William’s Cove
The first day of our exploration of Southeast Alaska led us from the early morning bare rock of the Sawyer Glaciers to a centuries-old forest 25 miles “down fjord.” There we passed the afternoon in kayaks on the calm bay or in hiking boots on the forest trails. During one hike a message was passed along by radio that a black bear had just emerged from the woods and was walking across the beach. This bit of news, while exciting if you were near the beach, seemed hardly relevant to us already deep in the forest. The bear was sure to be long gone by the time we returned to the shoreline. And so it was. However, as we waded the shallow waters on our way back to the landing, the late afternoon sun shone down at just the right angle to reveal to us several signs of the bear’s recent passage. First we noticed tracks in the sandy beach, highlighted by the pooling shadows in the toe and heel impressions. Then we looked in the direction the bear had come from and saw how the sun reflected differently off the grasses the bear had walked through. Closer looks revealed a line of prints exiting the grass and crossing the sand, including the track that first caught our eyes. This track we cast with plaster of Paris in order to bring it back on board the ship to share with others. It clearly shows several characteristics that distinguish tracks of black bears (Urus americanus) from brown bears (Ursus arctos, a.k.a. Grizzly bear)—short claws, a strong arc to the toe arrangement, and relatively small toe pads.
The first day of our exploration of Southeast Alaska led us from the early morning bare rock of the Sawyer Glaciers to a centuries-old forest 25 miles “down fjord.” There we passed the afternoon in kayaks on the calm bay or in hiking boots on the forest trails. During one hike a message was passed along by radio that a black bear had just emerged from the woods and was walking across the beach. This bit of news, while exciting if you were near the beach, seemed hardly relevant to us already deep in the forest. The bear was sure to be long gone by the time we returned to the shoreline. And so it was. However, as we waded the shallow waters on our way back to the landing, the late afternoon sun shone down at just the right angle to reveal to us several signs of the bear’s recent passage. First we noticed tracks in the sandy beach, highlighted by the pooling shadows in the toe and heel impressions. Then we looked in the direction the bear had come from and saw how the sun reflected differently off the grasses the bear had walked through. Closer looks revealed a line of prints exiting the grass and crossing the sand, including the track that first caught our eyes. This track we cast with plaster of Paris in order to bring it back on board the ship to share with others. It clearly shows several characteristics that distinguish tracks of black bears (Urus americanus) from brown bears (Ursus arctos, a.k.a. Grizzly bear)—short claws, a strong arc to the toe arrangement, and relatively small toe pads.
