Actual Polar Bears

The real reason we went to Barter Island was to see Polar Bears. It's one of the few places where people and polar bears coexist. The bears come to the island to eat the scraps from the local whale bone yard. My sister, Melinda got us stand by flights to the island and a place to stay for the night. The bear photos are all courtesy of Corrie. 

Waiting for bears to show up.

At first glance I thought this was a piece of insulation. I guess it is insulation, whale insulation.

Chris with Susan's hotel shuttle/mail truck/bear expedition vehicle

The first bear was a bit skittish about our group watching him and stayed out on the ice.

When this mother and two cubs showed up they were cautious but not so concerned as to miss an easy supper.  

Meal approved.

Melinda and our host Susan. Thank you both!

Our Hotel in Kaktovik, Barter Island, AK. 

Out of time in the land of the midnight sun...

One would think that 24 hrs of daylight would be plenty of time to get everything done. But, I've spent the last couple of weeks disproving that theory as my time in AK runs short. Posting has fallen to the bottom of my list as I've tried to squeeze every last bit in while I'm here. I'll try to make a couple of short posts before I head into Canada. First, the rest of the Polar Bear swim!

Even mud puddles look nice in the midnight sun.

Pre swim with Melinda and Corrie. 

Into the water!

Walking on the sea ice

Chris, a new friend from the hotel. He took all the group photos of us.

Even the sun looked a little cold. It felt nice though. 

Melinda's back flop.

Cold? Sure. Sleep? Not so much. Happy? Very!

Corrie and I both forgot that 90% of the ice is under water.
It turns out the open water between the visible ice isn't.
Mine was bloodier at the start, but Corrie actually had a worse injury.

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Solstice!

1:30 am (solar midnight) looking due north across the Arctic Ocean from Barter Island.

Corrie and Melinda out on the ice.

We also spent a few hours watching actual polar bears today. It's been a great solstice! I'll post more when I have a better internet connection in a couple of days.