Polar Bear Adventure
Bears
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Bears approaching from the south
Bears approaching from the south
I know it wasn't a hunt, but simply due to the rarity of accessing polar bears in the wild I thought I'd share some photos from my recent trip up to one of our lodges. Bear viewing was above average and just exceptional. I only spent two days in camp - thank goodness as I put 580 pictures on my Lumix and gained 5lbs due to the cooking. I simply won't have time to edit the images at all in the near future so here they are just as they come off the camera. I'm sure some post-processing could make them more appealing, but it is what it is.
Because the bears walk for hundreds of miles without hitting anything when they come across the lodge they generally come by to check it out, making for fantastic photographic opportunities - even right from the lodge.
Thanks!
Mama doing some nursing
Mama doing some nursing
This adolescent boar already looks big! Yawn time!
This adolescent boar already looks big! Yawn time!
The 12 foot tide is rolling in along with some waves...and of course, this male.
The 12 foot tide is rolling in along with some waves...and of course, this male.
Great pics! Thanks for posting them up.
Bears were vacuuming up cloudberries. Mom and 2.5 year old cub shown here. Mom estimated at 8ish years old and likely her first cub.
Bears were vacuuming up cloudberries. Mom and 2.5 year old cub shown here. Mom estimated at 8ish years old and likely her first cub.
These are the cloudberries. Remind me of a rasberry. Also tart taste. Lodge has excellent made-on-site cloudberry jam.
These are the cloudberries. Remind me of a rasberry. Also tart taste. Lodge has excellent made-on-site cloudberry jam.
Some biologists claim polars are strictly meat eaters. This simply isn't true as we watched them take in mounds of berries every day. They'll also eat kelp, and a variety of available foods. Bears were in fantastic shape. The ice was good to them this winter, and the seal baby jelly beans they were popping prior to ice out were plentiful.
Mother will nurse cubs right up until a boar pushes them away at roughly 3 years of age and she is ready to mate again, much like black bears. Always, always testing the wind. The bacon wrapped moose on the bbq may have helped...
My wife called this the gummy bear stance lol. Reminded me of the meerkats from Madgascar movie.
My wife called this the gummy bear stance lol. Reminded me of the meerkats from Madgascar movie.
More gummy bears lol
More gummy bears lol
Fantastic pictures. You are living the dream!
That's incredible, very nice photos. What an experience!
Bear in front of the lodge - you guessed it...eating cloudberries.
Bear in front of the lodge - you guessed it...eating cloudberries.
Everyone gets tired. And the sand is nice and cool for these warm bears on a beautiful day.
Everyone gets tired. And the sand is nice and cool for these warm bears on a beautiful day.
After digging this bed in the kelp it was funny to watch mom "hip-check" the cub a little for her own butt room when the cub took up too much space lol
After digging this bed in the kelp it was funny to watch mom "hip-check" the cub a little for her own butt room when the cub took up too much space lol
This roughly 5 year old male shown earlier, swam in from the open sea. Polars will swim just as readily as walking and have been tracked swimming hundred of miles in one shot.
This roughly 5 year old male shown earlier, swam in from the open sea. Polars will swim just as readily as walking and have been tracked swimming hundred of miles in one shot.
Same male passes by the lodge half a day later.
Same male passes by the lodge half a day later.
Tried to give our cooks a little break so the owner and myself cooked them a "shore lunch" inside the lodge. Fish, taters and onions, beans and corn. Almost like as if we were at the fishing lodge!
Tried to give our cooks a little break so the owner and myself cooked them a "shore lunch" inside the lodge. Fish, taters and onions, beans and corn. Almost like as if we were at the fishing lodge!
A different mother nurses her two cubs a mere 30 yards from the front windows. I took this picture through the glass. Interesting to watch the cubs alternate nipples. Mom had 4 nipples for 2 cubs.
A different mother nurses her two cubs a mere 30 yards from the front windows. I took this picture through the glass. Interesting to watch the cubs alternate nipples. Mom had 4 nipples for 2 cubs.
Mom will lose 2lbs/day nursing.
Coming back from watching the belugas. Of course a bear is guarding our approach.
Great photos! some of us will likely never see this many polar bears. Thanks for sharing (I know it can be time consuming) ha
My wife glassing the bears in the couldberries
My wife glassing the bears in the couldberries
And finally, security at the airstrip as we head out to leave.
And finally, security at the airstrip as we head out to leave.
My improperly situated photos refuse to rotate.
Holy cow, man. Great pictures! Thanks for sharing
If I bored you...you can yawn along with this mother ;)
Hope you enjoyed. I know it was a rare experience and I am truly truly blessed. Have a great weekend everyone!
Great pictures thanks for sharing!
Is that a HIGH fence around the lodge :)?
Thanks for sharing the pictures with us.
Great photos! Beautiful spot there too!
Adam, are you in Manitoba? Wasn’t sure how far north the lodge is? Thanks!
Yes, it is northern MB. And YES it is a high fence Paul! lol We've got a the fence encased in thick wire fence, and then electric fence around most of it as well. Had the treat of watching the fence educate a couple young bears ;) It seemed like once was enough! Any bear with any age on them were very cautious animals. If you moved too quick they were outta there.
We obviously don't feed them in any way. So close encounters are purely related to curiosity.
Very cool, Adam! Great photos as well! Looks to be some sort of monitor in the pic of the male bear with the waves crashing in the background. Any idea what that is? Also, how often did you visualize your arrow placement on those bears during the trip?? ;-)
t-Roy, yes we had a film crew from the UK there at the same time as well filming for a TV series. We regularly take Nat Geo crews and the like. Unfortunately their GoPro in its thick aluminum case made it's way into my shot :(
I think they were using that to time-lapse the tide or something.
Here you can see the curious bears
Amazing pics, and what a treat to see polars that close.
Incredible! Thanks for sharing!
Adam, As everyone else said, thanks so much for posting. A real treat to take a mini tour for a few minutes and see some great animals and country side. That gos for every one else posting stories and trip recaps.
And I will vouch for the cloudberries. I enjoyed some when I was on an IFYE exchange to Norway back in 1991. Back to to local time and back to the salt mines!
Thanks Erik
Great pics, but don't think I'd be going out for an afternoon stroll.
I loved looking at them from the front where you can see the power in that chest. They're capable of so much.
Like the rest, thank you for sharing. They are an incredible animal, what an experience!
Great photos Adam. Looks like a beautiful lodge as well.
Fantastic pictures. thanks for taking us along
great photos The polar bear are just a beautiful animals
Love it! Thanks so much for sharing!
Cool.... Glad its a lodge, wouldn't want to go tent camping there...8^)
BTW, curious what kind of lodge is it - fishing, or just for wildlife viewing?
Thanks
Did you ever draw your "airbow" and aim just behind the front shoulder? That boar near the ground camera is a toad.
Adam, My friend, another caribou bow hunter might be in touch with you. He liked the photos! Kurt
Nice...those are some great pictures!!...rare...
Thanks for sharing!!!
Awesome pics thanks for sharing!
Very kool pix man.
How on earth would ya go out for a training run or hike with all those White Bears around ya!! haha
Good luck, Robb
Adam...we'd like a live cam feed from the lodge. You know....something as good as the Brooks Falls brown bear deal in Katmai. That's not asking too much is it?
Thanks for one of the best threads recently on Bowsite. Love all those polar-izing images!
Outstanding! Thanks for sharing.
Incredible pictures. There's just something majestic about Polar Bears. Not sure that I could ever hunt them, not that I would ever have the opportunity anyway. Thanks so much for sharing!
Thanks for the kind comments fellas.
Kevin funny thing is I was actually debating a live cam lol. Wondering if I’d have issues if I had people in one lodge and they check the cameras and the other lodge has bears and they don’t… so I’ve held off for now