Great Bear Rainforest

Dispatch from the Great Bear Rainforest

Twelve years ago I arrived in the Great Bear Rainforest for my first job as a wildlife guide. I was a seasoned field biologist and had spent many seasons over mountains and tundra, but the coast was a whole new world for me. My boat skills were rusty, I knew almost nothing about the ocean and tides – and very little about grizzly bears. But it was not difficult to decipher that I was in a very special place. And it did not take me long to fall in love with it.

WWF, the Great Bear Sea and the Northern Gateway Pipeline.

WWF, the Great Bear Sea and the Northern Gateway Pipeline.

Last fall staff and supporters of the World Wildlife Fund traveled to British Columbia to explore the central coast aboard the Island Roamer, and I was fortunate enough to be their guide.

With the Northern Gateway Pipeline proposal looming over the coast, it is an important time to draw attention to this unique and spectacular place. WWF tries to do just that in this video, referring to this region as the Great Bear Sea…

Cover image for youtube video on the Great Bear Rainforest

Spoil this?: Enbridge, oil and the Great Bear Rainforest.

Since the Queen of the North sank on the central coast of BC in March of 2006 people have been nervous. The ship’s massive hulk is now 1500 feet underwater, still leaking diesel into coastal waters. With that tragedy fresh in people’s mind, the looming threat of Enbridge’s Northern Gateway Pipeline Project has people on edge…

On salmon and screen savers

Bruised and battered from making its way to its birthplace-cum-spawning-grounds, this Chum Salmon looks kinda gnarly. But when the picture appeared on my screen it evoked vivid memories for me. It drew me back to the magic and excitement of traipsing around the rainforest in rubber boots; of standing alone in a river, taking photos of salmon while keeping watch for grizzly bears.