The Year in Review

From the Float House in Discovery Harbour Marina

May 17th - 2009

With an afternoon falling tide flowing to the north, we found this beautiful brown coated Black Bear on Sonora Island around 2:30 pm. He was spending the afternoon searching for small, soft shelled rock crab under the rocks at low tide. He actually laid down in a seasonal stream to cool off in the warmth of a sunny May afternoon. This was one of about 5 to 7 bears that we continued to see throughout the summer on Sonora. The "brown coat" of this Black bear that is seen mainly on the mainland bears is quite common on this island.

We continued toward the mainland to Jimmy Judd Island where we found a group of male Stellar Sea Lions hauled out on the shore. Migrating north to met up with the salmon, these large mammals have traditional resting areas on their way. Jimmy Judd Island is one such area. They will spend 2 or 3 days resting, feeding and arguing over who has the "best" rock on which to spend the day. Stellar Sea lions can weight as much as 2500 lbs. The fellow in the picture is estimated at around 1500+ lbs.

After coffee and snacks at Stuart Island we headed home through the narrow passages between Sonora, Maurelle and Quadra Islands and picked up a few Dall Porpoises feeding in the tide near Owen Bay. Back to the marina by 5 pm and the 4 hour tour seemed to go by very quickly!

More reviews of 2009 to come!

Take care

Hurricane Jack
Campbell River Whale Watching