Places to see polar bears
Top 10 Places to see polar bears:
- Churchill, Manitoba, Canada
- Alaska, United States
- Svalbard, Norway
- Russia
- Greenland
- San Diego Zoo, San Diego, United States
- Polar voyages, Arctic Ocean
- Iceland
- Finland
- Polar Bears ice hockey team, Connecticut, New England, United States
Churchill, Manitoba, Canada
In autumn, scores of polar bears (Ursus maritimus, literally "sea bear") gather along Canada's Hudson Bay shore near Churchill to hunt for seals on the sea ice. You can get pretty close to them in giant tundra buggies. Pregnant female bears retreat to their dens in October and November to hibernate.
There is a giant mobile hotel that enables floodlit viewing at night. You may see the northern lights (aurora borealis).
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Alaska, United States
About 2,000 bears live in the eight million-acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge here. Pregnant females give birth in December or January. The cubs emerge from the dugouts in spring.
This protected wilderness area is scenic and has no roads. You can fly from Fairbanks to Fort Yukon, Kaktovik or Deadhorse, then board a smaller plane.
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Svalbard, Norway
Svalbard, an Arctic archipelago, is pretty remote, so it is best to take an organised tour; you can book anything from a day trip to an eight-day cruise in the capital, Longyearbyen. To get to Svarlbard fly from Tromso to Longyearbyen, or take the ferry in summer.
You should not travel alone here, and need to carry a firearm to protect yourself.
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Russia
Franz Josef Land, in the Russian Arctic Islands, has polar bears, seals and walruses. These 200 tiny islands weren't even discovered until the 1860s. 85% of the land is covered by glaciers.
Wrangel Island, in the East Siberian Sea, has a high number of polar bear denning sites. Flying is the usual way to travel, though trains do operate. However take your own food - shops are scarce.
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Greenland
The north-eastern part of Greenland is a protected national park that's bigger than England and France stuck together. Many polar bears live here, but some travel south, drifting on the field ice.
Greenland also has many walruses, seals, whales, reindeer, and musk oxen around Kangerlussuaq airport. The drawback with the national park is its remoteness researchers.
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San Diego Zoo, San Diego, United States
San Diego has a 2.2-acre summer tundra habitat for its polar bears with a 12ft-deep pool with an underwater viewing area. The bears can also fish for live trout.
The earliest recorded captive polar bear was in Egypt, where Ptolemy II had one in his private zoo. The Romans also kept them and used them in spectacles in amphitheatres.
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Polar voyages, Arctic Ocean
Most polar voyages by boat take between 30 and 130 passengers, and last for anything from 10 days to three weeks. On-board lectures will help you make the most of your trip.
There is a two-week cruise from Greenland to Churchill, Manitoba, in Canada, or a journey around Spitsbergen and Bear Island in the Norwegian Arctic.
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Iceland
Polar bears, which can cover an area of 100,000 square miles in a lifetime, wander this far south across the sea ice in very cold years. Bird colonies, numbering at least 60 species, also flourish here, including the lovable puffin.
The island of Grimsey is bisected by the Arctic Circle and here you can stay in the only settlement, Sandvik, and see the midnight sun.
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Finland
Visit the Ranua Arctic zoo in Finnish Lapland to see animals of the arctic including polar bears, brown bears and lynx. Twin female polar bear cubs arrived at the zoo from Germany in 2006.
Winter is the best time to visit as it is breeding season for the bears, and there also a chance to go snowmobiling. There's even elves at Christmas time.
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Polar Bears ice hockey team, Connecticut, New England, United States
Since their formation in 1985, the all-female Polar Bears have gone on to national and international victory. They play at a variety of rinks around the state.
Also in Connecticut, New Haven, home of rare books and historic buildings, is great for antique browsing. Check out the homes of authors Mark Twain and Harriet Beecher Stowe in Hartford.
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