Best Alaska Wildlife Viewing Experiences 

One of the most popular activities to do in Alaska is wildlife viewing. The country has a large expanse of sea and land, making it the perfect location to watch animals, marine life, and birds. However, as it’s a wilderness, it’s not always easy to know where to start or go. If you ever find yourself here, consider these wildlife-viewing experiences.

Marine Wildlife Viewing Tours

One can’t mention Alaska without talking about marine wildlife. You can check out area guides for information about the best places to see marine wildlife in Alaska. One of the ways that people get to enjoy this experience is through day cruises. They’re reasonably priced, and you get to see various wildlife. The captains of these cruises always search for something interesting in the waters. If they spot animals like porpoises, whales, or eagles, they stop, allowing tourists to have a good viewing experience.

Wildlife Parks

Aside from marine life, there’s plenty of land wildlife to see. One of the best wildlife parks to watch animals up close is the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. The park is about 90 acres huge, and the animals live in enclosures. The experience is worth it as you get to see eagles, bears, and bison.

Another wildlife park you should check out is the Alaska Sealife Center. It’s home to harbor seals, sea lions, and many shorebirds. You can see a 2000-pound sea lion gliding underwater through viewing windows, harbor seals relaxing on rocky beaches, and puffins diving in the water.

The Alaska Zoo is also a great park to visit. Here, enclosures are sparsely populated throughout a wooded region, so animals have plenty of space to move around. Other parks you may want to check out include the Alaska Raptor Center, the Musk Ox Farm, and the Reindeer Farm.

Polar Bear Watching

One of the things that brings people to Alaska is polar bears. Understandably, these animals are not only beautiful, but they also have some fascinating traits. For instance, one of the most interesting things about polar bears is that they can go for almost 7 to 10 days without eating. Even though the locations for viewing these beauties are few, it’s not impossible to get a glimpse of them. The best time to see polar bears is during the whaling seasons. You can find more than 50 of them feeding at one location.

Bear Viewing

Another species that brings tourists to Alaska is bears. There are over 35,000 brown bears and 50,000 black bears in the Alaskan wilderness. They’re busy enjoying salmon and raising their kids. But unlike moose, which you can casually encounter on the roads, you have to go searching for bears. If you work with a tour company, you’re guaranteed to see bears. The tour guides know where and when to find them. Take a tour and get to see groups of bears sunbathing and playing with water or teaching their young ones how to fish.

Eagle Viewing

Alaska is home to more than 40,000 bald eagles, meaning you are likely to see one when here. Usually, they’ll assemble along rivers to easily access food, which is fish. Eagles tend to come back to the same nests and spots every year. Guides know these spots and will show you active nests as you cruise down the river.

Depending on the season, you can see eagles sitting on their eggs, feeding the chicks, or as the fledglings flap their wings for their first flight. And you don’t even need to go with a guide. Simply ask locals where you can view bald eagles, and they will direct you.

Salmon Viewing

Watching salmon is both colorful and exciting. Alaska has some great rivers that are clear and shallow, giving you a great view of the fish. There are plenty of places to view these fish on their incredible journey. Just ask locals what the best locations to watch salmon running are. The state has overlook platforms where you can watch salmon and an interpretive display highlighting the life cycle of the species.

The Denali Park Road

This road gives you a chance to view the big five of Alaska. They include grizzly bears, wolves, moose, caribou, and Dall Sheep. The road stretches about 95 miles, and you can only access it through park buses. After the third mile, you’ll enter the Taiga forest, a habitat for moose. It’s also not uncommon to see wolves as you pass Teklanika. Expect to run into the Dall sheep in the mountains. You can even spot bears if you’re lucky.

Moose Viewing

It’s quite easy to see moose in Alaska. You’re likely to run into them through baseball and soccer fields or around neighborhoods in the morning. As they’re herbivores, they survive on plants such as willow, maple, pin cherry, and birch. During winter, their population explodes as they move towards lower levels in search of food. Many Alaskans find their trees destroyed in the morning by moose.

Are you planning a trip to Alaska? This guide should help you know where to start. Find an experienced tour guide or local to show you around for a great experience.

 Author’s Bio: 

Joe Moore has always been fueled by his passion for finances, asset protection, and individual and consumer rights. He has written for many legal and financial clients, helping them present a customer-centric approach to their content. 

If Joe isn’t writing for one of his clients, you can find him balancing his portfolio, discovering new companies that are aiming to change the world, or discovering a new hidden restaurant gem to satisfy his secret passion for food.