My good friend is visiting from Colorado and was interested in making an early morning foray to look for wildlife. I was glad about that because it meant I would have some company and it gave me a good excuse to make a trip to Skilak Loop. So, a 5:00 AM, I picked him up in Soldotna and after a brief stop for coffee we were on our way, donuts in hand.
We first drove to the Russian River Ferry Crossing just in case the bears were visible from the highway. Nothing doing. Then it was off to Skilak Loop Road where we drove slowly and peered into the bushes. Lots of snowshoe hares were spotted but nothing substantial until we got to Upper Ohmer Lake. Two loons were peering and fishing right at the edge of the lake near the road. We got out and took a few steps to the water and started firing the shutter releases on our cameras. I was having a difficult time getting the exposure right and eventually ended up opening it up 2 2/3 stops to get the loons exposed properly. Of course, that burned out the water, but I didn't care much about the water anyway. After 15 minutes or so we got back in the truck and drove toward Upper Skilak Lake Campground. Rounding a corner we spotted a black bear walking down the middle of the road. We stopped the truck and stuck our cameras out the windows just in time to get some pictures of the back side of the bear before it ambled into the bushes. We were elated.
Then it was off to drive through the campground and take the road back to the Sterling Highway. It was a good...early morning on Skilak Loop.
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