9 July 2014 (4 pm), by Matt Shupe, [80N, 70E]:
Perched up on the bridge, I was just sitting down to write about our first bear. It visited as we were stopped in the ice to test some equipment. Relatively far away, so just a small blob in the binoculars. Not much to photograph and barely enough to see. I was feeling uninspired about it and thought it was hardly worth writing about. Was getting my things together and looked out from the bridge to the ice (this happens a lot). On a distant flow in front of us I saw a large shape that would otherwise look like a chunk of ice, except it was in the middle of a large flow. And there again, right in front of us, was another bear. We were approaching rapidly and he did not appear to notice at first, apparently laying down for a nap. The ship had to swerve to keep its distance and the bear went around to the starboard side. This offered a great photo opportunity as we slipped by. At least this time it was more than simply a blob, even on my simple point-and-shoot.
Polar bear on ice
