05 Jun 2017

Steller Sea Eagles at the Zhupanova River

This morning we started our journey down the Kuril Islands, prior to this we have been exploring the Commander Islands and the Kamchatka Peninsula. When I last wrote we had had an amazing cetacean or whale watching day enroute to the Commander Islands. The good weather has followed us and we have had some exceptional experiences. We had a great morning at Nikolskoye Village before going to the NW Cape Fur Seal and Sealion Rookery. The same evening we zodiac cruised around Ariy Kamen Island. It is a small Island with thousands of birds, it has one of the highest densities of Red Legged Kittiwakes, an endemic species to this region. The next day we enjoyed a visit to Medney Island, it is rarely visited and its history and landscape are not only amazing but also exciting. A zodiac cruise that afternoon got us some great encounters with Sea Otters.

On the Kamchatka Peninsula we had an INCREDIBLE afternoon at the Zhupanova River. We travelled up the river several miles by zodiac to an area where the Steller's Sea Eagles breed. We spent several hours here with some great photographic opportunities, we had great views of two nests. The visit was made even more special by the fact the weather was perfect, not a cloud in the sky and not a breath of wind. The scenery was stunning. Yesterday we spent the morning exploring Bukta Russkaya (a fjord) on the south coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula, again the weather was prefect. This afternoon we plan to be at Onekotan Island.