On our first full day in BC we went on a boat tour down the Fraser River with Captain Liam. He is someone very passionate about his job, and to our delight he turned an hour boat tour into two hours. On board we also had David Hancock who is a biologist and lecturer, and he was eager to speak and also to answer any questions along the way.
Shortly after starting our tour David Hancock pointed out and eagle’s nest high up in one of the trees along the river bank, with the two eagles making sure to mark their property.
As we sailed a little further on we were greeted by yet another eagle.
Juvenile Eagle sitting on an Osprey’s nest.
Our attention was soon drawn to the trees, where we would see many eagles perched.
Any white dots you see will be the head of an adult eagles and then they are also many juveniles in the trees.
Each speck of white once again is the head of an eagle.
It was a beautiful sunny day for a sail on the Fraser River. You can see the eagles on the far side of the river, no doubt that’s where the salmon is.
We were told there is no perfect science for counting the number of eagles. If a count is done one day, and the next day you see a number of eagles coming in over the mountain, a guesstimate is done as to how many eagles they are and then added to the number of eagles that was counted the day before.
As for now the seagulls are safe. I wonder if they still will be when the salmon is gone.
We were told that as long as there is salmon in the Fraser River the eagles will stay and feed and nest.
I was taking this photo purely for the scenery, but on looking closer, I found there was also eagles in this photo.
This tree is called “The Spirit Tree.” Its a tree that stands off by itself in the landscape, and it was holding close to 30 eagles when this photo was taken.
Fraser River
Harrison River: Just before our tour ended Captain Liam showed us where the Harrison River and the Fraser River meet. It was a glorious day out on the water.
British Columbia Part #3
You were so blessed to see such beauty and have expert advice on hand.
We were. The landscape around us was absolutely beautiful, and this was my first time to see so many eagles all at once. Having the biologist on the tour really added to it, but I must admit that I was so busy clicking the camera and focusing on the eagles that I have to go back and ask my husband about the parts I may have missed, as he was also engaging Dave Hancock (the biologist) and asking him a lot of questions.
Ive seen an eagle but once in reality. My uncle used to carve them with such pride, they looked so real.
I think you and your husband made a good team. One enquiring and you clicking. 💐
Ha, Ha…So true. I was happy to have him along, because he loves to find out the history of a place or a thing…in this case it was the Fraser River & Valley and the bald eagle. He also took some pictures on his cell phone giving some info on the eagle, then he could tell me how much they weigh, how many feather they have and things like that. I think it’s 7000 feathers. ha, ha.
I love learning facts like this, you are lucky to have a walking encyclopedia. 🤗
Yes I do appreciate it….
It looks so beautiful!
It is…..it’s breathtaking.
What a great day you had.Must’ve been praising God all the way. love the pics.
Thank you so much for stopping by and taking the time to comment Vasco. Yes, I was praising God all the way for so many different things. I was praising Him for keeping us safe out on the water, I was praising Him for the beautiful sunshine He gave us that day, I was praising Him for allowing my eyes to see so many eagles in one spot and I was praising Him that we got off the boat alive, because at the end of our tour, our “dare devil” Captain Liam wanted to show us what the boat could do, and he did a number of 360 degree turns on us which left me a bit wobbly, but I tend to be a bit of a chicken. My hubby and his aunt enjoyed the 360 degree turns.
I’ve always wanted to meet David Hancock! I’ve seen him on TV & read a few of his articles.
You really got your moneys worth on this trip & I bet you’ll be back like the salmon next year!
It was nice having David Hancock on board, he was a wealth of information. On reading a bit about him after, I saw his many qualifications. Not only is he a biologist but he is an environmentalist, lecturer, author and a few others that escape me right now.
Unfortunately I won’t be back next year, but perhaps some time in the near future. I absolutely loved the experience. I would also like to visit Tofino at sometime. Is a day trip from Victoria to Tofino possible, or is the distance too far to do in a day? I have relatives in Victoria.
Our Captain Liam who took us out on the Fraser River Safari just started his business a year ago. He gave us a wonderful tour and was not in a hurry to end it, so we did get our money’s worth. Is this what you do in Tofino?