Grizzly Bear and Wildlife Tour Blog

We offer an exceptional fly-in lodge for Grizzly Bear Watching and Whale Watching in British Columbia.

Learn about What’s happening at the Lodge, view our British Columbia’s Wildlife Report, read our Grizzly Bear Watching Blog and Whale Watching Blog. Learn more about a Day on the River Blog, see Our Tour Guide’s Photos & Blog and  Photos from Our Guests.

Marine Mammal Tail 1 of 2

Killer whale tail

Seems to be three choices for this tail: a small humpback whale, a large dolphin or a killer whale. All three are common when on a whale watching trip from the lodge. The area’s humpback whale population has grown to the point that we often view up to a dozen whales a trip, the resident killer whales a frequently in the area feeding on salmon and large pods of pacific whitesided dolphins appear on a regular basis. Also there are Steller or northern sea lions, harbour seals, porpoise, bald eagles, a large variety of ducks and sea birds as well as the occasional black bear.

 

 

Selective Feeding

Grizzly bear Eating

Depending on the time of the year grizzlies have selective eating habits.  When the salmon first appear in the coastal rivers any salmon and all of the salmon is eaten. This also applies near the end of the salmon run if the grizzly bears have not gained enough weight for hibernation. In between these two times the bear can be “fussy”. It starts with rejecting the male salmon because they do not have the fat rich roe (eggs). The popular body parts are the brain, skin with its layer of fat beneath and the roe. Often the remainder of the salmon is left on the riverbank for a less selective bear or for scavengers such as seagulls, crows, ravens, bald eagles, and pine martin. This grizzly as one can see by its size has reached the “roe only” stage of eating salmon.

 

 

Berry Picking Grizzly

Spring grizzly

It is a little later in the season with different bears than the ones in Oct. 1st posting but still in the river estuary. This mother and cub have just come out of the salmon berry patch behind the three alder trees. Mom is back to grazing however the cub is cautious as this is only the second time this family has appeared along the shore. The Glendale River mouth has a constant spring population of four to six grizzlies that appear most days and added to that is a roaming population that appears for a week and then moves on to be replaced by a different family. Nature arranged it this way so the guides have some new bears and are never sure what each day will bring.

 

 

Male Grizzly

Large Grizzly Bear

In the spring before the salmon arrive the grizzly bear tours from the lodge run up Knight Inlet to Glendale Cove and observe the bears that forage in the river estuary and on the beach. The high protein sedge grass is often one meter (yard) high. Also there is an abundance of skunk cabbage roots, which is a grizzly favourite. At this time of the year we use a large flat bottom skiff that allows us to move in the shallow waters along the shore and further up the river providing great photographic opportunities.

 

 

Spring Grizzly Cub

Grizzly with new cub

Late May the grizzly bear mothers and cubs start to show up on the shore of Knight Inlet. The hibernation ends in April or early May and they work their way down from the higher elevations where the snow is dryer for hibernation. When the cubs see their first boat that stops off shore they run and hide in the logs up the beach but by the third visit they sit close to mom and watch us. After the third visit we become part of the scenery / background and are of little interest. Cubs main interest is food and they gain weight rapidly during their time with the mother — their weight will have ballooned from 4.5 to 45 kg (10 to 99 lb) in the two years spent with the mother.

 

 

Looking Down on Grizzlies

Grizzly bears Below

The viewing stands the Lodge uses after August 24th are in a good location on Knight Inlet’s Glendale River. There is water on three sides full of pink salmon and the grizzlies come to feed. As this photo shows they do pass directly beneath the stands as they move from one fishing spot to another. These two grizzlies do not appear very large because they are two-year-old cubs while one adult would be the size of the two cubs combined.

 

 

Grizzly Siblings Fight

Grizzlies Play Fight

The road mentioned in the 26th post stops directly below the viewing platform and this is the location of the play fighting grizzly bears. They were beside our truck and spent about fifteen minutes enjoying some time in the sun. Once the hunger has been satisfied the younger bears often play fight to improve their skills. As they age grizzlies will fight with other males for the right to mate in a given area and also fight with females that refuse to mate with them.

 

 

Something Different

monnlight Scenery

On a rare clear evening a moonrise from the front deck of Grizzly Bear Lodge on Minstrel Island. The marine evening overcast is common but it does burn off by mid morning. Guests and staff always enjoy a clear evening.

 

 

Grizzly Bear Claws

Grizzly bear claws

Grizzly bears have long nonretractile claws which are 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 inches) but they are not good climbers. Their claws are used for digging, picking fruits, and catching prey. In this case the prey would be the many pink salmon in the entrance to the spawning channel overlooked by the lodge’s viewing platform.

 

 

Curious Grizzly Bear?

Grizzly is curious visitor

The road being blocked by this grizzly is the one we used to get to the Lodge’s viewing platform that we use after August 24th. The road is on a finger of land between the natural river and the entrance to a man-made spawning channel. This grizzly had just come up from the river and was crossing to the channel when it spotted a mother with two cubs fishing so this is more of an ALERT look than one of curiosity. This bear proceeded down the road well past the mother before going down the bank to fish and we were only a few minutes late getting to the viewing stands. The guests did not seem to mind the delay.