Into the Outdoors with Don

In association with Hikercentral.com

Come into the outdoors with me here on my outdoors site.

Make sure you've got all these things and you can go hiking in the woods.

COOKING POT
Don't forget to pack a cooking pot. How else will you boil water and cook your food.

DUCT TAPE
It's a good idea to pack a roll of duct tape. You can fix everything with duct tape, make sure you always have some with you.

LAMP
A good flashlight is an absolute necessity, I recommend a head lamp, very practical. It always shines where you're looking and it leaves your hands free to work.

STEEL WIRE
Always bring a short piece of steel wire, it is very useful if something needs to be fixed.

FOLDING TOOL
One of the few things that really saves the day is your multi purpose tool. Swiss army knife or Leatherman tool doesn't matter so much, they both have advantages over the other.

STOVE
If you want the best backpacking stove you can get you need to get yourself a Trailstove, it also happens to be the cheapest stove you can get. It runs on wood and the design is extremely simple, that's probably why it's also the cheapest stove you can get.

Make emergency snowshoes

Making a pair of emergency snowshoes to get to safety is extremely simple. It's surprising how many people try to get to safety in knee deep snow and drop from exhaustion.

Find two stocky branches about 3 feet long with plenty of small branches and plenty of green, preferably from a fir tree but other trees will do if there are no firs in the area.

Tie one branch to each foot at the front end of the branch. Thread the string through something on the front of your boot otherwise your foot will slip out of the binding. Make sure your foot can swivel enough to walk, the snowshoe should drag on the snow slightly in the back.

That's it, you're ready to go!

Katmai National Park & Preserve

King Salmon, AK

Katmai is famous for volcanoes, brown bears, fish, and rugged wilderness and is also the site of the Brooks River National Historic Landmark with North America's highest concentration of prehistoric human dwellings (about 900).

Katmai National Monument was created to preserve the famed Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, a spectacular forty square mile, 100 to 700 foot deep, pyroclastic ash flow deposited by Novarupta Volcano.

There are at least fourteen volcanoes in Katmai considered "active", none of which are currently erupting.

Brown bear and salmon are very active in Katmai. The number of brown bears has grown to more than 2,000. During the peak of the world's largest sockeye salmon run each July, and during return of the "spawned out" salmon in September, forty to sixty bears congregate in Brooks Camp along the Brooks River and the Naknek Lake and Brooks Lake shorelines. Brown bears along the 480 mile Katmai Coast also enjoy clams, crabs, and an occasional whale carcass.

A rich variety of other wildlife is found in the Park as well.

There is plenty room for great diversity of wildlife in Katmai which encompasses millions of acres of pristine wilderness, with wild rivers and streams, rugged coastlines, broad green glacial hewn valleys, active glaciers and volcanoes, and Naknek Lake.

CONTACTS

Email - Kristi_Bergeron@nps.gov

Fax- 907-246-4286

Write to
Katmai NP&P Field HeadQuarters
P.O. Box 7, #1 King Salmon Mall
King Salmon, AK 99613

- or -
Katmai-Lake Clark HeadQuarters
4230 University Drive, Suite 311
Anchorage, AK 99508-4626

Phone
Headquarters - (907) 271-3751
Visitor Information - 907-246-3305

TRAVEL BASICS

Operating Hours, Seasons
The park is open year around. NPS and concessionaire services are offered at Brooks Camp from June 1 through September 17. Backcountry activities are also best during this time. Prime bear viewing months at Brooks Camp are July and September, although a few bears may be in the area at any time between late May and December.

Getting There
PLANE - Katmai National Park Preserve is located on the Alaska Peninsula, across from Kodiak Island. Park Headquarters is in King Salmon, about 290 air miles southwest of Anchorage. Several commercial airlines provide daily flights into King Salmon as there is no road access. Brooks Camp, along the Brooks River approximately 30 air miles from King Salmon, is a common destination for visitors to the Park. Brooks Camp can only be reached via small float plane or boat.

Weather & Climate
Summers in Katmai are cool with frequent high winds and rain. Insects can be intense and headnets are recommended.

Accessibility
Most of the public buildings in Brooks Camp, including the restroom facilities, are accessible, via ramps, to those with limited mobility; however, the narrow dirt paths in Brooks Camp are rough and can become very muddy and slippery during the frequent rainy days. The lower bear viewing platform, which is over 1/4 mile from the Visitor Center across a floating bridge, is also accessible, but we caution those with physical difficulties that inadvertent very close encounters with brown bears are possible and may require visitors to move quickly. The trail to Brooks Falls and the Falls bear viewing platform are not accessible to those with physical disabilities. This area is also not appropriate for any visitor unable to move quickly off the trail and into the woods, especially during high bear density in July.

Getting Around
Viewing brown bears in their natural habitat and fishing are very popular activities in Katmai. Safety and preparation for varying conditions are the most important considerations when visiting a wilderness area like Katmai National Park & Preserve.

Although a bear may be encountered anywhere in Katmai from late May into December, the best times for bear viewing at Brooks Camp are late-June through July and September. There are few, if any, bears around Brooks in June and August, though they are seen occasionally during these times.

July and September are crowded with both bears and people. Delays in getting to and from the bear viewing platforms are common and can occur at any time, although such delays offer opportunities for viewing other wildlife and the spectacular scenery all-around Brooks Camp.

Katmai is bear habitat, and they always have the right-of-way. Weather and bears are always a factor at Katmai, so plan extra time to work around delays. There are occasions, especially in July, when visitors are unable to get to the Falls Platform due to time constraints and flight schedules.

Extenuating circumstances may necessitate closure of any portion of Brooks Camp, including trails and bear viewing platforms for safety reasons without advance notice.

CAMPING

Brooks Camp Campground (KAT#)
Make Reservations by Phone at 1-800-365-CAMP
Brooks Camp is the only Federal Fee Area within Katmai National Park & Preserve. There is a $10 per person/per day User Fee (not entrance fee) for all persons, plus an additional $5 per person/per night fee for those camping at the Brooks Camp Campground. Advance campground reservations and fee payment are required for Brooks Camp. For those coming to Brooks Camp as part of a lodging, touring, or fishing package provided by the many commercial operators to Katmai, reservations may have already been made through your provider. Please check with your provider at least three weeks prior to your arrival.

LODGING

Brooks Lodge
A private concessioner, Katmailand provides additional accommodations and food service at Brooks Camp's Brooks Lodge and two other lodges within the Park. Reservations are necessary. Contact Katmailand for further information. Many other lodges and resorts offer tour packages for Katmai and the Alaska Peninsula area as well.
For More Information on this lodging please call 1-800-544-0551

FACILITIES

Visitor Centers
BROOKS CAMP VISITOR CENTER
Location - On Naknek Lake near the mouth of Brooks River, 30 air miles from King Salmon.
Special Programs - All visitors to Brooks Camp are required to attend the Brooks Camp School of Bear Etiquette offered at the Visitor Center. This fifteen to twenty minute orientation provides visitors with basic information to help keep themselves safe and bears out of trouble. A variety of interpretive programs are available at Brooks Camp throughout the summer. Evening programs are presented nightly by Park staff. Each afternoon, a Ranger led cultural walk takes visitors to a re-created archeological site from the Visitor Center. Each day Rangers also join Brooks Lodge staff to offer a guided bus tour to the Valley of 10,000 Smokes. Reservations for the bus tour must be made in advance at Brooks Lodge. Other special ranger guided hikes and activities occur on an unscheduled basis throughout the season.
Exhibits - Books, cards, posters, and videos are just some of the items available at the Alaska Natural History Association (ANHA)Bookstore.
Available Facilities - Backcountry Planners and bear resistant food canisters (no charge) are also available for those challenging Katmai's trackless backcountry.

KING SALMON VISITOR CENTER
Open All Year 8 am to 5 pm
Phone - 907-246-4250
Location - Next to the airport terminal in King Salmon
Special Programs - The King Salmon Visitor Center is an interagency facility. Partners include the National Park Service, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Bristol Bay Borough, and Lake & Peninsula Borough.
Exhibits - The visitor center has exhibits of the local area as well as interpreters who will provide information on the entire Katmai region. The Visitor Center serves as an outlet for books, postcards, and other interpretive material offered through the Alaska Natural History Association (ANHA).

Wilderness Information Centers
THREE FORKS VISITOR CONTACT STATION
Location - Located 23 miles from Brooks Camp on the only road within Katmai National Park & Preserve. The Three Forks Station overlooks the famous Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes and is the starting point of the Ukak Falls Trail.
Exhibits - New exhibits on the geology and history of the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes will be installed for the summer 2001 season.

Some content donated by Hikercentral.com and the National Park Service

COOKING POT	Don't forget to pack a cooking pot. How else will you boil water and cook your food.
DUCT TAPE	It's a good idea to pack a roll of duct tape. You can fix everything with duct tape, make sure you always have some with you.
LAMP	A good flashlight is an absolute necessity, I recommend a head lamp, very practical. It always shines where you're looking and it leaves your hands free to work.
STEEL WIRE	Always bring a short piece of steel wire, it is very useful if something needs to be fixed.
FOLDING TOOL	One of the few things that really saves the day is your multi purpose tool. Swiss army knife or Leatherman tool doesn't matter so much, they both have advantages over the other.
STOVE	If you want the best backpacking stove you can get you need to get yourself a Trailstove, it also happens to be the cheapest stove you can get. It runs on wood and the design is extremely simple, that's probably why it's also the cheapest stove you can get.