We were awake at 1am again and checked the packing to make sure we hadn’t missed anything in our tired zombie state last night. Packing away all our luggage we were leaving behind, we got ready for a 6:30am breakfast in the hotel.

We left the hotel at 7am and arrived at the Spit meeting point way too early but it allowed us to get a decent parking space and there was plenty of wildlife to watch to pass the time, including deer, bald eagles and herons. 

Harold (Knight Inlet Lodge's welcome person) arrived before the shuttle bus (those without rental cars were transferred from the hotel to the plane dock) and checked-in the luggage we were leaving behind. Our main luggage going to the lodge was not weighed separately and we were able to carry our three cameras & my little back pack onto the plane with us.

The scenic flight was about 25 minutes and was a little bumpy towards the end, but nothing a few mints couldn’t handle in pushing away any airsickness. The scenery was beautiful, we started with blue skies which then became a bit hazy from the smoke blown from the wildfires. 

We arrived at the lodge just before 10am on the first of two planes to fly into the lodge. We picked up our room keys from reception and then we put tags on our bags so they could be taken to our room. We were not allowed into the room until after lunch to allow them to be cleaned following the departure of the leaving guests. 

Once the second plane arrived we were taken on an orientation tour of the lodge - the rooms, lounge, kit room & dining room. 

On the first day the activities are chosen for you. Today would involve 3 activities - a short estuary skiff boat ride at 11:00, a bear viewing stand visit (the weir) at 1:30pm and finally at 4:30pm an Inlet boat trip (speed boat).

After orientation we had 15 minutes for apple strudel / cookies and a drink before we went out into the estuary, we were with Tobin (lodge manager) who set off towards the river mouth and after some looking found a distant bear (yay, bear number 1). We kept a good distance from it and watched it behind some tall grass. At one point it stood up, possibly to get a view of another bear that we didn’t see. The other new arrival boats joined us and not everyone saw this bear. On the way back to the lodge we got a little splashed by spray (we were sat at the front) but getting a little wet was worth it for the better view and next time out we would wear our waterproof leggings. 

We returned to the lodge at 12:00 for our lunch - the meal was chicken curry soup and lasagne, so the chef made me a delicious sandwich (no dairy).

We had enough time to finally go see our room, unpack and get our stuff together for our first bear stand visit. 

Each time before going out you visit the kit room to get waterproofs / boots / compulsory life jacket/vest. It was warm so we took the option of a vest and gum boots (wellingtons). 

At 1:30pm we gathered at the dock and transferred across the estuary on a water taxi skiff. The gum boots were essential as the tide meant we needed to exit the boat into ankle deep water. 

After a check for bears we walked with the guides to the transfer bus. These buses were shipped here, there are no roads to Knight Inlet only an old logging road to access the stands. 

They have strict safety rules and we were advised that if we should encounter a bear we must not take photos, our priority was to pay attention to the guide and do as we were told. 

No bears, we safely arrived at the bus and were driven through the forest to the bear stands. Those going to the fingers stand exited the bus first and then us. A maximum of six people plus a guide on each stand. 

There were no bears in sight and our guide, Erin, read us some First Nation stories while we patiently waited, watching bald eagles flying over us. Upon her starting the second story Alan stopped her to tell us a bear was on its way up the river. From under the trees at the edge of the river we saw bear number 2. 

This subadult female was kind enough to walk up towards our stand and up the bank before disappearing from sight. She went back up towards the fingers stand and were told later she caught a fish which she took into the forest to eat. 

10 minutes before we left the stand we joined the others at fingers stand, we could see the salmon gathering in the pool in the river, but no more bears. 

Back to the lodge at 4pm we had time for some cake & cookies and a drink before we went out at 4:30pm. This time on a speed boat out to the Inlet with Jason. I asked if we could stop for the harbour seals and we grabbed some photos before heading out into the now increasing smoke haze. You could feel the effect of the smoke with us coughing occasionally to clear our throats. 

We went to rainbow falls and then on the way back we watched a humpback whale. It lunge fed and moved around pretty fast chasing the herring across the Inlet. 

It was time to head back to the lodge and we arrived back just after 6pm. This is when we start to plan our next day’s activities and although we were told not to all rush up at once many of the options were already full. 

We still got to do what we wanted though with Alan choosing to go on the day marine tour and me four bear viewing trips, two on the stands and two from the estuary. 

Pre-dinner snacks were served from 6:30pm (prawns/fish cakes/veg balls) and dinner from 7pm. Wine was served with dinner included in the package cost, all other alcoholic beverages had to be paid for. The meal was ham, salmon and vegetables followed by dessert. 

The lodge shop opens between 8 and 8:30pm and I bought a hat to add to my collection. 

At 8:15pm I dragged Alan to the room so I could try to catch up on some sleep.

Awake at 3am and started to write up yesterday’s notes from 4am and go through yesterday’s photos. 

The hot water starts when the generator comes on so we started getting ready at 5:30am for the 6:30am breakfast. 

First job was to check the board for the start times of our activities - I was to leave at 7:30 and Alan 7:45. I noticed Gill & David were not booked on anything for the afternoon - we had booked all activities together. I let Tobin know and after some jigging around we were booked on the fingers stand first, two estuary and the river stand last. 

Went for breakfast with eggs cooked to order and the rest buffet style. 

I was walking by the board when I overheard a guy trying to rearrange his activities. The earlier rejigging had moved him from what he did planned to do. The outcome was we would have 7 of us on fingers stand. I overheard Tobin offer the complaining guy an extra stand visit and I saw it was just him & his wife booked on the stand and asked if Gill, David & I could join them. For sure, great, I was now booked onto three stands. 

First activity at 7:30am - Fingers Stand - stood silently for about an hour and half. Watched several bald eagles fly over us and waited patiently. 

David pointed out two fish swimming up the stream and said a bear had probably scared them up the river. 

15 minutes later Gill spotted a bear (bear number 3) and we watched it walk up the river to the weir and chase salmon in the shallows in front of the weir. Such fun to watch as she stood up trying to get a better view of the salmon. A young bear, she was clearly inexperienced and wasted lots of energy splashing around. 

She walked back down towards us and found a dead/dying salmon at the waters edge and carried it behind a bush to start eating it. She picked it up again and carried it into the forest, but quickly reappeared with what was left in her mouth and placed it on a log and finished what she wanted to eat. 

The young bear walked down past the fingers stand again looking up at us as walked by. We had been advised when a bear looks up this close to the stand we should put our cameras down and look away from the bear. This is to allow the bear to understand we are not a threat (bears see direct eye contact as a challenge and a young bear will likely be scared away from the river). We all put down our cameras, looked away and stood back. She carried on walking up to the weir. 

It was time for us to leave and we all walked across the raised walkway back to the weir stand & to wait for the OK to go down to the bus. While we waited I took a few more shots of the bear and then onto the bus to go straight to the River Stand. 

Second activity - River Stand - this stand has only been in use for a couple of seasons. The stand, which has two tiered viewing with benches, is situated on the river. It’s a corridor for the bears moving between the weir and the estuary. There is a short track from the old logging road a parking area for the mini bus and then a long raised boardwalk to the stand. 

We silently walked along the raised boardwalk trying to keep our steps gentle so not to disturb any wildlife. As we arrived at the stand Emma (our guide) told us to quickly take our seats, another bear was in view! It causally walked past the stand looking up as a couple of bald eagles swooped down along the river. It carried on walking out of sight. Bear number 4 was a short but sweet viewing. 

We were quite happy to enjoy the peace and quiet of watching the river flow by us. Watching several eagles and a belted kingfisher fly through. 

11:20 soon came around and we packed up for the boardwalk back to the bus. As we got closer to the bus Emma quietly told us there was a bear at the end of the boardwalk. And as we got closer we could see the bear peaking around the back of the bus, would have made a cute picture but the rather large guy in front of me (not David) stepped across the front of me while he recorded with his mobile phone. When we got to the end of the boardwalk the bear moved away from the bus into the forest and I managed to get a couple of shots of its rear end and of its face through the chain link fence. Bear number 5. 

We went back to the bus & across on the water taxi full of our morning’s encounters. We arrived back just after 12:00 and by the time we had dropped our gear off it was time for lunch. Tomato soup, Caesar salad, raw veggies and chicken.

Little time for any relaxing, we were due out again at 1pm, there was just enough time to check & collect my gear (put on my waterproof leggings) and life vest and we were out again. 

Third activity 1pm estuary - while we were at the River stand the smoke from the wildfires had been blown back into the cove and visibility was poor. Our guide Samantha, did a sterling job of quickly spotting a large bear on the edge of the estuary. It swam across the water to the sedge grass flats in the middle of the estuary and grazed and walked until it went out of sight. All at a good distance and with the smoke haze it was difficult to get a half decent shot of bear number 6. 

We went around to the other river outlet on the other side of the sedge grass island to see if we could see the bear and across that section of the river we spotted another bear number 7. This bear was slightly smaller than number 6 and was a lighter brown. 

Bear number 7 didn’t stick around and I only managed to get the top of its back. 

Bear number 6 decided to show up on the other side of us and I was able to get a few shots through the grass of its face. 

It was time to return to the lodge and there was just enough time between 2:30pm and our next activity to grab a cake & drink, take a comfort break and collect our gear again.

Fourth activity 3:00pm - River Stand. Back to the river stand crossing the river with Mike (he calls himself the ‘bus driver’). Each time you cross depending on the tide you have to either walk through ankle deep water, over slippery sludgy low tide seaweed or when you’re really lucky at high tide straight onto the ramp. 

Onto the bus, the three of us were joined by two of the lodge kitchen staff along with our guide Samantha. Along the raised boardwalk we settled on the stand again. A bald eagle was in a tree across the river and we watched as it rearranged its feathers and called out to other eagles flying over. 

David spotted bear number 8 walking up the river. It was very shy and once it saw us it went into the greenery at the edge of the river and we got brief glimpses of it as it nervously glanced at us through the vegetation. The bushes shook as it made its way along the corridor and didn’t come back out into full view again. 

Back to watching the eagle which stayed in the tree the whole time we were at the stand. A mouse walked along one of the logs in front of the stand and plopped into the water. And it was rather larger splashing that drew my attention to bear number 9. This bear had really blonde fur across its shoulders and back. As with the other bears at the River Stand it didn’t stick around and walked down the river on the pebble bank until out of sight again. 

What a great day! We returned to Mike’s water taxis very happy indeed. My little group had seen 7 bears today. 

Whilst Liz went off for her dry land day, the marine tour crew gathered on the dock and got ready for our 7.45am departure. The crew consisted of 7 Australians, including Captain Sam, 2 Dutch visitors and me the lone Brit.

Glendale Cove was starting to fill with smoke from the inland wildfires and it was an eerie scene as we turned to port and headed down Knight Inlet towards Queen Charlotte Strait and the main marine life feeding areas.

Plan was to look along the coastline for bears on route due to the low tide and not too far from the entrance to Glendale Cove we spotted a young Brown Bear enjoying a breakfast of crustaceans. We spent about 10 minutes with him, whilst Sam got the low down on what was where from the boats already out looking for whales.

Then it was about an hour until we reached the area around Blackfish Sound and settled down for the day’s whale watching. Over the next few hours we spotted lots of Orcas, lots of Humpback whales and the odd porpoise and dolphin. Sam was skilled at manoeuvring the boat into position and waiting for the whales to arrive rather than chasing them around the place and that helped with getting better photo opportunities. We did a bit of touring around the area, exploring a few channels and enjoyed a barbeque chicken and salad lunch cooked by Sam on the back of the boat.

Eventually, it was time to head back to the lodge. The smoke had come further down Knight Inlet, again providing some interesting lighting effects. We again looked for bears on route back, including a regular haunt for Black Bears near the lodge but with no luck, arriving back at 4pm.

As I was looking around waiting for Liz to return, I did notice a grizzly bear in the smoky haze (bear number 11), not far from the lodge, browsing on the shore near where the old cannery remains are, and got a ringside seat as one of the chefs selected the crabs from his traps for that night’s appetisers.