Coastal Photography Tour in Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest
9-days exploring glacier-carved fjords and biologically- rich estuaries. The perfect backdrop to hone your nature and wildlife photography skills. 2020 Edition
Explore Photograph Learn The largest intact Bears, whales, dolphins, Strategies for photographing coastal temperate porpoises, and ancient coastal wildlife and rainforest on Earth rainforests environments Photography Tour 2020 Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest
During our 2020 Photo Tour in the Great Bear Rainforest, living and travelling aboard the schooner Passing Cloud, and isolated from all the distractions of shore-bound life, you’ll have the opportunity to focus on taking your photography to the next level. Accommodations, delicious food, and transportation to stunning photo destinations are all included, leaving you free to concentrate on capturing your vision of this pristine coastal wilderness.
2 At a Glance
Our 9-day/8-night photography tour through Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest is perfect for photographers, novice and accomplished alike, wishing to combine photography with experiencing the wildlife and ecosystems of this incredible region. This unique wilderness photography tour will be led by coastal photography specialist, Dr. James Thompson, and focuses on the megafauna of this diverse ecosystem. This expedition circumnavigates Princess Royal Island, starting and ending in the Heiltsuk First Nation community of Bella Bella, British Columbia.
9-days / 8-nights
2020 departures: October 1-9
Price per person: $6,495 CAD
Departs from/Returns to: Bella Bella, BC
What’s Included? All meals, accommodation, transportation, Conservation and Stewardship fees, use of onboard gear and resources including rubber boots, instruction and guidance by onboard photography expert, Dr. James Thompson.
What’s not included? 5% GST, travel and accommodation before and after the expedition, crew gratuities, any personal expenses incurred due to weather, logistical delays, delayed departures of chartered aircraft, taxis, ferries.
3 Sample Itinerary: Coastal Photography Tour 2020
“Our expectations were superbly Our floating classroom for this photo tour is the schooner Passing Cloud, and our playground is exceeded in every respect...Once Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest. This all-inclusive again your excellent crew have photography adventure overlays discussion-based workshops, photo reviews, and one-on-one guidance contributed so much to our upon the old-growth rainforests, estuaries, and bear enjoyment. Your enthusiasm, viewing stands operated by local First Nations. knowledge and commitment Day is unsurpassed. Altogether the Bella Bella, Wildlife Photography 101 experience warms the soul. Thank 1 you for providing leadership and Our adventure begins in the Heiltsuk First Nation community of Bella Bella, a short flight from Vancouver guidance to make this and every International Airport. Upon boarding our 70’ classic Passing Cloud experience so wooden schooner Passing Cloud and settling into special.” accommodations, we set sail and begin our journey north into the heart of Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest. As we slice through the waters of the Seaforth Channel - Jonathan, Outer Shores’ Traveler we’ll be on the lookout for our first wildlife sightings - humpback whales, sea otters, elephant seals, and killer whales. Later in the afternoon we’ll set down our anchor in a small coastal estuary and go ashore for our first taste of the coastal temperate rainforest ecosystem. To prepare for tomorrow’s adventure, James will give us his “Wildlife Photography 101” talk after dinner.
Day Estuary Wildlife Photo Session 2
Today gets started with an early morning visit to one of the rainforest estuaries, an enclosed body of water with multiple rivers and streams running into it, to observe and photograph wildlife. After exploring this area for the morning, we continue our travels north, potentially spotting humpback whales, dolphins, and porpoises. In the afternoon we visit our first major river system, where we find a comfortable spot to sit and wait to observe grizzly bears fishing for salmon. Day Culpepper Lagoon, Khutze Inlet Day Kayaking, Whales, and Hartley Bay 3 6 After optional morning sea kayaking (or quiet cup of After optional morning sea kayaking (or a quiet cup coffee on deck), we depart for Wright Sound and the of coffee on deck), we depart for Wright Sound and Gitga’at First Nation community of Hartley Bay. On the Gitga’at First Nation community of Hartley Bay. route, we’re hopeful that we’ll encounter the large On route, we’re hopeful that we’ll encounter the large groups of humpback whales that are increasingly found groups of humpback whales that are increasingly congregating in this area. In Hartley Bay we’ll enjoy a found congregating in this area. In Hartley Bay we’ll walking tour of this beautiful boardwalk community enjoy a walking tour of this beautiful boardwalk and learn about the Gitga’at Nation. We’ll spend this community and learn about the Gitga’at Nation. afternoon sailing and photographing whales in Squally We’ll spend this afternoon sailing and photographing Channel and Taylor Bight, hopefully including fin whales, whales in Squally Channel and Taylor Bight, hopefully the second largest mammals on the Planet! We’ll have including fin whales, the second largest mammals on our first image review session tonight. the Planet! Day Dawn Patrol and Hot Springs 4 We continue our exploration of Khutze Inlet with an early morning photography and wildlife expedition into the estuary via our inflatable boat. Next, we head back aboard our ship and travel north in search of the iconic spirit (or Kermode) bear, which are actually black bears with a rare gene that produces completely white fur. After we anchor in Bishop Bay Marine Park for the evening, we head ashore to enjoy a soak in one of the natural hot springs in the area and reflect on our Day Ancient Rainforests, Wolves, and photographic processes of the day. 7 Cetacea Lab This morning we hope to catch a glimpse of the secretive coastal wolves that inhabit the Great Bear Rainforest (but certainly no promises!). We plan to visit a small coastal stream in this region, surrounded by ancient spruce and cedar trees, which provide ideal habitats for wolves and bears. We’ll visit a small research station (Cetacea Lab), where we’ll learn about ongoing whale research in this region, including their whale photo-identification program. This afternoon we’ll sail south through Whale Channel on the look out for…you guessed it! Day Kitasoo/Xaixais Territory, Klemtu Big 8 House This morning we pass through Myers Narrows en route to the Kitasoo/Xaixais First Nation community of Klemtu. We are welcomed to this remote coastal community with a guided tour of their traditional Big House. We’ll learn about the deep history of this indigenous nation and their present-day initiatives to Day Landscape and Wildlife Photography protect their culture, community, and economy. In the 5 afternoon we sail south through Finlayson Channel and Milbanke Sound, getting to experience the outer This morning we’ll follow along a coastal stream in coast before anchoring overnight in the vicinity of the Gitga’at First Nation territory, where we’ll have an Seaforth Channel, near Bella Bella excellent chance of observing spirit bears and black Day bears fishing for salmon. We spend the majority of the Disembark in Bella Bella day quietly observing and photographing the salmon, 9 bears, and other wildlife from the edge of the stream. As we travel the short distance to Bella Bella this This is a great place to break out our tripods and get morning we hope for last minute wildlife sightings, some amazing wildlife and landscape images. Later this and enjoy the pristine landscapes and seascapes of afternoon, we travel a short distance to our overnight the Great Bear Rainforest. Once we arrive, we say anchorage. Tonight we’ll have an image review session our farewells to the Great Bear Rainforest before and discuss our techniques. disembarking and heading to the Bella Bella airport. FAQ: Coastal Photography Tour 2020
Who should take this tour? Anyone with an interest in improving their technical and artistic photographic skills in a stunning coastal wilderness setting.
What is the nature of this tour? What kind of photo tour is it? This tour has three main components: (1) living and travelling aboard a beautiful wooden schooner, participants are completely immersed in a pristine coastal wilderness environment, providing unlimited photographic opportunities; (2) all logistics are completely taken care of for you, including accommodation, transportation, and wonderful chef-prepared meals…it’s easy! And (3) our instructor and photography expert focuses on helping you build your photographic toolbox by focusing on a range of photographic challenges/opportunities including marine wildlife, coastal rainforests, the intertidal zone, coastal composition, and more. Frequent shooting sessions, discussion-based workshops, one-on-one help, and group image reviews are hallmarks of this tour. Ultimately, this is your holiday and we want it to be fun and informative for you.
What will I get to photograph? We endeavour to expose participants to all the major features of our wild west coast: the open ocean, the fascinating intertidal zone, unspoiled soaring coastal old growth rainforests, and a wide array of wildlife including bears, eagles, whales, sea lions, seals and a myriad of other birdlife all set against the stunning backdrop of the Great Bear Rainforest. We occasionally also run into orca, and porpoises.
How physically fit should I be? You should be able to walk short distances over somewhat uneven terrain carrying your camera gear.
What is the Instructor to Participant Ratio? How many crew will be on board? There will be a maximum of 6 participants on the tour, and one instructor. Our ship’s crew will consist of captain (also a PhD in marine biology), onboard photography expert, Dr. James Thompson, mate/deckhand, and chef.
What camera gear should I bring? Short answer? Everything! The wider the range of focal lengths available to you, the more photographic choices you have. Another essential piece of equipment is a tripod sturdy enough to bear the weight of your camera plus largest lens. Other useful items include a polarizing filter, spare batteries, plenty of storage media, and a flash or reflector.
I am a single traveler. Can I have a cabin to myself or do I have to share with someone else? We do encourage spouses or close friends to join this tour together and share a cabin. If you don’t mind sharing, we can add you to pour waitlist to pair you up with another single traveller of the same gender. However, if you would prefer a private cabin, we typically can accommodate single travellers in a cabin to themselves at 2x our regular rate. FAQ: Coastal Photography Tour 2020 (Continued)
How do I get there? The tour departs aboard the schooner Passing Cloud from the remote First Nations village of Bella Bella,BC, in the central regions of Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest. Bella Bella Regional Airport hosts daily flights from Vancouver, and sometimes connects in Comox and Campbell River. Pacific Coastal Airlines typically has a morning and afternoon arrival (approximately 2 hours from the Vancouver Airport). Visit Pacific Coastal for further details (pacificcoastal.ca)
What will the weather be like? Spending a week on the west coast in September and October although you will likely encounter a little bit of everything, expect rain and cooler temperatures in the rainforest at this time of year. Sun, wind, and rain are often encountered even within a single day as weather fronts from the open Pacific Ocean pass by. You can expect daytime temperatures to be between 5 to 15 degrees Celsius.
What clothing should I bring? You will be provided with a detailed packing list well in advance of the tour; however, you’ll need to be prepared for a wide range of weather conditions.
How should I protect my camera gear? While rain can easily be wiped off, and many higher-end cameras are well weather sealed, salty sea spray can be very corrosive to sensitive electronics. A simple shower cap will keep the worst of the weather at bay, but you may want to consider purchasing more sophisticated and robust weather protection. See James Thompson’s Outer Shores Blog post “It IS a rainforest after all” for more details (www.outershores. ca/2013/05/it-is-a-rainforest-after-all/).
Will I be able to charge my camera batteries and laptop? Yes, the ship has several AC power outlets with the standard North American type plug sockets.
How much on board storage is available? There are several large drawers and a small hanging locker in each stateroom, perfect for all your clothing, jackets and some gear.
Should I bring my laptop computer? Yes! Although not mandatory, we will be critiquing our work during the trip and providing on-the-fly post-processing tips. There will be downtime each day during which you can work on your images.
How do I book this tour? To reserve your berth on this tour we request that you provide a $1000 CAD deposit that is fully refundable until 120 days prior to your departure date. At this time your balance becomes due in full, and payments becomes non-refundable. If you have to cancel inside of 120 days, you can transfer your payment to one of our other expeditions in the same or following year. We recommend you purchase independant travel insurance in the off-chance case you need to cancel last minute.
We look forward to welcoming you aboard! If you have any questions about our P.O Box 361 expeditions, or a specific detail about Cobble Hill, British Columbia the expedition you have booked, V0R 1L0, Canada please let us know by phone or visit our website for more information. [email protected] outershores.ca
Photo Credits: James Thompson, Ryan Flett, 1-855-714-7233 (Toll Free in North America) Owen Perry, and Russell Markel. 1-250-220-2311 (Local and International)