Hiking up the creek in total silence - the opposite to what we had been doing in bear country. We spent two days at the camp walking the creeks where the bears were fishing for salmon. When anyone spotted a bear we would whistle and then duck down and crawl to some cover where we could watch the bear from without disturbing it.
We had to keep ourselves out of sight while we watched the bears.
Its hard to stay hidden and get a good photo
One of forty bears we saw
Reuben was not as interested in bears as us
The bears we saw were mainly females. They scampered up and down the creek until they caught a salmon. The creeks are full this time of year, the bears varied hugely in their ability to catch them! One bear we watched would catch a salmon, bite it once then drop it straight back in. This could be it looking for female salmon with eggs which they prefer.
This bear was unusual as it sat in the water to eat its fish, most came up onto the gravel or banks of the river to eat the salmon. It was a bit grisly to watch as the salmon were usually alive and wriggling for several bites.
backcountry conga
Harry our guide looking at a bears breakfast. The banks of the creeks where we were walking were covered with fish remains and bear poo. We had to try and avoid lying in it when we were bear viewing!
cool tree
The gonads of the salmon, the bears eat every part of the salmon except these, no-one knew why not.
Reuben in his outdoor gear - I think it was less baggy when he was younger, he is 11 and a bit creeky now, he definitely prefers the couch to the outdoors now.
I think that's the smoke rather than a cheeky wink. Ralph melted his shoes and insoles while drying them by the fire and had to do some duct tape repairs.
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