Day Three: Bears and Wolves

Day Three:

On our way out to the den today our trackers noticed two sets of wolf tracks heading toward the den. Some time after we left the momma bear and twins last night, a couple wolves came to investigate the family. If the wolves can separate mom from her cubs, they will get a tasty snack. Judging from the tracks, it looked like the family was headed for the bay, but when she discovered the wolves, they went  back to their den. There were fresh wolf tracks all around the den and the surrounding area. Seeing us humans was likely a relief to the family as the wolves would keep their distance from us. We got to the den around ten a.m. and she came out shortly there after. Today we spent most of the day with mom and cubs and with the great light had a pretty good day of photography. At the end of the day once again it looked like she was headed toward the bay. Ten photographers were enjoying their last photography day today, so it would have been a great ending to the trip for them if the last thing they saw was the bears headed on their journey. She was headed in the right direction and was a couple hundred meters out when she decided to turn around and head back to the den. I guess she still isn't ready to go yet. Maybe she will be gone by the time we get to the den tomorrow. Either way, we have enjoyed some great wildlife photography so far this trip.