When I told my three year-old about the barnacle-eating bear we saw, he
asked 'Were you very brave and didn't scweam?' I have to admit that
floating along in the Apodaca on such a beautiful day, it was hard to
feel intimidated by the big ball of fur on shore. And he didn't seem
very concerned about us. It's the first time for years that I've seen a
bear, and what a privilege to observe one in his natural environment,
doing ‘normal’ bear things. Not going through garbage cans or scrumping
apples, but eating barnacles from the rocks of beautiful, pristine
coastal bluffs. Equally unimpressed by our visit was the bald eagle,
aloof and perfect in his white and black outfit, eagle-eyes glowering
and looking every inch the gatekeeper of the bluffs, perched atop a
pointy, tall rock. Other nature-spotting highlights on the trip
included: sailing close to the beautiful Defence Islands with their
incredible diversity of gnarled and contorted bluff trees, set in the
aquamarine, glacially silted waters; the very charismatic seals basking
on Pam Rocks and Christie Islet, many of them with their pups; for the
birders, we also saw oyster catchers, pigeon guillemots, herons and
cormorants on the rocks and in the water around them.
After we passed McNab Creek the setting changed to a
more industrial theme. Approaching and beyond the pulp mill at Port
Mellon were booming ground after booming ground as well as small scale
lumber processing mills. Every available inch of shoreline seemed to be
taken by the log booms and we saw the occasional tug boat working them.
On the south coast of Anvil Island we saw the ex-BC Ferry poking out
of a tiny bay, awaiting its fate. We also saw a ‘live’ ferry heading to
Langdale. It was really interesting to see the reach and extent of
industrial activity which is normally out of sight from Bowen.
As with all Nature Club events, our trip was
enriched most of all by the wonderful people who came along. Ranging
from toddlers to those who remember the glaciers retreating, visitors to
those who remember the Apodaca when she was new, and everyone in
between, all were enthusiastic participants and shared their gift of
wonder and appreciation. Thank you to all who came along and thank you
to Brian, Mike and the Apodaca for another amazing trip.
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| The route! |
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| Lunch on the Apodaca! - photo by Wendy Seale-Bakes |
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| Black Bear eating barnacles - photo by Wendy Seale-Bakes |
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| Gulls - photo by Wendy Seale-Bakes |
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| Herons - photo by Wendy Seale-Bakes |
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| Lighthouse - photo by Marge Swain |
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| Seal - photo by Marge Swain |
