bears Archives | Alaska Magazine

Authentic Alaska

Gods of the Grizzlies

July 7, 2026 By Michelle Theall

The Siege at Kroschel Wildlife Center By Michelle Theall In June 2025, eight days before Steve Kroschel fled to Russia with the clothes on his back and atoothbrush, a group of Alaska State Troopers shouldered their AR-15s and raided his wildlife park.Riding ATVs that shattered the quiet of a Southeast Alaska morning and wearing Kevlar vests, theymoved from building to building, shoving open Kroschel’s rough-hewn wood doors. “Steve, you in here? Where you at? Police.” Another officer deployed a drone for a birds-eye view of the rugged and remote 60-acre compound inMosquito Lake, 45 minutes from the nearest town of Haines, counting vehicles on the lot, watching formovement, and searching to see if anyone might be hiding in the alder thickets. For the men on theground, the property presented multiple hazards: rusted rebar, loose boards and strewn wire, saggingfloors and decks, exposed nails, abandoned equipment, and plausible odds of opening…

Activities

Showing Up

January 18, 2023 By Nick Jans

Right place, wrong attitude I stood on the walkway over Steep Creek, in the shadow of the Mendenhall Glacier. A popular spot for Juneau locals and visitors alike. This late summer afternoon, sockeye salmon finned in the clear shallows, flashing their deep red spawning colors; a bald eagle perched in a spruce, framed by the autumn-tinged slopes of Mount McGinnis: the whole scene a giant, living postcard. I gazed out, feeling my pulse and breathing slow to match my surroundings. An incoming clump-clump of footsteps signaled an end to my moment alone. No big shock. After all, the bus-packed parking lot for the Glacier Visitor Center lay just a hundred yards away. Amazing, I told myself, that this little chunk of country could absorb so much traffic, day in and out, and stay this good. “Where are the bears?” A New Jersey voice in the crowd demanded. “They said…

Wildlife & Nature

Bruin Highways

January 2, 2022 By Michael Engelhard

Bears are creatures of habit, and create trails through Alaska visible as ruts in the earth and marked by scents along the route.

Wildlife & Nature

Bears take over during the pandemic

July 24, 2021 By Michelle Theall

The bears noticed our absence during the pandemic and took the opportunity to throw a party, with some bruins behaving better than others.

Gear

First aid kit for hunters and fishermen

March 20, 2021 By Bjorn Dihle

Adventure Medical Kits offers a wide variety of ready-made first aid kits targeted to different pursuits and scenarios.

Wildlife & Nature

A Season of Bears like No Other

February 20, 2021 By Nick Jans

Nick Jans encountered more bears than usual during his three week stay at home out the Haines Highway. And he wasn’t alone.

Activities

Cross-Admiralty Island Canoe Route

January 31, 2021 By Bjorn Dihle

The Cross-Admiralty Island Canoe Route is a 32-mile hike and paddle across lakes and trails from from Mole Harbor to Angoon.

Wildlife & Nature

Wild bear breaks into Alaska Zoo at night

September 23, 2020 By Alexander Deedy

A wild brown bear forced its way into the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage and killed a 16-year-old alpaca named Caesar.

Photos & Videos

Katmai Bears at Brooks Falls

August 31, 2020 By Michelle Theall

Alaska’s Senior Editor saw 17 bears at Brooks Falls when she was one of the first visitors to Katmai National Park when it reopened in early August 2020.

Food & Drink

Eskimo food

August 30, 2020 By Nick Jans

Nick Jans shares tales of caribou soup, moose nose, fermented walrus flipper, and other Eskimo foods he’s encountered through years of Inupiaq hospitality.

bears

Newsletter