All language subtitles for Travel.Quest.With.Bill.Ball.S02E08.CONVERT.1080p.HDTV.H264-CBFM

BILL BALL: I have always wanted
to learn and help in the conservation

of endangered species.

One of the most rewarding aspects
of my job

is seeing change for the better

of flora and fauna numbers.

There is probably no animal
more affected by climate change

than the polar bear.

I have always wanted to see
these giant carnivores

in their natural environment.

I learned there is one place
that these bears congregate

during a very specific time of year.

That is Churchill, Manitoba,
in Canada.

So, it is time
for me to put my parka on

and head to the polar bear capital
of the world

to fulfil
another of my childhood quests -

seeing the great white bear
in the wild.

(THEME MUSIC PLAYS)

Since I was young

I had an intense desire
to discover the world around me.

That hasn't changed,

just the level of adventure.

Now every journey has a purpose

and each time I venture out

to explore new destinations
around the globe

I am following my travel quest.

There are no direct flights
into Churchill,

so, all trips start in Winnipeg.

Winnipeg is the largest city and
capital of the province of Manitoba.

Situated at the confluence
of the Assiniboine and Red Rivers,

it was once a major stop
on the Western movement of goods

up until the opening
of the Panama Canal.

The city faltered for some time

until manufacturing and agriculture
brought it back to prominence.

Today, Winnipeg is a vibrant city

with some of the most exciting
attractions and buildings

in the world.

The centrepiece
of this newer tourist orientation

is the Museum of Human Rights,

opened at the end of 2014.

The museum is unique with its focus
on Canadian and world politics

and how it relates
to individual rights and freedoms.

In architecturally sharp contrast

to the ultra-modern
Museum of Human Rights

is the equally impressive
neoclassical provincial capital.

This huge building holds the offices

of the legislative and executive
branch of Manitoba's government.

Completed in 1920,

it features Golden Boy,

a gold-leaf-covered bronze that
is modelled on the mythical Mercury.

The dome is over 250 feet tall,

punctuating the splendour of this
monument to provincial governance.

At the base of the great staircase
stand bison, the symbol of Manitoba.

Winnipeg is a multicultural city

with large populations
of Chinese, Indians and French.

In the French Quarter

a unique, redeveloped and
reconstructed St Boniface Cathedral

is well worth a visit.

This cathedral is the sixth version
of this religious icon.

The fifth version
was preserved as a facade

to keep the historic context.

The charm of Winnipeg extends
into its sculptural park, Leo Mol,

featuring sculptures of the namesake
Ukrainian Canadian artist.

He was born in the Russian Empire,

where he got his first taste of art
in his father's pottery workshop.

Many of Mol's works are
in this three-acre sculptural garden

in Assiniboine Park.

Opened in 1992,
Mol donated the featured sculptures.

He died in 2009.

With virtually no scheduled flights
to Churchill,

the main way to get there
is by charter plane.

Most of the tour operators
who do the polar bear trips

arrange those flights
as part of their package.

You cannot drive there.
There are no roads to Churchill.

There is a train,
but it takes two days

to cover the 620 miles from Winnipeg.

As I mentioned, the charters
are part of pre-arranged packages

that include
the transport to Churchill, hotel,

the tundra buggy
used to observe the bears,

some meals and other activities.

Due to the huge demand

during the narrow peak window -
mid-October to mid-November -

these packages control the rooms,
restaurants and vehicles in town,

so, booking a tour with an operator
is essential.

For my purposes,
I use Frontiers North,

the largest operator
of polar bear tours.

Though there are no hotels
at the luxury level,

all are nice, clean
and run by friendly locals.

But no-one goes to Churchill
for the rooms.

You go to see polar bears,

and that is how we begin our visit.

We went straight from the airport
to the tundra buggy.

So, we're going in to buggy 17.

The tundra buggies are
specially built buses on giant wheels

with incredible suspension
for the gravel trails.

And calling them 'trails'

is a generous term
for the tracks we follow.

These buggies
have a washroom, seats for 40 people

and a porch for outside viewing.

The windows conveniently open

so the camera-toting
wildlife enthusiast

can stay warm and
take intimate photos of the bears.

So, with eight of my friends in tow,

we set out to view
the biggest predator on earth.

Yes, polar bears
are larger than lions or tigers

and are true carnivores,

eating primarily seals
they catch out on the sea ice.

Well, when there IS sea ice, that is.

The ice thaws by July

and the bears are landlocked
until it freezes up again

in mid to late November.

That is why we are here
at Churchill.

This inlet of the Hudson Bay
freezes first,

so, the bears can head out
and start hunting.

But why does this inlet
freeze first?

It is because the Churchill River
flows into the Hudson.

Like all rivers, it is freshwater,
which freezes at 32 degrees,

while saltwater freezes at 28.

Because this water
is first to freeze

the bears start gathering here
in October

and stay
until the first sea ice forms.

Churchill has dubbed itself
'Polar Bear Capital of the World'

and can rightfully claim that title
due to that freezing water floe.

(THEME MUSIC PLAYS)

BILL BALL:
I had convinced my friends to join

based on delivering them
multiple polar bears,

and, over an hour into our drive,
not only were there no polar bears,

but the high Arctic landscape
is not much to look at either.

I was beginning to think
that a tundra-buggy revolt

was only a few minutes away.

I was getting very desperate
for a bear.

And then I saw
what was either a white rock

or could it be?

Yes! A polar bear!

I know that I shouldn't have doubted
the polar bear capital of the world,

but bears are wild,

and wild is unpredictable.

There are a couple of ways
to determine sex

in the great white bear.

First, the males are much larger
with very thick necks.

Of course, much larger
is hard to say without comparison.

And it helps
to have an experienced driver

who's seen plenty
of male and female bears.

One thing
researchers look at specifically

is the general appearance
of the bears.

They have really
not eaten much since July

when they had
their last seal a-la-mode,

so, they won't be massive in size.

Yet they are big,
and this one looks pretty good.

And, looking closer, I notice nearby,

in fact,
literally just a few feet away

is another male.

Polar bears, especially males,

would normally
not tolerate one another this close.

But there is nothing
to fight for or over.

It isn't mating season.
That comes in the spring.

There's no food.

They need to conserve their energy
until they do eat.

And it is hot for polar bears.

It is 27 degrees out
with a wind chill closer to five.

But that is a lazy-day-at-the-beach
temperature to a polar bear.

It's time to leave these two guys
behind and look for new ones

and try to capture those on film.

Our International Polar Bear
Ambassador, JoAnne,

explained to us a bit

about how global warming
affects the fragile Arctic ecosystem.

Tell me a little bit
about Polar Bears International.

Polar Bears International
is the only non-profit

conservation organisation
in the world

that is dedicated solely

to the conservation
of polar bears and their habitat.

What kind of things do they do?

We sponsor

educational programs out here.

We have... We fundraise
for research all over the world.

Human-bear conflict resolution.

We also work very closely
with our Arctic Ambassador Centers,

which are scattered
throughout zoos and aquariums

throughout North America.

And it's all about
a collaborative effort

to save this fragile ecosystem.

Now, you've been out here
for 18 years -

you must have seen some changes

in the polar bear populations
and their behaviour.

What have you seen?

That has started to become
one of the more difficult parts

of this special opportunity I have
here with Polar Bears International.

Climate change is having a definite
impact on this population.

Through research that Polar Bears
International has funded

we have seen in the last five years

this population
has decreased by 18%.

Wh... In five years it's dropped 18%?

In five years.

When I first started coming up here

we would often talk about that we
were seeing declines in the sea ice.

And this population was estimated to
be about 1,200 bears at that time.

Over the next decade or so

the population decreased
by about 20%

and went down to about 1,000 bears.

Interestingly, at that time,
the sea ice time...

Sea ice?
The sea ice on the Hudson Bay

decreased by the same amount,
the same percentage of 20%.

Really?

Dramatic, though, in the last five
years the changes that we've seen.

It's way too fast
for any animal to adapt to.

Now, from what I understand,
some of the things you've seen

is that the younger bears, which
are the future of the population,

are actually decreasing in numbers.

Is that true?
Absolutely.

In any species,
your most vulnerable of a population

are your youngest and your oldest
in that population.

We don't see yearling cubs
so much anymore.

We do, however,
if we see family groups,

we do see moms with cubs
of the year, or what we call 'COY'.

What that's saying to us

is that those cubs of the year

are not surviving
into their next year.

Alright, so, it sounds that
we've got a challenge in front of us,

but there is hope.

Absolutely there's hope.

We know from climate models,

we know from looking historically
back at polar bears

when they have survived
through interglacial periods

that they can do it.

We just have to help them do it now.

The difference is the speed
at which we're heating up

versus the natural cycle
would be much slower.

And, speaking of natural cycles,

we should be in a cooling period,
not warming, at this time.

Actions taken now
can help the polar bear.

We banned DDT

and eagles, peregrine falcons
and osprey numbers are increasing.

We banned fluorocarbons
and aerosol sprays

and the ozone is shrinking.

Slowly, but it's going
in the right direction.

And we halted the damage
to our forest from acid rain

by cleaning up factory emissions.

Judging from the reaction
of my friends

as we have spotted another bear,

it would be worth some sacrifice

to have polar bears to see.

This is probably a subadult male,
judging by its neck.

It's smelling the air regularly -
a common polar bear trick.

Polar bears live by their noses.

Some scientists say that
they can detect a seal under the ice

up to 20 miles away.

This is a vital skill
all polar bears must hone to survive.

As the day progresses, we spot
several polar bears, 12 to be exact,

though a few are so far away

that even sexing them
would be difficult,

let alone filming them.

Polar bears
aren't the only mammals out here.

A small carnivore
often follows the bear out on the ice

to eat their scraps.

The Arctic fox serves
as the clean-up crew on the ice,

sort of like a vulture.

Oh, but way cuter.

Measuring about two feet long,

they are well-adapted
to the harsh Arctic conditions

with their thick, warm fur.

Talking about their fur,

most Arctic fox
change colour by the season.

Brown and grey in summer,
and, like this one, white in winter.

This gives them the camouflage

from predators
like eagles, wolves and red fox

and the ability to sneak up on
their prey, small mammals and birds,

when they aren't scavenging.

All in all, we had a great day!

It would have been
barely worth coming

if we had not at least seen one bear.

It was un-bear-lievable, though,
how many we saw.

I thank my friends
for bear-ing with me

as we called it a day

because I can be
un-bear-able at times.

There is more to Churchill
than polar bears,

though that is the biggest
draw for tourists.

The town has quite a lot to offer
its residents, all 899 of them.

In what the locals call
the town centre,

it has nearly everything
a city needs -

the hospital, grade school,
high school, public swimming pool,

bowling alley, curling rink,
ice-skating rink and the post office.

It was built for 10,000

with the idea
the town would grow like crazy.

It didn't happen.

So, there is plenty of space
for anyone or anything.

A few years ago
a local artist suggested

many of the old, bland-looking
buildings be given a facelift

by inviting 17 artists from
around the world to paint murals.

The 17 plus the local artist

created some of the most beautiful
and locally relevant art

I have seen anywhere.

Many of these murals

were painted on some of the few
surviving buildings

of the American Strategic Air Command

opened with Canadian permission
in 1942.

It is that connection
to one of the buildings,

formerly a military morgue
called Building D,

that shook our morning.

The building is now, ironically,

helping the living to keep on living.

This building is the polar bear jail.

When a bear will not leave the city
by being frightened off

by the polar bear patrol - a part
of the government of Churchill -

or returns,

it is tranquillised and put in jail.

Before the jail's establishment
in 1982,

the trouble bears were often shot.

On a routine tour of the city

my friends and I spot
a large subadult bear

in the tundra buggy lot.

The adventure began with our driver
calling in the bear's location

to the bear patrol.

No worries. It appears
like he's walking back away now.

So, we're going to kind of see
what he's up to.

Within a few seconds,

the special bear-patrol trucks
converge on the wayward bear

and attempt to drive it off.

This is something
tourists hardly ever see!

And it was happening
right in front of us.

In fact, we would be the impetus
by spotting him inside the town site.

If the bear doesn't cooperate,

it could escalate
into a dangerous and nasty situation.

The drama unfolded in front of me,

and I couldn't help but wonder

if this encounter
was going to turn deadly.

Because he's close to the water

they're going
to try to get him INTO the water...

TOURIST: Oh.

..because when a polar bear
gets into the water,

usually that means that they are
just going to kind of keep on going.

But now this guy
is coming back towards town...

Yeah.

..so, that kind of
creates a problem.

So, if the bear
keeps on coming towards town,

no matter if they scare him or not,

then they would tranquillise him
and they'd send him to jail.

The patrol's first line of defence
is to scare the bear away.

Sirens, lights and air cannons

that create gun sounds
and a light flash are used.

This works with most bears

and they quickly hightail it
out of town.

Apparently this was not working,

since the patrol kept firing.

We couldn't get too close
for fear of impeding the operation.

Our driver, Joe, is, as all
the locals are, big fans of these men

that risk their lives to save
the lives of people and bears.

We learn by radio broadcast

that the bear is hunkering down
and not leaving.

The patrol will wait for now

to see if the bear
will get up and move out of town

or must be tranquillised
and put in the bear jail.

In the meantime
we move on to Cape Merry.

Cape Merry was a fur-trading post
as far back as 1717.

The cape is named for
Hudson Bay Company Deputy Governor,

Captain John Merry.

That strategic point on the Hudson
Bay changed Churchill's economy.

Once the major employer,

Fort Churchill
is now second to tourism.

Yet it is still a vital part
of the Churchill landscape,

employing 10% of the population

and serving
as the distribution centre

for grains brought in from
wide-ranging agricultural lands

via the train

and sold throughout the world,

transported by ships
on the Hudson Bay to the Atlantic.

Our next stop
was the fabled bear jail,

or officially called
the Polar Bear Holding Facility,

to see if our bear
was going to be there.

The bear didn't cooperate,
he didn't swim out of the town,

so they had to knock him out.

They brought him here,

and here he'll sit in bear jail

for the next 30 days
or until the ice freezes,

whichever comes first.

And then they release him
and he goes on his way.

I hope bears don't carry grudges

or call their friends
to seek revenge

because we are heading
to our final activity of the day

and it could involve bears
with nowhere to hide.

(THEME MUSIC PLAYS)

BILL BALL: I was going to get to ride
in a dog sled.

These specially designed sleds
allow one person to stand -

how cool is that?! -

and one less adventurous to sit.

As the sleds are being readied
to take off, the dogs go nuts.

(DOGS BARK)
These dogs, all mixed breeds,

want to pull.

(DOGS BARK)
Man, do they want to pull!

They go nuts
trying to get selected for the team.

Here, pick me!

Pick me!

No! Pick me!

Don't let anyone tell you
sled dogs are mistreated.

They want to pull
more than anything else.

The vast majority of owners
treat the dogs like family.

It was my turn
on the snow-skimming device.

This was one of the most fun and
educational activities I have done.

I learned
there are not only lead dogs

but pivot dogs right behind the lead

that help the leaders,
sort of co-captains.

These are followed by the team dogs
that put the muscle in,

and finally ending with the wheel
dogs right in front of the sled

that are the strongest

since they must put up with
all the debris that gets kicked up.

Watching them work as a unit
was fascinating.

It was great to get a glimpse

into the lives
of the residents of Churchill.

But bears is what brought us here,

and though my first day in Churchill
on the tundra buggy was exciting,

we never saw a young cub
or bear interactions.

A radio report comes in
about a female and a COY.

COYs are the cubs of the year.

These were born this season.

They are very dependent on Mom

not only for nourishment
but also for protection.

The big males won't hesitate
to kill one for a quick snack.

Sure enough,
ahead is a mother and a youngster.

He's a big COY, one of the biggest
our driver has seen.

That is a promising sign
that the mom is doing a good job.

He has one advantage -
he's an only cub.

Mom can devote
all of her time and milk to him.

Polar bears
can have up to three cubs at a time,

though that's quite rare.

Most females
deliver either twins or a single cub.

With one of my goals seeing
a female and young out of the way,

it's time to turn our attention
to the males

and their sparring ritual.

Up ahead I think I can see a couple
of bears approaching each other.

This might just be
what I came to see.

Males seem to love to fight.

Sometimes it is clearly a ritual
and it is obvious neither gets hurt,

while other times it does not appear
to be mock-fighting.

It's hard to imagine these more
intense battles not leaving scars,

much like this one.

But it appears
to be bloodless battles

to predetermine rank and order once
the bears make it out onto the ice.

The real scar-causing fights
are, I have been told, over females.

Now, how could I
have not guessed that?

Just because the pecking order
is established here,

it doesn't stay that way.

Good hunting could move a smaller
male up the proverbial ladder

as he gains weight and strength.

Polar bears do not mate for life,

so, current conditions
make all the difference in the world.

Females will mate
with a few top fit males.

Of course, no-one really will know
who the cub is.

The female must protect
her one to three youngsters

from marauding males
that will kill them.

I wanted to see sparring,

and in this one location

I could see several bears fighting
over imaginary females and food.

I had hit the jackpot.

I had come out here to see
how the bear population was doing

and found some sobering news.

This was certainly not
what I would have liked to hear,

but there is hope.

I saw 12 bears on my first day out

and an astonishing 32 bears
on my second day.

So, though the population
has taken some major hits,

there are still
many healthy bears and youngsters

for the next generation.

But we must begin to address
the global-warming problem now

before we move
beyond the tipping point.

I would hate to think

that the next generation

will miss out
on seeing these magnificent beasts.

I couldn't imagine Churchill

as anything
but the land of the polar bear.