Living on Kodiak Island for a dozen years gave me many opportunities to experience bears in the wild remoteness of the North Pacific coast of Alaska — from the cockpit of a sea kayak!

Encounters were frequent, especially during the return of spawning salmon when bear activity seemed ever-present at the mouths of streams flowing into coastal bays and inlets. The kayak provided me with a floating front row seat to be a respectful observer of this magnificent bruin at various activities during its daily routine. 

Here are a few stories and observations from my many hours with them:

Robust Swimmers — With paddle-like paws the size of dinner platters, bears have a steady “dog paddle” stroke they are able to maintain through literally miles of open water.

As we approached the slow, but steady-moving form some 50 yards in front of our boat, we realized it was a bear swimming the two-mile crossing at the mouth of the bay, which we had just entered along Alaska’s Katmai Coast. The direction it was heading told us it had already cover about a mile and a half of open water on the Pacific Ocean.

Our approach, though slowed to a forward drift, caused the bear to veer away from us and start backtracking the mile and a half back to that far shore. Not wanting to cause the bear more stress, we cut in front of it to turn it back towards the nearest land only a few hundred yards away. The clear water enabled us to see its massive paws, working in sync, being pulled through the water, effortlessly propelling the bear forward with every stroke.

Upon reaching shore, it clambered up the rocky embankment, slung water from its thick fur and disappeared into the alders — apparently not the least bit exhausted after its 2-mile swim.

Grazing Bruins — They looked like grazing cattle from a distance. That’s what it reminded me of as we neared the head of a bay at low tide during the salmon season. From 50 yards offshore, I counted at least 25 bears of varying ages “grazing” the shallow tides for squirming salmon inching their way towards the mouths of several spawning streams that fed into the bay.

One sow laid casually on a protruding sand bar, within a forearm’s length of salmon struggling in the small current flowing past her. She raised her paw upward, held it perfectly still in midair and then with one explosive “SLAP!” she’d swat a passing salmon — like picking an appetizer from a snack tray. Others scurried through ankle-deep water, chasing one salmon after another, in a playful game of chase carried out all along the shoreline.

Invisible Presence — One travels through “bear country” as a humble visitor, a cautious guest and a respectful presence — and making that presence known! “Hey Bear, Hey Bear” is a common mantra for all prudent visitors to call out as a constant greeting while on the bears’ home turf.

Leaving my kayak on a narrow apron of gravel at the head of a bay, I walked along a shallow, rippling stream bordered on each side with steep, shrub-covered slopes. Along a narrow beaten path, worn down to the ground and dotted every so many yards with day-fresh piles of bear scat, I cautiously hiked upstream to see if I could spot a bear on the upper lake. Seeing none, I resigned myself to heading back, pausing mid-stream to take one last look back over my shoulder.

Twenty yards farther, as I reached down into my kayak to fetch my life jacket, I heard a “bonk,” as if two small boulders clunked together. I turned and stared eye to eye with a young, two-year-old bear — in the middle of that stream — standing in exactly the same spot I had been less than a minute earlier. We exchanged stares and each went our way. It literally came out of nowhere, masters of being unheard/unseen — “Hey Bear – thanks for being a good host!”

Encounters with all wildlife requires caution and respect — seeing them in a non-threatening environment adds a wonderful dimension to sharing the outdoors with them.

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Tom Watson is an award-winning outdoor safety and skills columnist and author of guide books on tent camping, hiking and self-reliant survival techniques. His website is www.TomOutdoors.com.