December 2013

December 2013

Phil's Paws for Thought

The last 15 months has certainly been a challenging time for everyone at Knight Inlet Lodge but I am happy to say that all in all our 2013 season was a resounding success. We could not have done it without the help and support of a lot of individuals and companies. Thank you everyone!

Knight Inlet Lodge has a Facebook and Youtube page that many of you may already follow. For those of you that haven't yet taken a look it's a great way to keep up with what is happening at the lodge. If you do follow us on Facebook please "share" our postings with friends and family as we are always looking to build our "likes". Our YouTube page has the lodge's new, in 2013, promotional video that will bring back memories for past guests.

We are very happy to once again be a TripAdvisor Travellers Choice award winner. Your support is truly appreciated.

2013 was a very good year for the wildlife in our area. Some of the highlights include large numbers of grizzlies including a sow with 4 cubs, a very nice increase in the returning salmon population, upwards of 50 different Humpback whales identified and for the first time in well over 100 years a sea otter in Glendale Cove.

Bookings for 2014 are going strong with a number of September dates sold out or close to sold out. There is still plenty of space available in September, and the rest of our season, but advance booking for peak times is definitely recommended. If you are thinking of visiting in 2014 contact us at info@grizzlytours.com for pricing and availability.

Don't forget that we love seeing the photos and videos from your stay with us. If you have any that you are willing to share with us please contact phil@grizzlytours.com We love to see photos from years past so even if you visited before 2013 your photos and videos would still be very much appreciated.

With the holiday season fast approaching everyone at Knight Inlet Lodge would like to wish you and your family a very happy holidays.

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Want to help us "Stop the hunt"?

We are asking guests from years past to send an email to our Provincial Premier Christy Clark, premier@gov.bc.ca, Provincial Environment Minister Mary Polak, env.minister@gov.bc.ca and our local MLA Don McRae, don.mcrae.mla@leg.bc.ca 

If you prefer to send a letter via regular mail the mailing addresses are:

Honourable Christy Clark
Premier of the Province of British Columbia, Box 9041 Station PROV GOVT, Victoria B.C., Canada, V8W 9E1

Honourable Mary Polak
Minister of the Environment Box 9047 Station PROV GOVT, Victoria B.C. Canada, V8W 9E2

Honourable Don McRae
Minister of Social Development and Social Innovation Box 9058, Station PROV GOVT, Victoria B.C. Canada, V8W 1X4

In your own words please tell them how important seeing grizzly bears in the wild was to your decision to visit British Columbia, where you are from, how much you spent on your holiday (approximate is okay), how long you stayed in British Columbia and why you believe the trophy hunting of grizzlies in British Columbia must end. It is important that you mention Knight Inlet Lodge and Glendale Cove in your email so that, hopefully, when we talk to them they'll listen. Please either cc us in your email or email us a copy separately.

Unlike the survey we recently asked guests from 2012 to participate in this campaign is open to all guests regardless of the year you visited. Any help would be very much appreciated by the Knight Inlet Lodge team.

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Everything but the Kitchin sink

RESEARCH PLAN 2014:

Now that we finally have all the camera traps we bought from the insurance money, the real fun can begin! In 2014 I want to collect images of not just bears but some of the other wildlife we find in Knight Inlet: Is it the same cougar that we keep seeing? Are there any other wolves in area? I would also like to get some cameras further afield to see what we can discover about the bears and people in the wider landscape. 

Building on work from 2012/13 with all the wonderful staff and guests at the lodge I want to build on my collection of bear stories, which will help me with my Ph.D. As the winter progresses I have several stories that I will be added to www.youmebear.com. At the end of the season in 2014 I will be presenting my research to bear researchers from all over the world at the International Bear Association Conference in Greece. I hope to get a few more people involved there so that we can all share positive stories about living and working with these fantastic animals, and work together to address issues of human - bear conflict.

For guests who visited in 2013; you may well have heard me banging on about a bear called Gary, well next year we will introduce you to all our familiar faces as we begin our 'Knight Inlet Lodge' photographic catalogue. This will be a great way for to keep track on the bears that we see and view regularly, and give us the best chance of recognising Gary when he returns. It will also help when we talk to people from other operations in the area and may well give the opportunity to visually track the animals across their range when they come into contact with people. The book will be presented as lovely coffee table photography book and possibly even an eBook so that guests can take away with them a wonderful souvenir and help support the research at the same time.

We should also have some preliminary results from the DNA work, so 2014 is shaping up to be a very exciting, not to mention busy, year!

Researcher John Kitchin has been a big part of the Knight Inlet team for a few years now. Many of the excellent videos and photos we share via Facebook come courtesy of John.

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An excerpt Pauline's story

Having enjoyed 2 visits to Knight Inlet Lodge with the excellent Titan HiTours Company ("The Grizzly Bear Adventure") in 2008 and 2010 the inevitable happened. I started suffering withdrawal symptoms and the longing to see "my bears" again encouraged me to dream of a return visit, this time independently.

Click here to read the rest of Pauline’s story. Pauline is a true friend of Knight Inlet Lodge etc.

Photo: John Scotcher

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An excerpt Innocents's story

Every other year Norman Carr safaris and Knight Inlet Lodge swap guides for a few weeks. Earlier this year we welcomed star guide Moira Le Patourel and her partner Eamon for a Luangwa adventure and a few weeks ago, Innocent Tembo- Guide Manager at Nsolo Camp, migrated to Canada for a taste of a British Columbia summer.

Click here to read Innocent's story on his adventure in Canada

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An excerpt Moira's story

At 10:00 on April the 18th, 2013, I felt the need to pinch myself. Hard. Here I was, sitting in the back seat of a Land Cruiser barreling down the road in the sunshine, taking in the surrounding countryside of the greater Mfuwe area. Passing by a group of giraffes – which later, I was informed, is collectively called a "tower" – I knew my dream had come true; I was in Zambia.

Click here to read the rest of Moira's story.

Photo: John Scotcher

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Dean's Rant

I would like to thank all the local suppliers that donated gifts for our Staff Christmas Party. In the spirit of giving staff donated money and food items worth close to $500.00 to our local food bank. All in all it was a very good evening.

2013 was a challenging year on many fronts but the hard work and dedication of the Knight Inlet Team led to a very successful year. Here's to a "normal" 2014 season at the lodge. Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone.

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