Алясканың Макнил өзені: Аюларды бақылау орталығы

River in Alaska, United States
More famous for its bear population than for the size of the river or the strength of its salmon runs, McNeil River has been featured on many television and film documentaries. So well known has the area become as a bear viewing area, that in 1973 the State of Alaska began limiting the number of summer visitors to ten per day during peak visitor months of June, July and August. The area has also been "wired" for webcam remote viewing for those unable to access the river in person. Various groups have been formed to support keeping the area pristine and free from bear hunting activity. And while the bear population often wanders outside the protected zone their numbers have gradually continued to rise over the years.

The McNeil River State Game Sanctuary and Refuge is located on the northeastern Alaskan Peninsula, next to the northeastern part of Katmai National Park and Preserve, about 250 miles (402 km) southwest of the city of Anchorage. The sanctuary and refuge protect about 388 square miles (248,000 acres, 100,362 hectares) of land. Of these, about 200 square miles (128,000 acres, 51,799 hectares), are in the sanctuary and 188 square miles (120,000 acres, 48,562 hectares), are in the refuge. The McNeil River runs through the middle part of the sanctuary north of Mikfik Creek and south of the Paint River drainage. The sanctuary is open to few activities other than wildlife viewing and camping and all hunting and fishing is prohibited there. Within the refuge, both fishing and sport hunting and trapping are allowed, but the hunting of brown bear is banned in both the sanctuary and refuge. Much of the land is treeless, rolling tundra, but there are several mountainous areas in the southern part of the sanctuary. The nearest road ends 100 miles (161 km) away and access is only by boat or floatplane. Getting there requires extensive planning and booking.

McNeil Falls has always been famous for its bear watching, and as early as 1955, when it was closed to hunting, it was featured in an article of National Geographic by Cecil E. Rhode and in the 1956 documentary The Animal World. Bear watching at the falls reached a low in the mid 1970s due to limited rules and human interference, but with better rules, bear numbers increased. As many as 100 bears may be seen at the falls in a single day with frequent sights of 60 or more at one time. Visitors often view bears as they stand at the falls waiting to catch salmon in their mouths. In addition to the main McNeil River, Mikfik Creek to the south and Chenik Lake to the north, in the refuge, also provide bear viewing. Both Mikfik Creek and Chenik Lake offer best bear viewing in June and McNeil River does in July. The McNeil Camp comprises eight ranger cabins and eating areas and a tent camp just beyond.

Chum salmon are the main salmon species that attract bears to the McNeil River. About 50,000 of them enter the drainage, the majority in July. In 1955, the entire drainage was closed to brown bear hunting. It was closed to hunting again in 2005 because of pressure from conservationists, but there was a proposal that would allow bear hunting in 2007. Support by Alaskan governor Sarah Palin pressured the conservationists, but they were finally able to close the refuge to hunting again in March 2007. The bear numbers boomed at McNeil Falls (the record of 74 were counted that year! ).