Land of the Bears Page #2

to find something to do

when you're by yourself.

He'll have to grow up and learn

how to make it on his own.

The young bear passes by

the mother and her cubs

one last time.

Maybe he's thinking

about his own family...

...and the joyful life

the three of them had.

One that he'll never

experience again.

He takes one last look

at the valley

he spent the latter part

of the winter in.

The one that probably

saved his life.

He passes through the cols

and goes beyond the valleys

and the snow-capped mountains

to roam the enormous

Kamchatka territory

and live out his bear destiny.

In the valley,

the big bear knows that

it's not time to leave yet.

However,

he's unaware of the fact

that his future, and the future

of the other bears,

is being determined

at that very moment

thousands of kilometres

away from Kamchatka.

There,

in the depths of the ocean,

the salmon of the Pacific

are waiting for a signal.

500 million salmon,

many of which were born

in the rivers of Kamchatka.

They've made it to the ocean

and have been growing

for four years,

feeding off of

the abundant food.

They have reached maturity.

They are now ready for the

long, 4,000-kilometre journey

to lay their eggs in the rivers

at the same place

where they were born.

How they find their way

in the huge ocean

remains a mystery.

But the survival of

all the bears from Kamchatka

depends upon that mystery.

The bears have suffered

through winter.

They have spent six to eight

months in their dens

without eating.

They have had only

herbs and roots to eat

for the past two months.

And now they have to wait

for the salmon

to swim thousands of kilometres

to get to the coast.

Another long month is spent

grazing and wandering

about Kamchatka.

The wait is long.

So long.

They're all watching the river,

waiting for the salmon,

waiting for the flutter

of a fin,

a sliver of silver reflection.

A body slithering

through the water.

Waiting for that first fish.

Hunger has made them irritable

and less tolerant than usual.

They have to be

in the best position

when the salmon arrive...

...at last.

The bears have waited months

for this moment-

the first fish of the year,

the promise of better days.

And soon

there will be even more.

Millions of salmon are just

a few miles from the coast -

not far at all.

They have one last hurdle -

to avoid the jaws

of the sea lions.

Most of them do survive

and regroup,

ready to begin

the last leg of their journey -

the rivers.

In the vast amount

of salt water,

they can detect the smallest

drop of fresh water

from the river

they were born in.

The odour has remained

mysteriously in their memory...

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