In Search of Coastal Wolves
In July 2026 we embarked on an epic adventure in search of coastal wolves along the northern reaches of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Catching a glimpse of the elusive and storied “sea wolf” was high on our “bucket-list”. With only three days we knew that we needed to carefully manage our expectations, but we were genuinely very happy just to be heading back out to the west coast.
The previous five-day trip had only seen one wolf
We met our outfitter/tour operator, Andrew and our fellow travelling companion Candace the night before departure. With a view to managing our expectations, Andrew informed us that the previous five-day trip had only seen one wolf on the morning of the last day. Candace asked if there was any chance of seeing wolf pups and Andrew gently informed us that it was likely too early to see any pups. After fitting and trying on our Mustang floataion/survival gear we returned to our hotel room and packed our gear for the next morning’s departure.
In the morning we linked up with our three amazing guides. All three were from local First Nations; two of whom were from the First Nation where we would be focusing our search for wolves. We would have three full days to look for wolves including two nights camping in a very comfortable, low-impact island campsite.
We encountered our first two wolves. It was amazing!
Now for the best part… Within 20 minutes of leaving the dock on day one, we encountered our first two wolves. It was amazing! Two females. They stayed close to shore, showing no concern with our presence on the near-by boat. It was the best photography conditions we would have all trip, a gentle swell, relatively close distances, great light and two very cooperative subjects. We stayed with them for about an hour as they foraged along the coast. It was amazing. The trip could have ended right there and I would have been happy and extremely grateful.
As it turned out we spotted wolves foraging the coastline at low tide within the first 30 minutes of each day. The highlight was our encounter with the main body of the pack on the second day, including five very young pups, all playing and howling on the sand and pebble covered beach. Big swells on the outer shores and greater distances made photography a bit more challenging and video almost all but impossible, but it was a once-in-a-lifetime encounter.
We were privileged to see 14 individual wolves
Over the three days we were privileged to see 14 individual wolves and we were lucky to have had multiple sightings of several individual wolves from the main pack. It was not just wolves, we also had amazing encounters with humpbacks, a grey whale, orcas, sea lions, so many sea otters with pups and countless birds.
The trips are not publically advertised
Out of concern for the well-being of the wolves and respect for the First Nations and their lands that the wolves inhabit, Andrew does not publicly advertise his trips. Feel free to reach out to me, if you are interested in contacting Andrew about one of his trips.
Side Trip with Anthony Bucci - Eagles Fishing
While our journey to the north end of Vancouver Island was primarily focussed on finding coastal wolves, we also spent a morning out on the water with Anthony Bucci, an award winning nature and wildlife photographer who conducts small boat-based marine wildlife tours out of Port McNeil. With him we had an awesome encounter with about 15-20 bald eagles fishing for herring. The eagles continued to fish for about 30 minutes and treated us to so many amazing sights.
Overall it was an amazing trip with so many fantastic wildlife encounters. We are so thankful for our amazing guides Thomas, Tyler and Will and our awesome travel companion Candace. We met as strangers and departed as friends.
For more photos check out our Coastal Wolf Gallery
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