Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 08/17/2013 - 09:04
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Arctic Sunlight and Microbial Interactions

Hi I was looking at your most recent journal( Fairbanks and Denali) and was interested in the amount of animal life in Alaska. Of course I know there is a lot of animal life in Alaska but I was surprised that the animals were so close to you and how many types of animals there were. Did you ever experience a time where the animals were close to hurting you or were dangerous to be around? How do you get so close to a bear without being harmed or at least scared? Did you see any rare or interesting animals on the expedition yet?

Your student, Liz Abramov

Mon, 08/19/2013 - 12:45

Anonymous

Liz -
Alaska is bursting with wlidlife! On the tundra in northern Alaska I saw bears, moose, musk oxen, caribou and lots of birds. In the ocean in southern Alaska I saw humpback whales, otters, seals, sea lions, dolphins, and more and more birds. It was incredible.
The key to wildlife encounters is to be aware so you can maintain a safe distance and not surprise them. That seems to be what happened last week in Yellowstone National Park when a bear attacked some people - they surprised a grizzly sow and her cub, which is the most dangerous thing you can do. http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/article.php?art_id=10178
Also, when you're camping, it's important to keep your food far from where you're sleeping. We also carried pepper spray (which may have saved those people in Yellowstone).
The closest I came to a grizzly was probably about 50-70 yards, in the picture in my July 23 journal. http://www.polartrec.com/expeditions/arctic-sunlight-and-microbial-inter.... He was definitely checking us out, but we just walked away calmly and he wasn't interested. It can be a little scary, but very exciting!
- Mr. T