By:
Submission
Take Lutak Road five miles past ferry terminal to Chilkoot River Road on left just before the Chilkoot River bridge.
Visited this lake with a guided canoe tour from the cruise ship. Super worth it, despite the super thick fog. Salmon come here to spawn and we could see them gathering at the inlets.
We came here for bear watching but had a pretty bad experience. A mama bear and her cubs came to the other side of the river and we‘re cornered by at least 20 people. They we‘re chasing the bears and some we‘re standing just 2 ft away from the cubs. They shoot over 50 bears each year in Haines (google bear problem haines) so I would definitely avoid this place.
Love going fishing here when visiting family. The scenery is unrivaled for its beauty, trouts and dollies always abundant. Watch the water for the fish, your back for the bears, and watch your fish for the eagles.
This is regarding the bear watching along the Chilkoot River (not the campground). You can see bears catching salmons at the river. I went there in the evening to watch a bear and her two cubs catching salmons. When they came to our side of the river, people didn‘t move away and get in their cars as they are supposed to do. A few people were only 2m away from a cub and eventually moved over after a local fisherman were shouting at them. I was shocked when I saw how tourists didn‘t care, especially after I read at the info board that since 2001 (!) cubs are reguarly shot because they became to familiar with people and loose their fear.
This is not a zoo! These are wild animals and they need to remain wild. PLEASE keep your distance. I would even recommend not to go there. It‘s not worth it if you have bad feelings afterwards.
