TravelingbeebryantRN & Flicks_withNick

Hello from Anchorage, Alaska! We have two weeks left of our Alaska assignment, and we are starting to get to do the fun summer things. Nick and I have a goal of visiting every national park. His sister gifted us a national park pass every year for Christmas, and honestly it’s one of our favorite gifts. There are 63 national parks, with 8 being in Alaska! If you want to hit up all the national parks, you’ll be spending a lot of time in Alaska. This past week we had the pleasure of visiting Lake Clark National Park. In 2021, it was the fifth least visited national parks. This doesn’t mean it’s not worth visiting. It was absolutely incredible. I am still in awe. It’s my favorite National Park so far (Nick disagrees and still says his favorite is Redwoods National Park).  If you are going to Alaska, definitely put this on your itinerary.  

A little information about Lake Clark National Park & How to get there

Lake Clark is one of the most loved national parks, mostly for its scenery, wildlife and history. The park is 4 million acres of beautiful scenery and nature. Lake Clark is located on the Alaska Peninsula, only 100 miles southwest of Anchorage. The park is known for its 40 mile long turquoise body of water that is fed by numerous glaciers. The only way to access Lake Clark National Park is by plane. It’s a very remote national park, making it one of the least visited National Parks.

When Should you Visit?

Lake Clark National Park is open year round. Although it’s open year round, they suggest visiting in the summer months. They suggest summertime because of wildlife activity, and the weather. Most guided excursions are booked between June to September. They say the best time to visit is between July and August. Hence why we have a busy week of visiting two national parks!

What Company did we use?

We used Regal Air for our trip to Lake Clark National Park. There are a few companies that charter planes out to Lake Clark from Anchorage and Homer. We decided to go with Regal Air from Anchorage to Lake Clark. We chose this itinerary and company for multiple reasons. 

1. It was the highly rated and recommended on multiple websites.
2. The price was affordable. When I say affordable, it was affordable compared to other tours that were offered. This is definitely an expensive trip, so you want to make sure to find a tour that’s worth the money. 
3. We decided to go out of Anchorage for multiple reasons. This made it an easy day trip. This allowed us to take only one day off, and not pay for lodging somewhere. 
4. Weight limit. All my plus size friends, make sure to check out the weight limit requirements. This may limit your choice of companies.

Regal Air was definitely a great option. When you arrive at Regal Air that morning, you watched a safety video, and did a safety debriefing. This alone makes you feel comfortable before heading on a tiny plane to see grizzles. After the safety briefing, they fit you in boots to wear at the park. This was a must, as you are walking in muddy areas, and even in the water to get better views. The company had bathrooms (by bathroom, I mean outhouse).

Afterwards, you start loading on this plane. When I say this plane was small, it was small.

The plane fits five passengers including the pilot. The claustrophobia in me came out a little bit. The pilot was informative, and we felt safe throughout our journey to the park. He was able to point out different areas along our flight, including a black bear (they don’t see them a lot there!) and a pod of beluga whales. 

The flight was approximately an hour and fifteen minutes. Along with being our pilot, he was our tour guide throughout the experience. Grant, our pilot and tour guide did an exceptional job. The tour included a hearty lunch served on the way back at a pit stop away from the wildlife.

Where to Stay in Lake Clark National Park

As I said earlier, we chose a day trip option to the park. I can’t give suggestions of where to stay based on experience, but during my research, these are some of the places to stay in Lake Clark. These are the few that had the best reviews.

The Farm Lodge

The Farm Lodge is located in Port Alsworth, and within the preserve section of the park. The lodge has great reviews, talking about the comfortable accommodations, great food, and also provided great information on exploring the park. 

Tulchina Adventures

Glamping site protected with bear storage.

Alaska Bear Camp

Glamping site right on the beach protected with bear storage. Front row bear viewing. The price may kill you though

Things to Do in the Park

Go on a flight seeing tour and go bear viewing

A flight seeing tour allows for an overall rounded experience. During the flight, you can see the wildlife, along with the mountains, glaciers, and water. This is the option we opted for. The plane landed on the beach during low tide. 

After we landed, we explored the surrounding beach and forestry. 

The guide provided us with a bunch of information about the wildlife and the area. We saw 24 grizzly bears! If anyone’s curious, Moose count 🫎: 31 and bear count 🐻: 29. 

We weren’t the only ones, check out some of the others that did a similar tour!

Go hiking

Since we were with guided tour, we didn’t have the option to go hiking. There are a lot of trails in the park, but I’d make sure to be prepared with bear spray and bear bell.

Go fishing or kayaking 

There are a few tour groups that offer fishing or kayaking adventures in Lake Clark National Park. Regal Air also offers a fishing adventure. 

Things to Keep in Mind

1. There most likely will not be cell service at the national park.
2. Be 🐻 smart. Wildlife safety is a priority. Try to watch the national park safety inservice before going. They provide a lot of good information on the wildlife and how to act around them. 

3. There is no fee to get into the national park, but it’s pricey to get there!
4. Weather is unpredictable… especially in Alaska! Bring rain gear. You don’t want a little rain to ruin your trip.
5. If you are hiking or exploring without a guided tour, bring bear spray and bells. If you are doing a guided tour, you can leave them at home. They have all the supplies you need.
6. The bathroom situation is definitely sketchy… it’s an outhouse with no door. It’s basically a hole to go to the bathroom, and wood walls. You can see the male’s head when they go to the bathroom. It’s a once in a lifetime experience. 
7. Always bring enough food and water. Be careful with eating food around wildlife. It is not recommended. They don’t want bears to associate food with humans.
8. Always remember, leave no trace 🌿

Things to bring

Here is a suggested list of items to bring with you for a day trip to Lake Clark National Park. This list changes a lot when you are doing more than one day. 

1. Fully charged camera with lense, memory card, and extra battery.

• Tip: If you are going out of Anchorage, you can rent a camera at a local store in town. They are extremely affordable and helpful! We rented our camera from Stewart’s Photo for the week. 

2. Binoculars

• We unfortunately did not bring ours to Alaska. Our friend Tricia gave us a great pair for Christmas. This didn’t make the cut for our suitcases. We found a cheap pair that works well for the time being. 

3. Water
4. Snacks/lunch if not provided by tour  company 
5. Extra battery pack for phone
6. Insect repellent and sunscreen
7. Extra socks

• Have you ever hiked or walked with wet socks? It’s the worst.

8. Rain jacket
9. Bear spray and bear bell. Only, if you aren’t going with a tour group. 

I have to know, what’s your favorite national park? Have you made it to Lake Clark National Park? If you have, where’s it rank on your list? Also, am I tempting you to take a trip to Alaska? Just wait till you hear about our adventure this weekend. Stay up to date with all things travel, nursing, and of course Flicks_withNick’s movie reviews. Give us a follow on instagram or subscribe to this blog.

*all photos taken with a Nikon Z5 and Nikon 28-400 mm lense**