...the bears of Russian River

A brown bear surveys the scene near the trailhead to the Russian River falls.

This bear has some claws.

THE ROUTE:  Carter Lake Trail.  Well established trail with lots of water crossings.  Very muddy.

Mrs. Huffy crosses a stream on Carter Lake Trail.

Michelle on her way up the trail.

Trent leaps across a stream.

The hikers at the top of Carter Lake Trail.

The fall colors were beautiful in the valleys.

But, up high winter has arrived.

Dinner cooking over a fire at the end of a day of bear viewing and hiking.

Our weekend opened up unexpectedly.  On Thursday evening we discovered we had no commitments and the weather forecast was excellent.  Time for some fall camping at Russian River Campground.

We arrived on Friday evening just before the Burnett's pulled in.  We immediately set up camp(s) and got a fire blazing.  After several hours of visiting we made plans to hike the Lower Russian Lakes Trail to the falls the next afternoon.  Then it was time to hit the hay.

At 1:00 PM, we loaded the trucks and drove toward the trailhead parking lot.  When we got there several other vehicles were parked in the road and two brown bears were eating berries in the bushes.  We pulled up close enough to get some good photos and after the bears wandered back into the woods we abruptly changed our hiking plans to Carter Lake Trail.

It was a wonderful hike with many water crossings.  The streams were full with the rain that has fallen over the Kenai Peninsula for the past month.  There was lots of mud, which was enjoyed immensely by the kids in our group, and a beautiful view when we reached the top including Carter Lake and the snow capped peaks around the valley.

Following the hike we returned to our camp for another evening fire where we cooked dinner and recalled the adventures of the day not far from...the bears of Russian River.