Summer 2018 News

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 Our 2018 summer trips focused on family and friends. Nearly 75% of our summer guests were returnees and the friends and family they brought along to introduce to Munsey’s Bear Camp, Uyak Bay, and the majestic Kodiak bears. Even before our season began, we enjoyed visits from family and friends. In late June, our niece, Monica, and her beautiful children, Lyric, Wailer, and Indigo, spent a few days with us, followed by a Fourth of July visit from our good friends Dave Comstock and Mark Guevera. Next, we were excited to spend five days with Mike’s mom, Pat, and her husband, Wally Engstrom. We knew with such a great start, we’d have a special summer season.

We were thrilled to have Mary Schwarzhans back for her sixth year as our cook, and true to our family theme, Mary’s sister, Abby, was our camp helper this summer.

 

 

Our summer began on July 15th, withthe arrival of four, delightful, new guests. Tammy and John Edwards and Marti and Brad Clayton, all from Colorado.  Beautiful weather graced this group’s stay with us, and on their first afternoon, we watched a pod of six fin whales surface several times near our boat, sun glistening off the water droplets on their backs. This group watched bears chase salmon on the tidal flats and felt their pulses quicken when they heard a bear forty feet from them in the tall grass. Everyone in this group caught fish, but Tammy was the angler of the week. She caught a 42-lb. and a 52-lb. halibut, and she landed the most salmon on a day of stream fishing.

Summer Farrell

On July 20th, we were excited to welcome back Ken and Summer Groves, who brought their daughter and son-in-law, Summer and Mike Farrell, and their granddaughters, Gabriella and Julianna, all from Florida. This group spent their first morning salmon fishing in Brown’s Lagoon and then enjoyed a beach lunch of freshly-caught, grilled salmon. Mike caught a 35-lb. halibut, but it was his wife, Summer, who caught the 95 pounder, our largest halibut of the season. One day, this group hid in the grass and watched a bear walk in front of them, and on another day, they saw huge Steller sea lions, colorful puffins, and funny sea otters.

On July 25th, Bob and Sandy Comstock from California returned for their second visit, and this time, they brought their friends, Debra Geiler and Liane Ingham and their sons, Oliver and Bixby. This group took a long hike up a river and watched two bears chase salmon. On their first day of halibut fishing, Bixby joined our halibut club (40 pounds and over) by catching a 40-lb. halibut, and a few days later, Oliver also joined the club with a 64-lb. halibut. This group caught 16 salmon in Brown’s Lagoon and then enjoyed grilled salmon paired with a lovely wine from the Comstock winery.

On August 6th, we were happy to welcome back Michelle Rippmann from Switzerland and John Sower from Arkansas. We also greeted Martin and Britta Franke from Germany and Ro and Andrew Maunder from England. One day, while this group sat on the riverbank watching a bear fish, another bear came out of the brush behind them and jumped in the water, surprising them all. A while later, a young bear walked 30 feet in front of them, climbed up on a log, and jumped into the water. Britta, who claimed she had never fished before, turned out to be the angler of the week when she landed a 32-lb. halibut.

 

On August 11th, we were thrilled to welcome back Mary, Lida, Mary, Doug, and Catherine Hihn, and we were happy to finally meet Mary, Doug, and Lida’s sister Cindy. This group arrived in a storm but ended up having an amazing week and enjoyed the best fishing of our summer. On their first full day, Cindy and Lida landed a 70-lb. halibut. Two days later on a day of catch-and-release fishing, Cindy caught a 75 pounder, and Mary T. caught a 65-lb. and a 50-lb. halibut, The Hihns watched a huge bear fish in front of them, and they also enjoyed excellent whale watching and good silver salmon fishing.

Katelyn Crowley

On August 16th, we were excited to welcome back Dave and Barb Korzendorfer from Connecticut and David and Pam Slaughter from Colorado. David and Pam were joined by their daughter, Rebekah Crowley, and their granddaughter Katelyn Crowley. This group sat on a riverbank one day and watched a sow with two cubs fish very close to them. When the sow caught a salmon, the cubs growled and tried to steal pieces of their mother’s fish from her. On another day, a cooperative bear sat down to eat his salmon right in front of them as the cameras whirred. David caught the most fish of the week, but it was 12-year old Katelyn who landed the 21-lb. silver salmon, a new camp record!!

On August 21st, we welcomed Bob and Fran Seehausen from North Carolina and Laura Hourican and Cathy Ward from South Carolina. As soon as she arrived, Cathy stated her goal was to make it into our halibut club, and two days later, she caught a 60 pounder and smiled for the rest of her stay. This group enjoyed two fabulous days of bear viewing, and on the second day watched a parade of bears walk past them, including two sets of sows with two cubs, two old, large bears, and a snorkeler who walked with his head in the water, searching for fish.

Our good friends and yearly guests Dan Robertson from Nevada, and Gene Fanucchi, Howard Hancock, Gordy Sexton, Mike Saner, and John Mendoza, all from California, arrived on a windy day on August 26th. These guys were here to fish, but the storm hampered their efforts. On August 28th, the sun shined, and we enjoyed a breathtaking view. The mountains of the Alaska Peninsula loomed clear and bright, and while the guys fished, we listened to the spouts of whales in the distance on a calm, cool morning. Silver salmon were scarce, though, and the guys began wondering if they would go home without fish. Finally, on their last full day, the halibut began to bite. Gene caught a 55-lb. halibut, Howard caught an 80 pounder, and each guy caught his limit for the day, filling their fish boxes and marking another successful Alaskan adventure.

Our September 5th group was one we had anticipated all summer because we knew there’d be plenty of laughter with this mixture of returning guests. Andrew Erickson from Rhode Island brought his granddaughter, Molly O’Donnell from Chicago, Celine Veronese from Switzerland introduced us to her mother, Claire, and Tony and Karin Ross returned for a 12-day stay. This group enjoyed three wonderful days of bear viewing. They laughed at the antics of family groups while mom caught fish and the cubs played, growled and tried to steal their mother’s catch. One curious cub wandered too close to the group, and Mike had to talk to him and tell him to go back to his mother. On a day of fishing, Molly proved she was an excellent angler when she caught every species of fish except halibut.

On September 10th, Tony and Karin were joined by Mary Hill and Jim Smith from Colorado and Jochen and Britta Mattis from Germany. Our summer season ended the way it began, and this group enjoyed sunshine and calm winds every day of their stay. One day, they watched a sow fish and snorkel, while her cubs growled and played. While they were bear viewing, a curious weasel entertained them by scampering among them and checking out their gear. On a morning cruise up the bay, we encountered a pod of orcas, and shutters clicked while the whales zipped past our boat.  Tony had another great summer of fishing, landing several halibut, including a 54 pounder.

Tony and Karin spent two more wonderful  days with us to finish out our summer season. On an afternoon hike up a salmon stream, they caught eight silver salmon and a steelhead, and on their last day of bear viewing, a familiar bear Tony and Karin have enjoyed watching over the years marched in front of them, her two cubs trailing behind her.

This was an emotional summer for us as we greeted friends, spent five days laughing with them, and then sadly watched them depart. We hope to see you all again soon, and to our new guests this summer, thank you, and we hope you will return and become part of our Munsey’s Bear Camp family.

Mary and Abby, I think you know how special you are to us, and we appreciate all the big and small things you do for our guests and us.

I invite you to read my weekly blog at http://robinbarefield.com/blog about Kodiak wildlife, writing, and living in the wilderness. While you are there, sign up for my newsletter about true murder and mystery in Alaska.

Visit our website for more photos from our summer season.

www.munseysbearcamp.com

 

 

 

 

Late Spring 2018

The sun finally shined this last week after a cool, cloudy spring, and the sunny weather turned my thoughts toward our summer trips. June is our “work month” here at Munsey’s Bear Camp. We build, paint, fix, garden and clean in June, and when the sun shines, we grab paint brushes and work as fast as we can because the sunshine usually doesn’t last long. June is one of the rainiest months on the island, so we don’t squander sunshine.

While we haven’t had much time to get out and play, we are enjoying spring. In mid-May, the landscape is pale brown and grey, but by late May, green sprouts push through the dead leaves and fallen twigs, and two weeks later, this island becomes a jungle with three-foot-high cow parsnip, large ferns unfurling in the woods, and wildflowers sprouting on every available open patch of earth. Overnight, the alders, willows, birch, and cottonwoods burst to life with budding leaves, and the wild grass in our yard grows several inches.

As soon as the grass begins showing tints of green, deer appear in our yard to graze. Two young bucks, born a year ago, have been our most frequent visitors, and their heads now sport small antlers covered by velvet. Their mother brought them into our yard a year ago soon after they were born, and we have watched them grow. They are accustomed to us and are curious, often walking to within a few feet of us. Mom accompanied the young bucks into our yard up until two weeks ago when they began showing up on their own. We thought we understood her sudden absence, and we wondered if her offspring knew why she had abandoned them. She confirmed our suspicions two days ago when she arrived with a tiny fawn.

Speaking of babies, we have already seen several sows with cubs, and we are expecting another excellent summer of watching family groups when we bear view. We have also seen a few fin whales in the bay, and we even watched orcas twice this spring.

As we continue to prepare for our summer season, Mike and I will sit down in a few days to review our list of guests for the summer. We’ll make notes about special dietary needs and try to pin down the interests of each group. When Mary, our wonderful cook, arrives, we will hand her the list of food requirements, and she will post them on her calendar. We will then sit down with Mary and Abby, our camp helper and Mary’s sister, and review our guest list again. Half of our guests are returnees, so we know their needs and what they will want to do, and for the rest, we will plan based on what they have told us.
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We only take six guests at a time, and our goal is to provide each of those guests with the best adventure possible. We want you to tell us Munsey’s Bear Camp was the highlight of your vacation, and years from now when you look at your photos, we hope you will smile and laugh at the great memories and the good time you had here. Many of our guests e-mail to thank us and let us know they have arrived home safely from their Alaska trip. A few times each summer, a guest will confide in her e-mail that Munsey’s Bear Camp was by far the best part of her Alaska vacation. When Mike receives such an e-mail, he tells Mary and me, and we cheer. We’re not aiming for “good,” we want to be “the best.”

I know many of our 2018 summer guests will read this post, and to them, I want to say, “Are you ready for your adventure? I can’t wait to meet you and see what will happen as the summer unfolds!” I will post mid-summer again to summarize our adventures up to that point.

I write a weekly blog at http://robinbarefield.com/blog about Kodiak wildlife, living in the wilderness, and my writing. I have written three Alaska wilderness mystery novels and am working on a book about the wildlife of Kodiak Island. I post on my blog once a week and release my posts on Sunday afternoons (U.S. time zones), so if you want to learn more about the island you are planning to visit or would like to visit, I invite you to take a look at my blog, and please leave a comment to say hi.

2011 Bear Viewing News

Bear in water looking

Young Kodiak  bear waits for fish

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 A huge Kodiak bear climbs the riverbank across from you, his white claws gleaming in the sunlight.  He glances at you and then stretches out for a nap.  Suddenly, a bear charges out of the woods to your left and into the river.  She pounces on a salmon and carries it to a fallen log.  You hear bones crunch as she consumes her lunch, and you hope your video camera is picking up the sound.  Splashing water and pounding feet cause you to lift your head from your camera and glance to your right, where you see one bear chasing another bear down the middle of the river.  The lead bear has a salmon in his mouth, and his pursuer seems intent on stealing the prize.  You realize that you are nearly surrounded by bears and look nervously at your guide, but when he smiles and nods, you return to the difficult task of deciding upon which bear to focus your camera first.  Welcome to Munsey’s Bear Camp.

Our 2011 summer was different from any we can remember. The pink salmon run was nearly a month late and much smaller than predicted, and while bear viewing was good all summer, we didn’t see many bears catching salmon until August. That, coupled with a poor berry crop, had us concerned that the bears wouldn’t get enough to eat, but by the end of the summer, the streams were full of salmon, and the bears looked fat and healthy.

Marcia Messier was our cook and so much more again this summer. While salmon runs aren’t always predictable, wonderful meals from Marcia are a sure thing!

We began our season on July 10th with the arrival of friends Val and Terry Zimmer from Kansas, and Zac Bishop and Francesca Teeters, both from Colorado. On their first day, this group saw several sea otters and particularly enjoyed seeing the mothers with babies on their stomachs. They watched three bears chase each other and feed on grass, and one walked down to a stream near them and drank water. This group caught several halibut and enjoyed an afternoon of Dolly Varden fishing in Brown’s Lagoon, where Frankie caught our first pink salmon of the summer.

On July 15th, we welcomed back Mike and Chris Sargenti from New York and greeted David and Ann Jefferson from Scotland. On their first day, this group photographed foxes and deer and watched two bears nap in the sunshine. On July 17th, Dan and Yehudit Mizrahi from Israel joined the Sargentis and Jeffersons. This group saw a bear in the woods that rubbed his back on a tree and then walked down the bank to within 30 ft. of them before continuing on his way. Awhile later, they watched two sub-adult bears play, standing on their hind legs to bat at each other. On another afternoon, a bear seemed to follow them as they walked up a stream, and he paid little attention to them as he fed near them.

We welcomed Bink Frayne from Australia and Steve and Deb Bootz from Wisconsin on July 20th. This group enjoyed a leisurely day of fishing that included a lunch of grilled salmon. Steve, Deb, and Mike watched several bears, including one that caught a salmon and was immediately chased by another bear who was trying to steal the fish. The first bear gulped down his lunch before the second bear could catch him. Later that day, this group enjoyed watching a sow with three newborn cubs. Meanwhile, Bink experienced the excitement of catching and releasing a 40 lb. halibut in 20 ft. of water. Bink’s halibut placed him in our prestigious halibut club (40 lbs. and over).

On July 25th, we were pleased to welcome back Bud and Joan Coughlin from Pennsylvania and Diane and Gene Fantini and Junior and Carol Constrisciani, all from Delaware. Fishing was this group’s main interest, and Bud got things rolling with a 35-lb. halibut the first afternoon. The next day, Joan caught a 54-lb. halibut and joined our halibut club. On the third day, Bud and Carol caught salmon and Dolly Varden in Brown’s Lagoon, while Gene, Diane, Joan, and Junior kept five halibut and released four on the Mary Beth. On their final day, this group kept 10 and released 38 halibut, and Carol caught our first silver salmon of the summer. One evening, Diane and Gene videotaped a bear that walked along the shore near their cabin, and this group had the unexpected thrill of watching a mountain goat on the beach by our dock.

On August 4th, we welcomed back our dear friend Dick Zander and greeted Beat and Marie Christine Frankhauser from Switzerland and their teenage daughters Karin, Sabine, and Nadine. On their first morning, we encountered three orcas just minutes after leaving our mooring. The whales swam beside us for a distance and even dove under the boat. On a cruise to the mouth of the bay, the girls loved the bobbing sea otters, and Nadine showed her elders how to fish when she landed a nice halibut. By this point, the salmon run should have been hitting its peak, but there were few fish at the head of the bay, and this group saw the heart-breaking consequences of a poor salmon run when they watched a sow abandon one of her three newborn cubs. The sow probably wasn’t getting enough nutrition to support three cubs. Sows abandoning cubs is a common occurrence in nature, but it is rarely observed, and we saw it happen twice this summer.
On August 9th, Dick was joined by Peter Rim de Kroon, Elisabeth Schippers, and their teenage children, Rimke and Ferk, from the Netherlands. When we reached the head of Uyak Bay on August 10th, we were thrilled to see that the pink salmon had finally arrived, approximately one month late. We saw twenty-five bears fishing on the tide flats, and the de Kroon family and Mike sat on a riverbank and watched twelve bears fish and walk in front of them. One bear caught four fish right beside them. On another day, they watched twenty bears, including three very large males, fish and interact with each other. The de Kroon family all proved to be excellent fishermen, and Ferk decided fishing was almost too easy after catching his limit (five) of silver salmon and releasing twelve halibut.

On August 15th, our friends Barb and Tim Gilligan from Kansas joined Dick. Tim and Barb both caught silver salmon and their limit of halibut one day, and Tim joined our halibut club with a 45 ponder. Janet Ward and David Cresswell from England joined Dick, Barb, and Tim on August 17th. This group spent two days sitting on a riverbank watching bears fish and parade in front of them. Barb said there were so many bears she didn’t know which way to point her video camera, and Tim commented that he could hear bones crunch on their video when one of the bears ate her catch near them (as you may have guessed, my scenario at the beginning of this newsletter was drawn from actual events this summer).

On August 21st, we were pleased to welcome back Andy Vena II, Andy Vena III, Charles Reilly, Dennis Reilly, Albert Strydesky, and John Mayer, all from New Jersey. As always, these guys brought high energy and kept us smiling. They caught fifteen silver salmon and four halibut in two hours at Greenbanks. The next day, they caught eight halibut, and Andy Sr. demonstrated the perfect technique for landing a 52 pounder and joining our club. Mike took this group bear viewing on a side stream one afternoon for a couple hours, and they watched a large male catch several fish.

Kodiak Bear with Salmon

 We greeted our second straignt group of fishermen on August 26th.  We were happy to welcome back good friends Dan Robertson from Nevada, and Gene Fauncchi and John Mendoza, both from California, and we were pleased to meet first-time members of the group (aka “the new guys”) Ray Arreola, Bob Lipscomp, and Michael Saner, all from California.  Bob claimed to know little about fishing, and I knew immediately who would go home with the most fish.  Bob began the first afternoon by landing his limit of halibut, and he won the largest-fish bet with ease by catching the three biggest halibut of the trip.  The other guys caught plenty of halibut too, and Dan caught his limit of silvers one day.  Mike took “the new guys”  gear viewing, and they watched five bears, including two large males, fish on a small stream.

We were happy to welcome back Andy Erickson from Rhode Island and Rene Bär from Switzerland on September 3rd. Andy and Rene were joined by Tony and Karin Ross from Pennsylvania. On their first day, this group watched several bears fish, including an accommodating bear that caught a salmon and then carried the fish up the beach within full view of the cameras before eating it. On the way back to the boat the first afternoon, Andy slipped and broke his ankle. He had to be flown to Kodiak to have the ankle stabilized, and then he traveled home to Rhode Island for surgery. Although he never complained, I know it was a painful ordeal for him. Rene, Tony and Karin were joined by Walter and Eva Ortwein from Germany on September 4th. This group experienced the fury of a Kodiak storm when the wind blew nearly 60 mph, but they spent the following two, beautiful days watching bears on the main river. One bear ignored the live salmon, preferring to dig dead fish from the river bottom and eat them. Other bears were obviously getting more than enough to eat and would only take one or two bites out of a salmon before tossing their catch.

On September 8th, we welcomed Shinji Sato, Kazuko Yamade, Sho Komorizono, Ayuko Shiobara, Kazuhiko Yakushiji, and Kume Shizuko, all from Japan. This group enjoyed a spectacular first afternoon when we sat in the midst of ten fin whales that fed and surfaced around our boat. They spent the next four days photographing bears. One day, a large male strolled past them, and at the same time, another bear emerged from the brush across the river from them. Meanwhile, a bear walked toward them from upstream and caught a fish beside them. The dilemma was which bear to photograph first. One afternoon as we cruised back to the Mary Beth, we were surprised to see two orcas in the shallow water at the head of the bay. The whales, including a large bull, surfaced near us several times.

On September 13th, we were pleased to welcome back Gene and Denise Brown and their friends, Cynthia Spawn and Janis Allen, all from the state of Washington. This was a fun group to close out our summer season, and they enjoyed four beautiful days of bear viewing. One afternoon, they watched a bear take a bath near them in a stream, and on another day, they photographed two young bears play and wrestle. The bears got so carried away that one rolled down the bank onto the beach. When a third bear approached, the playing stopped and a tense standoff ensued between the three bears . After a few moments, they all continued peacefully on their way. Finally, this newsletter would not be complete without mentioning that this group as well as several previous groups enjoyed watching a cute, curious weasel that inhabited a log pile near where they sat to bear view.

The salmon run is crucial to the Kodiak ecosystem. Many animals, including bears, seals, eagles, orcas, many species of fish, humans, and yes, even the curious weasels depend on salmon for sustenance, and once they spawn, the nutrients from decaying salmon support everything from bacteria and fungi to plants and trees, to the salmon fry that emerge from the eggs that were just laid, all of which provide food for other organisms. Our summer season is carefully planned around the expected arrival of salmon in our bay. No one knows why the salmon run was late this year or why it was smaller than expected, but we assume it was one of those anomalies of nature that make our jobs frustrating at times but never boring. It is difficult to watch a sow abandon a small cub, but it is also fascinating to see how nature adjusts to deal with variances from the norm. When there is less food available, a sow must abandon one cub to expend her resources on successfully raising the two she has left.

I want to thank Marcia again this summer for her wonderful food and great sense of humor. She always keeps us smiling. We had guests from nine different countries. Half were new and half were returnees. One hundred percent of our guests were enjoyable, and I want to thank each one of you for sharing a piece of your summer with us. We wish Dick Zander and Andy Erickson speedy recoveries, and we hope to see you both back here soon.

Robin Munsey