October

Watch Grizzlies Fishing for Salmon

  • Watch wild grizzlies fishing for red salmon in the company of expert guides
  • Walk in BC’s ancient inland rainforest, the only such ecosystem in the world
  • Raft down our wilderness river and watch eagles fishing and other wildlife
  • Stay in your own log cabin, take a sauna, hot tub or cold plunge by our river
  • Join your hosts for dinner and an evening of learning and discussion
  • Deep in the BC wilds yet only a day’s drive from Calgary, Vancouver or Spokane
  • Four-night holidays for most ages and fitness levels. C$4,480pp plus tax.

A Wild but safe experience

grizwfishslider pat pic 2023

In October we view wild grizzly bears. Each day we head out into remote terrain walking on bear trails and following bear tracks in habitat little changed since the last Ice Age.

We watch bears – sometimes with cubs in tow – fishing for salmon in our wilderness river.

We will show you how to interpret tracks, rubs and tiny hair samples left on trees and explain how bears read the landscape they are moving through.

The only permit holders in our area

eaglewfish grizzly page pat pic 2023

The bear-viewing we offer is immersive. You will join an experienced guide in the wilderness with no physical barriers between you and the bears.

We are experts in interpreting bear behaviour and body language and it is this knowledge that allows us to walk with confidence around grizzly bears, even mums with cubs.

Our valley is little known and we have the only permit to view bears in our area. Often on our walks we don’t see another person all day.

“Here I was, 63 years old, lying still as a statue on the bank of a beautiful Canadian river ….. only five meters away was this amazing creature – a wild grizzly bear. Every day was magical from tracking wildlife through the dense forest to rafting down clear waters among the red salmon.”

A Float down a wilderness river

rafting getting in

We will also take you on a float on one of BC’s most beautiful wilderness rivers offering a chance to watch the spawning salmon as well as bald eagles.

Some grizzly viewing operations use wildlife-viewing platforms that can seat a dozen or more guests at a time. Some draw in semi-tame bears with various forms of artificial or natural attractant.

What we offer is a wilder, more natural experience that is nevertheless extremely safe.

An Evening of Learning & Discussion

after dinner talk

After a fresh and generous dinner, we host an evening of learning and discussion.

Julius, your lead guide, has nearly two decade’s experience walking around wild bears and is one of the few guides in BC certified to train new guides. In the winter he teaches at universities in Europe.

Wild Bear Lodge is a member of the British Columbia Commercial Bear Viewing Association, an organisation which is responsible for promoting safe viewing and bear conservation.

Pricing

  • A four-night holiday in October is priced at $4,480. An eight-night holiday is priced at $7,980.
  • Our rates are in Canadian dollars, per person, and include all meals, drinks, accommodation and guided tours. These prices are based on double occupancy.
  • They include a $100 donation to our charity fund.
  • They do not include 5% tax, or optional gratuities.

  • "If you are inclined towards experiencing pristine wilderness, you will be hard-pressed to beat a few days at Wild Bear Lodge in British Columbia’s Selkirk Mountains. Or if, like me, you are an urban beast whose love affair with the wild is limited to watching David Attenborough, then you should try it, for it is quite an eye-opener."

    Mark Franchetti, Sunday Times, UK

  • "If you want to escape this is the place to come... a unique wilderness experience. Julius is one of North America's top bear guides. The property covers 32 acres with the main house and six guest cabins... it's absolutely beautiful. I don't think I've ever stayed in wilderness that is quite as comfortable as this... a quintessential off-the-grid luxurious cabin... surrounded by bears."

    Ben Fogle, New Lives in the Wild, Channel 5, UK

  • "An experience that feels unique and personal. It felt intimate. We never felt like customers or clients. We felt more like welcome guests at a friend's estate. We felt like house guests. This is something that is extremely difficult to deliver but Wild Bear Lodge does it very well."

    Paul & Liz from Ireland visited in Oct 2023

  • "We saw grizzly bears, moose, deer, and a wide variety of bird life. We also encountered signs of beaver, wolf, and puma whilst out trekking. The opportunity to track and photograph these majestic animals both on the forest floor and while rafting is something those with a love of biodiversity should experience."

    David from Australia visited in Oct 2023

  • "From a few hundred yards up river, on the far bank, there was a loud crashing noise. I looked through my binoculars. It was a large grizzly bear, with three cubs in tow. The family moved ever closer to us, now perhaps only 100 yards away across the shallow river. Then directly opposite us, 40 yards away, so close that I didn’t need the binoculars any more. I could hear her breath, amplified over the narrow stretch of water, see her terrifying claws glinting white in the gloom, as she idly scooped a salmon out of the river and tore its head off, feasting on the brain, sheathed in fat, ideal for these hyperphagic bears, gorging themselves to survive their impending hibernation."

    Mike Carter writing in the Financial Times