Juneau, Alaska (KINY) – Reservations for the Pack Creek Bear Viewing Area on Admiralty Island went on sale Feb. 1 at Recreation.gov.
A permit for the Pack Creek Bear Viewing Area allows the permit holder to visit from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., April 1 to Sept. 30, 2024. Permits need to be purchased online before arrival at Pack Creek.
Permits are limited: only 24 visitors are allowed per day during the permitted season. Half of the 24 permits available are for public purchase, and the other half are reserved for commercial companies providing guided tours to Pack Creek.
There is no road to Pack Creek. Access is by floatplane, motorboat, sailboat, kayak, or canoe only. Most visitors arrive by floatplane from Juneau, approximately 30 minutes each way. Pack Creek is within a federally designated wilderness area and has no facilities on site.
Visitors to Pack Creek are entering the world of the coastal brown bear and viewing these magnificent creatures in their natural habitat as they eat sedges and clams, play with their siblings, sleep, and fish for salmon.
The Tlingit people call Admiralty Island “Kootznoowoo” (from Xutsnoowú) meaning “fortress of the bears”. The island is home to an estimated 1,500 brown bears—more than all the Lower 48 states combined.
The Pack Creek ecosystem is home to more than just brown bears; Admiralty Island contains the highest concentration of bald eagle nests in the world. Other birds, mammals, and marine life thrive in this rich ecosystem of old-growth rain forest and coastal marine environments.
The Pack Creek Bear Viewing Area is managed cooperatively by the USDA Forest Service and the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, whose staff are available to provide orientations and answer questions during your visit.
