***Contest update: Firstly, thanks to everyone for your fantastic and most memorable Canadian wildlife sightings. You’ve had a lot of action out there!
Owls. Loons. Hawks. Lynx. Cougar. Moose. Pine Martens. Tundra Swans. Skunk. Fox. Wolves. Elk. Humpback, beluga & killer whales. Blue heron. Muskox. Seal. And even a narwhal and a pair of duelling bison in the mix.
We value each and every comment so again, much appreciated.
We just completed our random “draw-names-from-a-dish” routine (very sophisticated over here in our pint-sized office) and these are our winners:
Matt, Michelle, Bruce Campbell, Linda, Sue McKinley, Kiona, Neil, Natasha, Kirsty and Eleanor.
We’ll be reaching out to you via e-mail to get your snail mail addresses and we’ll pop your super cute matchboxes in the mail.
Cheers!
T&C
Hey folks! We just landed some new swag at Toque & Canoe so we thought we’d throw a contest.
Wooden matches in a sweet little square box featuring this photo by Pacific Wild photographer Ian McAllister from Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest.
Tell us about your most memorable Canadian wildlife sighting and we’ll put your name in a hat for a draw to take place before midnight June 1, 2016.
We’ll send TWO packages of matches to TEN people, chosen randomly.
Good luck!
Toque & Canoe
Olivia Sutthery commented:
Seeing a lynx. On the Bow valley Parkway!
toque & canoe commented:
Lucky you Olivia! Our favourite Canadian forest kittens. 🙂
Kathy commented:
I saw my first grizzly on the road into Stewart BC right at Bear Glacier. I was living in the north at the time and after this sighting, we came up with a game “spot the bear poop” after we realised how prolific the bears are up there!
toque & canoe commented:
Fun. Thanks for commenting Kathy!
Chad Larsen commented:
While hiking down from Ribbon Falls a few years ago, my dog and I ran into a grizzly on eating berries on the trail. At that moment, I realized how little I knew about grizzly bears. Since then, my wife and I have been photographing Grizzlies from Kananaskis to the B.C. coast. Will never forget that encounter.
toque & canoe commented:
Hey Chad. Thanks for commenting. Glad you and your dog survived. Ever been to the Khutzeymateen on the Northwest Coast? Amazing place. Awesome for grizzly bear photography.
Chad Larsen commented:
Have never been to the Khutzeymaten (yet!), have only done a couple excursions with Tide Rip Grizzly Tours.
Brian Mellon commented:
I have had the pleasure of seeing many bears in my travels – but one trip to Banff I actually spotted (and photographed) a female black bear with two cubs and a female grizzly with two cubs.
I am a bear lover so as you can imagine, I was in heaven :o)
toque & canoe commented:
Hey Brian. Nice! We saw a mother black bear with triplets this summer off the west coast of Vancouver Island. Amazing bear viewing from Tofino along the shores by zodiac. Thanks for commenting!
Elle Buetow commented:
I saw Moose!! In the wild! Now for me, being a city girl, only ever seeing animals in a zoo, was shocked to see a big massive Moose make its way on to railroad tracks in Alberta! I was minding my own business taking a picture of the tracks that disappeared into the mountains when out of nowhere Moose appeared and while stunning I know they are dangerous. Anyways.. That’s my story. It was amazing!!!
toque & canoe commented:
Hey Elle. Great anecdote. Sounds like you won’t forget it!
Colleen Brynn commented:
I actually came face to face with a baby bear at my cottage in northern Manitoba. My puppy alerted me to its presence when she stared and sniffed into the bushes. I looked over, and there it was. I didn’t even take a second to think about what to do. I grabbed my pup and bolted. Where there was baby, there would be mama!
toque & canoe commented:
Smart move Colleen. Thanks for commenting!
Neil Baskin commented:
Growing up in great North you see so many priceless moments, whether bears, Bullwinkle, big horns.. Lynx cougars and so on… But one of the best things I’ve seen, one morning was my cat, a skunk and a fox all eating outa the same dish on my deck..moments later they all scattered and in walks a black bear, and starts climbing the tree, knocks down my bird feeder (busts it), sprawls out and starts eating it like popcorn… What are the chances all that in a span of 30 minutes! Gotta love it!
toque & canoe commented:
What a story Neil! Thanks for your comment!
Lee Svoboda commented:
Out quadding the trails we spotted an eagle and a couple ravens feasting on a carcass. We crept as close as we could without disturbing them but they flew away anyway. As we waited for them to come back, we caught movement in the tall grass….beautiful wolves- a first for me. . Most of them disappeared into the bush as soon as they spotted us, but a young white one was as curious about us as we were of it. It stood tall and alert, long enough for me to get a couple photos, and then it too melted into the bush.
toque & canoe commented:
What a lovely story Lee! Thanks for your comment.
Karen Ung commented:
I ran into Cinny the Grizzly at Assiniboine after taking sunrise photos at Lake Magog. We completely surprised each other as I was coming up a hill beside a babbling brook. We stared at each other for a few (terrifying) moments and then I snapped out of it and said “Hello Bear!” and she pricked up her ears and ran away. It was amazing to see how fast she ran. I’m glad it was AWAY from me and not towards me as we were only a few metres apart.
toque & canoe commented:
Hi Karen. Now that’s an unforgettable tale. Who knew “Hello Bear!” could be so effective. 🙂
Jan Oland commented:
Loons diving and vocalizing as we were canoeing on Cameron Lake in Waterton Lakes National Park.
toque & canoe commented:
Hi Jan. Thanks for commenting. Waterton is one of our favourite national parks, for sure! Great combination – loons, canoes and one of our country’s most unsung parks. 🙂 Totally Toque & Canoe!
Ruth Fast commented:
I went up Panorama, Invermere. We like to just go for drives and was up there for two hours enjoying the scenery and we come down almost to town and out pop a Mom moose and her twin babies!!! Got some great photos!!
toque & canoe commented:
Hi Ruth. Cheers for sharing. The last time we saw moose was in Jasper – a mother and a baby. Always a treat to see these animals.
Renata Debolt commented:
Back in the 90’s we had set up camp for 3 monthes out at BigLake just out of Chetwynd BC . At the far end of the lake there was a large griz carcass 3/4 submerged into the water , it was a sad sight . It appeared as though it had been shot and just left there. A month later we had a black sow and cub visit not far from camp minutes later a griz cub came to join them! This was such an amazing sight! For almost a week they stuck around the area before moving on , she treated that cub as though it was her own. 🙂
toque & canoe commented:
Sad story with a sweet ending. Thanks Renata, for sharing!
Bruce Campbell commented:
It was a gorgeous August Day and I was just passing the gates to Jasper Park Lodge. I slowed as there was a wedding party taking pictures, and as I did, we were all startled to see several Elk hurtling across the road. I thought that strange, and soon learned why as I drove several hundred yards up the road, where some cars were stopped and I saw a large grizzly in full flight running across the open field. I had my camera close and got a couple of action photos. I thought about warning the wedding party, but there was already a car headed that way. Might have made for some interesting wedding shots.
toque & canoe commented:
Hi Bruce. We saw a grizzly running once and it was unforgettable. Hard to believe how fast they can go. Thanks for your story!
Michelle Brunatti commented:
We saw a grizzly bear & two cubs while mountain biking in Banff. They got startled by park workers and their chainsaw and starting running toward us…thankfully they darted up a tree and we got out of there.
toque & canoe commented:
Hey Michelle. Thanks for your comment. Lots of bears in Banff. 🙂
Kiona Pineau commented:
Camping along side the Parsnip river near MacKenzie BC, I had woken up to heavy paws circling my tent, as I woke up and shook the person next to me to wake up aswell, the animal left before we started to panic while grabbing the guns next to us. After the huge panic, and being prepared with the guns thinking it was possibly a bear, we jumped out of our tent ready ft shoot, realizing that there was nothing there anymore, we jumped into the truck turned the headlights on and packed up camp at 3am, while we were packing up, we happened to look in the dirt by the tent with the lights on it and what do we see, huge dog paw prints. We didn’t have a dog so we figure it was a wolf!
toque & canoe commented:
Great story Kiona. Thanks for sharing it with us. Sounds like quite a night!
Marisa. P commented:
From the deck of my home right here in Coquitlam, BC.
We are on a beautiful ravine not far from the ocean so many animals walk care free through the area.
We have black bears, deer, and at least one bobcat.We regularly see bald eagles, owls and hawks. I wouldn’t live anywhere else.
toque & canoe commented:
Nice Marisa. We have family in your neighbourhood. And remember the forests being full of raccoons. Thanks for your comment!
Sarah commented:
While driving through the Lake Louise area I saw my first wild wolf. It was breathtaking moment that only lasted for a blink of an eye, but it is a moment that I will never forget!
toque & canoe commented:
Thanks for sharing this anecdote Sarah. Something else to see a wolf in the wild. They are so elusive.
Natasha Fielding commented:
I have plenty of wildlife sighting memories from traveling around this great country of ours but probably one of my most memorable was coming out of our hotel in Jasper to find elk grazing on the lawn just a couple feet away 🙂
toque & canoe commented:
We remember the elk from our trip to Jasper last summer. They were massive and totally memorable. Cheers Natasha!
Kirsty Woodward commented:
Algonquin Park,West side: having coffee by the fire after dinner and hear a rustling in the bush. Cow moose and her baby walk straight into camp just munching on trees. Had to keep backing up they were so at ease. They stayed for about an hour (tons of photos) and swam across the lake. Awesome.
toque & canoe commented:
What a great story Kirsty! Thanks so much for following along with us and for jumping in on our contest. T&C
Marc commented:
Last August boating through McKay reach towards Gill island ,humpbacks as far as we could see! We stopped to admire some breaching and one came over to us and stayed and played for more than an hour! He splashed and flopped the whole time! So many great photos and even managed some fascinating under water videos!
toque & canoe commented:
Thanks for commenting Marc. Great story. Feel free to post a photo for us on our FB feed!
Sue commented:
Living in Ontario, I am fortunate to many black bears, moose and deer wondering around our home. Last year while walking in a secluded area, I was looking up…bird watching…and felt my boot hit something. At the same moment I heard a loud “huff” and a young male black bear jumped straight up and hit the ground running ! He had been fast asleep and I believe I scared him more than he scared me..it happened so fast.
toque & canoe commented:
Sweet story Sue. Glad it all worked out. Thanks for commenting!
Sahbrinanne Nieforth commented:
I have had so many wonderful experiences with our wildlife. And continue everyday!
I did get to meetc a seal on the beach one day – beautiful creatures – or the day I was canoeing with 4 blue herons watching me…. Such beauty our country has to offer!!
toque & canoe commented:
Thanks for commenting Sahbrinanne! We appreciate it. T&C
linda lag commented:
On a boat tour saw black bears near shore
toque & canoe commented:
Thanks for your comment Linda! We did a boat tour last summer in Tofino and saw a black bear with three cubs. Unforgettable, and a great way to observe them safely.
Curtis Lafleche commented:
As a forestry surveyor for ten years in northern British Columbia, I’ve had many wildlife encounters and a few way to close for comfort!
Letting the pack know of my presence:
I walked out to a small wetland and a wolf emerged from the stunted black spruce about 70m across the pond looked right through me and sat down and started to HOWL.
Best part I could see the lips/cheeks quiver as it howled and I’ll never forget that glaring stare and the next 5 minutes of hiking the forest was incredibly silent.
toque & canoe commented:
Hey Curtis. Wonderful story. Thanks for sharing! We just came across this wolf howl and it made us think of you. If you’re a fan of wolves, you should follow these guys!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BC1Xd02STr_/?taken-by=pacificwild
Eleanor Charlton commented:
Will never forget the killer whales swimming & playing alongside our friends’ boat just off the coast of Nanaimo. They stayed for about 10 minutes. Beautiful!
toque & canoe commented:
Nice image Eleanor. Thanks for commenting! One of our most memorable west coast trips was alongside orcas! http://toqueandcanoe.com/2015/04/17/orca-post/
Bruce Walton commented:
We had done a 10 day seakayak trip near Zeballos,BC and we had paddled up the final arm of Enperenza Inlet and as we sat waiting to have someone pick us up and our gear,there was a black bear eating sedges. So we sat ,eating our trail mix and crackers and he sat eating sedges.
toque & canoe commented:
Nice image! Thanks for following along with T&C Bruce.
Shelters commented:
Canada’s Northern creatures capture my soul and I’ve been so fortunate to encounter a few — polar bears, narwhal, muskox, beluga and Ravens!
toque & canoe commented:
Thanks for commenting. 🙂 We’d love to see a narwhal or a muskox in the wild. We’re hoping to see belugas & polar bears (for a second time) this summer in northern Manitoba.
Jennifer Willey commented:
I was on a hike in the Alexandria area in the Caribou, when I happen to look up and there was a Pine Marten up in the tree watching. Probably only 4 feet above me. It was really neat to see him .
toque & canoe commented:
We had something similar happen while snowshoeing in Fernie, B.C. It was such a treat! Thanks for commenting Jennifer!
Nancy Shaw commented:
Seeing the Tundra swans on Lake Erie, Ontario was amazing. They came in so glorious and loud but only stayed for a few days. I look forward to another visit from them in the fall
toque & canoe commented:
Hey Nancy. Would be great to see something like this! How lovely. Thanks for your comment!
Karina Rowe commented:
Being lucky to live in Manitoba I’ve had the opportunity to view some amazing wildlife. From polar bears & beluga whales in Churchill to black bears and moose in the interlake to Canada Geese and fox in Winnipeg. Pretty amazing province for wildlife, scenery and culture. Come for a visit everyone!
toque & canoe commented:
Lucky you Karina. We saw a silver fox in northern Manitoba that we won’t ever forget. We joked that his tail was the size of a sleeping bag! Huge fans of Manitoba over here at T&C.
Jada Roche commented:
Canoeing the Patepedia River on the way to the Restigouche…stopped for the night at an old fishing cabin…next morning, moose about 5 feet from the door. Was lovely…and noisy as he made his way across the river and into the bush!
toque & canoe commented:
Thanks for your comment Jada. We’ve seen moose in Alberta and Ontario and each time was pretty wonderful. Love these Canadian swamp donkeys!
Brian commented:
Driving north to Yellowknife and having to slam on the brakes for two massive bison having a fight in the middle of the highway. The tough part was to try to keep my dog from barking and attracting them to my car.
toque & canoe commented:
Thanks for your comment Brian! What an amazing thing to see!
Sue McKinley commented:
Back in the late 80’s we took our daughters, then 6 and 8, hiking on the Cardinal Divide south of Hinton. We came across a beautiful grizzly and her 2 cubs digging for their dinner (luckily we were down wind and far enough away that we did not alarm mama bear or her babies). We sat and watched them for close to an hour. Such a treat to see such magnificent animals in their natural habitat!
toque & canoe commented:
Great memory Sue. Thanks for sharing!
Matt commented:
On one of my many trips to Algonquin Provincial Park canoeing, we were able to paddle within about 20 feet of a moose that was munching on some lily pads. It was a young bull moose that was more annoyed by the flies around him than us. We were able to great some great pictures and we almost always see moose on the same lake.
One of my favourite places in the world.
toque & canoe commented:
Hey Matt. Thanks for commenting. We used to live in Ontario and canoeing in Algonquin remains one of our favourite memories from the province. We can totally picture what you’re talking about. All canoe-loving Canadians need to get to Algonquin. 🙂
Lindsay Eason commented:
While working at Banff Springs Hotel, I saw a young deer run as fast as it could from the forest towards the cafeteria. It fell onto the patio, clumsily got itself back up and nervously looked around before trotting away. Then, I noticed why it was running so fast… a cougar had charged out of the forest, saw the abundance of humans and slyly crept back into the woods. The hair was raised on the back of my neck for the rest of the day!