Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge

A Kodiak brown bear near Frazer Lake.

A Sitka black-tailed deer on Camp Island at Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge.

The Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge covers two-thirds of Kodiak Island and contains mountains, forests, bays, inlets and wetlands.

The refuge also includes 50,000 acres on Afognak Island, just north of Kodiak. Elk, deer and bear inhabit the island.

Spruce forests dominate northern Kodiak Island and the entire Afognak Island portion of the refuge. The refuge's interior is blanketed by lush, dense vegetation.

No place on the 100-by-40-mile island is more than 15 miles from the sea.

The Kodiak refuge is home to more than 3,000 Kodiak bears, the largest and most powerful carnivores in North America. Kodiaks grow to more than 10 feet tall and can weigh more than 1,200 pounds. They eat mostly salmon and local vegetation and will occasionally hunt rodents and deer.

The 1.8 million-acre refuge is also home to Sitka black-tailed deer, mountain goats, red foxes, otters, short-tailed weasels, beavers and tundra voles, while whales, porpoises, Stellars sea lions, seals and waterfowl inhabit the ocean.

Bald eagles reside year-round on the refuge in such numbers that they are easily viewed.

Fishing and hunting on the refuge are allowed. Wildlife observation, photography, rafting, kayaking and camping are also popular. A limited number of cabins are available on a lottery system.

The Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge headquarters is about four miles from the town of Kodiak. A new 8,000 square foot visitor center, located in downtown Kodiak, offers exhibits on the Kodiak brown bear, salmon, the birds of Kodiak Refuge, and the skeleton of a 36-ft gray whale. Commercial airlines and the Alaska State Ferry system provide access to the town.

Once visitors arrive in Kodiak, access to the refuge itself is available by boat or plane only.