Third Things First

 I need to finish the Africa 2021 Journals.

 

 

I need to finish the Denali Highway 2022 Journals.

But first, I just returned from a trip to pbotograph the large Coastal Brown bears of Southcentral Alaska and as those photos are now foremost in my mind, here we go:

Fur and Feathers 2022

Note:   If these photos look as if they were taken from behind a waterfall, that's close.   We were in a sideways deluge and a strong wind.

 

 

It's been four years since I traveled to Silver Salmon Creek to photograph the large Coastal Brown bears that frequent that area, far, far too long a time.    Coastal browns are the third largest bears, after Polar bears and Kodiak bears.   After that are the grizzlies and black bears.

Last Tuesday, I was called by a friend who was looking for someone to fill the third spot on a trip she had booked to a place that is really hard to find a vacancy in.   The original third person had to cancel.

That was Tuesday late afternoon.   The small plane would leave from Soldotna early Thursday morning.

I was there.   Weather was iffy, but we made it across Cook Inlet and farther south before it closed in entirely.   A brief check-in, gear prep and we were out on the tidal flats in in a deluge and strong wind.

 I've seen bears of all kinds during my 75 years in Alaska.   From a distance.   Then seven years ago, I went to a place  where I could get quite close to wild bears without fear of being mailed, as long as I minded my bear manners.

Two things surprised me when I had time to watch them closely.   The first was their hind feet.   I've seen lots and lots of bear tracks but never thought much about how an animal would make them.  Those hind feet are so human-like and watching a bear walk so flat-footed is like nothing I've seen any other animal do.

Our first outing was onto the tidal flats during an almost minus 5 tide.   We were hoping to see bears digging razor clams.  Two juvenile bears were there, keeping an eye on each other.

This beautiful 2-1/2 year old boar was one of them.

 This 3-1/2 year old sow was the other.

Inevitably, they met up and spoke bear to each other.   This was the second thing that surprised me about bears.   They love to play!

 

 

 

After that initial greeting, it was  game on!!!

 

 

Chase me, chase me!

We were about fifty feet from our cart and as soon as the bears crossed in front of us, I knew they were headed right to it.

After being shooed away from the cart, it was into the surf for more fun.

Can these expressions be anything but pure joy and zest for living?

 

Well played, bears.    Well played.