Kodiak Island, Alaska | September 2025
September on Kodiak is when everything converges. The salmon spawn is in full swing, and with it comes an energy that ripples through the island and its surrounding seas. Bears gather at the rivers, birds arrive fresh from their Arctic summer, and the waters offshore become a feeding ground for whales, otters, and puffins. It’s the kind of seasonal synchronicity that makes this place one of the wildest destinations we could choose for our very first Her Wild Life Expedition.
Day 1 – Arrival
A soft start: afternoon arrivals, hotel check-in, and our welcome dinner. Around the table, everyone named the species they most hoped to see—Kodiak brown bears, puffins, sea otters, and whales. Fittingly, those same species are at the heart of September in Kodiak and the very reason we built this itinerary.
Day 2 – A Sea Alive
We woke to blue skies and a calm, glass-like sea—ideal conditions to set the tone. Before leaving the harbor, Steller sea lions barked from the docks and black oystercatchers patrolled the rocky outcrops. Not long after, sea otters floated in rafts among the kelp, tufted puffins dove for fish, and Arctic terns winged overhead.
The highlight, though, was the whales. We’d expected humpbacks, but the day surprised us with more than a dozen fin whales—the second largest animal on Earth—feeding in the same waters. By the time we returned to shore, we’d seen puffins both tufted and horned, multiple otter aggregation sites, and a marine ecosystem pulsing with life.
Day 3 – Salmon and Bears
Rain greeted us today, as did the salmon. Rivers were alive with pink and silver salmon fighting upstream, a reminder that the pulse of Kodiak in September starts in these streams. A young brown bear was fishing in one of the drainages, perfectly embodying the link between salmon and bears. Along the wetlands, emperor geese—recent arrivals from their northern breeding grounds—fed in groups. Kodiak is one of the few places in the U.S. where these elusive “emps” can reliably be seen, and we found dozens.
Day 4 – Roads to the Wild
No rain today, and our focus returned to bears and other island mammals. While ermine eluded us, we saw Sitka black-tailed deer and snowshoe hare, plus an unexpected bonus: a gray whale close to shore. Following the road to its farthest reaches, we added tundra swan, red crossbill, and merlin to our bird list.
Day 5 – Departure
Early morning flights meant no field time today. Lesson learned: future itineraries will allow for one more half day in the field before heading home.
Kodiak in September is abundance in motion. Salmon feed the bears. Kelp beds shelter otters. Offshore currents concentrate food for whales and puffins. Migratory birds arrive as others move on. Every thread is tied to another, and together they weave the story of this wild island. For our very first Her Wild Life Expedition, we couldn’t have asked for a better place—or a better season—to show how deeply everything in nature connects.
