Alaska

Talk about the circle of life! Pacific salmon begin their lives in far upstream freshwater, migrate to the open ocean where they live their adult lives, then return to freshwater a few years later to spawn and die in the same pebbly beds where they hatched. In Alaska, salmon of various species make this journey home at different times of the year. Travelers to the panhandle towns of Sitka and Ketchikan can witness the return of massive king, or chinook, salmon between May and June. Silver, or coho, salmon run in the panhandle from July to November. In Katmai National Park, pictured above, a summer run of sockeye salmon up the Brooks River and over falls of the same name creates a bonanza for bears, and in turn, photographers. And finally, in Haines, a late run of chum salmon along the Chilkat River is made possible by thermal energy that keeps the lower river thawed until February. This attracts the largest gathering of bald eagles in the world for a winter feeding frenzy.

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Talk about the circle of life! Pacific salmon begin their lives in far upstream freshwater, migrate to the open ocean where they live their adult lives, then return to freshwater a few years later to spawn and die in the same pebbly beds where they hatched. In Alaska, salmon of various species make this journey home at different times of the year. Travelers to the panhandle towns of Sitka and Ketchikan can witness the return of massive king, or chinook, salmon between May and June. Silver, or coho, salmon run in the panhandle from July to November. In Katmai National Park, pictured above, a summer run of sockeye salmon up the Brooks River and over falls of the same name creates a bonanza for bears, and in turn, photographers. And finally, in Haines, a late run of chum salmon along the Chilkat River is made possible by thermal energy that keeps the lower river thawed until February. This attracts the largest gathering of bald eagles in the world for a winter feeding frenzy.

© Danny Kimberlin 2015