There are places in the world where Polar Bears are commonly seen, but they are few and far between.

Churchill, Manitoba during the right season in Canada, plus Wrangel Island in Russia and Svalbard, Norway are all known as terrific places for spotting Polar Bears. Still, a close-up encounter is rarely guaranteed, and sometimes not desired!

Polar Bears are smart, ambush hunters. The Inuit people I travelled with in the Arctic found it crazy that us southerners always wanted to get closer and closer to these powerful, dangerous animals. There are too many stories of Polar Bear attacks and “close calls” from the Inuit – they respect the bears and give them their space. I also learned from the Inuit that a healthy Polar bear will have a slightly yellow coloured fur, not white. So it was good to know this was a healthy bear.

With all that said, many people visit the Arctic without seeing a Polar Bear. Or, with a bit of luck you’ll get an encounter like this, with the bear at a safe distance. Called the “Ice bear” by some, Polar Bears are great swimmers, able to swim hundreds of km. It was a pleasure to spot this one in the Davis Strait after exploring the coast of Greenland for a few days.