Jul
19
Most people think of Alaska when they think of the Great Brown Bear, but after this last trip I think of one place – GOULDING HARBOR.
Being one of the most beautiful harbors in West Chichagof, we made sure to stop there on our week long trip. Chuck and Alice had seen many a bear during there 15 years of trips to the area but even so we were all amazing at the amount we saw during our 1 day stay. The day began with a jolting wakeup call from my wonderful nap as Andrew said “Bear and two cubs…get your camera and jump in the Kayak!”. Still in a daze I put on my rain gear and jumped into my kayak and paddled with my telephoto lens in my lap over to a bend where I could sneak up to the bears. Unfortunately they had run into the woods before I turned the corner but soon they were back and I was photographing away!
As I continued taking shots, the wind picked up and began blowing me towards the shore they the bears were grazing near. As you can guess, when you are taking photos you can not paddle a kayak so I soon looked up to realized that I was way too close! As I threw my camera into my lap and paddled backward the bears glanced up but just continued to eat.
As exciting as it was, it soon seemed the bears could care less that we were there. Before we moved on I grabbed one more photo of the cub that makes the wild beast seem quite tame and cute.
After this little kayak adventure, Andrew and I headed to the end of the harbor to see if there were any bears in the estuary. Of course as were turned the corner we nearly walked up on this bear!
With such a spectacular view of the bear we began to sneak our way along the edge of the forest to get a better/safer view. As we came to the edge of the trees we spotted three more bears in the same estuary! I could not believe it and it was truly a blast to see these magnificent mammals in true wilderness.
I hope everyone enjoys these! It really pays to get out to the wild and see this stuff.
Jul
19
I just returned from an amazing trip back to the West Chichagof Wilderness. I am slowly making it through all of my video and photo materials from the trip but wanted to post some of my favorite panoramas from the journey. ENJOY…and more to come soon!!!
A view from the Myriad Islands
Grazing Bear in Goulding Harbor
Andrew Kayaking through Dry Pass
The Original Founders of SCS, Chuck and Alice Johnstone and Roger DuBrock
Kayaking through Goulding Harbor AKA “Bear World”
Roger and Elaine on an evening kayak on the outer coast.
Sunset over Greentop
Jul
10
Last night I was sitting near the shore watching the sunset (very disappointed that I left my camera at the office…). I took this photo with my phone.
As I got up to walk to my bike I realized I might be able to capture a bit of the sunset if I got to my camera in time! After sprinting home on my bike to grab my tripod and swinging by the office, I peddled like a madman up to the top of the bridge and grabbed these. Well worth the ride!
The bay looked like it was on fire! Being from Texas it takes a pretty good sunset to impress me but I am not sure I have ever seen colors in the sky like I did last night!
Jul
09
At ten O’clock on July 6th we loaded up Scott Harris’ boat and headed south of town to spend one night at the Forest Service cabin on Salmon Lake. Justin and Tracy, who are both SCS employees, and I had put together the trip and after a twenty minute boat ride we were on shore and ready to go. The tide was just starting to go out as Scott pulled away from the bay and I was able to grab a photo of some starfish in the shallows!
After the photo session we headed out on the trail and after a two mile hike we arrived at the wonderful cabin! Our main goal for the trip was to visit a strand of large trees to the south of the cabin and I was able to set up a nice panorama to capture the scale of the forest here.
Videolog Salmon Lake from Pioneer Videography on Vimeo.
Once it was really dark out (as dark is it gets that is)…I decided to try some light painting. This was my attempt at my PIONEER logo.
Early the next morning we took out the boats onto the lake and had a blast paddling around.
Pack Raft from Pioneer Videography on Vimeo.
Jul
05
Today I went down to the docks and photographed eagles for a bit. They gather in the dozens when the boats come in which made it an exciting shoot. While on the dock I met a fellow photographer Dick Walker (website). It was an enjoyable way to spend the afternoon! Here are some of my favorites!
Two eagles where conversing on a nearby pole. DON’T LOOK AT ME WHEN I AM TALKING TO YOU!!!!
Ok….
Later an eagle swooped into steal a bit of fish from the crew waiting near a boat!
Jul
03
Tonight was our last night in the wild and we were fortunate to have an incredible sunset. Hope everyone has enjoyed these posts! Next post will be from SITKA!
Jul
03
Today was our last day in the wild and we met up with SCS researcher Lauren Oates in Slocum Arm in the southern region of the West Chichagof-Yakobi Wilderness. It was their first day out in the wild and we joined them for a kayak training/safety course led by Scott Harris. I was really excited to do some underwater photography and test out Adam’s underwater housing with my camera. I geared up in a dry suite, layered with fleece and wool socks and jumped in ready to go!
The class was a blast and Scott showed the new team members how to get back into the boat if they flipped.
While the team was on break I wandered around the inlet and was shocked to find this!
Sunstar – June 26 from Pioneer Videography on Vimeo.
Over all it was a great day and I realized that underwater filming could be a future hobby (IF DRY AND WARM)!
Videolog – June 26 from Pioneer Videography on Vimeo.