Knight Inlet is actually located on mainland BC and famed for being a fairly reliable location to spot the Grizzly and the location of the well known ‘Glendale Cove/Knight Inlet’ Lodge. Given its remote wilderness location, one of the only ways to access Knight Inlet is either by boat or floatplane from Vancouver Island. Today we were going to access via a small boat for the 2 hour journey with ‘Tide Rip’ tours. In addition to the aforementioned lodge ‘Tide Rip’ are one of the only operators to have access to this area and have a vast knowledge of the area and the Bears themselves. So it was great knowing that we were going to be able to experience more Canadian wilderness, once again without hoards of tourists and with knowledgeable and passionate guides on a small group trip.
Of course it was not just Grizzly Bears that we may encounter. During our two hour passage we had the possibility of spotting the vast array of marine birdlife as well as other marine wildlife, such as Dall’s Porpoise, Pacific White Sided Dolphins, Harbour Seals, Stellar Seal lions and of course Orcas and Humpback Whales.
We were collected at 7am right from the jetty at Hidden Cove Lodge so we quite literally rolled out of bed and onto the boat. Together with 10 others we embarked upon the journey to the Inlet, excited about what may lay ahead for us. En route we encountered Harbour Seals and even spotted a Black Bear foraging along the shoreline, a nice unexpected bonus!
Although the sky was grey and cloudy it did not mask the beauty of Knight Inlet in any way, more towering peaks could be seen and the faint cry of Bald Eagles echoed around the Inlet. The water was a lovely milky green/blue colour due to glacial sediment carried from Glaciers high up in the valley, which gave a magical and almost mystical feel to the area.
As we started to near the area where we would disembark the boat and board custom made ‘skiffs’ (12 person flat bottom motor/human powered boars with viewing platforms that could access the ‘nooks and crannies’ of the Inlet) our guide stopped the boat and scanned the shore with the binoculars. Even though we would not be focusing on the larger shorelines for Bears (instead the smaller parts of the inlet where the Bears would hopefully be fishing for Salmon) Lindsey, our guide wanted to check the spot for Grizzlies just in case. In addition, the tide at this time was still too low to be able to access the smaller parts of the inlet. So we had to wait a little while before nature would grant us access with the skiffs.
Well, you can guess what happens next! Lindsey then proceeded to find us our first Grizzlies, foraging on the shoreline. However, not just one bear but a mother and two cubs. The shoreline where they foraged was not an easy approach so Lindsey did advise that we could not get very close, given the jagged rocks underneath and the waters here were choppy. We approached as close as the waters would allow and there they were two utterly adorable cubs and momma bear, awesome!
The cubs were hilarious to watch, there was something almost comical about the way they foraged around as they nibbled on kelp and uncovered rocks looking for food. One of the cubs used the rocks as a scratching post, rolling around on its back, easing its’ itching body as if performing right on cue for its delighted human audience. These guys were super cute but even at their young age (Approx. 1.5 years old) they had huge claws that could still cause serious damage to anything that came across its path.
Given the boat was rocking due to the choppy waters and the distance away we again had some problems in keeping the lenses steady so knew the images we were shooting would not be too great but we managed to get one or maybe two shots that were not blurred by movement of the boat which was good. As keen photographers and having spent some years in the ‘field’ we know you cant just ‘rock up’ and get the shot like the cover of National Geographic. Putting in the time is all part of the fun and the challenges (and sometimes frustrations) that come with it!.
So our anniversary wish had come true, we had seen our first Grizzly Bears and we had not even boarded the skiff yet!
Leaving the little tikes and mum alone it was time to move onto the skiffs. By now the tide had risen high enough that we could navigate the smaller sections of the inlet where we could try and see the Grizzlies fishing for salmon.
The skiffs were ideal for photography, stable and with plenty of room for everyone and also room for us to set up our tripods if needed.
We maneuvered silently up the channel, checking the banks either side for bears that may still have been feeding on sedges and some of the late berry crops further up. We had been advised that sightings of late in this area had been a little sparse and much of this could have been due to the fact that the bears food ‘season’s were a little out of kilter at present. Therefore they had been sighted far less feeding on the spawning Salmon as they would normally be doing at this time of year. This is sometimes just the way nature works and we have both undertaken enough wildlife trips to understand, accept and know that wildlife and indeed nature is unpredictable. That’s why we love it so much, you never know what you will see or what could happen!
We were astounded to see so many Bald Eagles in the Inlet, swopping down low over the streams that were our passage to the Bears. Neither of us had quite expected to see so many, no matter how many times we saw them we were still in awe of their beauty and colossal size, just a little smaller than the Golden Eagle.
Over one hour passed as we drifted up the channel, at this point being powered by Lindsey!, who had by now donned chest high waders and pulled us up the channel so we could remain silent, without the noise of motors disturbing any feeding bears. Lindsey pointed out many interesting sights, including some large bear tracks close to shore and a ridiculously long skin of a tapeworm that had exited from one of the bears, over 2 foot long and an inch thick, rather gross! We knew the bears were here and if they wanted to be seen we would find them.
As we started to near the end of our time in the inlet we had a signal from another skiff ahead of us (part of the Tide Rip group) that they had seen something around the corner. We saw people mobilise cameras faster than Lewis Hamilton pulls off the starting blocks and we knew it had to be a Bear! Sure enough as we came around the corner it was indeed a Grizzly submerged neck deep in water around 50 metres ahead. It was hard to decipher if it was male or female but Lindsey advised it was around 5-6 years old. Rather than feeding on Salmon the bear was clearly distracted and getting irritated by the midges, scratching its head and body constantly. We were all suffering the same fate in the boat but had a bear to distract us. We would worry about the midge bites later!
The bear did not stay in its position long, just a few minutes before it raised itself out of the water. Then moving into the thick undergrowth along the waters edge and disappearing for good. It had been a brief sighting but all on the boat, including Andy and I were delighted to have seen another grizzly given that we had prepared ourselves not to have seen one at all!
So Knights Inlet did not disappoint in anyway, we had seen our very first Grizzlies, had seen some amazing Bald Eagles and had spent time in one of Canada’s prime and pristine wilderness areas. It most definitely a place we would want to return to again for sure. Happy Anniversary and thank you to the Grizzly Bears for making it a memorable one!
Momma Bear and her two cubs
Our Skiff
Moving through the channels of Knight Inlet
Lindsey powering our skiff!
Grizzly Bear tracks
No comments:
Post a Comment