Munsey's
Bear Camp
Newsletter
Another summer has flown by, and we are left with fond memories and photos. We reminisced about past adventures with old friends and watched the excitement on the faces of new guests as they experienced the wonder of Kodiak Island for the first time. As always, bears, and particularly sows and cubs, were the stars of our summer.
Our season began July 14th with the arrival of Erna and Ueli Kaltbrunner from British Columbia and Bruno and Ursula Engi from Switzerland. On the first morning, this group was greeted by two young bears that played on the shore in front of them. One of the bears rolled onto his back and stretched his feet in the air. A little later, they watched a sow with a large cub stroll the beach, and on another hot, sunny day, they saw a bear cool down with a swim across the bay. On their last morning, Mike took the Kaltbrunners and Engis to the mouth of the bay, where they marveled at the sight of thirty fin whales, six of which surfaced near the boat. Erna and Ursula appointed our new kitten, Elsie, camp social director, and Elsie took her job seriously.
Alan Lloyd from Utah and his father Doug Lloyd from Kansas, and Rob and Sophie Morley from Mozambique arrived July 20th. On the first day, this group watched a sow with three newborn cubs and a sow with two 2-year old cubs. On a cruise to the mouth of the bay, we saw twenty fin whales, and several surfaced near the boat. Sophie described the experience as, "Absolutely brilliant!" On their last day, Sophie, Rob, and Mike watched a curious, young bear walk up to them and then follow them down the beach when they returned to the boat. Meanwhile on the Sunrise, Doug and Alan experienced the thrill of halibut fishing in shallow water. They had already each caught their limit of halibut by the time Rob and Sophie returned to the boat, and the Morleys wasted no time dropping their hooks in the water. Awhile later, Sophie caught a 62-lb. halibut, and Rob caught a 52 pounder.
On July 26th, we greeted George and Cindy Ray and Ken and Summer Groves. This group was delayed a day due to bad weather in Kodiak, but the sun shined on them in Uyak Bay. George went to work immediately and caught a 50-lb. halibut the first morning. At the head of the bay, they watched a large bear, a sow with two cubs, and a smaller bear catch fish in the tide flats. Both of the single bears, fish dangling from their mouths, walked directly in front of the Rays and Groves. This group saw fin whales at the mouth of the bay and enjoyed an afternoon of salmon fishing in Brown’s Lagoon. On their last morning of bear viewing, Ken, Summer, and Mike watched thirty bears fishing on the tide flats.
Mike and Rebecca Ross from Texas arrived on August 6th. On their first day, they watched bears fish in front of them all afternoon. Three family groups, each consisting of a sow with two cubs, walked in front of Mike and Rebecca, and a single bear caught a salmon and brought it into the beach and ate it near them. They watched four bears play and box, and all the bears were as tolerant of the people as they were of each other. Rebecca and Mike enjoyed our most breathtaking day of whale watching this summer, when we saw approximately fifty fin whales, with a pod of ten surfacing together beside our boat.
On August 9th, Sylvia Leggett and Tom Boylan, both from Nevada, joined Mike and Rebecca. This group watched 25 bears fish and interact on the tide flats. One large bear caught a fish, brought it into the beach to eat it, and then walked up into the brush beside them. They then enjoyed a good afternoon of halibut fishing, with Tom and Rebecca each catching Munsey’s Bear Camp Club halibut (40 lbs and over). After whale watching one morning, we cruised over to Greenbanks, where Tom caught our first silver salmon of the summer!
We waved goodbye to Rebecca and Mike on August 11th, and on August 12th, Tom and Sylvia were joined by David, Susan, James, and Amy Miles from England. This group saw approximately 25 bears one day and watched several fish in front of them on the tide flats. Later, everyone except Tom walked up a small stream where they saw a large boar and a sow with two cubs of the year. Meanwhile on the Sunrise, Tom couldn’t stop smiling as he fought an 82 lb. halibut in 20 ft. of water. On their last morning, Mike took the Miles family out to see fin whales, and several surfaced near the whaler, giving everyone a thrill.
On August 14th, we were happy to welcome back Dan Robertson from Nevada. Dan brought five friends with him: Howard Hancock, Gene Fanucchi, Gordy Sexton, Perry Kirshenblatt, and Frank Oclassen, all from California. This group was interested in FISHING! These guys caught seven silver salmon on our first trip to Greenbanks, and on a day of halibut fishing, Gordy and Gene each caught "Club" halibut. On our next outing to Greenbanks, this group caught 22 silver salmon, and things got exciting when five guys had salmon on at the same time. All five fish made it safely into the boat.
The next ten days were like a family reunion, when we welcomed back dear friends Dick Zander and Ed and Jean Matusik. Dick’s sister Pat Murphy from Maryland, and his son and daughter-in-law Rick and Sue Zander from Virginia, joined Dick and the Matusiks. This group watched a bear nap for half an hour. When he finally awoke, he walked over to the stream and fished in front of them. On another day, they laughed at the antics of three cubs of the year as they played on a tree limb while their mother caught salmon. On the main river, they photographed a sow with two yearling cubs fish and play, and on their final day of bear viewing, they watched twenty bears fish and interact on the tide flats. This group caught 16 silver salmon one day, and they all caught halibut, including Pat’s 68 pounder and Dick’s 90 pounder. While Dick’s halibut didn’t quite meet the requirements for Beulah’s Gold Club, we thought he deserved an honorable mention in the club. We know Beulah would have approved. This group enjoyed a beautiful last day. While we salmon fished at Greenbanks, we listened to fin whales blowing across the bay and marveled at the clear view of the Alaska Peninsula, where we could see a volcano billowing smoke.
On August 31st. We were very happy to welcome back Andy Erickson from Rhode Island. We also greeted Steve Anderson from California, his brother-in-law Paul Comacchio from Australia, and Ed and Sandy Hay from Florida. On the first morning, this group watched several bears, including a sow with two cubs of the year that stood on the bank above them and another bear that caught a fish in a stream in front of them. On another day, a sow with two yearling cubs walked up to this group. Mike talked to her to make sure she knew they were there. She stood on her hind legs to get a better look at the people and then calmly led her cubs to the other side of the stream. We already knew Andy was a good fisherman, but the rest of the group proved their fishing skills as well. They all caught silver salmon at Greenbanks, and a day that began rainy and windy, turned out to be a great fishing day when everyone caught halibut, and Steve landed a 207 lb. halibut, our largest of the summer!
Bryan and Sue Munroe and Harvey and Carolyn Shaffer, all from Colorado, arrived September 5th. This group toted some serious photography gear and always had their cameras ready to go, capturing images of eagles, puffins, sea otters, seals, deer, and other wildlife. On their first morning at the head of the bay, they sat for nearly two hours and watched a sow and her two cubs of the year play and sleep. Later that day, they watched several other bears, including two singles that chased each other and caught fish in front of them on a small stream. Day three brought another storm, so the Munroes and Shaffers decided to give halibut fishing a try. They learned quickly and had no trouble catching enough halibut to fill two fish boxes. Bryan’s 74 pounder was the largest of the day. On the last day, their cameras whirred when they were surrounded by bears fishing on a small stream, including a sow with two cubs that fished 30 ft. from them.
On September 10th, we were pleased to welcome back Ed Ryan from Idaho who last visited us 12 years ago. Ed was accompanied by Barbara Child, also from Idaho. Paul and Polly Neldner from Colorado and Don Feare from Texas rounded out this group. Yet another September storm changed our plans on the first day, but day two was calmer and we made it to the head of the bay, where at one time this group watched seven bears fish in front of them on a small stream. Awhile later, a very large male bear walked directly below them. The following day was rainy and windy, but the bears didn’t seem to mind. Polly even saw one bear jump into a beaver pond for a mid-day swim. The next day it finally stopped raining. Partly sunny, calm weather provided excellent photography conditions, and the bears cooperated. This group saw two sows nurse their cubs, and one sow plopped down to nurse right in front of them as they snapped photos. Don captured some wonderful images, which he has included in his book of photos, Masters of the Forest. It was the perfect day to end our season.
From reading this newsletter, you can see that most of our trips involve bear viewing and fishing. We receive many inquiries from non-fishermen asking if we do bear or wildlife-viewing only trips. Yes, we do! If you want to view bears and other wildlife but are not interested in fishing, let us know and we will give you a list of non-fishing time periods. We feel that our close proximity to a high concentration of Kodiak bears and Mike’s expertise around bears are the ingredients that make our trips special. Mike has more experience guiding bear viewers than anyone else on Kodiak Island. In addition, he is himself a photographer, so he understands the requirements necessary for a good photo and can offer advice on lenses and other photo gear you should bring with you.
Many thanks to our guests who made this summer special. I am proud to state that at the time I am writing this in September, we are already 60% booked for next summer with returning guests! I know already that it will be another fun one. A very special thanks to Marcia Messier for taking care of us again this summer. I suspect many of our guests return just to eat her spectacular meals.
–Robin Munsey