Inside Passage, Bears and Aleutian Islands - Alaska
Week two on our 13-week bucket list cruise to the North and South Poles on the luxury hybrid expedition ship Hurtigruten Expeditions - MS Roald Amundsen.
Day Eight - Kukak Bay & Kinak Bay, Alaska
We enjoyed our morning coffee on the balcony and spotted our first bear!
I quickly pulled out the binoculars and confirmed it was not a rock but a bear playing on the water's edge.
We had just anchored in Kukak Bay, Katmai National Park, so we quickly geared up for our Zodiac cruise, beginning to understand this layering concept.
Our Zodiac Captain Freddy took us to the bears; three bears were snacking on salmon.
After 20 minutes, we continued our Zodiac cruise. We spotted a few seals, otters, bald eagles, and gigantic jellyfish while soaking up the mesmerising scenery we were surrounded by. It was the most refreshing start to the day!
We returned to the ship for lunch and cruised to our afternoon destination, Kinak Bay. Today on the menu, we opted for Vegetarian Lasagne, and we look forward to this coming back!
In mid-afternoon, we anchored in Kinak Bay and Katmai National Park. We layered up again for another Zodiac and thought we couldn't top this morning, but low and behold more bears, and we were able to sneak up even closer! We even saw a Mama bear with her two cubs.
What a day! We had our first bear sightings in the wild and counted eight during the day. I am grateful to have purchased our Canon Binoculars (Canon 12x36 IS III) with the stabilising feature to see these magnificent creatures up close.
The ship pulled up anchors, and we were back cruising for a few hours; then, to our surprise, we were stationed for the evening in Geographic Harbor. This made for stunning views over dinner and a quiet evening.
