Black Bear Express

Offered by Kawanti Adventures In Ketchikan, Alaska

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About us

We’re locals who are passionate about sharing all that we love about Alaska.

That’s why we create great adventures that show off our Alaskan beauty and thrills with enthusiastic and knowledgeable guides. We hire and train our staff for exceptional customer service and keep our state-of-the-art equipment up to the highest standards for safety. So you get authentic Alaska, guided by those who love her.

From the sky, you can see the grandeur of the fjords. From the zip line, you can feel the adrenaline as you soar through the treetops. From behind the wheel of your kart, you experience the landscape as a living thing. From the ground, you’ll see bears, eagles and other wildlife. No matter if you’re at elevation 0’ or 3,000’, you’ll experience the adventure that is Alaska. There’s a tour for every age, interest and fitness level. From an informative walk in the rainforest to a stunning flight over a fjord, there’s an awesome, must-have experience waiting for you.

We are local and have a deep Alaskan legacy. We have been serving the local community for more than 40 years, first through Taquan Air and then later, through ground tours. Owner Brien Salazar is deeply committed to the region, supplying scheduled and charter service to remote towns, providing year-round and seasonal job opportunities and sharing his love for the world’s largest temperate forest with locals and tourists alike. We support our community with volunteer time, donations and more.

What we'll do

Ketchikan's finest bear viewing accessible by road!

Visit Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary for this unique opportunity to see black bear in their native habitat. Watch for bears from the safety of the raised boardwalks which maximize your viewing and provide protection. This is a short tour focused on opportunity to view bears.

Your experience will start with a narrated tour through Ketchikan, followed by a scenic coastal drive to the Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary. Within a very short time, you’ll find yourself in bear country. The only drive to bear viewing areas in Southeast Alaska….

This tour offers the same duration for black bear viewing as our comprehensive Black Bear & Wildlife Exploration tour. However, it is streamlined to exclusively focus on black bear sightings, omitting the additional time allocated for exploring our mini-features on site.

This experience is curated strictly for seeing black bears in their natural habitat. When you arrive at the sanctuary, naturalist guides will join you, bringing the rich forest to life as you walk along an improved trail. You’ll be surrounded by magnificent stands of spruce, hemlock and cedar trees. And soon you’ll be watching for wild bears in search of spawning salmon and ample berries. These are safe, protected raised boardwalks, exclusively for bear tours only. You can expect to have an intimate viewing experience and to reduce environmental impacts, only a limited number of groups have access to this private bear viewing area.

Your guide will lead you along another boardwalk system perched over the grassy wetlands alongside Herring Creek. You’ll have the chance to observe a rich run of spawning salmon and the bears and seals that come to fish for them, along with bald eagles and other birds that wait for scraps in the tidal estuary nearby. Your transportation will be waiting to pick you up where the tour began.

*Please Note: The half-mile long trail is over relatively flat terrain. The focus of your tour will be on viewing black bear in their natural habitat. Your guide may change the order of the tour or time spent in any one area to give you the best chance to see bears. Although the chances for seeing bear are excellent, wildlife sightings cannot be guaranteed. The wildlife viewing time is approximately 60 minutes. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. No food or drink is allowed on the trail. You must follow your guide’s instructions at all times to ensure your safety.

*ABOUT ALASKA RAINFOREST SANCTUARY
In the heart of the Tongass National Forest lies Kawanti Adventures’ very own Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary. The sanctuary is known for its forest trails and boardwalk system that leads to an open estuary complete with a creek running out to the famous Herring Cove. The sanctuary is a hot spot for all wildlife, but specifically bald eagles and black bear.

What to expect / what's provided

*Duration: 2 Hours

*Minimum age: 12 years old

*Difficulty Level: Moderate
- This experience includes walking for short distances over gently sloping terrain, possibly with a few steps or slight inclines. The path is a lightly graveled trail. Please expect to be on your feet (either standing or walking) for the entirety of your tour. Participants should be able to move into and out of buses or vans.

*This tour operates in all weather conditions.

*Comfortable walking shoes, layered clothing and waterproof jacket are recommended.

Cancellation Policy

Changes and cancellations can be made up to fourteen (14) days prior to the date of service with no penalty. Cancellations within fourteen (14) days and no-show guests result in full forfeiture of fare. In the event your cruise ship is late or delayed, we will make every effort to reschedule a new tour time to accommodate your ship’s new port itinerary. In the event the minimum number of participants is not met to operate the tour, we will make every effort to reschedule a new tour time to accommodate guests.No refunds will be made to any customer who does not use all of the services scheduled to be provided by the tour operator.Our tours will operate in a variety of weather conditions, and we will not issue refunds to any customer who chooses not to participate in a departing tour due to weather conditions.

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