29 Aug 2017

SOE: Polar Bears Galore on Herald Island

Herald Island lies some 35 nautical miles to the east of Wrangel Island. It’s believed to have the highest density of polar bear dens per square kilometre in the world, although some argue that both Wrangel and Herald have similar numbers – approximately 12 dens per square kilometre. The island itself is mostly guarded by steep cliffs, with several very thin, short, gravel beaches. There are a couple of steep gullies that give access to the upper part of the island, a rocky landscape draped in part by hardy vegetation.

So when we anchored off Herald just before breakfast, it’s safe to say that expectations of seeing polar bears were high. The island was in full view, with the sun valiantly trying to break through high clouds. Even better, the wind and swell had eased. We soon loaded Zodiacs and steered for the island. Even from a distance we could see buttery white dots here and there on the slopes. We arrived to cliffs alive with kittiwakes and chicks, horned and tufted puffins, murres and guillemots.  As we meandered along the shoreline, we could see walrus in the water to the south, and soon had excellent views of three haulouts tucked into deep alcoves at the base of the cliffs. Some 300 walrus were snuggled in, an impressive display of criss-crossed tusks and pinkish skin.

Not much farther along we found the tiny beach that might have been where four men from the Karluk met their mysterious end. While it would have been nice to land there to poke about in the cave in from the beach, it was already occupied by seven polar bears, including one who looked much like Paddington Bear. As we continued our cruise, the slopes above were literally festooned with bears. There were individuals, mothers and cubs, some lazy, some active. By the time we reached the bird cliffs at the southern end of the island, which in themselves were packed with birds and raucous with kittiwake cries, we were speechless. Over a two hour period we’d seen more than 65 bears, half of those not far above the water, the rest clearly visible above. And that was only for the small portion of Herald Island we could see from our Zodiacs. How could such a morning be surpassed?

Mid-afternoon we approached Dragi Bay, near Cape Waring, the easternmost point of Wrangel Island. The trip across from Herald was smooth, with a remnant swell lifting the surface of a glassy sea. As we approached land, we encountered several walrus adults and young juveniles, and in the bay itself, three gray whale blows. To the south, birdlife was lively along the extraordinarily gothic cliffs. The plan was for a short Zodiac cruise, then a landing at Dragi, possibly to walk up along the tundra to the hut if the bears allowed.

We motored south along the cliffs in our Zodiacs, enjoying close views of horned puffins and guillemots in the water. It was a pleasant, albeit a bit bumpy cruise and we’d worked our way around several rocky points when ranger Juliana spotted a polar bear up ahead. A bit further another slept on the beach, and above it one more. It’s not that we had seen enough bears, but, aware that a landing still awaited, Juliana radioed our expedition leader about turning back. Howard replied that he’d just like to have a look around the next headland and set off to the south. It wasn’t long before he’d disappeared, that he radioed back that he’d found a walrus haulout, then another. We all began making our way south too.

According to our rangers, there had been walrus haulouts in the past, but not in the past year or so. This year is a different story. As we rounded the corner, we saw three haulouts on small beaches along the Cape, then another. Each haulout held several hundred walrus adults, juveniles and even pups. As we continued along, a curious group of walrus swam out toward the boats, then from our seaward side, groups of juveniles appeared. We slowly moved south until the cliffline turned west into a large embayment, which held further groups of walrus. Over the next 20 minutes or so, it seemed as if the groups were replicating, the late afternoon sunlight picking up their blows as hundreds became more than a thousand walrus, snorting, blowing, diving and cavorting as far as the eye could see. It was mesmerising.

With brain cells and memory cards saturated, we eventually returned along the cliffline, passing several bearded seals on the beach, the polar bears and bird cliffs. We’d almost reached Dragi Bay when an arctic fox was sighted, then another, in a steep gully near some bird cliffs. We watched as one of the foxes nabbed a guillemot in flight and scurried up the gully to some vegetation. The other fox followed, but when it got to close, it was quickly sent on its way. Perhaps the first fox stashed the bird, because they were soon photographed playing together.

By now two thirds of our expeditioners decided to return to the ship, while the rest of us joined the rangers on shore, for a walk up to the huts where researchers, and occasionally visitors come to stay. In the rocky slopes above the huts, a mother bear and two cubs weren’t too far away, with at least four other bears on surrounding slopes, and two on the tundra up near the Karluk monument. After inspecting a couple of the huts, we returned to the shore, then to the ship. Everyone appeared at dinner with smile on their faces and a story to tell. There’s only one word to describe the day – bliss!