August 29-September 5 in the Great Bear Rainforest

Photo: Bluewater Guest Andy Wright

Come with us and travel deep into these primeval forests. See grizzly bears, black bears and maybe even a Kermode bear! Feeding on salmon and sedge grasses, these bears are looking to bulk up for the winter. Come see why it is called 'The Great Bear'. Local First Nations culture is a big part of this adventure as we travel to villages and ancient sites. See whales, birds and maybe catch a glance of some coastal wolves. Starting and ending in Bella Bella, BC - you do not want to miss out on this departure! $ 4185 CDN + tax September dates are also available.

SAVE THE GREAT BEARS - SIGN THE PETITION - STOP THE TROPHY HUNT

Imagine making a difference. The “Faltering Light” visual petition is a high quality book containing; an open letter to the BC government requesting that trophy hunting of bears is stopped, essays from leading environmentalists, sepia toned bear photographs and YOUR SIGNATURES supporting the termination of the trophy hunt. The book will be delivered to Premier Gordon Campbell & Environment Minister Barry Penner before the trophy hunt resumes in April. The book will also be given to the Vancouver city archive as a record of every individuals historic contribution. So let's make history, record your name!

Join conservation photographer Andy Wright with founding supporters Simon Jackson (www.spiritbearyouth.org) and Ian McAllister (www.pacificwild.org) to make this visual petition a significant creation that changes history and saves the magnificent bears of British Columbia.

Last Chance for 2010 Early Booking Discounts!

Thinking about joining us in 2010? On most Bluewater departures we are offering Early Booking incentives. This offer ends December 31, 2009 so don't miss out! Contact our office 1.888.877.1770 or email explore@bluewateradventures.ca for more information. Happy Holidays!

Humboldt Squid Photo

A guest sent in this great photo from this season. This is Bluewater Captain, Tom McPherson holding up a squid that was found on one of our Great Bear Rainforest Trips.

Travel with the Sierra Club of BC in 2010

Join Biologist Caitlyn Vernon from the Sierra Club of BC - and Kitasoo Bear Guide Doug Neasloss June 1-8, 2010 in the Great Bear Rainforest. This trip will be starting and ending in Bella Bella, BC and will showcase local wildlife and culture of the area. With Doug onboard, you will see the area through the eyes of a local and gain valuable insight about various topics. For full bios on Caitlyn and Doug - check out our Special Trips Page.



Photo Credit: Kitasoo First Nation; Patrick McCloskey

Humboldt Squid in BC?

Bluewater Naturalists including Lindsay Janes, Krista Bogen and Tim Irvin have been surprised to see Giant Flying Squid or Humboldt Squid in the waters of the Great Bear Rainforest this summer. They can weigh up to 20 kilograms and reach 1.5 meters in length. Scientists think they may have made their way north in the warmer waters, or they are just moving north comfortably now.

With another sighting in Alaska this month, scientists are not sure whether the presence is short term, or long term and what the effects on eco-systems might be.

For a recent online article on cbc click here

Bubble-Net Feeding in the Great Bear Rainforest!

A few guests onboard the Island Odyssey this week were lucky enough to see a group of Humpback Whales bubble-net feeding! This is very rare to see in the area, as we usually talk about this in Alaskan waters. Captain Randy Burke called into the office to chat about the experience.

BC is Stained by the Blood of the Great Bear - The Trophy Hunt Begins Today...

September 10th (today) marks the beginning of the fall bear hunt trophy season. To everyone at Bluewater Adventures, and many other BC organizations, tour operators, environmental groups...this marks a very disturbing time. Surveys in the area are already showing an extreme lack of bears in the area because of the reduced number of salmon. For more on the bear hunt and other conservation efforts in the Great Bear Rainforest, please visit http://www.pacificwild.org/

Bluewater Captain Neil Shearar is also launching a new Campaign this week to urge the provincial government to take action on this issue. Join his Facebook group today "BC is Stained by the Blood of the Great Bear" and talk about your experiences in the area, your thoughts on the hunt, and make your own t-shirt to support the cause. Bluewater staff are taking action against the hunt...will you? Purchase your stop the hunt bracelets onboard our vessels in support of the movement.

Check out an article printed yesterday in the Globe and Mail about the lack of bears in the Rainforest. Click Here

Illegal Grizzly Bear Poaching Discovered in Great Bear Rainforest Park

Picture by Randy Burke, Bluewater Adventures

Bella Bella (June 12, 2009) -- A grizzly bear trophy hunter was found illegally baiting bears Thursday night in the Giltoyees River Conservancy Area on the B.C. north coast. Captain Eric Boyum, owner of the bear viewing company BC-based Ocean Adventures, discovered the incident while guiding a group of international clients in the remote watershed twenty-five kilometers east of the First Nations village of Hartley Bay. "We were getting settled in for the evening to photograph and watch for bears as they feed on sedges at the waters edge," stated Mr. Boyum reached by satellite phone on the Douglas Channel "when we discovered the individual, along with a large sack of bait being used to lure the bears into shooting range." "We have reported the full details of this sickening discovery to the local RCMP in Kitimat." Under section 33.1 of the BC Wildlife Act, it is illegal to use bait when hunting bears. "We have been receiving reports all season from frustrated bear viewing businesses, First Nations and members of the public that are fed up with finding trophy hunters in areas where they believed wildlife were protected." stated Ian McAllister of the conservation group Pacific Wild. "However, this blatant illegal poaching - in a park - is one of the more disturbing." The B.C. spring bear trophy hunt season closes on June 15th and it is estimated that between 100 and 150 BC grizzly bears have already been killed for sport in 2009. The BC liberals recently declared 30% of the central and north coast protected but continues to allow trophy hunting of bears in protected areas.

Over 80% of the protected areas and parks in British Columbia allow trophy hunting to occur within park boundaries. A coalition of Coastal First Nations, conservation and animal welfare groups have been working to ban the sport hunt of bears on the BC coast and Haida Gwaii. A 2009 Ipsos-Reid poll shows more than 79 percent of British Columbians want to see protection for bears in the Great Bear Rainforest.

For more information contact: Ian McAllister, Pacific Wild

outbind://85-0000000045F121361680344AADFC01B3B64AAA8D44352600/ian@pacificwild.org For b-roll video and interviews contact PacificWild. http://www.pacificwild.org/

Progress in the Great Bear Rainforest

Photo: Patrick McCloskey

Article Source: The Vancouver Sun

Date: March 31, 2009

The B.C. government has met a deadline to bring a new approach in resource development to B.C.'s central and north coast — known as the Great Bear Rainforest — where people, the environment and the economy are given equal billing.

After over a decade of eco-protests that tarnished the province's forest products image, first nations, forest companies and environmentalists joined Tuesday in supporting the new approach, called ecosystem-based management.

Agriculture and Lands Minister Ron Cantelon said the Great Bear plan is an example to the world on managing human activity while protecting biodiversity.

"The war is over. Now we can move on in a positive way," he said in an interview.
For the full article click here

STOP THE HUNT - www.pacificwild.org

Picture: Pacific Wild www.pacificwild.org

Article Source: www.pacificwild.org

First Nations, Animal Protection and Conservation Groups Unite to Save Bears in BC’s Great Bear Rainforest

Groups call on BC Government to End Trophy Hunting of Bears before April 1st
(BRITISH COLUMBIA, March 17, 2009) First Nations, animal protection and conservation groups have united to protect bears from cruel and unsustainable trophy hunts. At a press conference today, the groups urge the British Columbian government to end trophy hunting of bears in the Great Bear Rainforest prior to the opening of the spring bear hunt on April 1st.

“One might expect that in the Great Bear Rainforest, bears could live and thrive in peace,” said Bruce Passmore, director of outreach for Humane Society International/Canada. “But trophy hunting of bears is still permitted in the Great Bear Rainforest, even in protected areas. It is time for the provincial government to heed public opinion, the best available science and economics by giving these magnificent animals the protection they need to survive.”

According to a 2009 Ipsos Reid poll, 78 percent of British Columbia residents oppose trophy hunting of bears in the Great Bear Rainforest. First Nations groups are in agreement and also want an end to the trophy hunting of bears.

Kitasoo/Xaixais Chief Percy Starr is disappointed that all species of bears in their traditional territory are not protected. “We’ve spent years to ensure our lands are protected, only to learn that trophy hunters can continue to come on our lands and kill bears for sport.” “It's not right that anyone should make a sport of killing,” said Guujaaw, a spokesperson for Coastal First Nations. “Bears are as much a part of the environment as we are.”

For the rest of this article, check out www.pacificwild.org Voice your opinion!

Keep the Promise to Protect the Great Bear!

Source: Sierra Club of Canada
www.savethegreatbear.org/keepthepromise

Keep the promise to protect the Great Bear Rainforest!

That’s what you need to tell British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell. It’s the world's largest temperate rainforest and home to the ‘Spirit Bear,’ the rarely seen white form of the black bear, as well as the forest-nesting marbled murrelet sea bird and salmon-eating coastal wolves.
A couple of years ago, Premier Campbell made a very specific commitment to preserve this precious rainforest. The final countdown is on for the BC government to make their promise a reality by the March 31, 2009 deadline.

Premier Campbell needs to hear from you. We are down to the wire. Unless all elements of the promise are kept, the ecological health of the rainforest will be in jeopardy once again. We've come so far towards the rare success of having a vast unspoiled forest safeguarded, let’s not undermine all this good work by not reaching the finish line.

Help us tell the BC government that a promise is a promise. Send your message to BC Premier Gordon Campbell today! (Copied to Environment Minister Barry Penner, Agriculture & Lands Minister Stan Hagen, and Forests & Range Minister Pat Bell). Thank you for voicing your support for the Great Bear Rainforest at this critical time.

Click on this link to send your letter www.savethegreatbear.org/keepthepromise

Where the White Bears Roam...

Ian MacAllister is speaking and guiding this group through the Great Bear Rainforest. He is from Pacific Wild Foundation, and founded Raincoast Conservation.

Endless Waterfalls in the Great Bear....

Come absorb yourself in the Great Bear Rainforest... and see all the endless waterfalls in the lush green forests. Here is crew member Tom McPherson standing in front of McPherson Falls. Photo by Sherry Kirkvold. For more info on our Great Bear Rainforest tours, check this out!

First Nations Culture in the Great Bear Rainforest

Our 8 and 9 day tours of the Great Bear Rainforest have many stops along the way. Not only do you get to see Grizzlies, black bears and hopefully the all-white 'Spirit' Bear, but Bluewater guests get to experience the rich First Nations Culture. With many communities along the coast, we will stop at a couple and talk to Elders and learn more about their past, present and future on the BC coast.

Check out the video below and see how some Bluewater guests had the rare opportunity to play the drums in the 'Big House' in the community of Klemtu. for more information about our Great Bear Rainforest tours click here

Kermode Sightings in the Great Bear Rainforest!

September is a great time to be in the Great Bear Rainforest, not only for the usually co-operative weather, but the wildlife is plentiful! Grizzly and black bears are frequently seen feeding on the salmon in the rivers and estuaries, so there is great bear viewing. Orcas and Humpback whales are usually spotted at this time of year as well.

It is a wonderful time to spot the all-white Kermode bear, which a couple of our trips have already done this September. With the help of local guides our guests are having fantastic opportunities to see the Spirit Bear! This is definitely a rare experience on the British Columbia coastline. Book now for 2009 and take advantage of early booking discounts!