Blue Hole Dance

In the fall of 2020, we spent a week deep in the wilderness of central British Columbia photographing grizzly bears as the salmon began their long journey upstream to spawn. It’s a powerful time of year—one where everything feels connected. The returning salmon bring life to the river… and in turn, sustain the bears as they prepare for the long winter ahead.

It was here that I witnessed something I had never seen before.

Grizzly bears… snorkeling.

After the salmon spawn, their bodies drift to the riverbed, and it’s these fish the bears are searching for. With their heads submerged beneath the surface, they move slowly through the water, almost disappearing into the rhythm of the river itself.

And then suddenly… everything changes.

When a bear senses a fish below, it rises up onto its hind legs and begins to move through the water in a way that almost looks like a dance. There’s a grace to it—powerful, yet oddly delicate—as it feels along the riverbed with its back paws.

In one swift motion, the bear kicks the fish upward… catching it with its front claws before beginning its meal.

-Stan Masters 

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