Whistler, Canada: Where bear sightings are almost guaranteed

The next time you’re tempted to trot out that cliché rejoinder, “Does a bear poop in the woods?,” you might want to think again – because the answer is actually, “Not necessarily”.

Not in Whistler, anyway, where you’re quite likely to find what is properly referred to as ‘scat’ plumb in the middle of a parking lot.

They’re not short of a bear or two in Whistler. Or 60, actually. That’s the estimate of guide Geoff Gerhart, who’s conducting my bear hunt over the flanks of the two mountains that tower over this town 120 kilometres north of Vancouver.

And yes, that can be a problem, as the unsuspecting resident on the third floor of an apartment block found some years ago. Captured on video by a neighbour, an enterprising black bear scaled the building’s wooden siding like a ladder, hanging on by his teeth when necessary to reposition his paws, before reaching the balcony where his reward was a handful of tomatoes from the window box.

Geoff is rather fierce about protecting bears – “They were here first, we have to learn to live with them” – but even he is sympathetic. “Who would have thought a bear could smell a tomato from three storeys below?” he marvels.

It’s just one more reason for him to respect and admire these fascinating animals, which he’s been observing and following almost daily for the best part of 20 years.

Not during winter, obviously. That’s when Whistler, in its ski resort incarnation, is much better known, especially during the 2010 Winter Olympics. Even now, the locals still talk about the excitement and buzz of the Games. But Geoff’s favourites were oblivious to it all, tucked away beneath the snow.

He takes me to see one of their shelters, explaining that bears don’t actually hibernate. “It’s called ‘denning’ and they’re partly conscious, even waking to stretch regularly, to keep their muscles strong.”

If that’s not surprising enough, it’s astonishing to see that the entrance to the hollowed-out trunk of this tree is a scant 30cm across. It seems impossible that a fully-grown bear could get through such a narrow gap, but Geoff shrugs. “They’ll squeeze, push, swivel – whatever it takes.”

I’m anxious to see one, and it doesn’t take long. We bump along the tracks through the trees, crossing the summer-green ski runs.

“Prime bear habitat,” says Geoff, pointing to the lush clover – and suddenly there’s a shaggy female, just metres away from the 4WD, tearing at the grass. She stamps her feet nervously and Geoff moves us on. “I don’t want to damage her self-esteem.”

No matter. Within 20 minutes we’ve found another, up by the bobsleigh run on Blackcomb Mountain. It’s Alice, and she has bare patches on her haunches, “from a male’s claws,” Geoff explains. She’s clearly on edge, peering around and sniffing the air. Suddenly she’s off, galloping into the trees, and seconds later we see why, as a big brown male comes into view, one thing on his mind.

We leave them to their, err, business, and track back down the mountain, spotting yet another female on our return to town: on this three-hour tour, multiple sightings are almost guaranteed. Geoff chats all the way, telling me that the bears have learned to live with the mountain bikers who are also a summer feature of Whistler. “They’ve adapted, the mothers teach their cubs to stay off the hard tracks.”

I’m glad about that. I’ve seen the bikers, helmeted like Darth Vader and an apparently unstoppable force, hurtling downhill through the trees and launching themselves over the drops built for them every summer.

Down at the bottom of Whistler Mountain, they’re queueing to take the chairlift to the summit, bikes hooked on behind the seats. Clean going up, they’re proudly filthy when they reach the bottom again 14 exhilarating minutes later, the mud spatters on their faces a badge of honour as they hose the bikes off and use the tool centres to tighten nuts shaken loose by the relentless juddering.

In the Bike Park on the side of the mountain alone, there’s a network of over 200km of trails through the trees, designed for all abilities, plus cross-country tracks and family-friendly pedalling elsewhere, and marked shoulders on the roads for the lycra brigade.

It’s all about getting out there and challenging yourself, it seems; but there are softer options too. I take one of them, the Peak 2 Peak gondola that links Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains. It’s an impressive feat of engineering, including the world’s longest free span between towers, at just over 3km. The special glass-floored silver cabin I ride in allows full appreciation of its height up to 436 metres above the valley below.

Despite early summer fog blotting out the surrounding peaks, it’s exhilarating to look down on the treetops from so high above, and I feel like an eagle. I’m there in mid-June, and there’s still plenty of snow on the tops so the hiking trails are closed: it’s an excellent excuse to go back down to walk through the pine-scented woods and across the tumbling river into town.

It’s neat, pretty, pedestrianised and busy with holiday-makers from all over, most of them young, and all enjoying the shops, cafés, bars and restaurants. Prominent on a corner of the main square is award-winning Araxi, one of Whistler’s oldest restaurants. An evening there working through the Chef’s Choice dinner by James Walt treats me to not only the best local produce but also, hands down, my most delicious dinner in British Columbia.

Albacore tuna and ponzu pearls popping with flavour, crusty seared wild salmon, rabbit wrapped in pork cheek and prosciutto, then tender lamb with rosemary confit – it all tastes even better than it looks.

Okanagan Valley wines from the cellar of over 1100 labels complement the food, and the final triumph is the ice wine: made from frozen grapes hand-picked at night, served chilled, it’s sweet, intoxicating and very special. Rather like Whistler itself, in fact.

Air New Zealand flies direct to Vancouver. See:

Whistler is two hours from Vancouver by coach or car.

Fairmont’s hotels are highly recommended – in Whistler it’s a splendid Chateau. See:

In summer there are all sorts of biking, tramping, golf, spas, river activities… Don’t miss the bear tour, at around CA$215 (NZ$265) per adult. See:

World Journeys will take all the arrangements off your hands. See: or contact Tourism Whistler via

Flying generates carbon emissions. To reduce your impact, consider other ways of travelling, amalgamate your trips, and when you need to fly, consider offsetting emissions.