared to Denali National Park where you are advised to keep 300 yards between yourself and any grizzlies, in Katmai we were advised to keep 50 yards distance (100 yards if you encounter a sow with cubs). Of course when you are safely up on the viewing platforms you don’t need to retreat if a bear comes closer.

Over the three days we saw brown bears constantly. We would see them on the beach as we walked to and from our campground, they would occasionally wander through the Brooks Lodge cabins as we dined, and on the viewing platforms we would commonly have 5 – 10 bears in sight.

The bears were always in the water; diving off the banks for salmon swimming near the edges, ‘snorkelling’ in the deep searching for salmon, swimming out in the lake… I was surprised by how comfortable they were in the water.

The Brooks Falls were less interesting during our visit because the salmon were not actively running. The odd fish would jump up, but not enough to justify a bear waiting at the top for one to leap into its mouth – although one particularly stubborn bear did spend hours standing in the falls, as if waiting for this precise but unlikely occurrence.

Staying in a campground surrounded by an electric fence was also an interesting experience, felt like we were in Jurassic Park! Frequently we saw bears wander by on the beach, not 5 yards from the fence. To get from the lodge area to the campground was roughly a five minute walk along a path in the woods which ran parallel to the beach but 5 – 10 yards away. On a couple of occasions we would see a bear walking the opposite direction along the beach, at which point we would back off into the shrub just to give the bear a little more distance. In these situations the bear would have had 15 – 20 yards max, but they had no interest in us – barely giving us  a brief look as they lumbered by.

From the viewing platforms you don’t get a true sense of their size, but when you get eye level with one you really see how big they are.

Katmai is also a popular spot for fly fisherman as well as kayak and canoe trips.

I literally just found out they have a live web cam, so you don’t actually need to go to watch the bears. You may spend heaps of money flying there (like we did) have an amazing time (like we did) then get back excited to tell everyone what it was like and they’ll go “Yeah, saw it on the webcam. Did you see when the two large males brawled over a sow? Frecklin amazing, here, check out my screen shot!” Or something similarly disparaging.
http://www.nps.gov/katm/photosmultimedia/brown-bear-salmon-cam-brooks-falls.htm

But really, there’s no reason not to go out and see brown bears in the wild, so just do it!

I’ve mentioned in my post on planning for this trip to Alaska that we’d previously dreamt of seeing polar bears in the wild, but eventually decided that while we could visit Alaska, a trip up to the artic was beyond our means at this time. While I didn’t expect much from a zoo, I still found watching many of the animals depressing. After seeing so many of the featured animals in the wild, I really believe I could see a difference from these captive beasts. We watched a black bear idly swinging his head backwards and forwards for as long as we cared to stay; either the bear was plain stupid and hence could only survive in the zoo, or captivity had taken away from this wild animal’s sense of purpose. From our observation of bears in the wild they always seem to be moving somewhere, to be grazing, sniffing, observing or playing, but not in the zoo. Of course its not just the zoo in Anchorage, we got the same impression from a zoo/museum in Montreal and perhaps my memory is playing tricks on me from a visit years ago to the London Zoo and the Auckland Zoo, perhaps zoo animals always look like they’re ready to overdose on sleeping tablets.

I wanted to write positively about our zoo experience, but I just don’t think it was a very nice place for the animals and that impacted on our time there. A zoo is never going to be great for most animals, they need too much space, but I have seen other enclosures before which made more of an effort to use natural boundaries – or at least to make the steel bars less obvious with clever landscape design. Not only did many of the jail style bars leave me despondent about the zoo, but they made it practically impossible to take any decent photographs. While I’m on a roll I’ll complain about the colour of the water in the polar bear tank, it was lime green and from the underwater glass view you could barely see a foot past the glass. I believe on the seal tank there was information stating the zoo didn’t use any chemicals, hence the green colour was the result of natural algae in the water. I’m all for not chlorinating the water the polar bears swim in, but surely there must be some other way of keeping the tank cleaner. Salt water? Pool cleaning robots? Fishes which eat algae, they exist right?

Unable to enjoy photographing most of the animals I busied myself by taking pictures of every animal sign in the zoo; the signs are good with photos and interesting information and facts. The trails were nice too, and the zoo is easily walk-able i.e. not too big.

While the polar bears and tigers were pretty much sleeping the whole time during our visit, the snow leopard was surprisingly active at times and certainly sparked up our time. It would leap around the rocks of its enclosure, jump against the fence and bounce back onto the rocks, it even tried to eat Renee! Well it jumped on the glass in front of her, but I think he was just being playful. See the video.

It would be fair to say we visited for the polar bear, were pleasantly surprised to find the zoo also has a tiger and a snow leopard, and we got the best experience from the snow leopard and a surprise howling from the gray wolves. Check out the video!

If you’re thinking of visiting I’d recommend calling first to see if they have any naturalist programs on, or to check when the polar bears (Or your favourite animal) will most likely be active – my guess is during feeding time, and hopefully the zoo staff will be able to tell you when this is.

If you want to see an animal that you won’t get the chance to see in the wild, or if you want to learn more about Alaska’s wildlife then I recommend you visit the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage. But don’t expect to come away with any National Geographic style photos.

Have you seen a polar bear before? What’s your favourite animal featured here?

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