It is mid September at Grizzly Bear Lodge as one of the local fishing lodges is being towed back to its protected winter base. Aside from the variety of marine wildlife (orca, humpback whales, seals, sealions, dolphins, porpoise, bald eagles, many different water birds, swimming black bears) this area also has “work” related activities: commercial fishing; tugs towing floats, barges, log booms; cruise ships; seaplanes arriving and departing etc. That is to say there is never a dull moment on a tour and many opportunities for interesting photos.
Grizzly Watching
Grizzly Bears are magnificent and the biggest reason visitors choose our lodge!
Grizzly bears thrive here and the viewing opportunities are spectacular. We have operated our Grizzly Bear Lodge for decades and know the prime spots for bear watching. The ultimate grizzly bear photo opportunities.
Fuzzy grizzly 2 of 2
In an instant the mother was in protective mode. Another grizzly appeared on the beach and even though the new bear was a hundred meters (yards) away mother was on alert. The new grizzly was a young male so the mother and cub continued up the beach and the male moved off the beach. No one wants to confront a mother with a cub.
Fuzzy grizzly 1 of 2
If you have read much of the blog you will know that my camera is a waterproof Pentax Optio Wpi 6MP and 3X Optical Zoom. It is a good camera but does not have a “great” distance lens so I sometime zoom in with the computer and it gets a little “fuzzy”. The point being is that I saw the guest’s photo back at the lodge (because that is what happens in the evening) and they were great. In this photo the cub was using mother as a play toy but that all changed in tomorrow’s post….
What is the grizzly watching? 2 of 2
We are loading the skiff to return to a float for our picnic lunch after a morning on Knight Inlet’s Glendale River viewing platform. The grizzly of yesterday’s post was further along the beach and yes we were safe even though I was taking photo’s I did have bear spray at hand. Note it was a day with five guests as there were two boats and guides as we only allow four per boat. Even if we ignored the bear or it was closer the key is that we were a large group (seven) and bear would leave, as it had no reason to come closer. We were not preventing it from feeding nor did it have a cub.
Interesting photo- mouth of Knight Inlet 2 of 3
The interesting aspect of this photo taken on a whale watching safari is that Glen managed to catch a seagull with two herring in its mouth. Also interesting is the importance of finding a herring ball while whale watching because this leads to really interesting photo as tomorrow’s post will show…
Interesting photo from Knight Inlet 1 of 3
Interesting in that the only place the photo could have been taken was from the viewing stands we use on our grizzly bear tours. The slightly downward angle with the bushes in the back ground means Glen was about 3.5 meters (yards) in the air. Like the posting from the 15th there are always interesting subjects when one tires or wants a change from grizzlies and a heron is a change.
Diva Crown for a Knight Inlet Grizzly
Glen (guide) thought it looked like a “shower cap” I choose a “diva crown”. Glen took the photo and I’m doing the blog so not sure who gets to name the photo? Either way it was a first for both of us and we have each been at the lodge for about fifteen years. BC’s Glendale River that flows into Knight Inlet becomes quite turbulent after a heavy rain and produces natural foam that adorns this grizzly bear’s head.
A Grizzly Bear Bridge to Food
Heading off the beach to the top of the tidal zone in search of berries. Climbing over barnacle and seaweed covered rocks is avoided by using a strategy placed log.
Nursing Black Bear on BC Coast
Not hard to tell that this mother has a cub that needs to be nursed. We watched this mother and her cub eating berries at the top of the beach for about a half-hour, on one of the whale watching trips, before the cub moved into the bush and the mother on to the beach. The cub likely wanted to nurse but the mother was after more food while the tide was still low enough for her to turn over rocks.
Bald Eagle Family Feeding
Two adult bald eagles and one juvenile eagle make up a family unit. Once the salmon are in the river the eagles come for the easy “pickens”. Like all “wildlife” a free meal is a free meal and the less energy one has to expend the more fat one accumulates.
