Our first black bear sighting

Wednesday evening, we were giving a tour to a family we know from work in search of moose. We had stopped by Ship Creek to watch salmon fishing and saw a couple of really big fish but didn't stay long as this wasn't the primary goal. Off to Glen Alps and Powerline Pass - the Old Faithful for moose sightings.

Driving into the parking lot where we were going to hike, our 5-year old guest spotted the "watch out for bears" sign and it took us a little time to convince him that he wouldn't be eaten by a bear while were walking around. But once we got him sidetracked, we were off and did see some beautiful bull moose. (They are gathering for the yearly rut. Stay tuned for more on this topic.)

We hiked around Glen Alps until about 9:30 and then headed back to town. About 1/4 mile from the parking lot, we see a moose cow right by the side of the road. GREAT picture opportunity (of course my camera was in the backpack in the back of the car and I couldn't get to it).

Moving forward about 1/2 mile, there are three cars stopped blocking the road. Of course, one of the best ways to spot wildlife when driving on Alaska roads is to see where all of the other cars have stopped. This time was no different. We pull up (blocking more of the road), look in the same direction everyone else is looking and...

Yes - it finally happened....after a year of living here for Robert and 10 months for me....

We saw a black bear by the side of the road eating/playing in a bunch of flowers. He looked like a big cuddly toy and I believe the bees were buzzing his head as he kept shaking it and kind of rolling it back and forth. We aren't sure how big he was as he never stood up but I think he was fairly young. Our friends got some great video - our camera was still in the back of the car.

As we were sitting there watching the little one play, I was thinking of the irony of how much we had to work to convince our smaller guest that we wouldn't see a bear where we went hiking. I hope he didn't think of the irony. I am just glad we were in the car for this sighting!