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00:00¡Suscríbete al canal!
00:30To me, bears, more than any other creature, represent wilderness.
00:37And more than that, wildness itself.
00:43Brown bears once roamed across Europe and North America.
00:48But today they're found in just a few small pockets of really wild land.
00:55Alaska is one of the bears' last strongholds.
01:00My name is Chris Morgan.
01:05I've dedicated half my life to the study and conservation of bears.
01:10This remote stretch of coastal Alaska is like nowhere else on earth.
01:16In most places, bears keep a healthy distance from each other.
01:20But these bears have somehow learned to live with one another.
01:26Left alone, it has become a city of bears.
01:30I'll follow these bears through an entire season, from spring to autumn.
01:43Piece together their complex social lives and find out how these colossal giants manage to live together.
01:50And the first thing this young male does when the big fella leaves, starts putting on the show for the ladies again.
01:57And you've got to be tough to survive here.
01:59It's a land like no other.
02:16It's grizzly country.
02:17You know, I grew up in St. Anne's in Lancashire.
02:38And to me, Alaska was this far-off, wild place, somewhere at the ends of the earth.
02:47But the first time I took flight over this country, I was blown away by the size of the place.
02:57To me, it really takes an animal as wild as a bear to call Alaska home.
03:05It just looks and feels like bear country out there.
03:12Vast and wild.
03:14No way.
03:21Oh, wow, look at that.
03:23Wow.
03:24Two bears.
03:25Play fighting.
03:35It's early June, and bears are just beginning to gather in the lush meadows.
03:44You can imagine the sense of joy they must feel after being cooped up in their dark den for the past six months.
03:59I can't believe we're here.
04:04I love it.
04:06I love this place.
04:07It just feels so right to be here.
04:10And I'm so dying to see what the bears are up to.
04:13Especially this early in the season.
04:14I've never been here this early before, so it's completely new to me.
04:17For the next several months, filmmaker Joe Pontecorvo and I will be living among bears.
04:25Looks like we're going to be here for a year.
04:31We are deep inside grizzly country.
04:57In a place known to have the largest concentrations of brown bears in the world.
05:13I've always wanted to spend a season living among brown bears.
05:17Watching their daily lives unfold.
05:19But it's also a somewhat unsettling feeling.
05:24To be surrounded by so many bears.
05:30We are the visitors here.
05:49It's like we're rigging a demolition scene.
05:53Some kind of explosives.
05:56That's not a bad idea.
05:59I've got a much smaller camp than Joe.
06:01He's got all the gear within his electric fence.
06:05So it's pretty sizable.
06:07Whereas mine, I just need the tent and a few of my personal belongings.
06:10And of course all the food goes in Joe's camp as well.
06:13There is this complete sense of isolation in coastal Alaska.
06:22Well you feel genuinely like you're the first person to set foot right here.
06:27First person to sit on this log.
06:30And you know there are tracks going off down this ridge of rocks here.
06:34And it looks like a human set of footprints.
06:38But it's not.
06:39It's bear tracks.
06:41And every inch of this has been influenced by the bears and the wolves that call it home.
06:50You know the sun is up most of the time.
06:53I mean even now it's not that late yet.
06:55It's ten o'clock at night.
06:56And we've still got several hours of light to work in if we want to.
06:59And it's tough to go to bed.
07:03Because there's something happening all the time.
07:13Don't drop that camera Joe.
07:15Many thousands of years ago the whole of North America was wild enough for large carnivores.
07:20So this is the front right track of a large male.
07:23But now we only find these huge carnivores in small pockets of really wild land.
07:31In places like Alaska.
07:33Stop.
07:34Stop.
07:35It's a sleeping bear here.
07:39We don't want to surprise him.
07:40Back up.
07:44You know these bears are very very tolerant.
07:46But still if you've got a sleeping bear like that you certainly don't want to surprise him.
07:50I mean if we used to wake up from a deep sleep surprised like that they could quickly turn.
07:56It'd be like sleeping in your motel room and suddenly having someone break the door down and enter your room.
08:01What would you do?
08:02You'd go into that fight response.
08:03We'll cross the river and avoid him.
08:07Hey there bear.
08:08Hey there bear.
08:08The bears I normally see fattening up for winter are at the beginning of their season.
08:32And the salmon run is still months away.
08:44Bears have lost nearly 50% of their body weight over the winter.
08:49And they are eager to get it back.
08:51What they are looking for, smelling for actually, are tiny razor clams.
08:57Once they find one, they start digging with those massive claws.
09:06It's not much of a meal.
09:09But this time of year, they'll take whatever they can get.
09:12This is unbelievable.
09:21There's a female here with two tiny cubs.
09:24They probably weigh less than 10 pounds.
09:26I've never seen any this small before.
09:29These cubs were only born in January in the den.
09:32And they probably have only been out of the den for about three weeks since mid-May.
09:35Can you imagine the sensory overload that these cubs are going through right now?
09:44I mean, they're playing with things and discovering the world around them.
09:46One of them is playing with a piece of grass there.
10:00A year from now, they'll start to wander a little bit further from her.
10:04And right now, they're sticking to her like glue.
10:10They don't want to let her out of sight.
10:11And she certainly doesn't want to let them out of sight.
10:15There's a lot of big, feisty, testosterone-driven males right now.
10:20And one of these cubs would make a very easy, tasty snack for them.
10:27And I just really hope that she keeps them safe.
10:34Mating season lasts just two months.
10:40But during that time, bears from all around gather in the lush meadow below.
10:46It's a dangerous time for a mum with young cubs.
10:50But experience has taught her well.
10:53The bluff provides both sanctuary and a view of her surroundings.
10:57With this many big males around, she's just got to have her wits about her the whole time.
11:05So this swagger, we call it the cowboy walk.
11:16And he's really doing two things here.
11:18Trying to impress the female.
11:22But it's also trying to make themselves feel as big as possible
11:25and look as big as possible to the other bears.
11:27They're competitors.
11:28Now, he's a real cowboy.
11:39A big, brutish-looking guy.
11:42Everyone is keeping a close eye on Brutus.
11:48Look at him salivating.
11:49When these big males get worked up, they'll start salivating like this.
11:53God, this is unbelievable.
11:56This big, brutish male.
11:59He's being super aggressive.
12:03It's a pretty gutsy move to walk up on a mating pair like this.
12:20Brutus pushed the older male right off the young female.
12:24I don't think Grandpa is willing to risk his life over this one female.
12:31But look at the face on Grandpa.
12:35He just looks so forlorn.
12:44Now, Brutus is stomping his scent into the ground.
12:48Erasing all traces of Grandpa from the meadow.
12:56Stomping him out of existence.
12:58The males here will try and mate with as many females as possible.
13:13While the females are looking for the biggest, the most dominant male around.
13:18That'll give her cubs the best chance of survival.
13:21Oh, there's another guy coming in from behind her.
13:27He doesn't look big enough to take on the big guy.
13:34Looks like he's going to give it a shot, though.
13:36Wow, this female is getting a lot of attention.
13:43Four males around her right now.
13:49It's almost like she's insignificant, you know?
13:52The males are fighting among themselves, and the winner gets to take her home.
13:56But I don't know.
13:56OK.
13:57He's tą 뿐.
13:59I don't know.
14:01Huh?
14:05wasting
14:14quite a bit.
14:16Well, by.
14:18It's getting hit.
14:18He's a little hanger.
14:20¡Aquí está!
14:22¡Aquí está!
14:24¡Aquí está!
14:28Están dos metros de los grandes gigantes
14:30cuando se están en un gran, agresivo
14:34y estas mujeres están
14:36asesando los hombres
14:38y él es definitivamente
14:42en su juego ahora
14:44y todo el otros hombres pueden hacer
14:46es estar aquí viendo
14:48y entonces la mujer regresa con el ganador
14:52y eso es por eso
14:54todos los hombres aquí
14:56son al menos dos más grandes
14:58y eso es porque los hombres ganan las luchas
15:00y ellos se pueden breed
15:08A quiet, calm returns
15:10y la vida resume
15:12como si nada ha sucedido
15:14no se ha ocurrido
15:16no se ha ocurrido
15:18pero estas cubs
15:20son muy lucky
15:22que se sabe cómo reír
15:24en un lugar donde hay
15:26todos estos peligros
15:28para ser conscientes
15:30que están aquí
15:32su padre
15:34mi madre
15:36se va a saber
15:38que son los hombres
15:40son los hombres
15:42estos cumbres se aprenden
15:43todos los días
15:44lo que hay para comer
15:46lo que los peces
15:47lo que hay para evitar
15:48lo que es気 una seguridad
15:49para ser seguros.
15:51Y por seguir mamá,
15:53aprenderán lo que es necesario para survive
15:55en esta ciudad de bosques.
16:19.
16:21.
16:31.
16:33.
16:35.
16:37.
16:39.
16:43.
16:45.
16:46.
16:48Oh, hello.
16:50Hey Bear, it's okay.
16:52You are a big seller, I know.
16:54You think you can go anywhere you like, don't you?
16:57And you probably can.
16:59He's right between Joe's tent,
17:00which is here, and my tent.
17:02Our tents are about 30 yards apart,
17:03and he's in between them.
17:07Joe was on the other side
17:09of the tent at the time,
17:10and I was afraid that he might touch his nose
17:12to that electric fence and bolt
17:14in the opposite direction and run Joe over
17:16in the process. But so far, so good.
17:18He's a big bear. He's a big male.
17:21But he walked past my tent a minute ago,
17:23and his fur, I swear, brushed on my electric fence,
17:26and it didn't work.
17:28This is unbelievable.
17:30He's, uh...
17:32He's eating an Angelica plant
17:34right now.
17:36It's okay, buddy.
17:38Yeah, it's okay. You keep going, I think.
17:40Yeah, see? He's a pretty big male.
17:43It's okay.
17:46Even a simple breakfast
18:12is an adventure in bear country.
18:15With this many visitors around,
18:17you can never be too careful.
18:24But it's tough, though, you know,
18:25because these bears see the whole world
18:26through their nose.
18:28So you've really got to start looking
18:29at the world through their perspective,
18:30through their nose,
18:31and they can smell this
18:32from two miles down the valley here.
18:36There's a certain tension in the air.
18:38You're always looking over your shoulder.
18:44Any one of these creatures
18:46could wipe you out in an instant.
18:48But they choose not to.
18:50They choose to allow you
18:51to be a part of their landscape
18:53and their habitat and their home
18:54for as long as you want to be there.
19:00Nice.
19:04Wow.
19:04What a beautiful thing.
19:06But...
19:07It almost looks like
19:21the National Park Service
19:22maintains these, doesn't it?
19:24But these are all bear trails.
19:27Generation after generation
19:29after generation
19:30of brown bears
19:31have created these trails
19:32as the most efficient route
19:33from A to B.
19:35It's a perfect system.
19:37And we've been following them.
19:39We're doing the same thing,
19:40except we're not eating the sedges.
19:42There's a lot of traffic
19:46in these meadows
19:47during mating season.
19:51And in a population this large,
19:54with this much competition,
19:56it's all about scent.
19:58And any male coming up to this
19:59could smell the ten previous males
20:01that had come up to this
20:02and done the same thing,
20:03checking out
20:04who's on the meadow here,
20:06who they're competing with tonight.
20:09They know who's on this meadow
20:10long before they even see them.
20:12Their noses are planted
20:13firmly in the sedge meadow
20:15all the time,
20:16and they're reading this landscape
20:17like a barcode.
20:19Scent is powerful advertising
20:21in the bear world
20:22and works for both sexes.
20:26You know, the females
20:27will kind of sit down,
20:28they'll plant themselves
20:29in the meadow
20:30and coyly look around,
20:32you know,
20:32to see which males
20:33might be eyeing them up.
20:35And then the male will approach
20:36and she'll move away
20:37and he plants his nose
20:38right in the grass
20:39to smell whether
20:40she's going to be receptive.
20:44It's almost like
20:45her placing a singles ad.
20:47Single, hairy, brown female
20:49seeks massive, promiscuous male.
20:51In a population this size,
20:57bears learn to watch their back.
20:59Their eyes are looking
21:01left, right and centre
21:02trying to figure out
21:02who's there,
21:04who they can breed with
21:05and who they need to avoid.
21:07So the sedges are just
21:08a kind of a distraction.
21:11Competition is not limited
21:12to males.
21:14Females will compete
21:15with other females
21:16for access to the best males.
21:18It's really unusual
21:20and something
21:21I haven't seen before.
21:27Many of these bears
21:28have grown up together
21:29or are related in some way,
21:32spending season after season
21:34in these same meadows.
21:38Brothers that come together
21:40and play as adults
21:41or two teenagers
21:44that have grown up as neighbours.
21:48These social complexities
21:50mean cubs here
21:51have a whole lot more to learn
21:53than almost anywhere else.
21:58Normally brown bear cubs
21:59stay with their mum
22:00for about three years.
22:03But here,
22:04cubs might stay with mum
22:05for even longer.
22:06These guys have a good head start.
22:30Nadi is definitely
22:31a dominating presence
22:32on the meadow.
22:33Nadi is definitely
22:33a dominating presence
22:34on the meadow.
22:36She's moving right towards him.
22:41She's charging.
22:42She's charging at him.
23:06While mum grazes,
23:07the cubs are on high alert,
23:10smelling the air for danger,
23:13alarmed by anything unfamiliar,
23:16which for them
23:17is quite a lot.
23:19They've only been
23:20in this grand outside world
23:22for maybe six weeks now.
23:25These cubs are facing
23:26so many different choices
23:27and learning experiences
23:29every day,
23:29and it's nice to feel
23:31that we're an easy one.
23:32You're not quite sure
23:36how close to come are you.
23:38It's important
23:39they stay cautious,
23:41like their mum.
23:44But they're cubs,
23:46and the temptation
23:47to play is too great.
23:49They are gladiators
24:05as tall as grass blades.
24:06and even though they learn
24:11they make more
24:12full of sun
24:12or sweet,
24:18like your mum.
24:22Let's pray.
24:24¡Suscríbete al canal!
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26:40It's okay.
26:42We're not touching her.
26:46It's okay.
26:50It's alright, but
26:51it's okay.
26:54It's okay.
26:57He's pretty wound up.
27:06She clearly needs the protein
27:08that these sedges are providing.
27:10But at the same time,
27:11she's got to keep the cubs safe
27:12from these big males that are coming over.
27:40Try and pick up the weather forecast.
27:52I just want to know what we're letting ourselves in for here,
27:54you know, because the weather really seems to be coming in.
27:59Seas eight feet.
28:00We should probably make sure your gear's okay, Joe,
28:02actually, you know, just get it all inside the tent
28:04and figure things out.
28:05Look at that.
28:07That's not my pillow.
28:08I don't use pillows when I'm camping.
28:11I usually sleep on a stake, you know,
28:14because I'm a real tough guy.
28:16And if I'm feeling like treating myself,
28:17maybe a boot,
28:18but definitely not one of these pillows.
28:20I don't know where that came from.
28:21Did you put that in here, Joe?
28:28It's been a really stormy couple of days.
28:31It's pouring with rain outside.
28:33You can perhaps hear it on the tent here.
28:36And it's difficult just being holed up in the tent all this time.
28:44But I've rigged a tarp,
28:46and I've got a bit of a porch here,
28:48and it's keeping a lot of the rain out,
28:49so fingers crossed.
28:51But it's tiring.
28:53It's tiring just dealing with it, you know.
28:58So I'm going to try and get some sleep.
29:03And hope that my tent and tarp
29:05is all intact in the morning.
29:20The seas are calm again.
29:23But something is upsetting the flock.
29:26This guy is headed straight for a puffin colony.
29:41Brown bears don't normally hunt puffins,
29:43but bears are opportunistic and experimental animals,
29:47especially when driven by hunger.
29:50Even the puffins are surprised.
29:51In this case,
30:02the bear is rewarded.
30:04With the good weather comes carefree days.
30:24Oh, the entire family's having a good time tonight.
30:32She's even growing more relaxed.
30:33Look at that.
30:34You can tell that they've put
30:36a considerable amount of weight on.
30:38And they're probably three times further
30:40away from the safety of the bluff
30:42than we've ever seen them before.
30:46Where does she go?
30:47Oh, she's in the middle of the meadow there.
30:49Oh, yeah, she's moving away.
30:50This bear just came out of the trees here.
30:52See it in the alder to your right, Joe?
30:54The deer has settled down quite a bit
30:56over the last couple of weeks,
30:57but still keeps a healthy distance.
31:02And for good reason.
31:04Mating season is winding down.
31:09A quiet desperation hangs in the air
31:11as the bears anticipate
31:13the arrival of the first salmon.
31:15Lately, Nadee hardly gives me a glance.
31:24I realise it's incumbent on me
31:26to respect her boundaries.
31:29I have to constantly remind myself
31:32what they're capable of.
31:37I wish I could join them
31:39with this little tussle.
31:41Wouldn't that be fun?
31:42Just jump in and roll around there with them.
31:53It's impossible not to get caught up
31:56in how adorable all this play is.
31:59But all this play has a purpose.
32:03The sticks and driftwood
32:04they pretend are the salmon
32:05they've never tasted.
32:06All the affection they show mum
32:12the sparring
32:19it all has a purpose.
32:23The environment these cubs grow up in
32:25is dangerous
32:26highly competitive
32:28and often unpredictable.
32:38We're all cool.
32:39It's okay.
32:40No, we're okay.
32:41Hey, it's all right.
32:43It's okay.
32:50Nadee is so comfortable with us
32:52that she's grazed
32:53very close to us now.
32:54In this situation
33:04it's best just to remain
33:05as still as possible
33:06and just let her pass.
33:08It's all right, everybody.
33:10Just chill.
33:10Chill.
33:19It's all right.
33:20Don't you come any closer though,
33:21you guys.
33:22You'll get us into trouble here.
33:23It's okay.
33:25Yeah.
33:32It's okay.
33:33No, don't come any closer.
33:35Hey.
33:36It's all right.
33:37Yeah, I know.
33:49That was intense.
33:50She was closer than any bear
33:52has been to me before
33:54and I just sat here
33:56in the meadow to start with.
33:58I was probably 80 yards away from her
34:01and she grazed to within five,
34:03six feet away from me
34:04and there's no way,
34:06not in a million years,
34:07would I ever approach this situation
34:08but it was her choice to come to me
34:10and it's intense though.
34:12I'm exhausted
34:13from just having her that close
34:15and staring at me in the eyes.
34:17It's a prehistoric feeling.
34:24It's really raw, that's for sure.
34:27She's 30 feet away right now
34:29and she might as well be
34:31at the other end of a football field.
34:32She seemed like a long way away.
34:34Life for these little guys,
34:47like us all,
34:48is never going to be more carefree than this.
34:51In these still moments,
35:18it's easy to forget
35:20the season is racing by.
35:28Two months have gone by
35:30since I first arrived.
35:35It's this in-between time
35:37that's toughest of all.
35:40The wolves,
35:42with a new litter,
35:43are desperate for a hunt.
35:44The fields are drying up
35:54and pushing the bears
35:56towards the water.
36:00But their feast is yet to arrive.
36:06Females gather at the river mouse
36:08with the anticipation
36:10of an early run.
36:11And then the groups
36:12of dirt
36:14따� golp
36:14and persnow
36:15of the islands who
36:16to see a island.
36:17See,
36:19ways toôm
36:20and ber Straße
36:21and touch
36:23Jet
36:23and
36:24the
36:25they
36:28need to survive.
36:29They're being
36:30bing
36:31They're being
36:32酷
36:33and
36:34mentally
36:36they're being
36:37the
36:38a
36:38time
36:39¡Suscríbete al canal!
37:09¡Suscríbete al canal!
37:39All this splashing around, it's hard to tell whether they're onto something or simply chasing ghosts.
38:09Oh wow, she's got it. She's got it. It's a salmon.
38:23Thank you.
38:25Thank you.
38:27Thank you.
38:29Thank you.
38:31Thank you.
38:33Thank you.
38:35Thank you.
38:37Thank you.
38:39Thank you.
38:41Thank you.
38:43Thank you.
38:45Thank you.
38:47Thank you.
38:49Thank you.
38:51Thank you.
38:53Thank you.
38:57Thank you.
38:59Thank you.
39:01Thank you.
39:03Thank you.
39:13The feast has begun.
39:15The salmon are coming home.
39:17It feels as if the river itself has been anticipating this moment.
39:23And for a short time, salmon will be the lifeblood of this place.
39:29But now, the clock has started on this narrow window for the bears.
39:43This is a pretty mature female and she really knows what she's doing.
39:57And she's got this really healthy, fat, cuddly looking cub.
40:01He's never more than 10 feet behind his mum.
40:06She shares nearly every fish she catches with her young cub.
40:13He'll grow fast and her determination will pay off in how quickly he learns how to live here.
40:31With all his needs met, he's relaxed to hone his skills.
40:43Oh, look, he's snorkeling.
40:44He's got his head right under water so that he can see the fish.
40:47It's incredible, time after time, she's catching female fish.
41:05And it's important that she catches the female fish
41:07because they're full of fat in the form of their eggs
41:10that the cub can really benefit from.
41:12And that's why he's so chunky looking.
41:14I think I'll call him Fatso.
41:22This young male has been closely watching her.
41:25And now that she's resting, he's decided to test out her fishing spot.
41:30Probably in his first year of life without mum.
41:35And he is suitably overwhelmed by the environment and the number of bears here.
41:40But he doesn't have much time to fumble.
41:44The salmon run is brief, but unpredictable.
41:50It's vital to him for surviving the winter.
41:55But so far, he's unable to pull the trigger.
41:59The river is so densely packed right now that bears need to employ a number of strategies to catch salmon.
42:12And keep a safe distance from each other.
42:14The bears that are forced into the deeper water have to snorkel to track their prey.
42:32The salmon hide in these deep pockets, out of reach.
42:38Even as some of the bears are struggling to catch anything, others are becoming much more selective.
42:48And giving some lucky salmon a second chance.
42:54The salmon pack the dense channels, trying to reach the spawning ground.
43:11The completion of their journey.
43:13But first, they have to get through this gauntlet of bears.
43:17The salmon pack the densely seas.
43:22The salmon pack theamiens.
43:23The salmon pack the
43:26hour is infinite, which is where they stand.
43:27The salmon pack the night.
43:29The salmon pack dead.
43:30The salmon pack the air.
43:32The salmon pack the oak.
43:34The salmon pack it.
43:35The salmon pack the FARM's.
43:37¡Suscríbete al canal!
44:07Life is good, they've even got time to play
44:11And she's only got one cub, so she'll tend to play more with that one cub
44:16I don't think there's any bond stronger in nature
44:24Than a female bear and her cub
44:28I just imagine his surprise four years from now
44:32When she turns around and doesn't want to know him anymore
44:37She'll want to move on
44:39And he'll be on his own
44:41Life is not so easy for the wolves
44:48The salmon taunt them
44:54But the chase is more an act of desperation than anything
44:58The salmon are still too deep for the wolves to catch
45:07I haven't seen Nadia or her cubs for weeks now
45:15I hope they're okay
45:18But Fatso and his mom have become regular visitors along this busy stretch of river
45:25Fatso is quickly becoming a serious hunter
45:34As he tags along with the expert
45:39He takes every opportunity to flaunt his kung fu moves
45:44This mom has just arrived with three cubs
45:52The first triplets we've seen this year
45:55It's unusual for her to still have all three cubs this far into the season
46:01It's probably her first trip down to the river
46:05And they will take whatever they can get
46:07It's certainly a different situation than Fatso is used to
46:15The river definitely shows off the diversity of bears here
46:21But even poaching scraps around this many bears
46:29Is more than she's comfortable with
46:32So they'll eat this meal on the road
46:36She's found a quieter stretch of the river
46:51It seems that for a couple of them at least
46:55These are their first litters
46:57So first time they've experienced having to look after their young cubs
47:00And there is this incredible almost panic
47:04More than urgency
47:05It's almost just a panic to feed right now
47:07The anticipation of denning for the whole winter
47:10Without enough fat
47:11Just is this innate fear that they have
47:21The density of bears here
47:27Makes things tense for these larger families
47:30Wow, she is just frantic
47:33She senses that if she doesn't catch something fresh
47:37They won't last very long
47:40The cubs aren't comfortable yet
47:46With mum thrashing off into the deep without them
47:48She tries to reassure them
47:54And guides them to a safe beach to wait for her
47:56But they aren't so easily convinced
47:59You can definitely tell
48:07That she senses the pressure
48:09To catch fish right now
48:10She's just arrived
48:12Later than the other bears
48:13And it's just a matter of time
48:15Before these fish dry up here
48:16And so she's got a lot of work on her hands
48:20All this company
48:48There's no chance to catch anything
48:51A quiet window of opportunity is gone
48:54And it's back to leftovers for the family
49:01Even during salmon season there are waves
49:14The fish come in with the tides
49:18But that doesn't mean every tide has fish
49:22I thought I'd scout down to the mouth of this river
49:26And see what was happening downstream
49:29If there's any action to be had
49:32That's where it would be
49:34Well that's a familiar face
49:50I almost didn't recognise her
49:53But that's definitely Nadia and her two cubs
49:55Hardly recognisable
49:58From the tiny little cubs that we saw a few weeks ago
50:01They're not only larger and healthier and fatter
50:04Than they were a few weeks ago
50:05When I last saw them
50:05But they've grown up as well
50:08You know they've got this different attitude now
50:10This is such an important time of year
50:14For her and her cubs
50:15I'm so relieved to see that she's got both of them
50:18Neither of them have been killed
50:21And that's really common with young cubs
50:23But not only that
50:25They look in great shape as well
50:27See she's yawning like that
50:40That's a sign of anxiety when they yawn
50:42Like she's doing now
50:42Look how well trained the cubs are
50:47They're butterballs right now
50:48And I think the other bears
50:53Have noticed that she's a little feisty
50:55And potentially aggressive
50:56So they don't mess with her at all
50:59Using mum as a barricade there
51:06That's priceless
51:07She's gone off to fish
51:10And she's left them behind
51:11And they know not to disturb mum
51:13When she's fishing
51:13They've got a few weeks until they den
51:15But the urgency is on now
51:16Her senses are definitely tuned in
51:20That's all she's thinking about right now
51:22Is fish
51:23Every movement in the water
51:27Every scent on the air
51:29And she's focused on it
51:31And her senses are tuned to any intruder
51:36Especially any male that might threaten her cubs
51:46She has two precious things to look after here
52:00And she'll fight to the death
52:04To protect those cubs
52:06For the moment
52:12It looks like she's got the river to herself
52:14But this male won't give up
52:22Trying to carve out a small fishing hole for himself
52:25It only takes a moment to run down this salmon
52:31But does he have time?
52:33And she's going to work through
52:34That's all she's going through
52:45So far
52:58No, no, no.
53:28No, no, no.
53:58No, no.
54:00It looks like Fatso and Mom are there, waiting for them.
54:03There is an electricity to this place.
54:23An energy that comes from the urgency of life here.
54:38It's late September.
54:39For these bears, this is the last chance to pack on the pounds for winter.
54:45Fatso was landed his first fish.
55:02Oh, my gosh.
55:03That is so great.
55:05Oh, he looks so proud.
55:09Look, Ma.
55:10I did it.
55:11It's a good start for this little cub.
55:21We normally think of bears as solitary animals.
55:31But in this dense population, in this city of bears, they've learned how to be social, how
55:38to get along with each other.
55:41You know, never before have I lived among these bears for such a long period of time, basically
55:48being their neighbor, and really watching their lives unfold on a daily basis.
55:54And I've seen another side of these bears, a tenderness and a complexity that's really been eye-opening.
56:05It's the first bear I've seen in a few hours.
56:08And those that I have seen are along the river bank.
56:13And kind of looking out hopefully into the water to see if there's any more fish.
56:20The salmon run's coming to an end here.
56:23And I'm sure the bears are anticipating that long winter ahead.
56:28You know, I've really come to know these bears.
56:32Nadie and her cubs.
56:34Fatso and his mum.
56:38I'm a little bit lost for words, to be honest.
56:43I just feel like I've had this intimate, intimate relationship with it.
56:49I feel very at home here.
56:53Ah.
56:58What makes this place really wild is knowing the tracks I leave today,
57:07will be bear tracks or wolf tracks tomorrow.
57:12Wilderness isn't the wide open spaces, but the wild things that fill it.
57:19Alaska is the last stronghold for some of the Earth's wildest creatures.
57:32This may be the end of my journey, but Alaska's wilderness, and its wildest creatures.
57:37Will always call me back.
57:38Will always call me back.
57:42Will always call me back.
57:43Will always call me back.
57:47This may be the end of my journey, but Alaska's wilderness, and its wildest creatures, will always call me back.
57:52This may be the end of my journey, but Alaska's wilderness, and its wildest creatures, will always call me back.
58:05Now bringing forgotten mechanical marvels back to life.
58:20The clockwork wonders of medieval Europe.
58:23Automatas.
58:24A fascinating history coming up next here on BBC4.
58:28rock'nark so far.
58:29To be made.
58:30The the end of my journey, butяли.
58:31This є a person who is in nowhere.
58:32This FAZ?
58:33The episodes.
58:34They said...
58:35Space Cars.
58:36الق
58:40The elvesong!
58:42They said...
58:43...
58:50orem規�라
58:51lists...
58:52...
58:53...
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