DAVID BURKE
Geoff Gerhart works as a fishing guide, and also helps guide bear tours with Squamish-based researcher Michael Allen’s company in Whistler. An avid naturalist, he has spent a lot of time in nature. But it didn’t entirely prepare him for what he saw last week along the Upper Squamish River — an experience he called “intergalactic.”
The Whistler resident was fishing alone last Thursday (May 3) when he came up on shore and, scanning the sandy river bank nearby, he spotted what he initially thought was a bear. Upon closer inspection it was a dark-coloured wolf — a member of a pack of between six and eight of the elusive creatures.
“It was about 9 or 10 a.m. and I was trying to be as quiet as I could because I wanted to see an elk or deer and take a picture of it. I had my rod in my hand and I was moving away from the river into the forest, heading toward a dried-up river channel,” he said.
When Gerhart first realized what it was, he sensed right away that he was in no danger.
“I saw this one animal and at first I thought it was a black bear. I started moving and it stopped and looked right at me,” he said. “When you look at that animal, and if you’re experienced with wildlife, there was no way that animal was coming toward me. But it definitely knew I was there.”
After spotting Gerhart, the wolf walked over toward a sandy area among the trees where a number of others were sleeping, he said. The group immediately stood up, looked around and then began walking away in different directions. The entire sighting probably lasted a minute and a half — not even time for Gerhart to get close enough for a photo.
Gerhart couldn’t quite count them, but two or three were either slate black or charcoal brown, one was the same colour as a husky dog and at least one was tan-coloured, almost like a golden retriever, he said. A few minutes after they scattered into the woods, the group started howling — probably in an effort to communicate their locations and get back together, he said.
It was a beautiful sound, Gerhart said — nothing like that of a coyote.
“Coyotes sing,” Gerhart said. “They’re like rappers and wolves are like classical music. Some are deep and some are a little more high-pitched, but it’s always that long howl instead of a bark like a coyote.”
Sgt. Peter Busink of the B.C. Conservation Officer Service admitted that he’s fairly new to the area but that he hasn’t heard of another report of wolf sightings in the Squamish area since his arrival a few months ago.
“Typically wolves are fairly elusive and tend to stay away from people and populated areas. We haven’t heard of any recent encounters,” Busink said.
Those who do spot wolves are urged to record the locations and report the sighting via the Ministry of Environment hotline at 1-877-952-7277 or #7277 on a cellphone. Busink urged those who spot wolves to give them lots of space and to keep pets on leash to reduce the odds of a dangerous encounter.
Gerhart said he didn’t want to provide the exact spot where he saw the wolves out of fear that someone with ill intentions might go looking for them. And he definitely thinks they should be treated with reverence.
“It was really… spiritual, or whatever you want to call it. Intergalactic,” he said. “I just think they’re not to be feared — just give them their space and respect them.”