Visit Kodiak Island, Alaska
Kodiak town was once the capital of Russian Alaska, but today it is know for one reason only: it is home to the largest grizzly bears in the world.
Lying in the Gulf of Alaska, Kodiak is the largest of the USA’s islands and is frequently called Alaska’s 'Emerald Isle'.
Kodiak town was once the capital of Russian Alaska and this heritage lives on in the Baranof Museum, Erskine House and the Holy Resurrection Church. Today, fishing is the dominant industry on the island, leaving the mountainous interior largely untouched.
Kodiak bears
Two thirds of the island is set aside as a wildlife refuge and it is home to as many as 3,000 of the largest grizzly bears in the world: weighing in at between 800 and 1,500 pounds they are known, respectfully, as Kodiak bears. The salmon here are so abundant that the bears only eat the most nutritious parts, the skin and the roe, and discard the rest.
Other animals frequently found are Sitka black-tailed deer, mountain goats, foxes, elk, otters and bald eagles.
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