Bear Watching in Haines, Alaska

Seeing the Alaskan grizzlies up close as they hunted for salmon was a fantastic sight to behold.

In autumn of 2023 I took a trip to Yukon and Alaska where we enjoyed the spectacular drive from Whitehorse, Yukon down to Haines, Alaska and back up to Whitehorse via the ferry to Skagway. At first I was looking forward to the drive more-so than the time in Haines, although that quickly changed the evening I arrived in Alaska.

This was my third time in Yukon (2019, 2022, and 2023) and second time in Alaska (2022 and 2023).

Day 1

We flew from Toronto to Whitehorse, Yukon via Edmonton using Air North. Note that this was an extraordinary flight as the original route of Toronto-Yellowknife-Whitehorse was diverted to Edmonton due to wildfire evacuations occurring in Yellowknife.

We arrived in Haines Junction just as the sun was setting behind the mountain ranges. I stayed at the Alcan Motel where as soon as I got out of the car, I noticed some photo opportunities by the mountain peaks. Standing in the parking lot with my 800mm, I snapped a few images thinking what a beautiful way to end off the full day of travelling.

Day 2

When in Haines Junction, you have to make a stop by the Village Bakery. We got there just as it opened, bought a few baked items and coffee for breakfast and some of their cookies to go. I’m a big fan of Bean North coffee, but unfortunately they don’t use that there.

The drive from Haines Junction to Haines, Alaska is supposed to take just under three hours. But hearing how this part of Alaska Highway and Haines Rd. was a picturesque drive, I anticipated it would take me a lot longer…and it did: we left Haines Junction at around 10am and arrived in Haines at around 7pm-7:30pm. Keep in mind there is a one-hour time difference between the two places.

We made a stop at Kathleen Lake, where in 2019, we climbed King’s Throne up to the throne area. I took a photograph of the peak and while the lighting is a little different, you can see how the foliage had yet to change while it was well on its way in 2019. Coincidentally, these two photos were taken on the exact same date: August 31!

One of the best things about road trips is the people you meet along the way. When we made our frequent stops to enjoy the scenery, we often met other drivers doing the same thing. Some were on cross-country tours travelling for weeks or months and others simple enjoying the drive like us. The brief chats with them show just how precious these remarkable views are as they drive from all around to view them.

Driving down we spotted a field full of wildflowers and cotton grass so naturally I just had to stop and take a few photos to showcase its beauty.

We made it to the border at around 2:30pm. When we arrived there we noticed a small patch of flowers by the parking lot so I stopped there for more photos!

And as soon as well left the border control area, we were warmly welcomed by a bald eagle enjoying his meal, right by the riverside! He was so close I took these shots from the car on the side of the road. Little did I know though, that this would be the closest I would ever get to a bald eagle throughout my entire trip through Haines.

After seeing the bald eagle eat, we got hungry too. Not knowing where else we could get food before arriving in Haines, we stopped by the first restaurant that we encountered. That just happened to be the 33 Mile Roadhouse. Inside, the log house was decorated with a handful of amusing signs, a corner filled with trinkets for sale, and walls adorned with some hunting gear and bones.

It was an interesting stop—but more importantly, the burger that I ordered hit the spot! We drove down to a side rest area by the Chilkat River and ate at the parking lot.

We arrived at Haines around 5:18pm and went straight to the local grocery store, Olerud’s Market Center, to stock up on some breakfast for the next day.

Driving around town, we came upon Portage Cove where we saw a cruise ship docked. As this was my very first time at a port of call for cruise ships, I soaked in the view of this massive ship by the dock. Little did I know this ship wasn’t all that massive as we later saw even larger ones in Skagway.

Our “home” for the next few nights was the Gathering Place, Cabin #2. It was a roomy cabin that sleeps four, perched up high on a hill. The view from our porch was beautiful as it overlooked Lutak Inlet.

After dropping off our luggage and groceries, we headed straight toward the Chilkoot Lake State Recreation Site to see if we could find any wildlife. It was getting late but around 8:30pm we spotted a mother bear and her cubs by the riverbank and another family by the road. It was a terrific first encounter with the Alaskan grizzlies.

Day 3

The wind storm that we tried to sleep through last night was so strong I felt as if the roof was going to blow right off. It literally rocked the cabin back and forth with each gust throughout the night. I’m surprised and thankful the car parked outside didn’t move an inch. Once morning came though, the winds calmed down and we were confronted with a glorious view of the sun trying to peek through the low-laying clouds behind the mountain.

It was a beautiful way to wake up!

After some morning photography, we went out to the river once again to see if we can capture the bears hunting for their breakfast. We lucked out with some more bears by the side of the river and road.

We took this day to explore the town of Haines and all it had to offer. We toured all around the town including the historic Port Chilkoot/Fort Seward area where military officers once walked the streets during the World War.

I loved capturing the historic buildings that were once used by the military. The signs out in front of each building explain who lived in that house during the world wars.

We also drove further toward the Chilkat State Park to see if I could photograph the famous red-roofed building of the Haines Packing Company. Unfortunately the view I was looking for was not found, and there was a boat full of blue containers lined along one side of the building making for a less-than-ideal photograph.

Nonetheless we enjoyed the drive admiring the natural landscape on a very rare sunny day.

As evening quickly approached, we went back up to the Chilkoot River to see if we could find more bears. Sure enough they were already there by the time we arrived.

Having observed these Alaskan Grizzlies over the last couple days already it was fascinating to see how persistent the mother was in capturing the salmon. We could see the different characteristic of each of the cubs and admired how one of them constantly kept in close contact to the mother while the other two explored the riverbanks together.

The force of the river was strong enough that the cubs often had difficulty swimming against the rapids as they drifted away from the mother each time they tried.

Day 4

Meeting other photographers and hearing their stories are always part of the fun in these trips. We met one couple who had been there for the past five days already. We met them on a number of occasions and they told us the earlier we get to the river in the mornings, the better chances of seeing more bears.

The first morning we were there around 9am (after taking in the sunrise by the porch), so on this day we made it a point to get there much earlier.

We arrived shortly after 6am and sure enough there were already bears wandering the river banks looking for their breakfast.

The only drawback of coming this early is that since the river cuts through mountains and heavily treed areas, there is very little light that gets to the area until the sun is up high. This makes it a little tougher to photograph in the early morning (or late in the evening) hours.

I was often photographing at very high ISOs like 4000 and higher, trying to adjust my shutter speed to minimize going any higher than I needed to.

Bald Eagles

I should mention that there are bald eagles scattered around all over the area as well. Haines, Alaska is known for the annual Alaska Bald Eagle Festival in November. Thousands (somewhere around 3500 or so) can be seen migrating through this area as they too feed on the salmon in the river.

While we weren’t able to see that many, we still got to see them in their natural habitat eyeing for their next meal as they were perched high up in the trees.

During the day we drove in the opposite direction this time, back toward the Bald Eagle Sanctuary area, hoping to see more of these eagles. Unfortunately the only eagles we did find were so far away I couldn’t even capture them with my 800mm.

This gave us a chance to further admire the rugged landscapes of Alaska though.

We also ran into Dalton City. A city, we learned, that was made as a set for the Disney movie White Fang. While the film wasn’t shot at Haines, the set was later moved there where it now serves as its permanent resting grounds—and the grounds for the annual Southeast Alaska State Fair.

That evening was again spent by the Chilkoot River where we were able to see the same families of bears searching for their meals.

Day 5

Our final day in Haines started right back at the Chilkoot River around 6:30am. We were told the weir usually gets removed sometime during the fall season. Last year the town had removed it on September 1, so we were hoping it would have been removed while we were there.

Once the weir is removed, the bears no longer need to congregate by the weir to catch their next meal. The fish start to flow further down the river allowing for more bears to find their meals down the river.

This would have made for more natural looking bear photography, but it was still fun to watch the bears interact with the weir, as the cubs stretched themselves down to the river to catch their meals.

Tiny Bears

While it’s fascinating to see bears up close, I also found it very picturesque to capture them from afar, letting me capture them in their surroundings.

Given the right lighting, the mountainsides can light up dramatically offering the perfect backdrop to a family of bears wandering around the river banks.

Off to Skagway!

This day we left Haines to go to Skagway via the ferry. Skagway is the more popular cruise-port town where cruise ships from around the world come. As it was my first time in a port town that saw these massive ships, I was excited to see this town for myself.

Skagway was home to the miners during the late 1890s gold rush. It—along with Dyes, Alaska—was the closest town to the Klondike, making it a popular spot during this period.

Now, the history remains in the buildings we see lined along the streets. When I first arrived off the ferry and drove through the roads of Skagway, it felt as if I was in the middle of a movie set.

It was reminiscent of my time in Dawson City in the Yukon, which was also a booming town during the Klondike gold rush and is similarly made, albeit at a smaller scale.

It was great to see the details of the architecture and capture the hustle and bustle of the town as throngs of tourists from the cruise ships lined the streets.

The White Pass

The next day we left Skagway to head back up to Yukon through what would be another spectacular drive through the Klondike Highway, along the White Pass.

The person working at the bakery in Skagway told us about the surreal moonscape-like landscape we would encounter after reaching the highest point of the pass. We didn’t know what he meant but soon realized it was exactly how he had described it.

After several stops to photograph the unique landscape we were driving through, we found ourselves at the Yukon suspension bridge, which we never knew about until that day. So, naturally, we had to stop and see what it was all about.

After many detours and photo stops, we eventually made it to our destination, Inn on the Lake, on the shores of Marsh Lake.

Day 6

The next day we drove to Carcross and area. This was our second time there but this time took a little more time in each area to allow for more exploration.

We first went to the Carcross/Tagish Learning Centre where you can learn more about the arts and culture of the community and the Carcross/Tagish First Nation people. On display was another hand-crafted canoe, similar to the one we saw at the Haines Junction Visitor’s Centre.

We had lunch at the Bistro and ice cream at the Matthew Watson General Store. We were commenting to each other that their cones were really good, just as we saw a sign that said the cones were baked in-store! Both were great, but definitely leave room for the ice cream.

While at Carcross, the White Pass & Yukon Route train that we saw in Skagway made its entrance. I took a few photos before it left to go back to Skagway.

Wanting to take a photo as it left Carcross, I came upon as section of the area that I never knew existed. Just along the beach area we were able to get a great look of the train as it left Carcross and made its way along the mountainside.

We took a quick detour to see Bove Island to see how it looked. Back in 2019 this island looked terrific with the calm winds and fall foliage well under way. Unfortunately it wasn’t quite the same this time—but it’s always worth a trip to this island lookout.

Our final destination of the day was the Carcross Desert. We came here before as well, however wasn’t able to spend too much time here so I was looking forward to seeing how I can photograph it this time.

As luck would have it, just as we arrived, a van full of students came and started running through the dessert. I made my way to photograph them in as many unique ways as possible.

Yes, we did also make a stop by Emerald Lake. The winds picked up by the time we were there, so it didn’t look as dreamy as it did when we were there in the past but it is indeed a beautiful lake to see from above.

Day 7

We left Inn on the Lake to head back to Whitehorse before exploring a part of Whitehorse that we never went to: Miles Canyon. What a beautiful find this was!

If it weren’t for us having to return our rental car, we could have stayed and hiked a little more here. The suspension bridge gets you across to some spectacular views of the gorge area with eagles flying around up high.

An Evening at Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport

That night we decided to stay overnight at the airport since our flight out to Toronto was leaving early in the morning. We arrived at the airport around 6pm, had take-out dinner from the Airport Chalet across the street, and now had some time to wander the premises.

The airport itself isn’t large, so I went outside and for any photo opportunities. Fortunately the Mother Nature decided to send her Yukon farewell with a glorious sunset that evening. The colours were bursting out of the clouds.

Without much else around, I decided to see if I could incorporate the many light stands in any interesting way. I decided to photograph the lights in any way as long as it brought out the beautiful nature that the airport was surrounded by.

There are a couple that I feel came out really well.

Final Thoughts

While I always find the Haines Junction area beautiful, the drive from there to Haines, Alaska was even more so. With stunning mountain backdrops and beautiful flora found along the roads, it made for a very slow drive down. Haines proved to be more fun than I thought it would be, as we were able to see the grizzlies on a daily basis. Skagway was really my first port town experience so I found it to be very interesting to explore. Finally the drive up from Skagway to Yukon was yet again filled with unique landscapes that you don’t often see. It was truly another beautiful drive that warranted one stop after another—even in the rain!

The Inn on the Lake on Marsh Lake was the final stop to an adventurous road trip so we took the opportunity to slow down just a little bit as we explored previously visited locales. We loved the peacefulness of the lodge right by the lake.

The weather could have been better but we were still blessed with some sunny days. The people we met were all friendly and it is these experiences that also make up the beauty of a road trip.

While this segment is over, I look forward to yet another time when I can visit Yukon and Alaska—hopefully then I will be able to see the northern lights as well!

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