Last year I visited Canada. Just a small part of it, in a short time frame. I went to see Bears feeding on Salmon as they swam up stream to lay their eggs.
It has long been on my bucket list to do this and it just seemed like the perfect thing to do when I was already close last year.
I haven't shared any of my photos here yet as to be honest, there were just so many photos that I couldn't face going through them all and working out what ones I wanted to share etc.
Well, that changed this week. For some reason I took a look at them and decided it was time. And so I went through goodness only knows how many, and chose my favourites. Man it was amazing. Took me right back there. I am so lucky.
Still, there are around 100 to share. So what I'm going to do is share them over a few posts so you don't get too overloaded. Although in saying that, there are still going to be a ton of photos to look at in each post.
So without further ado, here's a wee insight into one of the best trips of my life.

It started with a short trip from Vancouver to Port Hardy on a tiny little plane. Tiny.

No worries about door security through to the pilot! There was no door! But there was beautiful scenery to keep you occupied.

Glorious fog/clouds with mountains poking their heads through. Beautiful.

Port Hardy is a small town at the top of Vancouver Island. It doesn't have many shops, but the pub I went to for lunch was pretty good! As I waited for my sea plane to take me to the Great Bear Forest, I wandered the town and got my bearings. Thankfully I didn't find out til later that bears can be known to wander around. I didn't see any then.


Like NZ Canada was occupied with a native group before others came along and I found out they are refered to as 'Aboriginals'. What I LOVED were the totum poles found here and another place I went after my bear journey.


It is a very rugged looking town and has such beauty because of this.

Walking back to catch my sea plane, I saw my first bald eagle. I still feel my heart get excited as I think about this moment, watching it fly out and around and back to its roost. Wow!

I loved this mural painted onto one of the buildings. It really shows the atmosphere of the area.

Unfortunately I was a few weeks late for the orca, but that was ok. I was there for the bears!
Getting into the sea plane, I was allowed to sit in the front seat, right next to the pilot and got some great photos. The Great Bear Lodge is around 30-40 mins flying from Port Hardy north towards even colder parts of Canada (I went at the end of summer and it was cold!). The views were outstanding and I quickly found out very typical of what I was to experience over the next few days.

And then finally I got my first glimpse of 'home' for the next 3 days.

Yep a lodge floating on water. It was Ah . ma . zing! I knew it was going to be like this. But had no idea of really what that meant. It meant that at night, when lights were turned out, it was pitch black! It meant no shops. No other people. Just us (myself and the team) and the wild. I was the only person on the schedule so had the whole lodge and staff to myself. When breakfast was made, they asked me what I would like. I could have whatever I wanted. It was so decadent! And when we went out to look at the bears, it was just me and the guide. Truly amazing.

I was welcomed with a sign telling me what was going on and a fabulous welcome! Plus warm home made cookies! Sigh. Glen was/is the best chef!

Afternoon tea set up for me.


Love the flag and see those boats? I went out in those to see more of the wilderness and bears!


My bedroom was in the top left window! And just check out the bus we traveled in, in the next photo....


I would often take myself outside to read my book while having a cuppa, but would instead just sit and take in the beauty of where I was. You are going to get sick of reading this word, but it was AMAZING.

And after I'd settled in, we went out to sit in the hide and see our first bears. Being wild animals, there was no guarantee I'd see any bears at any time, but I was incredibly lucky with what I saw.

These were the first bears we saw. A mother and her cub. Probably 2-3 years old. My heart was singing as I stood there in awe of what I was seeing. My favourite animal out in the wild doing what it does best. Living. Surviving.
We made it to the hide (saw those bears from the bus that takes you to the various hides along the road they've made for us 'tourists').
In the hide, I saw my first bear foot print. Right there, in front of me, in the sand. Wow! They are so close. They are here!

And just out in the river, my first glimpse of what happens to the salmon, bears or not.

They die. They come up stream, lay their eggs, then die. They are part of the whole system, if they didn't do this, the bears wouldn't have food, and the forest wouldn't have the nitrogen it gets when they disintegrate and go back to the earth. I had no idea. Ignorance. But made for interesting conversations in the hide as we sat in the cold waiting.

And this is a very typical view of what you see looking out of the hide. My main guide (Emma) and I decided that when there were lots of seagulls around, then there would be lots of bears. It seemed to work each time. Goodness only knows if we were right or just tinny.

You can see we are very close to the where the bears come to eat.

And there were plenty more bald eagles to watch fly past if there were no bears at hand.

At the back of the lodge is a group of seals who come up onto the logs each evening and morning. Wow!
Ok, that's about it for now. I will come back with more asap. But I think this gives a great intro and idea of where I was and what it all looked like.
It was AMAZING!