Great Bear Rainforest - Day 3: Lagoon

 Day 3: Lagoon

The weather promised to be sunny and warm for the day and like a kid on Christmas morning I was up before sunrise in anticipation of what was to come. Breakfast is served at 7am so I had time to sit on the deck of the lodge and listen to the seals catch their breakfast and the birds fuss about in their morning routine. 

The buffet style breakfast always set us up for the day and no one went hungry. Before boarding the boat at 8am you have to check the assignment board to find your boat (Ganhada today), put your lunch together and pack your duffle with the clothing and supplies for the day. Once on the boat the guides (which mostly changed every day) would tell stories of the Kitasoo and Xai'xais people, the significance of various spots, or about the wildlife we were or would likely see. 

The guides were knowledgeable and friendly and always happy to take a question. Today we headed north west from Klemtu to an interesting spot with a lagoon and river outflows in black bear territory. The trip there was a bit rougher than our first outing with more open seas. Upon arrival our guides pulled down the Zode (aka the zodiacs aka inflatable boats) and transferred us to the shore. From there it was a short 5 minute walk through the forest to a quasi tidal lagoon. The guides had stashed other boats there for the season so we jumped into The Zode once more as idled around the lagoon looking for wildlife. 

The Zode.


The lagoon was quite large, at least 1km across and is only accessible from the ocean at high tide. We stopped and disembarked to take in a culturally meaningful tree (CMT). Our guide talked about how his people harvested cedar strips back in the day and all the uses they had for them. The CMT’s we were taken to had a big strip taken from it that was estimated to be hundreds of years old. As a bonus there was even a small hummingbird nest in front of it. 

Hummingbird nest

After taking in the cultural history The Zode took us back to the main boat for a quick bite before getting back on The Zode to look for bears. Sadly the rest of the day yielded no bears. We spent about two hours patiently toodling around the bay in The Zode, with only salmon and birds for company. The salmon were clearly in abundance but with the river levels so low (we have been very dry in BC recently) the salmon can’t get up the river. 


Our little area was teeming with salmon.

With no salmon, the bears are fattening up in other locations. So while the day ended with no bear sightings, it was still lovely to explore a new and unique area, and spend the time to slow down and watch, listen and observe the amazing coastal forests. Our guides have a safety check in process with the main lodge. As a way to keep it interesting they decided today to try writing the check in as a haiku. It inspired Gloria and I to write our own. 

Spirit, black, grizzly 
A rainbow checklist for some 
Watch. Listen and learn 

Entry to the lagoon. You need to get the tide just right if you want to take your boat in there.


The return to the lodge again put us in a sleepy space but the repeated pounding of the waves kept all but the most hardy from getting any shut eye. Back at the lodge I made good on a promise to myself to jump in the great bear rainforest waters. Before I could give it too much thought I got my swimmers on and headed down to the dock. Fortunately I had company and fellow guest Michael joined me for a dive into the ocean. At 13 degrees Celsius (54 freedom units) there’s no denying it was brisk. But oh what a feeling. The water cleansed away the last vestiges of big city thinking and centred me fully in the moment. 

I'm the splash. That's Michael looking Fabulous!

Back on the dock the sun beat down and instantly warmed my skin and the combination of hot/cold tingling was so invigorating. Dinner tonight was chicken, balsamic brussel sprouts, roasted carrots and green salad followed by baked cheesecake. Once again we regained each other with stories and tales of the day and contemplated possibilities for our last full day of touring in the morning. 

Comments

Tony said…
Great Haiku!!
2:39 PM

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