This thirsty looking boy was a young adult bear I watched grow from a gangly looking sub-adult of four or five into the bulky looking eight year old we see here. When I came across him on this occasion, he was taking a drink from the estuary and didn’t seem too bothered by our presence. As I’ve mentioned before, the Khutzeymateen estuary is tidal, but the top two or three feet are actually fresh, fed from the Khutzeymateen river and for the wildlife in the area seems good to drink, but I’ve tasted it and even at the surface it is still quite brackish for our taste.