I got this picture of the well-known larger male (M122) grizzly in November. Whenever I see the image, a lot of things go through my head, far beyond the morning I got the picture. From the first time I saw him many years ago, to all the times since. He’s no longer the dominant male grizzly he used to be, that should not be a surprise. The average male grizzly lives into their mid 20s, M122 is about 22/23 years of age. The last few years, including this one, he has been seen with bad scars from his battles, on his body and most of all on his face.
This season was no different, with his encounters with males and few with females. After one battle he hung around a meadow for a few days, waiting to recover and be on the move again. It’s the life of a dominant male, always on the move from the time he wakes up from his deep winter sleep to the day he is done for the season. M122 does not want to move into the background and take it easy for his last few years, we figure on his last day he will go out fighting. Looking closely, you can see some of the scars from this year.
Over the years I have seen him a number of times, each one more interesting than the last. One of my favorite encounters was this summer. I was driving into Kootenay NP, chasing a beautiful rainbow. Parking lot for one of the trailheads was coming up, and I was going to pull in there and take a picture of the rainbow. I parked the car and stepped out with the camera in my hands under the falling rain. As soon as I looked toward the start of the trail, M122 was coming onto the parking lot. He was less than ten meters from me, he looked toward me as I got back into the car. I changed my lens, lowered the window and took his pictures as he ate berries. He was making his way deeper into the Kootenay NP along the road.
I got back into the car and drove in the same direction, I passed him as he was moving and grazing. About a km ahead there was a better spot for the rainbow that was still in the sky. The rainbow lasted for 15 to 20 minutes, getting more than a few pictures. I sat back and removed the water from my equipment as I watched for the bear that was moving in my direction. I saw the shrubs move, he was moving at a good speed and no one else was the wiser. With the lack of winter coat in the middle of the summer, you could see more of the battle scars he was carrying. He comes out of the shrubs, onto a small open space. Like a happy cub, he hopped/trotted across it. He was having fun. I smiled as he reached the other end, he slowed down and walked into the shrubs. Then into the woods behind, making his way to his next adventure.
