Where do I start! An incredible day from start to finish. I did the full-day Grizzly Bear tour from Campbell River to Bute inlet. I flew from YVR South Terminal in Vancouver direct to Campbell River (a short 45-minute flight with Pacific Coastal Airlines). I took the Airport Shuttle bus from the airport to the Comfort Inn & Suites (which is a really lovely hotel - honestly, it's the best hotel in the area). The hotel is pretty much across the road from the Marina where you'll depart for your tour, and also close to Shoppers Drug Mart and Tim's/Wendy's/Boston Pizza/McDonalds if you wanted an easy food option.
On to the tour! I made the short stroll from the Comfort Inn & Suites over to the Marina, where our group gathered to meet before the tour. We met Captain John and Holly, who were both excellent hosts. On the way out, we saw some Dall's Porpoises (they're super fast - the fastest cetacean in BC waters - so it was amazing to have caught a glimpse of them!). Holly was absolutely brilliant at answering questions and providing interesting facts about everything related to wildlife, especially whales and bears. The boat was very comfortable and had a washroom.
The boat trip took around 2 hours, but it was really nice, and everyone was excited to have the opportunity to potentially see some marine life in the Salish sea on our way to see the bears. It didn't seem like long before we arrived at Orford Bay, in the Homalco First Nation traditional territory of Bute Inlet, which is right on the edge of the Great Bear Rainforest!
Lunch packs were distributed on the dock, and we had plenty of time to enjoy our food surrounded by absolutely stunning scenery. I have to take a moment here to talk about the lunch packs! It was the nicest lunch of any tour I've ever been on: a hearty wrap, some fresh fruit, and the most delicious cookies and granola bar! Followed by tea, coffee or hot chocolate.
After lunch, we were met by our Homalco First Nations guides, Gary and Cheyanne. They explained how the day would go and what we needed to be aware of to ensure everyone's safety. We boarded a minibus and visited the welcome center, where there is a small museum, and washrooms. Shortly after this, we set off on our way to see the bears.
Gary was our brilliant driver for the day. Cheyanne told us about the history of Bute Inlet and the Homalco First Nations people, as well as the words for different animals and trees in their language.
We weren't long on the trail before we saw our first Grizzly Bear, a female (we think), who was happily fishing in a section of the river that was in more of a woodland part of the area. This was at one of the open viewing areas, so we could stand at the river's edge. The bear obviously knew we were there, but apart from the odd glance in our direction, she was very content to just keep fishing and paddling around. It was honestly one of the most incredible moments of my life to get to see her, and for her to allow us to be there. A number of us in the group were a little bit teary-eyed!
We moved on to observing more bears from purpose-built viewing towers, along the river's edge. We were lucky enough to see a female with a young cub, who was still learning how to properly land a catch of salmon!
In total, we saw 10 Grizzly Bears, 2 Bull (male) Elk, and a number of Bald Eagles, as well as Dall's Porpoises on the boat trip over to Bute Inlet.
I can't recommend this tour enough. I know that sometimes we might look at the cost of things and think "Is it worth it?", but I can honestly say this is absolutely worth the cost. It really is a once-in-a-lifetime, life-changing type of thing, that I'd happily do twice if possible! Thank you to John, Holly, Gary, & Cheyanne, for one of the most incredible days of my life.
The photos are from my phone, so they're not perfect, but you can get some really nice photos and videos without a pro camera, as you're so close to the bears (safely). That being said, I'm sure the pro photographers got some amazing photos, and this trip definitely made me want to invest in a proper camera.
we did the full day tour with Capt John and Zoe. We had a wonderful trip out for a couple of hours and saw several humpback whales and multiple bald eagles and sea lions. We Were provided with a nice lunch and were then picked up by Stuart and Mars, our Homalco first nation guides. In total we saw 8 bears either solo or in family groups. They were fishing and playing and the experience was wonderful. We learned about the Homalco history and the great work that Stuart and others are doing in preserving the first nation culture. Captain John took us back through the Simpson narrows and rapids, learning about ripple rock.
A fascinating and educational day out with knowledgeable guides. We cannot recommend this tour highly enough.
CatherineW212
06 Oct 2022
An amazing trip when with Homalco nation guides we saw about ten grizzlies , a mother catching a salmon for her baby, a male taking advantage of her skills and eating it when she left, another mother with three cubs emerging from the forest and swimming across the river and several individual bears, including one at our first stop running on the edge of the water. The boat trip to Bute inlet is long but the scenery is beautiful and we were glad to be sitting inside. People were keen to sit outside ,but if you do make sure you are really well wrapped up. We had a good picnic before the coach ride to various viewing areas. We saw bald eagles on the way and our guide told us what the various signs said written in her language. We were well looked after with a filling picnic lunch. The guides checked each area we visited for lurking bears before we exited the coach and we had a wonderful close up experience while not interfering with the bears natural behaviour. There were plenty of salmon in the river although some of the bears did not seem to be good fishermen and there was a lot of pouncing and missing. We went through rapids and saw distant humpback whales on the way home. A not to be missed experience. The tour company had been very helpful as we had booked the wrong day and this was rectified for us.