Guest Photos

A wildlife photographer’s dream!

We offer fantastic bear and whale watching opportunities at Sailcone’s Grizzly Bear Lodge, your guests’ photos prove it!

Do you have your own photos to add from your stay with us? Please click here to email us!

Spring Grizzly Bears Grazing

Skinny spring grizzly bears

spring grizzly bears grazing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“It was wonderful to see our very first bear in the wild even if they were very skinny, I’m guessing they’re much fatter now!” A comment from David and Drina on their photos taken June 16, 2015. And David is correct on both accounts the spring grizzly bears of Knight Inlet are skinny as their main food is the sedge grass that this bear is eating. It is a little early for the many berries that ripen later in June and July. Once they are ripe the grizzlies have access to black, huckle, thimble, salmon and salal berries to name a few. And of course the salmon are not in the rivers in any great number until late August. David is also right that this bear was in great shape to hibernate after the two months of September and October fattening on the salmon.

What is in between? 3 of 3

Flight scenery

The Coast Mountains in the background make for a memorable flight to the Lodge from Campbell River. For many guests it is their first flight in a small plane. For some it is a “white knuckle” flight while others could do it every day. Keep a camera handy, as you will be flying for about forty-five minutes over nothing but a beautiful landscape that will give you some idea of the vastness of “Beautiful British Columbia”.

 

 

 

Bald eagle rescue 1 of 3

Bald EagleBald Eagle

George and family from Hampshire England visited us in July this year and provided this series of photos. We were on a whale watching trip and had an excellent day but were still trying to find an eagle feeding. In the back of Parsons Bay a commercial crab fishing boat flagged us down and said that there was an eagle in the water that they could not reach because their boat was to high. Eagles often swim so we went to take a look and this one was in trouble. We came along side and used a towel to reach down and wrap the eagle before lifting it in to the boat. Having never done this I took advice from all on board and we dried the eagle with towels and paper towels…

 

 

 

 

Grizzly Bear Estuary Tour

guide towing boat

You may wonder how you are able to get the close-up photos in the estuary tours on the Glendale River. You are in a 5.5 meter (yard) flat bottom boat that allows us to move up the river as the water rises. The quite aspect of the tour is because your guide is pulling you as we work our way up the river. This silent approach does not scare the grizzlies especially those with first year cubs.

 

 

 

Got it!!

Humpback breaching

Hard to believe that the whale breached twice in a row.  That is often the reason one gets a good photo because you are now prepared. Do not think that a long lens is necessary I use a waterproof Pentax Optio Wpi 6MP with a  3X Optical Zoom. A good lens is better but over the past few years I have seen some great photos taken on Phones and Tablets.

 

 

Best Series of Photos 3 of 3

orca tailorca tailHowever as the last photo shows that this is a killer whale (orca) not a humpback whale. Killer whales are identifies by their dorsal fin and the accompanying saddle patch. This last photo was actually the first is the series but if I had posted them in the correct order there would be nothing to write.

 

 

 

 

Best Series of Photos 1 of 3

Killer WhaleKiller whale divingApril and Rob of Cairns Australia visited Grizzly Bear Lodge in the summer of 2011 and took a series of photos which has always been one of my favourities. Photos of tails is one of the main identification tools for whales…

 

 

 

 

See you at the Lodge

I (one of the guides at the lodge) have signed off the blog for awhile, to go to work where the Internet reception makes it hard to upload pictures. I leave you with a few comments. The majority of the pictures used in the blog were taken with a Pentax Optio 6MP 3X Optical Zoom (a good, but small pocket digital) the pictures attributed to Glen came from a much better camera and of course the guest pictures are from a variety of cameras.

Grizzly bears looking for dry land

Grizzly Bear

The same grizzlies from the December 28th post have left the water and are heading for higher ground. You can tell that this is a mid August grizzly by the lack of “belly”.  By the early October and more than a month of eating salmon her legs will appear much shorter.  Grizzlies can increase their body weight by one third to one half before they den up for the winter.