Some familiar faces!

On the morning of the 11th we set out at 6am on a mission to again try and see Olive and her cubs. As we arrived at the current den site is was clear that our early start had paid off. Within just five minutes of arriving Olive revealed herself, but lying deep inside a bush and against a low lying rocky area, the same area we had visited the afternoon prior. The only frustration was that it was still very dark, the sun had barely begun to rise so getting shots was almost impossible. Anyone who is into photography will understand the frustration of only achieving 1/10 sec at 500mm and that was at ISO 6400!! Scanning the rocks it was not long until two tiny little cubs appeared. Staying close to Olive they dashed back and forth, clambering over Olive who remained incredibly tolerant with the fidgety little cubs. It was very hard to get a really clear view as many overhanging bushes shielded them from a clear site and obviously why Olive chose this as the area to keep her cubs safe. The smallest of gaps under the rock allowed just enough room for them to squeeze in their minute bodies, and providing good protection from predators.

The cubs just around 6 weeks old were about the length of Olives back paw, they seemed so small and delicate. As the light slowly rose it revealed they had the most amazing blue eyes and a fluffy dark mottled coat that kept them well camouflaged against the dark Granite rock. Even as the light improved it was very hard to get anything in focus of these little cheeky cubs (sex unknown at this point!) but at times like this even with the frustration of not being able to get a decent shot I had to remind myself that I was looking at leopard cubs and just so young at that, just fab!!! Such a sight is certainly not a daily occurrence!

At best I managed to achieve 1/100th sec shutter speed so I  struggled to achieve anything half decent, especially as my camera wanted to focus on everything but the cubs. However, I managed to get enough of a shot to post here on the blog, even though these ones will sadly be sharp enough for the website. sometimes thats just the way it goes (although  yes, very frustrating!!) So, thats my way of apologising for the slightly out of focus images below!! (sorry Andy, I tried my best!)  but hopefully they are enough to see that they are just the sweetest little things and so tiny!!

We had around 15 minutes with them as they played around, disappearing and then reappearing. Olive then started to get a little unsettled and with a large yawn we knew she was going to soon be on the move. When she yawned we also noticed she had a lower right canine missing.

Right on cue she moved off, behind and into the croton, with that we knew our time with the cubs was up as when the mother moves away they know to go back and hide all the while that they don't have the protection of Olive.

We tracked Olive for a short time, enough to get a reasonable shot or two of her walking. She was clearly on a mission to  hunt. It was not long though until she also disappeared and into an area that was just not accessible, perhaps she was going to try and cross the river. We waited for some time but after a little while decided it was time to move off. 'Mission Olive' a success but of course we really hoped that we could get another opportunity to photograph her and the cubs, but this time with a little more light we hoped!! 

Paul then advised us that he had heard that a male lion had appeared at the same site as the lions we had seen the previous afternoon. Andy and I follow all the animals in the Mara (particularly the predators) with great interest but in particular spend a lot of time with the lions and very interested in the pride dynamics of the Mara as the evolving stories that unfold with each pride.  So of course I was really keen to see who this male was and so were Paul and Angela. 

As we approached the exact same location as yesterday it took about 2 milliseconds for me to ID this boy. It was 'Grimace', one of the infamous Notch boys and one who we are rather fond of. Although admittedly he is one of the more troublesome members of this 5 male coalition (Including Notch) as he had been responsible for killing many cubs in the Mara, even those from prides they have control off.  The exact reason of this is unknown to an extent but I suspect its due to the fact that he has not mated with many of the females bearing cubs and therefore will kill any cub that he knows is not his. He is one of the only Notch boys that rarely seems to gets the opportunity to mate and the females view him with a degree of distrust,  In addition, even if he has mated with females and sired cubs because he spends a considerable amount of time away from many of the cubs he has sired and therefore its possible he loses the scent that the cubs are his and therefore potentially driven to kill them. Just two of the possible reasons. In a nut shell Grimace is a lion with 'issues'! 

As we approached he was feeding on the now even more rancid Buffalo carcass that still lay in the deep lugga, but soon moved off and toward a female, one of the sub adults who was 2-3 years old. Despite her age, being a little too young to bear cubs he followed her with interest, sniffing her and advancing with a keen interest! Although she may have been starting to give off the necessary pheromones as she is starting to mature and the scent that was attracting Grimace she made to clear to him that any sexual relations at this point were not on her agenda, but they were on his! Getting the hint he then settled down alone, not before he scent marked bushes near by. She moved away and unsuccessfully tried to hunt a warthog, staying around 25-50 metres away.

The concern on all of our minds was where are the cubs?! Knowing his track record we were understandably worried. None of the cubs, nor the adults were to be seen. Only the sick female lioness who had barely moved at all and the sub. Searching further up the lugga we had no joy in locating them. One of two things had happened, either the cubs had been killed or more likely (and we hoped) the lionesses had moved to another area. It was clear we were not going to get the answer to this until someone could confirm if they had seen the cubs elsewhere. 

It was time to leave Grimace under a tree but not before I managed to get a couple of nice head shots, and in these it's clear why we had given him the name of Grimace!

We trundled on toward Topi Plains to see what else was around, not too far from the Double crossing area we came across a young sub adult lioness, she was thin and alone. Again evidence that times are really tough right now and not just due to the lack of prey. Paul advised that its likely she is a breakaway female from the Ridge pride.

At this point we had a call from our good friend Simon who advised s that 3 of the '4M's' had been sighted not too far away. As we approached they were doing what Lions excel at, sleeping! The three males, Hunter, Sikio and Morani were flat out and refused to even lift their heads. Scarface was the only male from this coalition that was missing. By this point it was  hot and they needed shade so we took a couple of shots of the big piles of tawny fluff and then headed off. It was clear they were moving or not going to show their faces properly for anyone! 

It was time for us also to get some shade as by now it was approaching 12:30pm and the sun was starting to beat down with a ferocious heat, it seemed a storm was possibly building as Cumulous clouds began to form and the heat becoming quite oppresive. Hopefully the rains would wait until later that night!!!

Just as we approached our camp Paul spotted some lionesses, deep inside the Croton bush. It was soon clear that it was some of the adult lionesses from the 'breakaway Olkiombo pride'. It was very hard to see but at this point no cubs were to be seen, however it seemed that not all of the lionesses were here. So the questions around where are the cubs remained unanswered..

Our next adventure was going to be leaving for another drive that afternoon at 3:30pm and would hopefully reveal answers to the location and fate of the cubs. So just a brief time to seek shade and try and catch up on the blog before heading back out.

Olive and the cubs

 A very tolerant mother!

Grimace

 Grimace scent marking

Adventures in a different Land Rover!

After what has seemed like an absolute eternity I am now happy to report I am back in the Masai Mara! 


You will notice this time I have said 'I' and not 'we', and that's because sadly I have returned to the Mara without Andy. Although we were due to travel to the Mara in December we were forced at the last minute to change the trip, largely due to Andy's workload but also heavily influenced by very wet weather conditions in the Mara, so this was changed to February instead. However, yep...you guessed it this trip also had to be aborted again just 48 hours before we were due to fly as Andy was under so much pressure at work, plus a few other factors (being self employed sucks sometimes for Andy!) 


Whilst it was a hard decision to make my amazing husband (Thank you Andy!) decided that why should we both suffer from not going to the Mara, so he kindly sent me packing off so I could catch up on all the news in the bush. Instead of taking a trip in the Mara in our own Land Rover I decided to join my good friend Angela, who by a twist of fate was also looking for a travel partner to get back to the Mara. So, this time I was not to be guiding both Andy and I but instead to be guided by one of the finest guides in the Masai Mara, Paul Kirui. It was going to be a different trip for sure and whilst  I knew it would sad returning to the Mara without Andy it was going to be great opportunity to join Angela for some 'girlie time' and also a chance for me to hone my bush skills further and learn from the master himself! 


So here I am now, sitting in the luxury of a lovely tented camp and in just a couple of hours off on our next drive but not before I have a chance to update on all the goings on in the last 24 hours since we arrived in the Mara


Although jaded after a long flight we spent no time messing around and embarked on a our first drive yesterday (10th)


It was just so special to be back, I had so desperately missed being in the bush. Admittedly it was at first a little strange driving the same tracks that Andy and I have done many times! I knew I would miss certain things for sure in comparison to our other trips (camp fires!) but I wont lie and admit that I was rather looking forward a a little luxury and also it was going to be a great opportunity to catch up again with Paul, Angela and other friends in the Mara, four and two legged of course!


Whilst there is  never a firm plan in the Mara and you go 'with the flow'  the agreed idea for the afternoon was to hopefully check out some lions seen nearby to the camp (Mara Intrepids) and also to see if we would be able to find a Leopard that Andy, Angela and I have photographed many times, known to many as Olive and of course hopefully a glimpse (or more!) of her newly born cubs. 


It was not long until we came across the lions, not too far from Olkiombo Airstrip, 3 Adult females and 2 Sub Adults (2-3years) and two tiny little cubs,  just 6-8 weeks old. The sighting was marked by a stench, one that meant only one thing, a lion kill. Paul advised that he had heard that the lions had killed a Buffalo just a few days prior  and by now the unlucky Buffalo was becoming rather rancid to say the least as it lay deep in a culvert where they had obviously had the opportunity to ambush


The cubs frolicked around in the long grass, doing everything possible to evade the opportunity of a clear shot with our camera whilst the mothers lay close by and still digesting what they had gorged in the last 48 hours. As with all lion cubs they were just so cute and utterly adorable! Sadly one of the females was in very bad shape, desperately thin and weak.  Paul advised she had been one of the females that had tried defending cubs from the 'Notch boys' some time ago (and who now control this 'break-away' pride). She had sustained some injuries and had since this event had never recovered. It seemed her condition had began to worsen again, she was in a bad way, that was for sure.


For those who are familiar with the Mara and follow the trials and tribulations this group of lions were originally part of the "Olkiombo pride' but now considered as a breakaway pride from the core group (who have now moved much further East).  Times are tough right now for the lions, not only due to the lack of prey but also due to the chaos that the Notch crew continue to bring upon the lion prides in the Mara. So many of them are split and pride territories a little more vague as you would expect in such conditions. The two tiny cubs were sired by one of the Notch boys, and lets hope this time these ones survive. There was no sign of the boys themselves.


Coming out for a brief moment in order to investigate the interest from the vehicles we managed to get a couple of shots of the little cubs before they darted back into the long grass. There was lots of vocalising from the cubs and in return came back stern instructions from 2 of the lionesses to return to the safety of the 'creche',  followed by a little discipline by the mother, which is always rather comical! 


As the temperature started to drop now seemed a good time to see if we could find Olive. As the cubs were still only 6-8 weeks old we all knew that this would be no easy task but we would certainly give it a go! It was clear when we visited the den, where the cubs had been spotted that morning that Olive was not around, given this it meant the likelihood of finding the cubs was going to be a slim one as they would remain hidden in Olives absence. So,  we left the cubs, who we assumed were hidden under the granite rock. 


Soon after the sun dropped and darkness fell across the Mara so this was our cue to head back, get some food and finally some rest! 

Cubs Sired by Notch et al.

 View of the Talek from the air

My tent......Luxury compared to what I am used to!

Tent from the outside

Canada 2011 - New Photos loaded on our Website

Well, after spending hours  trawling through literally thousands of images from our Canadian adventure we have now selected our favourites from among them.

CLICK HERE to go straight through to the 'new images' section of our site now.

Bears, Wolves, Otters, and more.......

We hope you enjoy!

www.imagesofwildlife.co.uk

Short video of Grizzly Bear feeding on Salmon in the Atnarko River, Bella Coola Valley

The final days of our Canadian adventure. September 18th - 22nd 2011

As I write this post we are now on the long journey back to Vancouver and sadly flying back home to the UK tomorrow morning (Saturday 24th) so this will be our last blog post of our trip. Our time spent in Tweedsmuir Provincial Park (Bella Coola) cannot be described as anything less than simply brilliant!

Whilst in the area we had a good combination of guided activities as well as plenty of free time to do our own thing, most of which was spent glued to the bear viewing station, come rain or shine.

We had many awesome experiences and despite there being a real scarcity of bears compared to previous years (as per comments from both park staff and retruning visitors)we still had some really good sightings and would most definitely return to this area.

A few things stand out from our time here and below is just a few snippets of these.

For our first full day (18th) we had a full day guided hike pre-booked from the UK by Wildlife Trails. Whilst Andy and I are used to being in close proximity to predators, specifically African Cats we have little experience in hiking in Bear country so rather than take any risks and also to benefit from essential local knowledge a guided hike was the best option. 

Doug was our guide for the day, a seasoned local to the area and passionate about all the flora and fauna of the Bella Coola valley. We had discussed the plan for the day the evening prior and our focus was as you would expect to hopefully see bears and perhaps if we were lucky other wildlife, but this time on foot rather than from the viewing station or car. 

Starting off at 9am and excited about the prospect of being on foot in bear country Doug took us to his first  ‘secret spot’ very close to our lodge. Here he had often seen the Grizzly Bears fishing for Salmon. As we negotiated a step rocky trail down to our first point Doug talked about the local vegetation and warned us of stepping on small toads that liked this particular path. As he talked about the toads in more detail he then stopped and said “there’s one”, so here is Andy and I looking on the ground for a toad, only to then realise after a split second that he was not talking about a toad but a Grizzly just around the corner near a rock!. Ten minutes into the walk and already we almost bumped into a bear! The wind direction was not in our favour and straight away it seemed that the bear had clocked us and moved away fast, although perhaps there was another reason this young/sub adult has moved away so fast? With ‘bearly’ anytime to absorb he was gone but already the adrenaline was pumping, this was freaking awesome! 

We decided to sit in this spot for a little longer, a small sheltered rocky cove where we could see the salmon were congregating and obviously why the bears liked this spot. As we were sitting there and as Doug was telling us lots of interesting information about the area we all suddenly noticed more movement to our right. There further upstream and some 100 metres away was another Grizzly! This time it was a big one! Its huge size and the way it confidently swaggered in the river, meant it surely had to be a male. As it came close we were right, and it was the same male we had seen the day previous at the Bear viewing station. 

Andy was quick to get the tripod out and the ‘big gun’ ready (a.k.a the 500mm lens).  I (Sarah) on the other hand felt like I was glued to the spot, in awe of this amazing creature as he came closer and closer to where we were. Perhaps this was why the other bear has moved away so quick, having caught the scent of a big male approaching on the wind? We discussed an ‘escape’ plan to be safe but given Doug’s experience in the area we knew we were safe, but having a ‘plan’ is always a good thing. Similar rules apply to approaching Grizzlies as they do with the ‘big cats’, never run and always stand your ground, making yourself tall but without confronting the bear in an aggressive manner, which may cause him to act defensively. However, in the event of an attack the action is very different to what you would do with a Black bear. With Grizzlies the key is to protect your head and neck and play dead, rather than fight back as you would do with a Black Bear. Neither Andy and I intended to practice either of these techniques on this trip but its always important to know what to do just in case!

The male was coming closer and closer on the other side of the river. Andy was trying to get as many shots as he could, although many obscured by the rocks and vegetation and even with a long lens he was some distance away still. I decided against getting the tripod out and tried my very best to get some images. However, I was just shaking with excitement and the adrenaline pumping way to much to even entertain the idea of getting anything sharp or in focus so I gave up and decided to just enjoy this moment. The male (one that locals affectionately call ‘Mac’ or ‘Lefty’, due to a missing part of his left ear) had by now moved to being right opposite us. We had just 30 feet of river separating us and a male grizzly. 

In normal circumstances you could seek sanctity in the fact that water was a good barrier. However, with Grizzlies this is by no means the case, just a few bounds and he could have been on our side of the river in a flash. The cameras were clicking and by this point he had noticed our presence, looking up with an arrogance and manner as if to say ‘I could eat you for breakfast, but I wont” he then carried along on his way, intent on getting the biggest and best Salmon he could. He could see we were no threat as we had stood calm and quiet.

It’s often a misconception that Grizzlies are intent on killing people and the reason why many are shot through being misunderstood. Far from it. If you act in the right way, don't surprise them, are careful and read their behaviour then being on foot with Grizzlies can be perfectly safe. No sooner had he passed us he was then gone around the bend of the river. It was one amazing experience to have been on foot in the presence of a Grizzly and a male at that. We left the area quietly all excited about our encounter. 

The rest of the day was spent with Doug, hiking and exploring many different fishing spots for the bears and walking through the most enchanting forests and seeing the most beautiful creeks. I was convinced that this is where fairies would live and Andy politely put up with my silly fantasies!!! We continued to see the evidence of the great flood the year prior and could only imagine the power of the water as it has carried 100 foot trees down the river, snapping them from their roots as if they were matchsticks. Doug pointed out the ‘day beds’ that Grizzlies use as well as lots of other interesting features of this beautiful area. We sat and watched the Salmon spawn and then occasionally leap out of the water in what Doug calls the ‘last leap of life’. So although our hike focused on bears there were a huge amount of other really interesting features along the way. 

As we sat at one fishing spot and as Doug showed us how the water had intricately carved beautiful sculptures in the rock. I then rather casually tapped Doug on the shoulder and said ‘Doug, theres a bear over there!”. Doug stopped, turned around and there was a Black bear, just opposite us on the river bank. He did not seem to know we were there, fished out of the water what looked to be a large Chinnock Salmon and then casually moved back into the forest to consume his catch. It was quite a surreal experience, and one that Doug advised was not that common to see given that the Black Bears are very shy in the area, particular the river banks due to the menacing presence of the larger Grizzlies (They will kill Black Bears) .

All in all our walk was fantastic, not just because of the bear sightings but also listening to the Doug and benefitting from his experience in the area.

At this point the weather was being kind to us, overcast but fortunately dry. This was great as we also had booked a couple of ‘drifts’ along the river. It was on these trips we hoped to gain an eye level perspective of the bears fishing on the Atnarko in a rowing boat with just Andy and I plus our local guide, in this case a lovely chap called Jim. The first drift was a quiet one in terms of bears, we had a glimpse of one Grizzly and another short sighting of a female bear fishing just near where disembarked the boat. 

However, the second drift was slightly more action packed in terms of bears. As we carved our way silently through the river we heard a distinct rustle in the bushes on the river bank and as Andy and I advised Jim that we thought a bear was around t suddenly appeared, a female bear. She walked nonchalantly along the bank and then down into the river, totally aware of our presence but relaxed with us being there. She spent around 15 minutes walking around and swimming, intent on getting her fish breakfast. Being on the boat gives another totally different perspective to walking or the viewing stand and most certainly the best one for photography. We managed a few nice shots before she moved around the corner and here we left her. 

As we moved around another river bend I saw two splashes in the water, by this point you get used to seeing splashes in the river, caused the the occasionally leaping salmon but this was different. Before I alerted Andy and Jim I needed to check through the binoculars that I was not about to raise a false alarm. Soon I realised I was right, two bears around 100 metres ahead, close to the rocks. Jim put the boat in ‘full speed’ and rowed with all of his might. We stopped some distance back and watched as we realised it was two older cubs, around 3-4 years old frolicking in the water. Although we use the word cub they are pretty much full size and now independent of mum (although they will likely den together this coming winter). We sat and watched then play fight, one male and one female stopping every now and then to catch a fish before moving along the river at a speed that we just never associated with Grizzlies. They really gave quite a show and with Andy at the front of the boat and tripod set up he managed a few really nice shots of these guys. Jim was also frantically taking shots, and when you see a local doing this you know you are seeing something quite special! We left the bears after 20 minutes, all ecstatic and totally ampled about what a wonderful sighting it was. 

That afternoon we then booked another drift with Jim, hoping to perhaps get sight of the cubs again, sadly we were not lucky. They had given us there show for today and for that we were grateful but along the way we did see another Grizzly very briefly and also a black bear foraging along what was the old part of the river before the floods carved a new course.

The rest of our time in the valley was spent with some nice sightings at the bear viewing station, and some afternoons with no sightings at all. Unfortunately by the evening of the 20th very heavy rain had arrived in the valley and continued without abating at all until we left on the 22nd. The water level rose during this time considerably and everyone was hoping that there would no be a repeat of last years flood as heavy rain was forecast for the next few days. The rain did not stop  ‘The Skinners’ from donning as many waterproofs as we could muster, covering the cameras with everything but the kitchen sink and still spending hours waiting for bears. We were dedicated that was for sure and there was no way we were letting rain spoil our last few days, even though it did stop us doing our longer drift to  see the Bald eagles further down on the Bella Coola river, the rain was just far too heavy for this.  Oh well, thats another great excuse to return to Bella Coola! 

Our time in Bella Coola soon came to an end, neither Andy or I wanted to leave but we knew we had to, all good things have to come to an end eventually. Together with all the other amazing places that we visited this was a incredible trip that has surpassed any expectations we had prior. 

In the course of our trip we have driven in excess of 2700 km, passing vast forests, crossing deep canyons, driving alongside river courses and through huge cattle ranches. As well as putting on far too many pounds (way too many donuts!) and have been bitten by midges and flies more times than we would care to remember. Along the way we have met some great people, some of whom we hope will be friends for years to come. We have found the Canadians to be incredibly friendly and always happy to please. It is safe to say that Canada is truly an amazing place and we would at the drop of a hat urge anyone to visit and enjoy the stunning scenery, amazing wildlife, remote wilderness and interesting geology that Canada has to offer.

At this point we would also like to say a huge thank you to Allan and the team at Wildlife Trails (www.wildlifetrails.co.uk) for all their hard work in creating the perfect trip for us. Without their expert knowledge of this area we would not have had such an amazing time. Our accommodation was perfect in every sense, the locations that had been hand picked by Allan and James were absolutely perfect and the bespoke itinerary created for us was absolutely spot on. If getting off the beaten track is one for you then Wildlife Trails should definitely be your first port of call. 

Thanks also to everyone that has endured our often lengthy posts on this blog and I hope it inspires others to go and visit Canada! Our images from our trip will soon be posted on our website (www.imagesofwildlife.co.uk) and we will post on this blog when they are uploaded.

Until the next of the ‘Skinner adventures’ we will say bye for now and Canada we will see you again and we hope sometime soon. However, not before we take a trip back to Kenya in a few months to check up on our extended feline family. Oh and did someone say bear cubs in Jasper? Mmmm, now theres a thought!...........

Grizzly takes a stroll past the viewing station

The two sub adults/older cubs - taken from the drift boat

Female bear at the viewing station

 Andy rather excited after the close encounter on foot as the bear moves away

Part of the Atnarko River - taken during our hike with Doug

Evidence of a Grizzly recently feeding on Salmon

Salmon eggs

Evidence of a previous landslide in the Bella Coola Valley

Beautiful scenery whilst on the drift on the Atnarko River

Huge trees uprooted and moved during the flood in 2010

Andy photographs the two bears from the drift

Andy doing a great impression of 'Darth Vader' whilst trying to keep dry during heavy rain

Beautiful Bella Coola - September 17th 2011

After a brief night in Vancouver, followed by one and a half days traveling (around 12 hours driving in total), stopping en route at a great guest lodge in the pioneer town of Riske Creek we finally arrived in Bella Coola, sadly the last location of our trip. 

It is here in Bella Coola that we will again focus our efforts on Grizzly Bears and hopefully Bald Eagles. As we descended into the valley via a steep and slightly nerve racking mountain pass we could see below us the Atnarko River. Alongside Bute and Knight Inlet this part of Tweedsmuir Provincial park is renowned for its Grizzly population in BC and where many of the shots of Grizzlies fishing along salmon spawning channels have been taken in Canada.

There are at least three Salmon species commonly found in the Atnarko, Coho, Pink Salmon, and the larger Chinnock Salmon. The latter being the favourite among the Grizzly bears. In addition other species such as Sock Eye are also found.

After stocking up with food in the local town (around thirty minutes away) we headed off to settle into our cabin, which would be our home for the next five nights. 

On arrival it felt as if we had ‘died and gone to heaven’. The basic fisherman’s cabin that we would stay in was way better than we had expected. Surrounded by mountain peaks in excess of 8000ft our self catering cabin sat in the grounds of a beautiful lodge, enclosed by long grass meadows that ran all the way down toward the river itself. Just the previous day a Grizzly Bear sow was spotted resting just metres from where our cabin was located. We had everything we needed to be totally self sufficient and it sounded like we could even have bears on our doorstep!  It would be quite easy to stay here forever and could only wish that we more than five nights here.  

However, despite a long drive there was no time to relax yet, all the time there was daylight ‘operation bear’ was on! 

Just 1.5km away there is a purpose built bear viewing station, whilst its sounds a little ‘artificial’ this station has sadly become a necessity due to a few previous incidents that have compromised both the safety of the bears and humans where. Sadly it only takes one incident by someone lacking respect for wildlife that means rules have to change and control has to be instigated. 

It ‘sits’ much lower than those stands we had seen in Bute Inlet so was potentially going to be much better from a photography perspective (the lower the perspective the better for getting an ‘animals eye view’). The station, open from 7am - 7pm overlooks a total distance of around 0.75km of the Atnarko River, both up and downstream where the river is shallow and full of spawning salmon and those who continue their quest further upstream. There is certainly plenty of room at the viewing station with a low fence and guarded by an armed ranger at all times.The ranger also on hand to answer any questions with regard to bear and other endemic wildlife behaviour that can be seen.

It was great to talk to other photographers at the viewing stand and listen to stories of previous encounters and sightings. Of course It did not take long to hear the immortal words no wildlife enthusiast or photographer wants to hear!  “you should have been here yesterday, we had five Grizzly bears all in the river at the same time”!  Well, we were sure that our time would come, maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow or even on this trip perhaps but at some point we would get to see more Grizzlies! 

We again heard stories that this year the bear viewing had been very slow and less bears in numbers in contrast to previous years, despite a good Salmon run this year. The potential reasons for less sightings are said to have been caused for an additional reason to those on the previous post. 

Last year, at this same time Bella Coola suffered what has been described by most locals as a catastrophic flood. The river rose to record levels, many houses and cabins were swept away for good. It was described as the 200 year flood. People were evacuated, roads were washed out and the river burst its banks at many places, then becoming blocked by huge trees that came down in the flood. The evidence of these floods can be seen all across the Bella Coola valley. The terrible flood has potentially had a huge onward effect to the bears. The berry season had already passed and the river was just too high for them to fish and therefore they effectively missed over one month of vital feeding time ready for winter hibernation. Many bears reportedly died and it has been said that this also affected cub populations to. The concern is that it could also have a huge ongoing effect beyond 2011. The floods not only affected the bear population but also washed away many of the eggs laid by the salmon during spawning, the extent to which this will affect the salmon run for 2012 and 2013 has not yet been determined but it is widely concluded that there will potentially could be some knock on effects with regard to the populations of all salmon species and the ‘run’ next year.

Sure enough our patience at the viewing stand paid off, not long before the station closed a dark shadow appeared downstream, right at the end of where you could view before the Atnarko curved around the bend. A huge male swaggered along the river, suddenly storming into the water and causing a splash in an effort to secure the best and biggest salmon in order to increase his bulk and food reserves before the winter. We all waited for him to come further upstream to allow us to take photographs. The light was dropping fast but this was a sight to be in awe of and Andy managed to get one shot of this awesome guy (see below). He was absolutely huge and had part of his left ear missing and he was clearly the local ‘bruiser’, exuding an air of arrogance and confidence. Not a bear you would want to mess with!

We stood and watched him as he focused on catching fish. He was not at all bothered by the human presence up above at the platform, whom by now had grown to quite a crowd. He travelled the length of the river that was within in our view and almost on cue at 7pm, just as the viewing platform closed he disappeared again around the corner.

Big Boy Grizzly

Poised and waiting for bears!

Salmon

Atnarko River

Flood damage

Stunning backdrop to the Atnarko River

Our Cabin

Cabin interior - Kitchen on the right

View from the cabin

Viewing stand looking upstream

Viewing stand looking downstream

Bute Inlet - September 15th 2011

After a two hour drive from leaving Telegraph Cove we arrived at our next port of call - Campbell River. After a restful nights sleep we awoke to heavy rain which looked as if it was not going to relent at all. Our forecast of approaching bad weather the day before had sadly been correct. This was not going to put us off, even though we desperately hoped it would subside. 

So it was time for the next adventure, with Grizzlies again to be the focus of the day. Bute Inlet was our location for the adventure and similar to Knight Inlet involved a 2-3 hour boat trip onto the mainland. Bute Inlet is larger in size than Knight Inlet and involved traveling up some calm but potentially dangerous waters. ‘Eddies’ and huge whirlpools were visible, appearing as if someone was pulling the plug in the inlet which at some points plunged to depths of over 2000 feet. Mountain peaks soared high above and we could see in part one of BC’s highest mountains, Mount Waddington (4016m)

Traveling up the inlet we had a taste of ‘how the other half live’ - passing Michelle Pfeiffer's mansion and guest cottages along the way, accessible only by float plane of by boat and located in an incredibly scenic and remote location along the inlet. It just seemed pretty insane that this house would be occupied only for a matter of weeks during the year, yet was worth well in excess of $10m. If there was ever a place to escape the paparazzi this was most certainly it! 

We arrived at the location where a minibus collected our group, from here is would be just 10 or so minutes before we would arrive at a series of viewing stands, located in prime spawning channels and favorite feeding spots of the bears. 

We came to our allocated stand, which is where we would have around 3 hours to hopefully view bears. There was around 18 of us in total, which was a little bit of squeeze on the stand but was by no means a a huge problem. 

Bear viewing, much like any other wildlife spotting is very much the ‘waiting game’, but we are both used to being patient and we are often rewarded by just staying in one spot and sitting it out. However, our guide was keen to move us around to maximise our chances, although in truth we would have been happy staying in this one spot but we ended up moving around 4 or 5 times, hopping on and off the bus to different stands. 

To cut a long story short it turned out that today was not our day for Grizzlies and as our time came to an end we had not been lucky to have seen a Grizzly Bear. We were told this was actually incredibly unusual, given that the area is home to in excess of 40 Grizzly Bears and this had been one of the first tours all season that a bear had not been sighted. We both know and totally understand that sometimes thats just the way it works and nothing with wildlife is ever predictable so although a little disappointed we accepted that today the bears did not want to show. 

On talking further with the guide it transpired that although sightings were very common he advised the actual numbers of bears congregating had been much lower this year and hardly any cubs had been seen in the 2011 season. This seemed to tally much with what our previous guide (Lindsey) had said about sightings at Knight Inlet. The Salmon run has been good this year, albeit a little later than normal (in contrast to two poor previous years) so you would have expected the bear numbers/sightings to have also been good as plenty of food was available. Whilst at the stands we had witnessed the multitude of salmon on their mission to spawn, it really was quite fascinating to watch this cyclical process in action. We discussed in-depth with our guide as to the reasons and we all concluded that there could be three main reasons for fewer Grizzly Bear sightings, all potentially being interlinked and contributing factors.

1. A late berry crop (and slightly later Salmon run) had meant that the bears could be staying further up in the mountain and not all yet progressing down to feed on the salmon yet.
2. Two poor consecutive Salmon runs combined with a terribly harsh winter for 2010/11 could have meant that many bears had perished and also less cubs had survived or not been born at all. In that the females were not strong enough to give birth or raise cubs (Pregnancy in a Grizzly can be biologically stopped by absorbing the fetus if the female has not formed enough bulk prior to winter denning) 
3. An increase in logging in the spring (particularly near Bute Inlet) could have displaced many bears as they emerged from their winter dens.

However, even though we had not seen the Grizzly Bears today it was still a delight to see Bute Inlet and the truly outstanding scenery it has to offer.  The weather had cleared for us and the vast wilderness and isolation of Bute was something to behold and again we vowed to return again, after all you cant have luck everyday and what a great excuse for us to return!

It was however not a bear free day as on the three hour return journey back to Campbell River we came across two separate Black Bears foraging on the shoreline as low tide approached. Huge Stellar Sea lions frolicked in coves along the way and surfed the whitewater around the swirling pools tossed us around on the boat. Proof that when you least expect it wildlife can appear anywhere!

The conclusion of todays trip meant that our time on Vancouver Island was now at an end. As soon as we arrived back in dock we ‘hot-footed’ it back with a two hour drive to the town of Nanaimo for the 8:15pm ferry back to Vancouver on the mainland BC. Here we would enjoy the last week of our Canadian adventure in Bella Coola.

Ridiculously long train en route to Bella Coola! (at least 1mile long)

Michelles Pad!

Viewing stand overlooking a Salmon spawning channel

Disembarking our boat at Bute

Rainbow leaving Bute