Grizzly Bear Tour Viewing Reports


Some of our past Reports of the sightings seen on our grizzly bear trips, including birds, marine and land mammals.

 

(recorded every 2 or 3rd day to give you an idea of our sighting rates over the spring and summer. Sighting rates are largely affected by the moon, tides, food source and berry crops}

Date                Bears                           Marine mammals                    Birds                          

 

May 19            5 grizzly bears            harbour porpoises                bald eagles
pacific white-side dophins    terns, murres

May 23            8 grizzlies                    Dall’s porpoise                    bonepart gulls
3 black bears            humpback? whale                23 bald eagles

May 26            10 grizzly bears            harbour porpoises                    bald eagles
                        2 black bears                seals                                        marbled murrelets
                                                            1 sea lion                                mew gulls

May 27                7 grizzly bears            harbour porpoises                    bald eagles
                            1 really big black bear Dall’s porpoises                    murres, bonepart gulls

May 29            10 grizzly bears            seals                                    28 bald eagles
4 black bears            Dall’s porpoises                    marbled murrelets
1 whale, type unknown        2 osprey
14 blue herons
May 31                5 grizzly bears            harbour porpoises                bald eagle grabs fish
1 black bear                dophins                               
mergansers


June 1                   11 grizzly bears        Dophins riding bow wave    bald eagles
2 black bears            harbour porpoises                marbled murrelets

June 3                    6 grizzly bears            harbour porpoises                bonepart gulls
Mom with 2 cubs

June 5                    7 grizzly bears                harbour porpoises                    bald eagles
                                1 black bear                seals on rock                      marbled murrelets
humpback whale               
mergansers
June 10                   7 grizzly bears            harbour porpoises                bald eagles
Mom with 2 blond cubs    seals                                    mew gulls
3 subadults, 1 big boar    Dall’s porpoises           many blue herons

June 14                   6 grizzly bears            harbour porpoises       bald eagle feed by boat
6 black bears                Dall’s porpoises            blue herons
sea lion                            mergansers
rhinocerous auklets
June 16                5 grizzly bears                harbour porpoises        bald eagles
Mom with 2 cubs nursing                                            marbled murrlets
black bear with 3 2year cubs                                great blue herons

June 19             6 grizzly bears                    harbour porpoises            26 bald eagles

June 21            3 grizzly bears                 harbour porpoises                bald eagles
1 black bear                    Dall’s porpoises                marbled murrelts
rhinocerous auklets
June 28            1 grizzly bear (
Sergeant)   3 sea lions                         pigeon guillemots
1 black bear                    Dall’s porpoises                eagles

June 30            3 black bears                harbour porpoises            bald eagles
Dolphins                            herons

July 1                1 grizzly bear                 Dall’s porpoises            bald eagle feed by boat
seals on Negro Rock           marbled murrelets

July 4                2 grizzly bears                harbour porpoises            bald eagles
                        black bear with 3 cubs!    seals                                pigeon guillemots
                                                                                                        blue hersons
July 7                1 black bear                    harbour porpoises               bald eagles snatch fish

  

 

July 10            1 grizzly bear               Dall’s porpoises                eagles feeding by boat
                                                          harbour porpoises                marbled murrelets
                                                            Dolphins bow riding                pigeon guillemots
                                                            seals on rock                         murres, osprey
                                                                                                        tree shallow feeds chicks

July 11                3 grizzly bears                harbour porpoises                eagles feeding on beach
                         1 black bear                   seals on Negro Rock           murrelets (Indian nick name is
                                                                 Dall’s porpoises                   “kiss-your-butts”)
                                                                                                           osprey, kingfishers
                                                                                                            merganzer with chicks

July 12           1 grizzly bear                    run to Glacier Bay           rhinoceros auklets
harbour porpoises            merganzers with chicks
Dall’s porpoises                osprey fishing
bald eagles snatch fish

July 14         1 grizzly bear                    harbour porpoises            marbled murrelets
3 black bears                seals chasing salmon        osprey fishing
2 deer                                                                      bald eagle chases osprey
blue herons squawking
belted kingfishers
tree shallows
July 16        3 grizzly bears                    Dall’s porpoises
4 black bears                      seals on Negro Rock    bald eagles

July 18        5 grizzly bears                    Dall’s porpoises            bald eagles
2 black bears                    seals                                osprey fishing
                                                                                                     mew gulls
                                                                                                        rhinoceros auklets
marbled murrelets
common loons, terns   

July 20        5 grizzly bears                harbour seals                    immature & bald eagles
porpoises                           great blue herons
marbled murrelets
July 22        5 grizzly bears fishing    Dall’s porpoises                bald eagles
on the mud flats           seals                                 osprey fishing
kingfishers
July 26        5 grizzly bears, one fishing            Heavy NW winds make departure difficult

July 28        2 grizzlies                        harbour porpoises            eagles catch salmon
1 brown black bear        seals                                   great blue herons
1 black black bear           Dall’s porpoises              
mergansers with chicks

July 30        7 grizzly bears fishing on flats                                  bald eagles
larger new bear with rear leg limp                            kingfishers
teenager bears wrestle                                            blue herons

Aug 2                 8 grizzly bears                              harbour porpoises,
1 black bear                             Dall’s porpoises                                                                                                                                      harbour seals                 marbled murrelets

osprey

Aug 3               5 grizzly bears                              Dall’s porpoises                                                                          ( teenage grizzly fishing)               harbour seals,                           merganser with chicks
(Mom with 2 cubs)                  Pacific white-sided dolphins            rhinoceros auklets
1 black bear                             Harbour porpoise                      bald eagles

Aug 7            4 grizzly bears                            Dall’s porpoises                        bald eagles grabs a salmon,
4 black bears                           dolphins                                grizzly bears scares him off to
get fish

Aug 9            2 grizzly bears                        harbour porpoises                    merganzers

Aug 13         10 grizzly bears doing everything you can imagine, catching fish, wrestling, swimming by boat, digging rice root, eating sedge-grass while walking by, running from a helicopter, sleeping on a sandbar.
1 black bear eating plums

Aug 16         5 grizzly bears                        dolphins                                    bald eagles
1 black bear from afar            harbour porpoises                   
phalaropes
                                                                 harbour seals

 

In early July the elder berries, huckleberries, and salmon berries are ripe so most of the bears are feeding in the bush. Our sighting rate has dropped to 90%. Sometimes, no mom’s with cubs-of-the-year have shown up in Glendale Cove back in 2004! But on July 17 a sub adult grizzly pounced on a pink salmon in the estuary. These early pink salmon are returning to Klawade River, about 6 miles farther up the inlet from Glendale Cove. Some stray into nearby creeks and add to the genetic diversity. A small run of summer sockeye salmon are running into the  Glendale system July 20. At the right height of the tide the grizzly bears are racing around the tidal rapids catching salmon. Great fun! On Aug 2 the Glendale pink salmon have arrived. More new bears are coming out of the bush. We had a glimpse of a Mom with 3 cubs-of-the-year! Aug 9, 10: Sightings have slowed down as the half moon tides do not drop enough to cause the bears to come out. New moon tides Aug 12  and on are bringing in more salmon and have excellent viewing for bears.