Raspberry Island Webcam – See Kodiak’s Remote Alaska Beach

The Raspberry Island Webcam looks along the main beach of Kodiak Raspberry Island Remote Lodge, on Raspberry Strait in Alaska’s Kodiak Archipelago. A dark gravel beach curves away from the lodge deck toward a low wooded point, with gray Adirondack chairs lined up along the right of the frame and the strait filling the left side. Spruce and tall grass climb the slope above the shore, and the mountains of Afognak Island close off the far side of the water. The tide is the quickest thing to read here, moving the waterline up and down the gravel through the day. Lodge boats and floatplanes use this beach in season, and the fishing boats leave from it at 8:30 in the morning.

About Raspberry Island

Raspberry Island lies between Kodiak and Afognak Islands in the Gulf of Alaska, about 56 kilometers (35 miles) from the city of Kodiak. It is 29 kilometers (18 miles) long and between 4.8 and 12.9 kilometers (3 and 8 miles) wide, and its highest ground reaches about 1,000 meters (3,300 feet). Raspberry Strait, roughly 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) wide, separates it from Afognak. No road or bridge reaches the island, and the only permanent residents are at Port Wakefield and at this lodge.

The camera sits on the lodge property, on the strait near Iron Creek and across from Muskomee Bay on Afognak. Behind the buildings, the peak the lodge calls Granny Mountain rises to nearly 550 meters (1,800 feet). The operator describes this stretch as its south, main operations beach, and its fishing and wildlife boats board directly from the shore. The deck rail in the lower part of the frame belongs to the lodge, which runs off grid on hydro and solar power and has eight guest cabins.

People lived on the island for more than 7,000 years before Russian fur traders took control in the 18th century. Canneries came in the early 1900s, and placer gold was noted in 1915 at Raspberry Beach, on Drivers Bay on the northwest coast rather than this shore. The Robbins family moved here in 1983 and ran a fishing and hunting camp, which grew into the present lodge and took its current name in 2008. Roosevelt elk have a stranger story. Eight calves from Washington’s Olympic Peninsula were moved to Afognak in 1929, and elk were first recorded on Raspberry in 1951, apparently after swimming the strait.

Weather and Climate on Raspberry Island

Climate normals from Kodiak Airport, across the archipelago, are a fair guide to this shore. July averages highs of 16.6°C (61.8°F) and lows of 10.3°C (50.5°F), and the lodge tells summer guests to expect roughly 13°C to 22°C (55°F to 72°F). Spring is slow to warm, with April highs of 7.1°C (44.7°F) and lows of 0.9°C (33.6°F). By October, highs are back to 9.1°C (48.3°F) and lows to 2.2°C (36°F). Late October frames show rust-colored grass on the slope, flat gray water under broken cloud, and low sun on the far mountains.

Winter here is mild for Alaska but wet. January highs average 2.3°C (36.1°F) and lows -3.2°C (26.2°F), and the airport records 1,989 millimeters (78.3 inches) of precipitation a year, including 179 centimeters (70.3 inches) of snowfall. Snow can settle on the slope and the beach between rains. Daylight swings widely at this latitude. In late October the sun climbs only about 18 degrees above the horizon at noon, while early summer brings long days. After dark the picture turns black and white, with the deck rail and chairs still visible and the strait close to black.

Things to Do Near Raspberry Island

Nearly everything nearby starts from the lodge, which takes summer guests from late May to late September. Its boats fish for Pacific halibut, king, sockeye and silver salmon, lingcod and rockfish, and its wildlife cruises travel through Raspberry Strait looking for humpback and fin whales, Steller sea lions, sea otters, and horned and tufted puffins. Guided sea kayak trips follow the shoreline of Raspberry and Afognak. Hikes begin at the cabins and pass through old Sitka spruce, and the steeper route up the mountain behind the lodge can show the peaks of Katmai National Park beyond Shelikof Strait on a clear day. Floatplanes leave from the beach for brown bear viewing in Katmai and the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge. From fall to mid-December, the lodge turns to hunts for elk, Sitka black-tailed deer and sea ducks.

Every trip passes through the city of Kodiak, since visitors fly commercially into Kodiak Airport before the crossing. The Baranov Museum occupies a warehouse from the Russian fur trade, and Fort Abercrombie State Historic Site preserves World War II defenses built when the town was turned into a fortress. Pillar Mountain rises above the city and looks down over Kodiak from its summit.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

These cameras cover the same corner of Alaska, plus another beach on the Pacific coast.

• Frazer Lake Webcam
• Katmai National Park Webcam
• Manzanita Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Raspberry Island located?

Raspberry Island is in the Kodiak Island Borough of southern Alaska, between Kodiak and Afognak Islands. The lodge on this camera is about 56 kilometers (35 miles) from the city of Kodiak.

What can you see on the Raspberry Island Webcam?

A gravel beach curving along Raspberry Strait, a row of Adirondack chairs, the lodge deck rail, a spruce and grass slope, and the mountains of Afognak Island across the water. Boats and floatplanes can appear on the beach in season.

What is the weather like on Raspberry Island?

Cool, wet and maritime. Kodiak Airport averages July highs of 16.6°C (61.8°F) and January highs of 2.3°C (36.1°F), with 1,989 millimeters (78.3 inches) of precipitation a year.

How do you get to Raspberry Island, Alaska?

Only by boat or floatplane, after a commercial flight into Kodiak Airport. The lodge gives the crossing from Kodiak as about 90 minutes by boat or 25 minutes by floatplane.

Why does the Raspberry Island Webcam go dark at night?

The camera keeps streaming after sunset, but the shore has little light, so the picture turns black and white and the water fades to near black. Color returns on its own in the morning.

Are there bears on Raspberry Island?

Yes. Kodiak brown bears live on the island and occasionally move along the coast, but the lodge does not promise them close by. Its bear viewing trips fly out to other parts of the region.

Are there elk on Raspberry Island?

Yes, Roosevelt elk. They descend from eight calves brought to neighboring Afognak in 1929, and they were first recorded on Raspberry in 1951.

Is Raspberry Island part of Kodiak Island?

No. It is a separate island in the same archipelago, divided from Kodiak Island by Kupreanof Strait, though it falls within the Kodiak Island Borough.

Source: Kodiak Raspberry Island Remote Lodge