That’s a good analogy for this first trip back after my last Backcountry Journeys trip since February. In Katmai, we found that the proverbial water is indeed fine. When our group convened at King Salmon on the first day of our adventure, the vibe (because of COVID-19) was a bit different – not necessarily good or bad different, just different.
The first-night dinner is always a combination of get-to-know-you banter and questions about the trip and this group was no different. As we waited on our entrees at the Sockeye Saloon, the conversation bounced around about photography and the bears. The excitement was palpable. After dinner, we retreat to our rooms at the Antlers Inn so that everyone can pare their gear to 60 pounds for the floatplane trip. I make my way around each room and weigh baggage while we talk more about the adventure to come. The attitude among the group is universal: the morning cannot come soon enough.
At 7:30 am I walk from my room overlooking a creek that flows past to the Naknek River. The scenery is serene and quintessential southern lowland Alaska. The morning is calm and the temperature has the first cold bite I’ve felt in quite some time. I stand there and let the moment wash over me as I hear nearby gulls erupt into a cacophony and drown out the distant buzz of a floatplane heading out to an unknown adventure.
Soon we are loading the vans and headed down to the river to board the floatplanes. Our carrier, Branch River Air, made the process seamless, and soon, we were floating along the river in a DeHavilland Beaver plane. The pilot added some power to the engine and in an instant we were airborne. As we leveled out, I peeked over the pilot’s shoulder and noted that we were cruising at about 1,000 feet – a perfect altitude for seeing the moraine wetlands of the Naknek hydrological complex.
As we bank and begin our descent to land on Naknek Lake, I see at least six bears walking along the black sand beach. I turn to the guests on my plane and with a nod and a smile, they reciprocate. The excitement just reached the next level.