Wildlife Photographer Captures Sweet Shots of Polar Bear Families Playing in the Snow
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A wildlife photographer endured frigid temperatures and bumpy roads to capture a series of charming polar bear pictures. The shots show polar bear moms caring for their cubs — including letting their babies use them as a climbing frame.
Wildlife photographer Paul Goldstein spotted the antics of the polar bear families while visiting Canada's Baffin Island in March.
"Minus 30 degrees is brutal but well worth the bumpy Skidoo journey for hours when the rewards are this spectacular," London-based Goldstein told SWNS about the conditions he experienced photographing the animals.
The photographer added that getting to where the polar bears roam in Canada's Nunavut province took "several flights a long way North and a long journey overland to a special camp."
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Goldstein said he was given "no guarantees" that he would see any polar bears, so he is grateful that the local Innuit trackers guiding him made the moments he captured on film possible.
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"There is nothing normal about standing on a frozen fjord, hours from any habitation, flanked by 10,000-year-old grounded icebergs. This is the realm of the bear, and this early spring expedition tries to find them when cubs are fresh from the den," Goldstein said of the trip to see the bears, adding that he was able to photograph "two different families."
"I have been doing this job for over 25 years, and this is right up there," he said. "Bearly believable, my toes are still frozen!"
