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Grizzly Bear in the River

Grizzly Bears are very comfortable in the water.  When the salmon are running they spend a great deal of time in the river often swimming across it multiple times.  They are also excellent long distance swimmers easily swimming across Knight Inlet, which is approximately 1 mile wide.  Thanks to Britt for the picture

Grizzly Bear in the Estuary

This young Grizzly Bear is standing in the river estuary likely looking for salmon.  Tides play a huge roll in these shallow river estuaries.  At high tide the water will be right up to the sedge grass in the background covering the area where the bear is standing.  At this time the water is deeper and the salmon are able to pass through the lower river easily.  When the tide is low the fish are much more exposed and bears will take advantage of this as they struggle up the shallow riffles.

The Struggles of the Pacific Salmon

Salmon are the lifeblood of our coastal ecosystem.  Their journey back to their home rivers to spawn is often not an easy one.  The salmon return to the same river which they were born years prior.  How they know where they are going remains one of life’s great mysteries.  The lucky few return, spawn and then all pacific salmon die after spawning, providing nutrients to the river and forest.  This is a coho salmon leaping over the falls on the wild river trip.

salmon leaping

Humpback Whale Feeding

The humpback whales come to our area for one reason and that is to feed.  They feed heavily on krill and small fish such as herring.  In this photo you can see that the humpback has done what is called a lunge feed.  This is where they come straight up with their mouths open and try and consume as many fish as possible.  The small fish you can see jumping are herring.

humpback whale

River Scene at Night

Thanks to Felix Rome for this great shot of the river at night.  Felix stayed up there and helped Rick this summer while working on his photography for university.  I think he has a pretty nice office.

https://felixrome.smugmug.com/

Bald Eagle with a Pink Salmon

eagle salmon knight inletThe Grizzly Bears aren’t the only ones who enjoy the abundant salmon run.  Birds such as eagles, Great Blue Herons, Gulls, Kingfishers and Mergansers are often seen in the river areas.  What isn’t eaten by the animals is flushed into the estuary, providing food for other marine creatures such as crabs, sculpins, cod and Halibut.  Finally the rotten fish is distributed into the forest by Bears and other animals providing natural fertilization to the forest floor.  These wild salmon truly are the backbone of our coastal ecosystem.

Spring Grizzly Bear Viewing Knight Inlet

cubOur spring grizzly bear viewing is done by boat.  One of the highlights of the early viewing is getting to see the young cubs when they are still very small.  The cubs are born in the den in the winter and usually weigh only about one pound.  They rapidly gain weigh through their mothers rich milk and eventually by feeding effectively on their own.  This is Grizzly Bear Lenore and her cub of the year.  This particular cub should be on her own next spring.

 

 

Ever Changing Scenery of Knight Inlet

People come to the lodge for the wildlife, but the scenery in the Great Bear Rainforest is second to none.  Often after a moderate rain (liquid sunshine) we are greeted with many temporary and permanent waterfalls crashing down the steep hills into the inlet below

glacierfalls

Extra Day Grizzly Viewing vs Platform Viewing

After August 25 we view the grizzly bears in Knight Inlet from elevated viewing platforms.  This is usually an extremely productive spot and because of the platforms guests are often able to get reasonably close to the bears.   On a 4 night trip we also explore another river system by truck and on foot.  We stick together as a group and with a little work and strategy are often able to find these familiar Grizzlies feeding along the river.  Platforms are great for viewing bears, but nothing compares with finding a bear on foot in a safe environment and viewing him at “his level”.  The first picture shows a bear on the extra day trip (taken by Felix Rome) and the second is a bear underneath the Knight Inlet viewing platform.

 

grizzly watching knight