Hearing from Buoy\u2019s Bestie (Oh, She is So Lucky…)<\/p>\n
The aforementioned Hailey Robinson, who goes where Buoy goes, was in the water with Buoy and Hayden. She was glad for the bear-school training as the traveling party deplaned.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’m in the water, three, maybe four feet to Buoy\u2019s right,\u201d said Robinson or, err, Hailey (maybe if go on a first-name basis, we will feel closer to Buoy that way). \u201cWe all kind of got quiet when we heard the guides tell John, \u2018We\u2019ve got to break off your line, because John actually had a fish on the line.\u2019 The guides broke off and had us start moving across the river [to the opposite shore]. During bear school, they said, \u2018Do not run, walk calmly. Just be as chill as you can. I just kept telling myself, \u2018You just have to be chill.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n
Seems harder in the moment with a bear looking like he might charge for an even closer look and whiff at Buoy. But this is why and how best friends stick together.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we flew up to Brooks Falls, we knew we would see bears,\u201d said Hailey. \u201cWe just didn’t know they would get that close…I think the bear just wanted to be friends, but who knows what was really going on in that bear\u2019s head? … I do think there was interest in Buoy. The guides made a joking comment later \u2013 but there\u2019s probably some truth to it \u2013 that if Buoy was all pink and looked more like a salmon, we might have been in more that trouble than we were. Plus, don\u2019t forget Buoy has to take bigger, splashier steps than a human [causing the bear to associate the sound with salmon jumping].\u201d<\/p>\n
Making a Cameo Appearance<\/p>\n
Kraken colleague Tyler Deloach was in the water too \u2013 senior manager of fan development is always on the lookout for future followers, but maybe not this time? She, too, has a story to tell and can be spotted in a cameo role in the viral video when crossing in front of the camera on her way to safety.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we went out into the water, the bears were pretty far away, so we were focused on fishing,\u201d said Deloach, taking a few moments from a busy Thursday in which she was hosting an Elliott Bay Marina party. \u201cI was looking through my camera lens, so I didn’t hear or see the bear until he was fairly close [with a hump on its neck and back, the bear was deemed male]. He was so quiet and quick despite the fact that he was huge. Our guides were incredibly calm, though, and handled the situation so well.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn’t realize how close he was until we watched the videos a few hours later,\u201d she added. \u201cIn the moment, my only thought was not to fall while wading in the water and walking on the uneven stones. It was a bit scary, but I think the bear was just curious! As soon as our guides shouted, he lost interest. It was an unforgettable experience, and a good reminder of how impressive bears–and all wild animals\u2014 are.\u201d<\/p>\n
Deloach said while the Kraken video has entertained millions (and counting), Buoy & Hayden\u2019s Bear Adventure unknowingly put on a live show.<\/p>\n
\u201cLater in the day as we were walking through the park,\u201d said Deloach, \u201cseveral people who were standing on the lookout approached us and told us they saw the whole encounter. Some even sent us videos they took from the lookout. They told us how afraid they were for us, even though they got a laugh out of it once everyone was safe!\u201d<\/p>\n
Last But Not at All Least: Campers Digging Buoy, Hayden<\/p>\n
When John Hayden agreed to talk about Buoy and the bear, his first comments were squarely focused on the Kraken Week at the Anchorage Hockey Academy camp, a continuation of the annual Bristol Bay Native Corporation trip coordinated by partnerships director Melissa O\u2019Brochta.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the Kraken called me about being part of the week-long camp, I said I was glad to do it,\u201d said Hayden, who re-signed with the Kraken on a two-year NHL contract this summer. \u201cIt was a great time, and everyone loved Buoy. I also met with Caleb Seidl [three years old] as part of his Make-A-Wish visit to see a Kraken game and meet the team this coming January.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Hearing from Buoy\u2019s Bestie (Oh, She is So Lucky…) The aforementioned Hailey Robinson, who goes where Buoy goes,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":53441,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[49,48,66,323],"class_list":{"0":"post-53440","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wildlife","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-science","11":"tag-wildlife"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53440","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53440"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53440\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53441"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53440"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53440"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53440"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}