Out of bed, onto the water. The dark-looking Snake River takes our boats into its main current and leads us into a labyrinth of tributaries. With studied intuition, Jette steers her boat into the part of the river that has the most water. On the outer edges of the curves the branches of the poplars and the black spruce trees almost touch the boat, but we can always turn away just in time.

The weather changes from hour to hour, rain to sun, but the teams and the guides are unfazed: in the wide valley, surrounded by majestic mountain chains, we float closer to our destination. Every so often a silence descends, when we discover the inhabitants of this wilderness, between the shrubs, bushes or mountainsides: bald eagles, mountain goats and caribou.

A barely noticeable sand bank transforms into a stage for a wild spectacle: A Barren Ground Grizzly bear stands on its hind legs and curiously sniffs into the air towards the expedition team that slowly passes by, before it lopes back into the forest… and as our cameraman’s pulse climbs to infinity. When we arrive at Milky Creek we are all very aware that the wilderness that we witnessed once again today, is unbelievably unique and deserves protection!

Bear in Western Arctic 2006