An Interview With Carl Donohue

What To Expect From This Interview:

When I was researching doing my first trip to Alaska in 2014 to photograph Brown Bears one of the companies that I contacted was ‘Expeditions Alaska’ run by Carl Donahue. That was such as success I have now done 5 trips with Carl to photograph not only Brown Bears in Kodiak but also Polar Bears in Kaktovik which can be challenging but the results can be amazing.

Carl is not only a top-class guide but has a great wit & a gentle spirit. His love for all things Bear & the wildness of Alaska is clear to see & that’s one of the things we discuss in my interview with him.

If you are looking for a truly wild experience whether that is backpacking in Alaska or a truly special photography trip then I can’t recommend anyone better traveling with than Carl.

Carl, you moved from Australia to the United States 21 years ago with a guitar, backpack & camera & settled in Alaska after your first expedition there. What makes Alaska so special to you?

The Wildness of the place. The raw, primal nature of the remote places here is so hard, if not impossible, to find elsewhere.

You started “Expeditions Alaska” in 2002 as a solo operation. Can you tell me about the goals for your business, why you decided to go solo & how have you been impacted over the last 18 months?

Goals at the moment are just to stay afloat, LOL.

To provide experiences connecting people with their natural world, guiding their outdoor adventures with personable, educational service while striving to maintain high standards of safety, planning, training, with friendly, efficient and knowledgeable professionalism.

I started out as a solo thing because I wasn’t sure how else to do it. In hindsight that’s been a great asset, as it’s taught me so much about aspects of the business, from accounting to marketing to web development to fieldwork, and so on. Moving in the direction of hiring other people, guides, office staff, etc comes with its challenges, but so far so good.

We were shut down completely in 2020. In 2021 we resumed operations on a fairly limited basis. Limited by tourism demand, by available guides, but also (mostly) by ongoing restrictions and regs from various government agencies, whether it’s the travel ban for Europeans, NPS restrictions on groups, Fish & Wildlife Service restrictions on permits, etc. 

It’s been difficult to know what direction to move and whether to spend and prep for a season or whether to hunker down and wait the storm out. The ongoing variations in policy and status of things are tough. But for the most part, I’ve had it much easier than some of my friends in the business.

I have done 5 trips with you now to photograph Brown Bears in Kodiak & Polar Bears in Kaktovik & travel restrictions prevented another trip this year. That’s a testament to how much I have appreciated the trips I have done with you. I know you also have other returning customers. Why do you think that is & what makes these tours so special?

It’s a testament to your patience!

Primarily, I think it’s authenticity. In the field with folks, I am completely who I am, for better or worse. For some people, that’s a great match and we all have a grand time together. They appreciate that, and I am grateful that I don’t have to fake it.

I think having a small group size is something that my clients appreciate as well. hat appeals to a certain niche of travelers, and it works well for me as well.

The guides I work with do a fantastic job, and that’s a huge part of our success as well.

Besides photo tours, you also do other activities such as backpacking, sea kayaking & rafting across Alaska. What do you enjoy the most?

Depends entirely on what the weather is doing; if it’s sunny and nice, that’s my favorite trip. :) 

I think I like the walk. 

Alaska is undoubtedly one of the few truly wild places left on Earth. As someone who lives & travels extensively around the country what are the most pressing conservation issues in your opinion that give you cause for concern?

Well it’s easy to say “climate change”, since it’s so overarching. It permeates every aspect of conservation. But I think the disconnect so many people have with the planet is something that I notice most. And that disconnect seems to manifest itself in a variety of ways, from a simple lack of concern about things, to treating the natural world like some kind of show or spectacle, etc. 

When I see the NPS, for example, hold these ridiculous “fat bear” weeks, or a 24/7 broadcast from webcams with an eternal narrative from the comments section, it just feels like all this is some kind of entertainment thing for us. And that is not, at all, how I think we should relate to the world.

Those are examples of what I find concerning in how our culture relates to the world.

Collections

A series of photographic work, exploring wildlife from around the world. View the full collection here.

Available Prints

My top prints are available to purchase as limited edition runs of only 25 and 15 between 30” and 60” prints. View a selection below or the full collection here.

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