Killer whales and humpback whales are often seen during our wildlife tours. There are resident whales and transient whales that can be seen feeding and playing in our waters.
I neglected to mention that these two photos were taken in mid-June, which is the peak of the mating season for grizzly bears on the coast of British Columbia. The female swam along the shore and the male walked the shore. This lasted for several hours with the female swimming and walking the beach and all she wanted was food while the male had other ideas.
Picnic lunches on your day with the whales and other abundant marine life are most often eaten in the boat while drifting. It is sort of like the movie “Feed of Dreams” in that the drifting means that all is quite and most mammals are curious and will come to investigate something that is different. The different being a boat without a motor running which allows a much closer approach from these Steller sealions.
Harbour Seals are a very common sight on all of our trips. We often take them for granted, because there are so many of them in the area. They feed on various fish, but herring and salmon make up the bulk of their diet. Thanks to Felix for the great picture
The picnic lunches are popular with the guests. The basics start with: cheese, crackers, fresh vegetables (carrots, peas, tomatoes), drinks, plus a dessert of cake, loaf, squares and the ever popular LARGE bag of cookies. Then add any of the following: homemade soup or chili, wraps, sausage rolls, hard boiled eggs, smoked salmon and bagels, “Dagwood” style sandwiches (check the internet), BBQ chicken and the list is long enough so that you will not have the same lunch twice on your visit. What changes is the location of your lunch: while grizzly bear watching it is on a float in Knight Inlet’s Glendale Cove; whale watching it is drifting in a boat somewhere in the area of Johnstone Strait; and if visiting Trapper Risk on a remote BC river it will likely be on the deck of his cabin with a view of the river.
The champagne was brought from France (a tradition with the guests who take a bottle on all their vacations to drink in a memorable location). This picture is missing another table of food.
Always trying for an interesting photo while on a wildlife tour and this time it worked. The whale’s tail gets the attention but I wanted to focus on the sooty shearwater. The heading of an article I found reads “Longest Animal Migration Measured, Bird Flies 40,000 Miles a Year”. Sooty shearwaters migrate nearly 40,000 miles (64,000 kilometers) a year, flying from New Zealand to the North Pacific Ocean every summer in search of food. The birds leave New Zealand in the Southern Hemisphere’s winter—summer in the Northern Hemisphere—and take advantage of prevailing winds along different portions of their migration route. Our area is a resting point and feeding area as they return home in September.”
Your first evening at Grizzly Bear Lodge includes a tour in looking for black bears. The “looking” for black bears is part of every trip we take in a boat. This photo was at 7:27 on August 11 on the back side of Minstrel Island the home of Grizzly Bear Lodge. Yes, we do have black bears on our island and our daily tours do leave at 7:30 or earlier if guests are ready.
Stellar Sea Lions are often seen on out tours and are common in large numbers from late August until the end of our season. Stellar Sea Lions are creatures of habit and will use the same rocks to haul out on year after year. Stellar Sea Lions do not migrate, but they do move throughout the season from resting, feeding and mating(rookery) areas. They eat a variety of fish, but can often be seen feeding on migrating salmon that pass through Blackfish Sound, where we spend a lot of time whale watching.
Humpback whales are extremely manoeuvrable and often quite acrobatic. The reason for this is their long flippers. Humpback Whales have longer flippers then any other animal. They also have large bumps on their flippers called tubercles. These tubercles act like rudders, creating turbulence and reducing drag. Thanks to Annette for the photo
Anette’s final comment: “On the way back we met a humpback pair that swam around the boat at a distance of about 10 meters and diving just when they got along side of us.
The best wishes for the coming season. We’re quite a bit envious of this seasons clients!” It is not only the guest that miss Grizzly Bear Lodge at this time of the year the guides start thinking about the coming season and checking their gear to get ready for another summer of hard “work”. Again Anette “Thank You” for the great photos and comments it is always better if viewers get their information first hand from happy guest.
Just like that another season has come to an end. We are grateful for all the wonderful staff and the guests this season. It was an excellent season and we are already looking forward to next May.
One of the highlights of the season was all of the new cubs out. It was awesome to see so many new cubs of the year and that is great news for our bear populations moving forward. We had great spring viewing and this continued through summer. On our river trips we started to see salmon arriving in August and enjoyed some great shoulder season viewing. The fish at the viewing platforms were a little late showing up this year, but viewing during late September at the platforms was great and the estuary viewing remained strong throughout the season.
Out in the whale watching world it was another year that saw large numbers of resident Orca who remained in the area right into October. The Humpback viewing was also great with large numbers feeding in Blackfish Sound. It is so amazing to have these magnificent animals back in our waters in such numbers.
Over the winter and spring we will be doing some repairs and maintenance. We rebuilt the front deck last spring, utilising cedar cut on site. We will continue with some siding, rooms improvements and hopefully a floating sauna ready for the start of our season.
2026 is already looking like a very busy season for us. We only have limited high season availability so please book early to ensure we have space for your group.
Looking forward to seeing you next year
Angus Reid
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