(Footage provided by 4@moodboard-Pond5)
Article Reprinted From ADN
Mike Dunham
Applications are now being accepted for Brooks Camp in
Katmai National Park and Preserve and for the McNeil River State Game
Sanctuary. The two sites are renowned for excellent viewing of brown bears during
summer.
A total of 185 Guiding Viewing Access permits are
available for the McNeil River, the prime bear gathering spot, through a
lottery process. Applicants can get information on signing up for the lottery
at mcneilriver.adfg.alaska.gov or by calling 267-2253. A nonrefundable
application fee of $25 per person is required. If selected in the lottery,
Alaska residents will pay a permit fee of $150. Nonresidents pay $350.
Fifty-seven Camp-Standby Viewing Access permits will also
be drawn, allowing holders to stay in the sanctuary campground and visit a
nearby beach area where bears also assemble. Visitors holding standby passes
are eligible to fill vacancies in the event that a Guiding Viewing Access
permit holder can't use his or her permit. The $25 application fee is also
required for the standby pass. If selected, Alaskans pay $75 for the permit and
nonresidents play $175.
The deadline for McNeil River Sanctuary applications to
be received by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game is midnight on March 1.
Reservations for permits to stay at Brooks Camp in Katmai
National Park and Preserve opened Jan. 6 and remain open until all spaces are
taken. The reservations can be made at recreation.gov or by calling
1-877-444-6777 between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. AST. The Katmai reservation system is
not operated by the National Park Service but by a private contractor. A
representative told the Daily News that a fee of $12 per night is charged for
camping at the developed site along with an $8 transaction fee.
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