A SpiritBear 'Masala' ... Rare White Bear.

Negative impact of sudden popularity. Rare white bear amid black bears popularly known as the spirit bear has create uncontrolled bear watching endangering the bears themselves in Princess Long Island, B.C. Local Git-ga'at people of the island traditionally give Masala, "the white bear," comparatively high status, also called Kermode Bear after 20th century  naturalist from BC Francis Kermode. 

Travelwatch produced by National Geprgraphic says

"scores of cruise tourists prowling the inlets in day boats and Zodiacs, seeking a glimpse of a spirit bear and disturbing stream valleys and sacred Git-ga'at sites. Many of the Git-ga'at live in Hartley Bay, closest mainland village to the new conservancy. "We want to make sure tourism development is respectful of our own traditions and of the bear itself," says Art Sterritt, a Git-ga'at elder. He helped draft the conservancy agreement. Hartley Bay does want tourism; the community is building a cultural center and feast hall, and has already welcomed a number of "pocket" cruise boats, liners with fewer than 250 passengers."

Princess Long Island has in recent years acquired great popularity due to 'spirit bear' which otherwise as the article continues is best described as raw wilderness of B.C.

"to visit Princess Royal Island. During one four-day stay, you can watch salmon thrash in streams of amber water; duck for cover as black bears (yes, black ones) plunge in to fish for those same salmon; marvel at humpback whales dancing in Grenville Channel or a family of river otters gamboling along the shore; and admire the mile-high granite faces uncloaked as afternoon sun burns off the morning mist. You can go through rolls of film at a haul-out rock where Steller's sea lions carouse; with a rod, you can cast fuchsia flies to catch crimson-splashed cutthroat trout. You may never see a spirit bear, but you'll find something far more significant: spirit of place. If the forests and waters are kept from harm, thousands of visitors can experience that in the future."

To read the full article .

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Saugat Datta
Media Artist
<a href="http://saugatdatta.blogspot.com/">Wandering Jogi Flowing Pani</a>