Grizzly Bear Tours BC

If you are in the lodge for the extra night you spend a day with Trapper Rick and walk through the forest that line the riverbank. It is impressive.

Great Blue Heron. If you are up early at the lodge they are on the log breakwater, or the Glendale Estuary, mouth of Trapper Rick’s River, actually anywhere along the shores and on the kelp beds. They are truly a magnificent bird.

Blackfish Sound one of the most common places to find the Orca and seems to be the home of our summer resident humpback whales. The morning overcast is not unusual but is normally gone by noon and it is sun block time. Note: did you know the resident natives called orca blackfish and they did not become known by their official name until the tourist industry start producing brochures.

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. You would be amazed at the number of guest the have numerous pictures of banana slugs in there collections. I know this because I see them kneeling down to get the right picture while I wait close by with the bear spray of course there are some around he lodge in the morning.

Prospective guests must remember that you are arriving by seaplane and the scenery is spectular. The flight into the lodge is approximately 45 minutes and even if you are a white knuckle flyer the scenery is still there.

Pacific white sided dolphins love to play with boats and this past summer we were blessed with many days with dolphins. Most of the viewing occurred on the way to the bears or trapper Rick’s although we had a few good days while whale watching.

Seagulls – so what? For fishermen and whale watchers they mean everything. The way it works is that diving birds work the herring into balls and the balls are normally forces to the surface where the gulls find them first. Your guide keeps a close eye out for the gull activity and will motor the boat toward the herring ball close enough for a good view but far enough away so as not to disturb the activity. Then we wait. Did I mention the humpback whales feed on herring and love herring balls? The trick is to focus on the gulls as they all lift out of the water it means we are to be rewarded with a lunge feed by a whale.

A morning on the Glendale River viewing grizzlies also provides opportunities for eagle photos. Not much can be said about this photo but incredible. Perfect in every way.

Yes we do see salmon being caught and eaten. This one appears to be after a swim.

From the viewing stands on the Glendale River you are close enough so when the bears swim by they are often only 7-10 meters (20 – 35 feet) away.

This picture has two options, arriving to fish or leaving. In either case when the mother makes a decision the cubs follow. There is a time and a place to play but in an area of many other bears some of them large males this is not the time to disobey.

A grizzly day in the fall involves a trip to the viewing stands. In this case twins waiting patiently while mother does all the work. With three bears to fatten for the fall it is a sun up to sun down job.

Sometime during the whale watching day we stop at Telegraph cove for a bathroom break and maybe a hot coffee or chocolate on cooler day. Then back onto the water for eagles, stellar sealions, seals, and maybe a glimpse of an elephant seal never a dull moment

Out onto the second small rocky island, a good shake to remove some of the water, a short walk of maybe 35 meters, a pause to look at the last narrow channel then back into the water a short swim and he was gone.

….. but we backtracked and waited on the backside of the island and sure enough he was moving on. We waited quietly and he passed by the boat without seeming too concerned.

Out of the water on to the first small island. He gave us a pretty good once over and then moved off into the center of the island. We almost moved on………

Some days are lucky days. I remember this day as we stopped for a few minutes to look at a fish farm and the other boat got about five minutes ahead of us. They must have just passed through this narrow channel when we came upon large male black bear swimming from one large island to two small islands to a larger third island.

Some orca like the family atmosphere and group therapy. It does not matter how they appear the resident orca normally end up in family pods with a dominant female, which is normally the mother.

Some orca seem to prefer being in pairs even in synchronized swimming.

Some Orca (killer whales) appear alone. These two large males seem be traveling solo.