KMXT 100.1 FM Public Radio in Kodiak, Alaska
Kodiak -and its bears-made the front page of the Travel section of the New York Times’ May 13th issue.
In the article titled "It’s a Bear’s World in Kodiak, Alaska," author Ted O’Callahan tells of his journey to Uyak Bay with his photographer to visit with Harry and Brigid Dodge at their Uyak Bay cabin.
KMXT’s Maggie Wall spoke with Harry about the article, and has this report.
-((Bears in NY Times 3:38 "Harry and Brigid…on KMXT.org.SOC."))
Harry and Brigid Dodge have a low-impact guide service specializing in bear viewing based out of a solar-powered lodge at Uyak Bay. Kodiak Treks and often while out scoping for bear, they’ll snip a wild herb or other edible for snacking.
Harry says he’s the laid-back one while Brigid excels at promoting the business. The business has gotten a lot of promotion thanks to the article.
The New York Times article began as a trip to Kodiak last summer by freelance writer Ted O’Callahan and photographer Kim Hubbard:
-((Harry how it came about :58 "They said they were ….a lot of response to it."))
In his article O’Callahan describes Kodiak’s history, wildlife and beauty. He waxes elegantly about lunches of fruit, and ham and cheese sandwiches made crunchier with freshly picked fiddlehead ferns.
He describes events and sightings from his several-day trip to Uyak Bay, including eagles, merganser chicks, deer and, of course, the bears.
Dodge says he was pleased with the article:
-((Harry good article :29 "Yea, and …pleased with his work."))
O’Callahan is no stranger to Alaska and he throws in details about quirky things that make Kodiak special. He said that in nine years working in Alaska he’s seen six bears. On his first day on Kodiak he saw nine.
Those are the kinds of comments that bring visitors to Kodiak.
Kodiak Island Convention and Visitor’s Bureau Executive Director Janet Buckingham said the article is an "awesome piece of work" and that she has received e-mail copies of it from all over the country.
And while it is difficult to track, Buckingham expects to see increased interest in Kodiak because of the article. The bear travelogue is likely to be seen by millions as the New York Times is the third largest daily paper in the county behind USA Today and the Wall Street Journal.
A slide-show companioning the on-line article includes 18 photos of Kodiak-various bears, the Dodge’s black lab named Rueben, and a ham and cheese sandwich with fiddlehead ferns.
There is a link to the on-line version of "It’s a Bear’s World," on our website which is KMXT.org.
Link to NY Times article about Kodiak bears:
http://travel.nytimes.com/2011/05/15/travel/its-a-bears-world-in-kodiak-alaska.html
