SUMMER POLAR BEARS OF COATS ISLAND
Overview | Itinerary | Trip Notes | Gallery
OVERVIEW
Camping on Coats Island, a remote island in northern Hudson Bay, we will make daily viewing expeditions to view bears as they move out of their dens into their summer habitat.
As winter transitions to spring and spring transitions to summer, the ice floes that make up polar bears' regular hunting ground begin to melt away, and the bears gradually transition to islands and the remaining floating ice. We are timing this expedition to coincide with the start of this season, when the ice in Coral Harbour and Coats Island vicinity begins to recede. The snowmobiles are put away, and we can use boats to reach Coats island – an area known to scientist and wild life filmmakers alike as being a reliable area for polar bears and walrus at this time of year. We set up our eco-friendly, seasonal camp on the beaches of Coats Island, beside nearly turquois waters that could be mistaken for a tropical paradise, were it not for the freezing cold temperature. Each day, we will be making sorties by boat to see view polar bears, walrus and the spectacular bird cliffs with thousands of black billed muirs. You should expect to see polar bears wandering the boulder strewn island, floating by on an ice floe, or stalking a herd of walrus. There will also be opportunities to land on each island and hike among the boulders, up the bird cliffs to camouflaged viewing areas and finally to visith the massive herds of walrus that give Walrus Island its name. On hikes around our base camp, there is a good chance of seeing arctic hare, arctic fox, caribou and possibly lemmings! Previous expeditions to this area have experienced all these scenes. In this environment, we could see something similar, or perhaps something never witnessed before. Each day is an adventure, with no predictable outcome.
Highlights
- Having the leisure of time in a relaxed setting, film/Photograph the stark white of the polar bears against the backdrop of rust coloured boulders
- Enjoy an open air dinner by gourmet chefs on the beaches of Coats island with the gentle lapping of the waves only meters away
- Experience rich arctic animal wildlife up close and personal – from polar bears, to herds of walrus to 1000's of birds
- Bask in the warm glow of the midnight sun during the Arctic's brief period of 24 hour day light
Itinerary Brief
Day 1 - Arrival in high arctic gateway community of Coral Harbour
Day 2-6 - Coats Island Camp – daily sorties by boat or land to view polar bears, bird cliffs, walrus island
Day 7 - Depart Coral Harbour for home
Overview | Itinerary | Trip Notes | Gallery
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