Bear Man of Pack Creek

Image by Nick Bonzey on Wikimedia

As the summer dawn broke over Pack Creek on Admiralty Island, Alaska, one could often see a white-haired man walking amongst the bears. Carrying nothing but a walking stick, he casually sauntered within feet of these 1000 pound bears, all the while humming to himself. This level of communication between Stan Price and the massive creatures of the forest existed on another plane, outside the laws of physics and beyond the spoken word, for Stan had become one with the bears.

Stan arrived in Alaska in 1927 on a sailboat he built. Not caring for the trappings and convenience of modern life, he made a living from the land by fishing, mining and logging. For over 40 years, Stan called Pack Creek his home as his address was a float house in a small bay 30 miles from Juneau. The native Tinglit called the area “Kootznoowoo”, meaning fortress of the bears. They knew that the bears out numbered them and on this island they roamed freely and unafraid. Today we call the area Admiralty Island and it is still home to the largest concentration of brown bears in North America. Unchanged and unspoiled, the bears roam the same trails and forge for food in the same creek as their ancestors before them. This was Stan’s home as he walked in the shadow of the bears. He spoke for the bears, was their advocate and, when necessary, would take on the government for their protection. Today, many of the bears that frequent the creek’s tidal flats are descendants of orphaned cubs, raised by Stan after hunters shot their mothers.

The bear man of Pack Creek is no longer with us, but his legacy and conservation lives on in the Stan Price State Wilderness Sanctuary with sixty thousand acres of pristine coastal forest awaiting the Alaskan traveler. The Alaska Department of Fish & Game and the U.S. Forest Service cooperatively manage the sanctuary in order to provide up close bear viewing opportunities with minimal impact to the brown bears. MV Discovery Yacht touring company is the only small ship outfitter that has access & permits to the places Stan loved best. Their connection with Stan goes back decades, as the father of MV Captain Ben Swanson has Stan’s infamous walking stick hanging on his wall. MV Discovery provides small, intimate tours to this unique piece of wilderness and visitors to this area can walk alongside the memory of Stan Price, a man who poured his life and heart into preserving this rich Alaskan experience.