British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest 9-days searching for salmon, bears, whales, and wolves in the largest coastal temperate forest in the world One of National Geographic’s 20 places to see in 2014
Discover Encounter Learn Abundant wildlife in the Iconic bears and coastal How wild Pacific salmon largest coastal temperate temperate rainforests define the ecosystem forest in the world British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest Salmon, Bears, Whales, and Wolves
The Great Bear Rainforest is one of the largest intact coastal temperate forests in the world. Extending from northern Vancouver Island to Alaska, and covering more than 70,000km2 (24,000mi2), this area is home to spectacular wildlife including whales and dolphins, bears and wolves, sea lions and sea otters. This 9-day expedition aboard our classic schooner, the Passing Cloud, gives us the chance to explore this beautiful ecosystem and learn how it depends so critically on wild Pacific salmon.
2 Kitimat We will have the opportunity to follow the salmon (Haida First Nation) life cycle, visit the First Nations communities of Bella Bella and Klemtu, encounter marine mammals on the open sea, and potentially catch a glimpse of the rare white Kermode or “Spirit” bear.
Our 9-day expedition through the Great Bear BRITISH Rainforest starts and ends in the Heiltsuk First Nation COLUMBIA community of Bella Bella. Travelling deep into the heart of the Great Bear, as far north as the Gitga’at Nation community of Hartley Bay, we circumnavigate Hartley Bay (Gitga’at First Nation) Princess Royal Island in search of salmon, bears, whales and wolves. VANCOUVER
9-days / 8-nights
2015 departures: May 22, 31, Sep 1, 10, 19, 28
Price per person: $5200 CAD PRINCESS ROYAL ISLAND Departs from / Returns to: Bella Bella
What’s Included? Klemtu All meals, accommodation, transportation, user fees, (Kitasoo/Xaixais First Nation) use of onboard gear and resources, and rubber boots. What’s not included? 5% GST, travel and accommodation before and after the expedition, gratuities, any personal expenses incurred due to weather, logistical delays, delayed departures of chartered aircraft, taxis, ferries. Bella Bella (Heiltsuk First Nation)
3 Sample Itinerary: British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest
Day 1 Our adventure begins in the Heiltsuk First Nations community of Bella Bella, a short flight from Vancouver International Airport. Upon boarding our schooner Passing Cloud and settling into 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 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 set down our anchor in a small coastal estuary and go ashore for our first taste of the coastal temperate rainforest ecosystem.
It’s virtually impossible to find the adequate words to express my Day gratitude and wonder for such a 2 magical week. The fact that such Today gets started with an early morning visit to one natural beauty, such isolated of the rainforest estuaries, an enclosed body of water wilderness, still exists gives me with multiple rivers and streams running into it, to hope for our world. observe and photograph wildlife. After exploring this area for the morning, we continue our travels north, Megan McCaslin, Outer Shores Traveller 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 3
This morning we have breakfast while sailing north through the Princess Royal Channel, en route to Khutze Inlet, renowned for its towering granite cliffs, waterfalls, snow capped mountain peaks, and wildlife – especially grizzly bears. We’ll use our inflatable zodiac to travel deep into this coastal estuary ecosystem, which is an excellent habitat for spawning salmon, coastal grizzly bears, and wolves.
4 Day 4 We continue our exploration of Khutze Inlet with an early morning photography and wildlife expedition into the estuary via sea kayak. Next, we head back aboard Passing Cloud 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. Day Day 7 5 Today we hope to catch a glimpse of the coastal wolves that inhabit the Great Bear Rainforest. We Today we visit the bear-viewing stands operated by plan to visit small coastal streams in this region, the Gitga’at First Nation, where we’ll have an excellent surrounded by ancient spruce and cedar trees, which chance of observing spirit bears and black bears provide ideal habitats for wolves and bears. We also fishing for salmon in a small coastal stream. We have time to explore, photograph, and view wildlife spend the majority of the day quietly observing and in this area via sea kayaks, inflatable boat, and shore photographing the salmon, bears, and other wildlife excursions. from the viewing stands at the edge of the stream. Later this afternoon, we travel a short distance to our overnight anchorage as we begin our southward Day journey along the west side of Princess Royal Island. 8 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 walking tour and a guided visit of their traditional Big House. In the afternoon we sail south through Finlayson Channel and Milbanke Sound, getting to experience the outer coast before anchoring overnight in the vicinity of Seaforth Channel, near Bella Bella.
Day 6 Travelling south into Camano Sound, we spend the morning on the lookout for humpback, fin, and killer Day whales that congregate here each summer and fall. 9 Weather and time permitting, we’ll go ashore to visit whale researchers who live in the area year round As we travel the short distance to Bella Bella this and track the whales in this region. In the afternoon, morning we hope for last minute wildlife sightings, we spend our time sailing through this stunning area and enjoy the pristine landscapes and seascapes of before anchoring for the night in Laredo Inlet. the Great Bear Rainforest. Once we arrive, we say our farewells to the Great Bear Rainforest before disembarking and heading to the airport.
5 If you have any questions about our 360 B Harbour Road expeditions, or a specific detail about the Victoria, British Columbia expedition you have booked, please let V9A 3S1, Canada us know by phone or visit our website for more information. [email protected]
Photo Credits: James Thompson, Ryan Flett, and 1-855-714-7233 (Toll Free in North America) Russell Markel. 1-250-220-2311 (Local and International)