Wild Bear Safari

melissa cole

2023-10

What a great experience. Luke is an amazing guide.He took us to great bear spotting sites that were just breathtaking in their beauty and with patience and persistence we saw our bear. Luke is passionate about his tours and will do all that he can to ensure you have a great experience.Thank you Luke - Melissa and Peter - Brisbane Australia

MT CT

2023-08

We had such a great time with Luke and Whitney. It is obvious that they love bears and love Alaska. They took extra time to share all sorts of interesting facts and take us off the beaten path, they even feed us sone home cooked salmon….. And YES we did get to see bears. It was also very comforting to look for bears with someone that could protect us. I wouldn’t hike this area without a guide because there are many bear warnings.

Chris Lomenzo

2023-09

This is a great tour!! Luke was awesome, it took a few hours before we found the bear but we held out and boy did we get a show when the time came! Luke was passionate about delivering the goods for us! His tour is fun and knowledgeable on both the bear and the local area and his homemade smoked salmon that he shared with us was delicious!!

Randi Potter

2023-05

Our family had a wonderful time with Luke, and we definitely ended the day with a new best friend. Luke was very engaging and has a passion for wildlife, nature and his community. He is very easy to get along with and kept us entertained while looking for bears... it was truly as if we were talking with someone we'd known for years. Even when our day was coming to an end and we weren't sure we'd see any bears, we weren't disappointed because we learned so much from Luke about his travels and the surrounding areas that we would still have been satisfied even if he hadn't found us a bear, which he ultimately did!Most notably was the impression he had on our 12-year-old son. After sitting in the front seat as Luke's co-pilot, our son now has a desire to move to Alaska because of its beauty and wildlife.Thank you, Luke, for making our experience a very memorable one, and we wish you the best of luck in your future adventures!

Sara Erickson

2023-08

Phenomenal Tour! We started the day with our guide Luke, who immediately joked around with our kids and quizzed us on the price of a gallon of Hooula gas. Even though we were scheduled for a 3 1/2 tour, Luke extended the trek significantly. Our teenage kids were engaged the ENTIRE time, excited to learn about the animals and local people and walk off-road through the bears’ habitat — accompanied with an armed guide. We sang bear hunt songs on the way home and saw some of the most beautiful land we have ever seen. We highly recommend the Bear Safari — on a scale of 1 to 10 for tour guides, Luke is an easy 10 — one of the best I’ve ever had. He even took us up on a post-tour beer!

Sandra van nostrand

2023-09

We just had an amazing tour with Luke and Whitney! They took us to all their favorite creeks to look for bear. They were very knowledgeable of the area and fun to tour with! We would highly recommend a tour with Luke!

Cara Mimun

2023-09

Our day at Wild Bear Safari with Luke was a HUGE success! It was a bit of a last minute choice when we got to Hoonah, and obviously when dealing with wildlife, nothing is guaranteed - but did we hit the jackpot with wildlife sightings, and Luke! He was knowledgeable, had easy conversations, and fun to ride around with for the day! We saw bears, whales, and eagles - all in one location! Thank you Luke, for a great experience!

Ryan Flanagan

2023-05

Our group had a fantastic time with Luke and we could not recommend it any more! We were originally supposed to Kayak, but due to Rain our excursion was cancelled. We went to the Excursion hub in Icy Straight and the host recommended we take Luke's Bear Safari, so we rolled with it and we are super happy that we did. He was an awesome tour guide, hilarious to be around, and after not seeing bears for awhile used his local knowledge of the game trails and we came upon Bears as he suspected. It was an awesome tour and our friends and family still talk about how much fun we had with Luke. We cant wait to come back soon to explore with him again!!

Taria Souchon

2023-07

This tour was absolutely incredible and one of the highlights of our trip! A lot of people booked their tours through the cruise ship and were disappointed with they tours but not us. Luke made this experience local and authentic. We saw so many bears and learnt so much. Can’t recommend this tour enough !

Lee Lloyd

2023-08

This was a really great way to see around Icy Strait Point. We didnt have Luke on this day but the guide we had was very good and we were lucy to see two big bears. One just in front of our car. We received lots of information about the area and there was only 4 of us on this tour plus the guide. Would highly recommend this tour.

Jennifer Lehrer

2023-05

Luke went way out of his way during the last week of the September to find us a bear while in Icy Strait on our cruise. He even took our tour last minute and left his other job to take us out. And he delivered!!! We saw the biggest bear imaginable, plus all the other amazing things, bald eagles, Sitka black tail deer, and so many amazing views. We had a great time driving across the island to all the secret spots for almost 6 hours!!! He also went out of his way to take us all the way back to the cruise ship. He literally went the extra mile for us! We plan to come back and we will definitely find Luke again and enjoy some more of his axing smoked salmon. We highly recommend using Luke and his Wild Bear Safari!!! Thanks again Luke... Rick and Jen Lehrer

Steve Cheek

2023-05

This was an absolutely wonderful excursion. It felt like Luke was an old friend and his bonus sidekick, Jolene just made it even more special. We learned so much about the Tlingit tribe, the native plants, and berries. We saw many salmon in the river and a huge brown bear! We enjoyed every minute of our trip and the delicious salmon dip Luke made for us. We just need the recipe! We will definitely be back to Hoonah and do a wild bear safari again with our friend, Luke.

Kevin Pendergrass

2023-05

My wife and I booked a last minute excursion and we are so glad we did. Luke was a fantastic tour guide! We saw a bear for a few minutes and one walked in the road in front of us. Luke also fed us some of his homemade smoked salmon dip. It was awesome! We highly recommend Luke and this excursion!!!

Scott Potter

2023-05

Luke was awesome! On our tour saw multiple bears. We had a great time learning lots about the area and taking in some beautiful scenery. Thanks for a great experience Luke!

Peggy Carlton

2023-05

My husband and I had so much fun with Luke! Our favorite excursion! We saw a lot of bears! Luke knew just where to take us. Being with a local Alaskan made the day better than I could have imagined. He was knowledgeable and had great stories!! Thanks Luke!!

Efren Lam

2023-08

Best tour experience in my life! We went with Luke, he show us places that only locals would go. He jokes around along the journey to keep us entertained. We saw 4 bears on our trip! I would definitely go again when I have the chance. This tour is highly recommended for those who wants to go on a private tour.

Don Borleis

2023-05

WE SAW BEARS!!! Great day of sightseeing and bear viewing. Every part of the tour was fantastic. Our bear guide Luke was top notch. He was fun, informative, and went out of his was to ensure the comfort and experience for our family. Thanks!

Nora G

2023-08

If I could give 10 stars I would! This was the best wildlife tour I’ve ever been on! Whitney was the best guide, she really cared about our group and connected with us. Luke was incredibly knowledgeable and taught us about everything we wanted to know. We also saw the cutest mama bear with her cubs at the river. It was a very special moment that I’ll never forget. 10/10 would recommend!

Amber S

2023-06

This was the highlight of our trip! Our first stop on an Alaskan cruise. Luke is amazing! I stress a ton when it comes to excursions that aren't booked through the ship. Luke brought the anxiety level down immediately! He has never been late for 'all aboard' and I can see why. He is very knowledgeable and very passionate. His love and respect for nature is contagious. I felt like I was taking a drive with an old friend. He genuinely wanted to know about us and we learned so much about him. I'm pretty much expecting an invite to his wedding lol If you want a taste of what Alaska is really like (and bears)...This. Is. It!

Patrick Watkins

2023-09

Luke was great. He is certainly not your cookie cutter guide. He took us where we could see bears as well as adding a very entertaining commentary about life in Alaska. If you are looking to experience an entertaining and interesting experience you can not go wrong with Wild Bear Safari.

Denise Butler

2023-05

Our group of 7 members of my family recently took a bear watching tour from the Owner of Wild Bear Safari out of Hoonah, AK, Luke. I cannot express enough how much we thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent with Luke. He went way out of his way to find bears (which he did) as well as pointed out many beautiful sights in nature. We shared great discussions along the way. He made sure we were safe at all times. This was much more than your typical sterile tour, I would highly recommend him!

Amber Richard

2023-06

We are so happy we chose Wild Bear Safari for our bear watching excursion. Luke was a great guide and went above and beyond to make sure we had the best opportunity to see bears. Which we did !! He was a pleasure to talk to and we learned a lot about the area. Thank you so much for a great tour. We would love to come back and do it again.

Kwik Fixx

2023-05

We scheduled with Wild Bear Safari last minute right in the town of Hoonah and what a blessing we did! Luke was a fantastic guide and we enjoyed learning more about the area from Luke. He even showed us where he lived and drove us directly back to where we needed to board our ship...saving us time on catching the shuttle. We so enjoyed watching two bears fishing for salmon up close and a short hike. Luke even shared some of his smoked salmon and Crackers for a mid day snack! Highly recommend this tour with Luke!

Sean Rundell

2023-05

My wife and I had an absolute blast hanging out with Luke on the tour. He was super fun to talk to and gave us great insight on the town and wildlife. We saw a going bear near the waters edge catching a fish. What's great about Luke is he is down to do whatever your group is feeling whether it is scouting for bears, cruising around town or grabbing a beer at the local bar. So glad we hung out with Luke during our stay on Hoonah! If we ever make it back we will definitely look into having fun with him again.

C&J Ganshorn Gibson

2023-07

Luke and Wild Bear Safari offer a fantastic, safe, and intimate experience going out to the land and forest around Hoonah (Icy Strait Point) to watch bears in their natural habitat. We saw 6 beautiful Alaskan brown bears the morning we went out, getting as close as we safely could, as well as many birds including bald eagles and hawks. If you want a luxury wildlife viewing experience or you don’t have the right clothes, this may not be the tour for you. But if you want a great, honest local guy who has extensive knowledge of the area and of bears, this is your best bet. All in all informative and unforgettable excursion. No issues with cruise ship arrival/departure timing. Small tour size is a bonus. Thank you, Luke, for an unforgettable experience! Jen and Christy.

Yesenia Valencia

2023-08

Luke was very friendly and knowledgeable. I would highly recommend booking a tour with him for a fun and unforgettable experience.

Rick Meuser

2023-05

Luke rocks! He was sick on the day we were scheduled to go on the bear excursion with him, but he stepped up and got one of his colleagues (“Greg”) that has his own tour business to take us out later in the day, and we saw bears! I would have liked to have met Luke in person (and have a few brewski’s with him after the excursion), but it just wasn’t in the cards. The point is, he did the right thing and took care of us (thanks again Luke!).

James meme

2024-01

want a tour outside of the cruise company and a great price this is it. worth every dollar. ver knowledgeable and found us some bears to watch.

James Bradley

2023-08

Amazing experience seeing a bear in its natural environment and learning about them. Luke was a great guide. He took us all over the island and on a few hikes.

Cher Henton

2023-05

If I went back to Hoonah, I would plan to spend the day looking for bears, fishing, and seeing the sites on a private tour with Luke. I didn’t have plans and was asking the locals for a recommendation on what to do. I found Luke when a kid at the gift shop told me to go knock on the door of the grey house with a yellow door. I did and met Luke. I joined 2 other folks for a 10am bear tour. Luke kept us away from the crowds and we saw heavenly places. It was obvious the bears were around because of half eaten salmon and bear tracks but we finally saw them from the bridge on our way home. Luke didn’t rush us. Luke is interested in creating an experience more than showing you bears within a crowd of people. I really appreciated that.