Bute Inlet grizzly tour

Bute Inlet grizzly tour
by Heather Harbord, 27-29 September 2008.

Bute Inlet BearTour.  This was our second tour to see the Grizzly Bears.  Aboard Misty Isles, we departed Lund at 9:00am and sailed up to Orford River in Bute Inlet.  We dropped our gear at the Homalco logging camp and hopped on their bus for a wild ride to where two crystal clear rivers met.  The native guides who drove the bus wouldn’t let us out of it until they had checked the area to see where the bears were.

Cameras at the ready, we walked a short distance onto a gravel bar where we had a prime view of the bears catching and eating salmon and the little Bonaparte’s and Mew gulls eating the leavings.  We spoke in whispers if at all and watched carefully for signals from the guides to back off.  As dusk began to fall, we returned to the camp where we ate a huge delicious loggers’ supper and fell into bed.  Next morning we were up in darkness for a big breakfast and then drove to the viewing platforms from which we watched the dawn and the bears but did not see as many as last year.

By mid morning we were back at the boat and sailed back down to Toba Wildernest Lodge on Pryce Channel where we spent the night.  In the morning we visited the Lucey graves again but still have not been able to find out much about them except that there was a small mine on the mountain above for a very short time.   Unfortunately, we were never able to arrange this trip again.