Day Twenty-Two Great White Bear Tour Churchill

We were really looking forward to the planned tour set to commence on day 22. This day was to be our day out on the tundra in and around Churchill Manitoba. We set out early with our tour group and tour leader from the Lazy Bear Lodge to the Great White Bear tundra bus location on the edge of town. From there we set off on a jacked up mega-bus onto the tundra on a blustery freezing cold day in search of polar bears, wolves, owls, fox and other arctic animals to found at this time of year.

It wasn’t long before we saw what we were looking for but the problem was the polar bear was far off in the distance making getting decent photos or video nearly impossible. The tundra vehicles have to stay on the set tracks to keep from wrecking the sensitive ecosystems. No big deal as this was part way into the bear’s migration season and more would be found soon enough.

Before we came across our next bear sighting we saw an arctic owl in full flight, an arctic rabbit in full white coat, and a couple weasels carrying their meals of mice. Our next bear sighting was much like the first – it was not as far off but again, getting a decent shot of it was out of the question. You could tell it was a bear as its off-white coat stood out against the dirty background it was walking in. You could feel the excitement on the bus as everyone just wanted a closer encounter with these large beautiful creatures.

It was right at lunch time which was served on the tundra vehicle that we came across a fairly large bear doing what they do best at this time of year – sleeping while waiting for the ice to form for their yearly journey out to the seal hunting grounds. You could tell this bear had seen humans in these big buses before as it barely stirred as everyone awed and snapped pictures at a frantic pace. It took about 20 minutes before this bear moved as it stood up a bit to take a big prolonged yawn before turning over to its other side for yet more sleep. That was enough to bring everyone on the bus to full attention while scrambling for their cameras once again.

We had hoped this encounter would be the harbinger of even more such sightings but alas, for us on this day, it was the last one. The tour operators searched around for a few more hours but were unable to locate any more bears. We didn’t actually see much of anything from that point on but the tundra around us was beautiful in its own way. It seemed the weather turned from sun to overcast to rain to driving snow every few minutes as we crisscrossed the vast tundra around Churchill. We ended up back at the Lazy Bear Lodge shortly before 5pm.

Waiting for us at the lodge this evening was something special that neither of us had tried before – caribou steak. We didn’t know what to expect from this dish but both of us enjoyed it thoroughly. It has the same texture as tender pork but the taste is much like beef. It was peppered and went down well. We also wanted to try some musk ox but the restaurant didn’t have any more available as it was in short supply.

Tyler says of day 22 – I was really looking forward to this day as it was the main reason I had personally wanted to always visit Churchill. I have had many encounters with black bears and brown bears on my various hiking expeditions over the years, but seeing a magnificent polar bear up close still brought awe and fear to my heart. Not seeing as many as I had hoped was a bit of a disappointment but that’s nature for you. They play by their own rules and not those of camera pointing tourists. I will definitely return to Churchill in the near future to see these bears in their element once again. If this idea even slightly resonates with you I suggest you also take the trek to Churchill as there is so much more than than the great white bears there as I found out.

Catherine says of day 22 – Upon seeing the first live polar bear I felt some fear as people living in Churchill and nearby said that polar bears can be very aggressive towards humans. With the cold weather they are more active and may kill you as a food source! The polar bear that we did see close up seemed so rather familiar with people being so close. Our guide was very knowledgeable and predicted that this bear might be in the area as it had been seen the day before there. I made sure to follow all the previous instructions of the tour guides like don’t bring food outside to the viewing platform, and don’t entice the bears etc. It was a great adventure seeing the bears in the wild and the caribou steak was like beef and I am glad I tried it.