kaktovik tours

Ketil is WONDERFUL! Wow, we had such an amazing time. We enjoyed Ketil so much my husband went back up 2 weeks later (there wasn't any room for me on the flight or boat sadly) and just got back. Ketil helped him get onto another boat when his boat was full on the last morning of my husbands last minute trip. Way above and beyond!Ketil's boat is very nice and easy to get on and off of. We never got our feet wet getting in and out. The heated cabin was a wonderful bonus. We travelled with my 70 yr old mother-in-law (1st trip only) and Ketil borrowed a van to pick is up and drop us off as she wasn't very steady on her feet on the ice or simply in all the winter gear. The walk from Marsh Creek to the boat dock isn't too far, but when carrying lots of camera gear or being unsteady on your feet it can seem like a fairly good walk. The loading area for the boat can change depending on the ice in the harbor. Marsh Creek helped shuttle guests to the boats on my husbands second trip as the ice was moving around rapidly each day and the boats couldn't get to their normal docking area.When bear viewing we got pretty close to the bears. Never disturbing them or letting them get curious enough to touch the boat as others did when we were there. Ketil was great about either beaching or anchoring the boat to keep it steady for photography. He knows the bear behavior quite well and knows when to move on or stay. He knew when to pull the boat back, but still keep a good angle for those on board taking pictures. He was very willing to maneuver the boat when requested. Ketil was always on time and even after we thought we shouldn't go out due to fog one morning, he said we should go and by the time we got to the boat the fog had cleared and the sun came out! We had amazing light on the bears and the harbor had iced over in one part and the bears were out swimming and playing in the ice! We saw so many bears it was crazy! Mom's and cubs, huge male bears, bears swimming, cubs play fighting, bears at the bone pile, cubs nursing (only boat to see this! - the others weren't out!). The cost for the excursions might seem expensive, but it's worth every penny!! Only a few boats can go out to see the bears and on many days we were the only boat out. Other guests at the hotel were left waiting for their boat guides to decide to go out even when the weather was great!! It's a very short viewing season so the operators have limited time to make their income.Make sure to book your boat tours in advance as the bears were not at the bone pile much which leaves you without seeing bears if you go on land based tours (at least when we were there both times). I cannot wait to go back to Kaktovik and go out with Ketil! I can only hope he has space for me next time! It was an absolute pleasure and truly one of the best wildlife experiences we have ever had (we travel to Africa each year for photography). We booked directly with Ketil instead of going with an expensive tour and it was very easy!Thanks Ketil for all of your help and hospitality!! Look forward to seeing you again very soon!!

This was an experience of a lifetime and Ketil made it that way. Went way above and beyond to accommodate us. He was always finding polar bears for us and was very patient to just sit and wait while we were photographying the bears. He was very funny and had us laughing quite a bit. I can't say enough about Ketil and what a wonderful experience it was. Would definitely go again.

Ketil was a great guide - very friendly, safe, & an interesting guy. He constantly worked to give us the best experience possible on his boat. Would do it again in a second. Thanks for my most amazing Alaskan experience, Ketil!

Ketil is a great guide, he's also very friendly and has a great boat with a warm cabin. He drove us very safely around the lagoons and also showed us a great number of Bears. He is a great team player and a person with great knowledge and experience. He's also run the Iditarod dog race many times. We saw as many as 20+ Bears during our day trip with him. He picked us up straight from the runway in his boat, in style...we were photographing Polar Bears within 4 minutes after landing in Kaktovik. My wife and I had a great time with him and will go again with him next year to get more time with the Bears. Ketil was nice enough to show us around the village as well and made sure we were comfortable throughout the trip. He has a lot of safety equipment in his cabin cruiser including many life vests, ladder etc. We felt very safe with him and will gladly recommend him for anyone who has to see Polar Bears in the wild. I will add a few pictures from our trip on this page soon..Thanks, Ketil !

This has been one of the best trips we've made to Alaska. How many people can say they have seen polar bears in their natural environment.We recently spent a day tour with Ketil and had a fabulous time. the weather was good and we were able to break our day tour into 3 seperate trips out on his boat. Ketil is one of a few licensed guides to provide this experience in a safe and up close manner. He also has a very interesting backstory of dog sledding across Norway and meeting his wife in Kaktovik. He is also the only person to have completed the the 5 longest dog sled races. There is no lack of conversation topics and learning experiences. Additionally he was as excited to see the bears as we were. That was wonderful because this is something he enjoys, not does day in and day out as routine. He has also guided film crews and will be working with national geographic shortly.At one point we counted 20 polar bears and saw wonderful bear behaviour. We saw cubs nursing, a mom and 2 cubs exploring the bone pile and then taking off at a run when a huge male came on the scene. Juvenile cubs rough housing and having a great time. One bear found a bag of rocks in the water (used as an anchor for a fish net) and played with it like a kid. And one tense moment of 2 males checking each other out and then deciding to peacefully co-exist.He also gave us a tour of the town which is quite interesting including heated water and sewer lines which makes sense but who would have thought?Ketil's goal was to provide an excellent day and everything exceeded anything we had hoped for.

I work in Alaska and travel the entire state. I see and do a lot of different things. I can honestly say this is the most awesome thing I've done. It is REAL. Don't expect anything fancy. Just expect kind and caring and honest people. Ketil is a very personable person and is very accommodating. We tried to get out in the boat to see the bears, but the water was just too rough. Once he realized it was too rough, we turned around. We were all pretty disappointed, but then Ketil piled us in his van and drove us all around to see the bears. They were everywhere. We were fairly close to a couple of them, but still very, very safe. He was very protective of us. I would do this trip again tomorrow if I could! Thank you Ketil!!