River Day

For those that want an adventure that goes a little more off the beaten path… to Trapper Rick’s!

Our optional extra day is truly extra-ordinary, please take a look below.

Extra Day at Grizzly Bear Lodge

wildlife at Trapper Rick's.

The extra day in camp requires a trip across Knight Inlet through Thompson Sound to the Kakweikan River. This river located on the BC mainland is accessible only by boat and is the home base for Trapper Rick. From Rick’s dock we travel by truck to his cabin over a logging road that does have some traffic but that traffic in created by grizzly bears. We followed this bear down the road for several minutes until it reached its destination and turned into the forest. The roads are a main highway for the bears as travel is easier then forest trails so we are patient and hope for traffic congestion.

More Than Wildlife 3 of 3

photographing scenery

This did not require the stopping of the boat for an interesting photo. This was from the front deck of Grizzly Bear Lodge one evening as we had an unusual moon rise. Yes many guests are photographing from dawn to dusk and are very happy in their task.

More Than Wildlife 1 of 3

scenery of Knight Inlet bc

I have learned over the many years of guiding for Grizzly Bear Lodge to view the area through the eyes of my guests and it never ceases to amaze me the number of times I have requests to stop for photos of scenery. It is important to note that there are a maximum of four guests per boat and on many trip you may have the guide to yourself. To stop for photos you do not need to consult ten or twenty other people you just say STOP and it happens. August frequently has a calm water and foggy start to the day but the fog is normally gone before noon.

Black Bear Cub Following

black bear on the beach

Black bear cubs tend to stay close to their mother when they are walking the beach. If a noise startles them while we are watching from the boat they run to mother rather than up the beach for cover. They only go up the beach if the mother says and then it is into a tree. As the photo show they are almost synchronized with mother in their walking.

Dolphins Playing

watching dolphin pod

Whenever we are fortunate enough to come upon a large pod of pacific white sided dolphins I am not sure who has the most fun, my guests or the dolphins. The dolphins leap out of the water doing flips, ride the bow wave, follow along side the boat and nose up within a meter of the boat’s prop. While doing all this the guest get great shots of water, air and even some that contain dolphins. More than once I have had guest say that the dolphins make the day.

Black Bear Crossing

black bear swimming

It is amazing that this black bear had just swam between two small islands but with one dog like shake it appears dry. Five of six times a summer on whales watching trips we encounter black bears swimming between the many islands as we travel from the lodge to the area of Johnstone Strait. If you go to “Categories” and select “Wildlife Tour Itinerary” along the area to the right you will get some idea of the number of island we travel through and the routes of Grizzly Bear Lodge’s various trips.

Grizzly Stops “Grizzly Watching”

grizzly bear walks river

The extra day booked at Grizzly Bear Lodge means a trip to Trapper Rick’s to enjoy the scenery of a unique wild river, some more interaction with bears and Trapper Rick and maybe a little river fishing. On this day we were unable to cross the river to find some bears for about an hour because there was a grizzly bear fishing at the boat landing. As the bear approached Rick he had a one sided conversation with the bear and it crossed the river to fish on the other side before it moved up the river. January 19 to 21 has more photos from this incident – can use the side bar at the left to find these photos. All in all it is worth the time to watch grizzlies while waiting to watch grizzlies.

Bald Eagles Feeding

wildlife tour watching bald eagles

The herring ball mentioned in the May 14th is an ideal place for bald eagles to feed. The summer of 2015 on the BC coast was a summer with an abundance to eagles. This photo was one chosen from a group that had over thirty eagles feeding in one area. Two of the eagles without the white heads (means they were born this summer) are learning to pick herring out of the water. They follow one of their parents on a diving run and copy their technique hoping for success.

Trapper’s Grizzly Adventure 2 of 2

GRIZZLY BEAR with salmon

….the second is the bear with a salmon in its mouth. Note: I used (Pentax Optio Wpi 6MP and 3X Optical Zoom) that does not have a great zoom feature but I know the guests got great pictures. It is an interesting sensation watching a grizzly when the river is not that deep and the bear could cross without much effort. And even though Rick knows the grizzlies and has spent twenty years on the river he is still armed and prepared.