Tundra Buggy Tour (Day Two)

Location: Churchill, Manitoba, Canada
Address: Churchill Wildlife Management Area
Date: Oct 2014
Website: www.everythingchurchill.com

  We were ready for the second day of our Tundra Buggy Tour.  You can read about Day One here.  Our group decided that the best course of action was to head towards where we had observed a bear digging yesterday.  Normally, we tried to travel along something that resembled a road.

  Sometimes we had no choice but to take things off-road.  Part of the route we took seemed more like we were traveling along a stream than across the tundra. The buggy crept through the water towards our destination.

  Another Tundra Buggy was rolling along ahead of us when it suddenly stopped.  Over beside some bushes was a polar bear sleeping right out in the open.  He sort of woke up when our buggy stopped as well.  It was only to take a big yawn.

  It turns out that the buggy in front of us had stopped for more than just polar bear watching.  The day before we had been wondering what would happen if a buggy broke down or got stuck in the mud and rocks.  Turns out the answer would unfold right in front of us.  Luckily the broken buggy was on a stretch of road.  A pickup truck came by and pulled up next to the broken buggy.  One of our guides exited our buggy, took his rifle from its case and bravely strode down the road to stand guard while the repairs were completed.

  Fortunately the bear was still as disinterested as ever. The repairs were completed and our guide returned to the safety of his tundra buggy.  The other buggy began to continue on its way.  This seemed to finally arouse the bear who decided it was time to take a walk across the tundra.  He walked around as we wondered if he would decide to come and check us out.  Once again we were rejected by the bear.

  We headed further along and reached the spot where a bear had been digging yesterday.  We looked along the water's edge and he was nowhere to be seen.  Perhaps he had moved on.  We went a little higher up onto a rocky plateau and then all of a sudden there he was.  He was busy chewing away on something in the grass.  It seems his digging the day before has netted him a bit of a feast.  One of our guides suggested it was most likely part of a whale, perhaps a beluga.  The bear chewed his dinner for some time and then suddenly turned his back on us.  We got the hint and our Tundra Buggy decided it was time to move on.

 

  We had another great day out amongst the bears.  As we headed back we passed the buggy that had problems earlier. 

  They waved a wave that said they were all glad that our buggy drivers had come to their aid.  We waved a wave that said we were glad it didn't happen to us.  No one wanted to spend the night stuck out on the tundra.  Actually that's not true.  A night on the tundra does sound exciting, but only when it is properly planned for.

You can read about Day One here.

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Map of Our World
Tundra Buggy Tour , Tundra Buggy Tour (Digging Bear)

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Post # 100

M5 Industries

Location: San Francisco, California, USA
Address: 1268 Missouri Street
Date: Feb 2014
Website: www.m5industries.com

  When we were in San Francisco we stopped by the offices of M5 Industries Inc.  This is the company owned by Jamie Hyneman.  Together with Adam Savage he hosts the MythBusters television show.  Adam & Jamie are usually assisted by Kari, Grant and Tori.  This trio is often referred to as the Build Team.  On the show they test rumours or myths and use science to determine if they are plausible or busted.  The show has always proved entertaining and all of the personalities on the show are likeable and legitimately seem to be interested in what they are doing.  Another great thing about the show is that they like to blow things up.  Blow things up good.  They then like to replay the explosion in super slow motion so you can really get a good look.

  The offices are attached to the M5 workshop which is where a majority of the episodes are filmed.  When we arrived at the building some workers were outside repaving part of the front sidewalk.  Perhaps it was an experiment gone wrong, or maybe the destruction was intended.  It definitely reminded us of the Jimmy Hoffa episode where they buried two pigs in concrete very close to that spot.  It also reminded us of an episode where Jamie was buried alive while inside a coffin.  That myth was tested almost in exactly that spot.  In fact there have been numerous episodes where things have been dropped off of the roof or blown up in the garage doorway or tested in front of the wall with the M5 INDUSTRIES INC sign.
  The back lot of the building has also seen a fair bit of use, especially in the earlier episodes.  They shot a frozen chicken through the windshield of a plane and Jamie created an army of marching feet in an attempt to shake a bridge apart.  As time went on the Mythbusters myths grew in size and they spent more time out on the bomb range blowing things up or at the Alameda Runway crashing cars.  The Build Team also used a nearby location called M7 to conduct experiments.

  Mythbusters will be airing its final episode today (March 5, 2016) after about 13 seasons.  We are sad to see the show end, but the Mythbusters and the M5 building must be glad that they all made it in one piece after years of taking risks to entertain us.  Do not try what you saw on Mythbusters at home.  They are what you call experts.

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Map of Our World
M5 Industries , Alameda Runway , M7

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Post # 99

Tundra Buggy Tour (Day One)

Location: Churchill, Manitoba, Canada
Address: Churchill Wildlife Management Area
Date: Oct 2014
Website: www.everythingchurchill.com

  Most people come to Churchill with hopes of seeing a polar bear, but as you walk around the town you hope that you will not have an encounter with one of these giant predators.  The best way to see the bears is from the safety of a Tundra Buggy as it crawls across the rocky terrain of northern Manitoba.  A Tundra Buggy looks sort of like two school buses welded together and then put up on some giant wheels from a construction vehicle.  We spent two days inside one of these buggies in search of some big white bears.

  We first had to travel from our lodge on red school buses.  The buses took us into the Churchill Wildlife Management Area which was just outside of town.

  We then had to transfer directly from the bus into the safety of our Tundra Buggy under the watchful eye of our guide.  You never know when a bear may be nearby.

  The first thing we learned is that polar bears can hide surprisingly well on the tundra.   You would think that on a terrain that is mostly grey rock, orange moss, and shallow water, that these white animals would pop right out.  In most cases they do, but if a polar bear lays flat it can hide behind even the shortest of bushes.

 

  There are also many white rocks scattered across the tundra.  We had a fun time playing "Polar Bear or Rock".  Someone would shout out "Bear!" and all the binoculars and cameras would zoom in to inspect the area.  Coming to a conclusion proved rather difficult.  In one instance, after several minutes of observation,  our entire group had determined one white lump to be just a rock.  When we returned to that area later in the day we were surprised to see that the rock was walking around.

  So far we had only seen a few signs that the bears were there.  There were some tracks by the water's edge which were obviously made by some huge paws dragging across the sand.

  In fact there were more signs that other Tundra Buggies had been roaming around than bears.  There were huge tracks where a Tundra Buggy had taken a wrong turn and its tires had sunk deep into the muddy terrain.  Our Tundra Buggy had also headed into the same area and then wisely decided against that route.  We wondered what would happen if a Tundra Buggy broke down or got stuck in the mud or rocks?  On the second day of our tour we would get our answer.

  After much searching we learned that traveling in a Tundra Buggy looking for polar bears is a slow process that requires patience.  A glimpse of white was spotted up on a rocky edge.  Just as quickly it disappeared again.  A helicopter flying overhead turned towards the area.  We held our cameras up over our heads as high as we could and fired away.   A bear lifted its head above the rocks and looked straight up at  the helicopter.  Then just as quickly it was gone.  Perhaps it had wandered off down the rocks or just put its head down to take a nap.  At this time of year polar bears are saving their energy before they face a long hard winter trying to survive out on the sea ice.  As the water begins to freeze, more and more bears come to the shoreline waiting to step out onto the ice.

 
  We finally spotted an active polar bear out in the open, way over on the other side of the water.  Our guides let us know it may take about an hour to get over to where we could see him better and they could not guarantee the bear would still be there. We took our chances and after bumping and crawling along around to where the bear had been, we pulled up onto some rocks.

 

  Our gamble had paid off as the bear was still there busily digging through whatever had washed up on the shore.  You could see the grooves from where the bear had been digging most likely for many hours, if not for days.

  We spent some time admiring this bear at work and then it was time for our buggy to make the long trek back to our red school bus.  From there it was a drive back to our lodge for the night.  Tomorrow would be another day spent bouncing around the tundra in search of the bears and we could hardly wait.

You can read about Day Two here.

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Map of Our World
Tundra Buggy Tour , Tundra Buggy Tour (Digging Bear)

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Post # 98