Black Bears at Annan Creek Alaska

 We had a wonderful day at Annan Creek about an hours jet boat ride from Wrangell and were lucky enough to see quite a few bears in the wild. We were so excited as this was the highlight we had been waiting for and they obliged by putting on quite a show. They were feasting on the salmon which had made their way up the river to spawn. Many of the bears had cubs. We walked in to the creek by trail which took about an hour but was mainly narrow boardwalk so a reasonably easy access. At the creek site we were able to stand on fenced platforms, and also a bonus, when for 15 minutes, 6 people had access to a tent tube tunnel which you walked down through to the creek level and we could look through small windows, where, if you were lucky, you had a very close up view of the bears catching salmon. We were very lucky with our turn as a brown bear arrived and made his presence felt by scaring off the black bear that had been catching fish in the same spot.
The authorities only allow 60 permits a day and not all at the same time so we were really lucky to view in an uncrowded situation.

This mother bear had a cub which was so cute. She went down to the creek and got a salmon which she shared with the cub behind the small building (below) which just happened to be a long drop toilet. If anyone needed to use the toilet the armed guide had to unlock it and stood guard at a short distance.
The guide were extremely vigilant and needed to be as of course these are wild animals. We had a very serious talk given to us before we entered the forest on what we should do and what we shouldn't. Obviously no food or drink to be taken along the trail. We had also been told not to wear perfume.

 Only scraps for this one. They are very fussy and only eat certain parts of the fish when they are so plentiful. They love the brain and the fat layer between the skin and the flesh as its the most nutritious .  It was amazing how easily they stripped the skin from the fish.

 The bald eagles and ravens are always around to pick up the leftovers.

Ketchikan, Misty Forjds

 Our cruising through the Fiords was pretty spectacular and the sailing was smooth. In the early stages there was quite a bit of logging in these areas. As there is little or no roading in these areas the  logs are transported by barge out of the forest area. We saw many of these barges, above, which were being towed by a small boat.

 The area is very much like Fiordland in NZ. We passed numerous waterfalls.

 In Ketchikan we found these flowers for sale in a supermarket. I was totally mystified by the Hydrangeas above. At first I thought they couldn't be real but discovered they were sitting in water and they were very much live flowers. I asked the shop assistant how could they possibly grow with spots like that. She told me they were delivered by ship from Seattle and were called Confetti hydrangeas and she thought they had been splashed with a dye. What will they think of next!!! But i really liked them.  The ? Asters below had also clearly been 'doctored' but they were very pretty too.

 We found a shed where a Totem pole was being carved. A huge amount of work involved for just two people. It was just one month approx from being completed. The sign below gave us information!!

 Downtown Ketchikan, and below.

 Sunset on the harbour.

 A morning of cruising the Misty Fiords by zodiac looking for wildlife. Not too much about. Just a few bald eagles, and plenty of sea otters who spied on us, just with their cute little heads out of the water.

So now its on to Wrangell where we will get the opportunity to do some more bear hunting. Fingers crossed. Alaska is a beautiful and vast country. Always something to see.

Ketchikan Alaska July 20

 Our second day in Ketchikan Alaska, after cruising the inside passage heading north, we took an excursion to do a Bear Country Walk and visit the Raptor centre at a private reserve just a 20 minute drive from Ketchikan town.  We started with one of our guides giving us a very informative talk about  what we might hope to see when we got a kilometre into the forest and end up at a wooden boardwalk platform at eagle creek. The salmon running season here is just starting to get underway and many were starting to run. We had our fingers crossed that today might be the day.

 The forest was beautiful with a canopy of hemlock, spruce and Alaska cedar trees. Above are a type of mushroom that grows on the bark of a spruce tree.

 Then we arrived near the end of the board walk to find a black bear making its way through the long grass with a salmon in its mouth. My heart nearly stopped. It was just so exciting to see our first bear in the wild.

 He made pretty quick work of feasting on the salmon and then made his way of into the bush. I guess we ruined his day but I think by seeing the number of salmon coming up the creek it probably wasn't his first one of the day.

 Then we got another surprise when a second bear approached and instead of getting his own from the river he turned around and followed the scent of the first bear. He seemed to eat the remaining scraps then followed the scent of the first bear down to a stream where he disappeared from view.

 

 The salmon trap tanks where the fish that make their way up the tubes or ladder are held.

 It was a great sight watching the salmon try and make their way up the very fast flowing water. many were pushed back by the force of the water but seeing the tanks above the trap it was pretty obvious that many made it as they were fairly full. Each summer over 100,000 salmon return here to spawn and end their life cycle providing a banquet for the black bears, eagles and other wildlife in the area.

 The bear activity and the salmon running had not gone un-noticed by the bald eagles.

 This eagle flew to the middle of the stream to recover a piece of salmon that would have been ripped off by a bear. It dragged it with great difficulty to the bank and started devouring it only to have five or six other eagles trying to claim it. I got some fantastic video footage of this but Im not sure that I can post it here on the Blog. For the simple reason its a bit beyond me!!!!!

 After the bear and bald eagle activities we walked back to the trailhead where were taken to the Raptor Centre a recovery centre for birds of prey. Each year the centre treats between 100-200wild birds with injuries from gunshot wounds to collisions with cars and electrocutions being the main ones. They have a flight training centre where they can fly the birds in a controlled setting for long distances to help them regain the muscle strength they need for survival in the wild. Some of the stories the staff told us were truly incredible.

Volta the bald eagle above was found after flying into a power line. He had  concussion, electrocution, and bone fracture injuries. He healed well but one of the bones in his shoulder, critical for flying was partially destroyed in the collision.
Another story that comes to mind is a bald eagle that somehow swallowed a 3 and 3/4 inch common nail, almost half the length of the birds body.  They named the eagle Spike. Following surgery he had a long and very difficult recovery but within 48 days was flying again. Such a great story and there were many of these.
Some interesting facts they gave us on raptors were----- that eagles can fly up to a height of 10,000 feet.------bald eagles have more that 7,000 feathers that weigh more than the rest of the bird.-----Bald eagles are very good swimmers. If they can't lift their prey from the water they will swim to shore with it.

 This bird is the Peregrine Falcon. They are supposed to be the fastest animal on the planet and can dive up to 200 MPH. This was a  beautiful looking bird.

 A Barred owl, one of my favourites. Only to look at though!!!!

Volva giving us all the 'once over'

Whistler, Vancouver, Nanaimo

 We took a day trip to Whistler Mountain Resort which is a two hour road trip from Vancouver. The scenery was stunning and very much like parts of NZ but on a larger scale.
 This huge rock in the background that we passed on the way is an attraction to hundreds of rock climbers. We could see them from the bottom but they just looked like ants as the rock face was massive. Nerves of steel required to climb that one.

 In Whistler we took the peak to peak gondola which really tested my nerves but I was so pleased I did it. The first gondola took us 25 minutes from Whistler village up to the top of Whistler mountain. Then we transferred to a much bigger gondola car which took us from Mt Whistler to Blackcomb mountain across 4.4km on the longest unsupported span in the world and holds the Guinness Book of records. As it crosses the valley you are 436 metres above the valley floor and when you get to Mt Blackcomb it is 6,000 feet above sea level. The crossing from peak to peak took 15 minutes.

 A dam on the valley floor below.

 The last section back down to Whistler village again.

 The Winter Olympic rings from 2010 in Whistler Village.

 Vancouver city.

 Totem poles in Stanley Park.

 Bronze Chinese figures in English Bay Vancouver. Created by a Chinese artist called Yue Minjun in response to the 1989 demonstrations in Tianamen Square. The characters depict the artists own face, grinning, gaping and eyes closed in hysterical laughter and can be interpreted in many ways either as mocking or welcoming. It was wonderful and they were huge.

 The Winter Olympic torches at Canada place at the  Vancouver waterfront.

 Canada Place.

 Our visit to Nanaimo gave us the opportunity for some very nice sea shore walks where we discovered these creatures along the way.