Great Bear Rainforest
David McEown
Watercolour impressions from the Great Bear Rainforest by David McEown with additional Video and Photography by Daisy Gilardini.
Many thanks to Maple Leaf Adventures and Canadian Geographic Travel for inviting us as RCGS travel ambassadors on board Cascadia, a small expedition catamaran, to explore the beautiful wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia’s west coast.
It was a privilege to return to this incredibly rich temperate rainforest ecosystem. While sailing among the outer islands we had amazing encounters with humpback whales, sea lions and eagles and followed the salmon’s path along spawning channels into the rainforest. There, under the guidance of our expert Gitga’at First Nation Guides we were so lucky to even witness the rare Spirit Bear! Through the dramatic landscape, deep into the coastal mountain range, we sailed towards the Kitlope River and learned about the culture and historical significance of this sacred watershed.
As I review the many sketches, videos and images shot during the voyage I feel full of inspiration for new studio paintings.
We are thrilled to return to this mesmerizing part of world in the fall with Maple Leaf in September 2023 for another expedition focused on photography, sketching and watercolour.
Our Gitga’at First Nation Guides provided a safe viewing area for our small group. We sat quietly for hours along the river, under a light rain when finaly a Spirit Bear magically appeared from the deep forest. Without even acknowledging our presence she fished the salmon right in front of us for a long time, before magically disappearing back into the forest.
While on location I often take lots of reference photos and video material. When time allows, I however, never miss the opportunity to sketch and/or paint with my watercolour. In this instance I would photograph and video when the bear was fishing then switch to sketching and painting while she would go into the forest to eat the freshly caught salmon.
“In the Great Bear Rainforest”, 28 x 40 inches, watercolour
This large watercolour was inspired while bear viewing along a pristine salmon spawning river in the Gitga’at First Nation territory. In this unique ecosystem, everything is interdependent. Salmon which come back in cycles to spawn, are the connection between ocean and forest and provide essential nitrogen for the tree to grow old and strong. The spirit bear, or Kermode has a whitish, cream-colored fur, due to a unique recessive gene, and is a subspecies of the more familiar North American black bear. Local Gitga’at First Nation guides have named this female “Warrior”. She is the daughter of “Ma’ah,” a spirit bear in which I was fortunate to have photographed and painted many years ago.
Photography by Daisy Gilardini, Canadian Geographic Photographer in residence.
