Sitka was the first capital of Alaska. It was also the headquarters of Russian settlement in Alaska during the 1800s. There is a wonderful Russian Orthodox church and a park filled with historical totem poles in Sitka. So why did we spend May 11, 2026, hanging out with the bears, seals, and eagles? We'd seen all the great Sitka historical sites on prior trips, and we just felt like being with the critters. Our three-part tour included a boat ride into Sitka Sound, a visit to the Alaska Raptor Center, and a stop at a bear rescue center.
The Alaska Raptor Center had a large aviary for free-flying eagles, which are plentiful in Alaska, along with owls and hawks. It also included several areas where injured birds rehabilitated, and an enormous eagle nest that we could walk within. This eagle had a broken wing, which prevented it from being released back into the wild.
Eagle nests are huge--up to 10 or 12 feet in diameter. We could walk inside this one! Later, as we saw eagle nests in trees, we realized how strong the trees had to be to hold them!
We never saw an Alaskan bear in the wild, but we saw the next best thing--many bears at a Sitka bear rescue center. The center gathers bears who are injured or who are orphaned by car accidents. If they can be released back into the wild, the center does that, but many of its charges must stay in its bear rescue areas.
We enjoyed watching this bear eye a log in its pond, wade out to it, and then climb on top like a circus animal!
And then it was time for a snooze!
Alaska has several varieties of bears, including both brown and black ones.
The third part of our excursion was a boat trip around the sound, where seals, otters, and whales cavorted. The photography was not great without a telephoto lens--just a few dark heads and tails poking out of the water for an instant and disappearing.
We did enjoy the drama of a group of seals climbing onto and off of a buoy, and pushing each other around in the process.
And, as always in Alaska, the views of clouds, trees and water were gorgeous.
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