You may recall that, whilst in Jasper, we chanced upon a rare and beautiful blonde grizzly bear (above) and were treated to a wonderful, uninterrupted time in her presence… Some of you may know that I spent many of my college years studying Himalayan black bears.. and later was fortunate enough to end up photographing Polar Bears in Northern Canada… so every bear is a very real treat for me! And to share this opportunity with the boys was magical!
I posted a photo of our young grizzly on a Facebook Page in Jasper…as part of a thank you to our hosts and, by chance, Steve Malcolm, a Human Wildlife Conflict Specialist with Parks Canada saw my photo. He recognised it instantly as a young grizzly cub born in Medicine Lake in 2017! A little cub he’d been fortunate enough to photograph alongside his mother! Since then no recorded sightings have been made… until now 😊 We shared photos and I literally nearly cried when I saw this one of Po, just a couple of years back… what a precious cub! (Yes! I am that stupid!).
Po as a cub, back in 2017. Photo courtesy of Steve Malcolm.Po under the watchful eye of his mother. Photo courtesy of Steve Malcolm.
The cub was affectionately named as Po, after the little panda in Kung Fu Panda – on account of his black eyes… and Steve was pleased to see they hadn’t faded in the two years since his birth…
The lure of valleys has bought Po down closer to Jasper… we saw him just outside of Maligne Canyon.
Our photos and the little video I recorded are now part of his records and hopefully, in the years ahead, this rare little fella will go from strength to strength!
Thank you Steve for sharing your knowledge and photos.
As mum to three sons (and auntie to ten!) Sacha is kept busy trying to keep the kids alive, safe, fed and watered.
Having specialised in Child Psychology and Linguistics at the University of Reading, Sacha went on to complete her Postgraduate Certificate in Education before taking up her first teaching post as Head of Boys Sport and Year 6 teacher. After 6 years, Sacha was fortunate enough to awarded a travelling fellowship from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, enabling her to undertake an extensive research project overseas. Sacha has worked with some of the world's top professional sports and educational institutions across Canada, America, Australia and New Zealand - researching ways of engaging young people through the medium of sport and in particular how this can help to reduce drug use and gang membership.
After returning to the UK Sacha became Education Director at Ipswich Town Football Club, leading in the government's 'Playing for Success' scheme. She went on to establish three highly respected Study Centres back in the East of England, each of which used sport as a means of motivating children and young people. After successfully completing her National Professional Qualification for Headship in Cambridge, Sacha went on to study for her Masters Degree in Education.
With the arrival of her three sons, Sacha decided it was time to 'go it alone.' She set up her own business consultancy, supporting a range of charities and organisations across the UK. Securing funds in excess of £2 million pounds, Sacha was able to 'give wings' to a wide range of charitable causes close to her heart. She continues this today with work specifically for Child First Trust.
It was her own kids that were the inspiration behind her establishing Learning Academies (www.learningacademies.co.uk) - a tutoring company that has the simple mission to motivate and encourage its students to become confident and assertive learners who are not afraid to 'take risks' and challenge themselves.
As a passionate photographer, Sacha is never more at home than when she's travelling, camera in hand, boys in tow. As a qualified medic with the British Divers Marine Life Rescue, she is able to combine her love the outdoors with her passion for wild animals.
View all posts by Sacha Brakenbury
You may recall that, whilst in Jasper, we chanced upon a rare and beautiful blonde grizzly bear (above) and were treated to a wonderful, uninterrupted time in her presence… Some of you may know that I spent many of my college years studying Himalayan black bears.. and later was fortunate enough to end up photographing Polar Bears in Northern Canada… so every bear is a very real treat for me! And to share this opportunity with the boys was magical!
Essex Boys in Canada 🇨🇦 