Anan Creek hosts the largest salmon run in all of Southeast Alaska, around 200,000 salmon return each year to spawn. At first glance, you might think the creek is black. But look closer and the water starts to shift unnaturally. It’s not the current, it’s the fish. The creek is unique because large boulder walls line the banks, forming natural caves where bears can tuck in and eat their catch in peace.
Under the surface, things aren’t so peaceful. Salmon run a brutal gauntlet every spawning season. First, they dodge trawlers and commercial nets that sweep them up by the thousands. If they survive the open ocean, they face predators at the river mouth: eagles, seals, anything with teeth and hunger. Then comes the hardest stretch, a narrow choke point where the current is strongest. The fish are forced to slow down, packed tight, exhausted, and exposed. They fight upstream in bursts, one by one, over shallow rapids and sharp rocks. Bears wait there, not so much hunting as collecting, plucking salmon straight from the water. If a salmon survives that final slaughter, it reaches the spawning grounds, lays its eggs, and spends its last burst of energy protecting the young. Death is certain.
Tough break for the salmon, but we were psyched to have front row seats to the best bear show in Southeast Alaska. We saw mostly black bears and one big brown grizzly. We stayed for a few hours, watching each bear’s preferred fishing technique. A female grizzly named Scuba Sue was the fan favorite, she plunged her entire head and ears underwater to hunt. Others stood in the shallows, feeling for fish as they brushed past their legs. Some waited on boulders near the rapids, trying to snag salmon mid-leap.
The cubs were another highlight. SO CUTE! They followed their moms across slippery logs, stole salmon scraps, wrestled each other, and climbed 100 feet up a tree for safety.
Outside of Anan Bay, we spent two quiet nights at Skokolof Island, where we caught our biggest rockfish yet. In Berg Bay, we met a French family who had been cruising for four years. They had wintered in Kodiak after sailing through the Northwest Passage. To prepare, they needed a gun for polar bear protection. France wasn’t about to give them a license. So they bought one from Chicago, IL instead. A $10 license in about 15 minutes. Freedom isn’t free, but apparently gun licenses are.
