All language subtitles for The Polar Bear Family and Me 1of3 Spring 720p_Subtitles01.ENG

This bear is coming...
right up to me.

'My name is Gordon Buchanan.'

She is enormous.

'I'm a wildlife cameraman.'

Gosh! Look at the size
of those paws!

'I've spent my career getting close
to big predators.'

She is one of the most powerful
animals on the planet.

One of the most intimidating
animals on the planet.

'But I've never been this close.'

Ooh, not sure if I like that.

'I want to do something
that no-one has done before.

'Reveal the family life
of the world's largest carnivore.'

Look, look, look, look, look!

'From the first day
they emerge in spring...'

The face of a baby polar bear!

'..I'll follow their every move.'

Oh, look.

Pass over.

Hey, little bear. Fast asleep.

Aaah.

'I want to really
get to know these bears.'

How does that sound?

How does it sound
if I follow you around

and we become good friends,
until you get big enough to eat me?

'I've come to the Arctic

'to get closer to polar bears
than anyone before.'

'It's one of the most beautiful
places I've ever been.

'And the most extreme.'

There's an incredible amount of ice
on the front of the boat.

Every single wave that this boat has
hit on the journey here has kind of

come up into the air and instantly
frozen as soon as it hits the boat.

'To reach the bears, we've got
a difficult voyage ahead of us.'

Now that the boat is here
we have to prepare

for the next part of the journey,
which is to get rid of all this ice.

This is probably - no, definitely -
the coldest place I've ever been

but we've got to go,
we've got to get a hustle on.

We've got a days' worth of
travelling to go before we get into

the area where the polar bears are
denning and they're getting ready

to get up and get out, and we've got
to get there as fast as possible.

'Our destination is Edge Island
in eastern Svalbard.

'It's home to the world's densest
concentration of polar bears.'

'By following a family this year,

'I hope to help scientists
learn more about them.'

'We've come at a critical
moment in the Arctic's history.

'Since records began, there's
never been so little sea ice.

'It's April.
We should be making this journey

'across a completely frozen ocean
by snowmobile, and not by boat.'

We shouldn't even be able to take
a ship through here
at this time of year.

In 20 years of sailing these waters,

the ship's crew have never,
ever seen conditions like this.

So, whether it's global warming

or whether it's just freak weather
conditions, we don't know.

One thing we do know,
it makes for a very dangerous,

and very difficult
and incredibly slow journey.

'Captain, Bjorne Marvel,

'has never attempted to get to Edge
Island this early in the year.'

This is a new situation for me.

You shouldn't be here
in April at all.

In this area
there are heavy currents

and the...the ice is drifting
over the rocks.

If we get stopped in the ice
and drift into a rock, that's it.

'It's dangerous for us,
but it's disastrous for the bears.

'The sea ice is the polar bears'
hunting ground.

'It's where they catch
most of their prey - seals.

'But with less ice,
there are fewer seals

'and the bears are going hungry.'

'By following a family,
I'll be able to see first-hand,

'the effects of climate change
on these bears.

'If we can get there.'

'For four days, we try to pick
a path through the ice.

'It's a reminder of just how tough
this year is going to be.'

The captain's been trying to find
a channel through

and he's got us this far,
but we've...

got to a point where we're going
to find it very difficult to go on.

'The captain has wedged
the boat in the ice.

'This is as close to Edge Island
as we're going to get.

'We prepare to go ashore.

'Our plan is to find a polar bear
den as soon as possible.'

Yesterday, things were
looking pretty bleak.

Actually I thought we were
going to have to turn around

and head for home, but here we are.

We've managed to get in,
lodged ourselves in close to shore
so it's looking good.

We just have to get out there
and start looking for bears.

'Helping me find a den is polar bear
expert Jason Roberts.

'And it's a good thing he's here.'

Look, look, look, look, look!

'It's my very first polar bear.'

As is always the way, the animal
that you're looking for

more often finds you
than you finding it.

What a beautiful bear.

'It's also a potentially
deadly bear.'

No. No guns, no guns.

'Fortunately, there is no-one
who's had more experience

'in dealing with polar bears
than Jason.'

It's a three-to-five-year-old,
probably male
from the way it's acting

but its hard to tell at that age.
Most likely males.

It's more inquisitive than anything
and we're giving off so much smell.

But it's most likely easily scared,

just a bit of a bluff charge
and it'll scare it.

So do you find these young males are
potentially the problematic ones?

They are actually the ones that
do the most damage to people.

Completely unfazed by us.

Instead of running
and trying to get away,

they're coming straight towards us.

'Young bears can sometimes be
scared off by facing up to them.'

Hup!

Stay that distance.

I suppose he's a relatively
small polar bear,

but compared to us it's a big,
big animal. It's a big polar bear.

He'd still rip you to pieces
in seconds.

'This one's persistent.
He must be hungry.'

He's liking the smell.

HAND CLAPS

Thing is we can't let this bear
get too close.

'I've spent 20 years
filming dangerous predators.

'Normally I go looking for THEM.

'This is the first time they've
come looking for me.'

ENGINE STARTS

'The young bear moves on and I can
now concentrate on the next step -

'finding a den.'

'Edge Island's slopes
collect deep snow drifts.

'Perfect for mother bears
to dig dens.

'But finding one
is next to impossible.'

It is so tricky.

We're looking for
not for the bears themselves,

that'd be the easy part,
but these bears are in their dens

underground, so what we're looking
for is an indentation in the snow.

'It's caused by the body-warmth
of a bear underground,

'melting the snow above.

'But everything looks like it
could be a polar bear den to me.'

The good thing is
Jason's been here many times before

looking for polar bear
dens, so he's kind of...

he's the expert
and I'm the humble assistant.

But I think it's just
a case of keep searching.

'It can take weeks
to find a polar bear den.

'Time we just don't have.'

'After two days' searching,
we head inland.

'Finally, Jason spots a sign.'

We've just come up the valley,
over the top here

and Jason has stopped in front of me
and he's found a den.

Stay low.

You can see there's a hole

and just kind of a lot
of disturbance in the snow.

I don't know
if the bear is still there.

'I'll let Jason
go in front this time.'

Right, I'll be right behind you.
You'll be right... Right behind you.

And if she pops her head out,
the first thing we do

is just get down low
and not disturb her.

And we've both got signal pistols
so we can't hurt her,

but we can scare her
with an explosion pistol. So...

So what do you think her
reaction would be

if she popped her nose out
and saw us?

Most likely her reaction

if she popped her nose out would be
to pull back in if she sees us.

The den is a safety zone for her,

but I've had it once where she
just looked and went "Oh, dinner"

and shot out the den straight
after me and I was on skis then

so I just skied down to get away
from her but she come at full speed.

I reckon if there's a bear in there
it's going to have

maybe heard us, almost definitely
smelt us long before I got there.

It does seem a little bit crazy,
heading straight towards

a hole in the ground
that might contain a polar bear.

So it's an open den,

but I can't see if this is a track
coming down here or not.

'We're close enough.
Now the waiting begins.'

OK, we've got a hole, and not
a single track round about it,

but, erm, it's definitely
been made by a bear.

You see.

All that snow looks quite
fresh or recently excavated.

Now I just have to keep
training my binoculars on the hole

and hope that a face pokes out.

Or even better,
hope that several faces poke out.

Jason spotted this hole
from probably about a mile away

on the opposite side of the mountain

and we've got as close
as we really dare.

Look, look, look, look, look!

The face of a baby polar bear!

'I really can't believe we've found
a den with at least one cub.'

OK, just one. Look at that!

Oh, fantastic.

Great.

No sign of mum,

but she'll be down in the den.

But this is just perfect.

Exactly what we're looking for.

'I'm curious if there's another cub.

'When times are hard,
often only one will survive.'

This is the best thing ever, really.

After everything that we've been
through,

even at this early stage
of the project,

to be here sitting watching
a cub in its den is just brilliant.

'Eventually this cub will leave
the den with its mother.

'And when they go, I'll follow.

'It could be two days or two weeks.'

Absolutely nothing. We've been
here for about eight hours now.

'There's a mother bear in that den.

'I'd love see what condition
she's in.'

What's going on?
They're in no great rush, Jason. No.

It's a bit of a waiting game,
but the unfortunate thing

is that they're better than us
at waiting in the cold.

I suppose she's been in there
for months now so she's not going to

exactly run out and do the fandango
down the slope just cos we're here.

No.

'Jason's sure the cub
will stay put for the moment.

'So we head back to
the boat to thaw out.

'But on the way back,

'our snowmobiles attract interest
from a large male.'

OK.

Yeah, Jason he's coming, he's
coming, he's coming, he's coming.

'This is a big, confident bear.'

This bear, like every polar bear,
is intrinsically curious.

He's walked almost a whole
kilometre,

straight towards us,
just to check us out.

'All other species of bear
mostly eat plants and insects.

'Polar bears eat meat
and this one has his eye on me!'

We have to be primed and ready to
go, don't we? Yeah, we...

This is getting to a point
where it's a little bit dodgy.

This male is paying attention to us,
and to us only.

And he's not stopping. He's
getting closer and closer.

Look how close he is. Right there,
so we're going to have to

get ready to start the Skidoos
and get out of here.

OK he's getting to about,
what is he? Ten metres, not good.

OK, drive, drive, drive, drive,
drive! Go, go, go, go!

Slight disaster here.

This bear was paying us
too much attention

and we had to get out of it.
Hang on.

Not good. But that just shows you

they're animals that
we can't entirely trust.

Look at that. Unbelievable.

He got way too close there.

And even starting up the scooter,

something that would normally
put a bear off,

hasn't bothered him at all.

Jason's just going to see
if he can scare him off.

There you go.

There's a bear that was
thinking about food

and he saw us,
and we were on the menu.

In April, this male should
be hunting on the sea ice.

But behind him
there's mostly open water.

It's no surprise
that he meant business.

And he's still there,
still watching.

Hum, woooh!

That was about as close to
a polar bear as I want to get.

'But to really get to know
my family,

'I'm going to have to get
closer.'

'To do that safely,
I've brought a secret weapon...

'the Ice Cube.'

'Built of aluminium,
toughened plastic,

'a lot of nuts and bolts,

'it's been engineered to resist
polar bear attacks...

'hopefully!'

The whole idea with this is
the cameraman sits inside...

..doesn't forget to close the door,

and we wait for an obliging bear.

This, um,
really doesn't feel too safe.

I'm not worried about the bear
so much as the ice.

Big dark pools, you can see
right down into the depths

and if it tilts on the side
with the doors on,

there's absolutely no way
of getting out,

and I'm going to be stuck
in here just sinking into the ice.

'My biggest worry is the plastic.

'It gets brittle
when it's this cold.'

'Oskar is the strongest
crew member.'

It won't break.

I thought it won't break.

It won't break.

Any worries?

No, not at all.

I'm not going in it.

Why should I be worried?

That's reassuring(!)

'But before I risk life
and limb in the Ice Cube,

'I want to see what's happening
back at the den.

'Jason and I are keen to find out
if there's more than one cub.'

You can see...
look at his little face!

I reckon that's the same cub each
time that's poking its head out.

'Jason finds it easier to remember
bears if they have a name.

'This one, he's called Miki.'

Look at that! Oh!

Oh, very, very cute.

Wow, look, there's another cub!

Aw, this is going to be fantastic.

It is going to be so great.

'Jason's named this second cub Luca.

'Luca is slightly smaller
than Miki.'

You can already get an idea
of this cub's character.

It is much more interested in the
outside world than its sibling

and the other...the other cub

is probably just taking its lead
from its mother.

The mother hasn't got the slightest
bit of interest in looking out.

Not yet.

'And then...she appears!'

Oh, look! There's the mother.

'The mother must be hungry.

'She dug this den six months ago,
and hasn't eaten since.

'AND she's had Miki and Luca
to suckle.'

Whoa!

She's enormous.

She's huge.

The cubs are about the size of her
head, actually smaller than that.

'Jason's called her Lyra.

'For a hungry polar bear,
she's amazingly relaxed with us.

'She's adapted to survive long
periods without food. Unlike me!'

So we have, erm, this type of wild
casserole of reindeer meat,

and chicken and curry.

You've got the choice today.

Chicken would be good.

So, are we all ready
for a calorie boost?

I'm having to eat more calories
out here just to stay warm.

You think about the majority
of mammals - they coincide the birth

of their young with an abundance of
food, but not so with polar bears.

This female piled on pounds
way back last year

because she doesn't eat
for six months.

Literally, half of the year
she doesn't eat a single thing.

I think that is absolutely
astounding.

Mmm! That's pretty good actually.

Sorry, bear!

Sitting tucking into 500 calories
and you haven't eaten in months!

'As soon as Miki
and Luca are strong enough,

'Lyra must leave the den
in search of food.

'And that's when I could lose them
forever.

'To help me follow them,

'I'm joining forces with polar bear
biologist, Dr Jon Aars.'

Jon, hi!

Gordon, very good to meet you.
How are you?

How's it been going? OK-ish.
Yeah? Yeah.

This is a beautiful female.

Is she still around or...?

She's still around, up there
just on the side of that slope.

It's good because I think the cubs
seem to be ready and able,

and, erm, but she's...
she looks great.

'Jon uses the latest satellite
technology to track bears.

'We'll team up to follow Lyra.'

What useful work can I do and data
that I can feed back to you?

We are very eager to get
more information about the cubs.
If they, er...

If they survive or if they die, what
time of year they die for example.

I suppose it's amazing that you can
follow these bears with satellite

collars and get so much data,
but then I suppose there's nothing

quite like being able to actually
see them and see what's happened.

Yes, so it's a lot of information
you get by following the movement

but it's also a lot you miss when
you don't see the bear actually.

'Once Lyra has left the den, Jon
will fit a special satellite collar.

'While he tracks
the bears from his computer,

'I will be able to tell him exactly
what they're doing on the ground,

'which at the moment
isn't very much!

'While they sleep snugly,
we wait for them to reappear.

'But there might be a reason

'why Lyra and her cubs are staying
out of sight.

'Below them, is a large male.
And male bears sometimes eat cubs.

'Spring should be the easiest
time for polar bears.

'That's when baby seals are born
on the ice and are simple to catch.

'But this year, there's little ice,
so fewer seals.

'So, while Jason watches the den,

'I try to see
if this male is having any luck.'

Oh, sniffing down there.

Looks as if this bear's
hanging his head in shame.

But what he's doing is standing over
quite possibly an air hole,

a breathing hole for a seal.

And he's just peering down
at that hole,

thinking about how delicious
that seal might taste.

And this is polar bear
hunting strategy.

You think of predators,
sort of ambush, chase.

Not a polar bear.

They will just sit patiently
by a seal's breathing hole

and wait for that seal to come up
and take a breath.

And if it does...
they're straight onto it.

'Only about one in 20
seal hunts are successful.

'Waiting patiently is the best way
to conserve energy.'

Oh, he's seen something.

Oh, there he goes!

He missed.

Nothing that time.

I wonder.

I wonder if that was a seal
coming up.

There was definitely
something there.

'I'd love to film our bear family
close up.

'But they're tucked up in the den.

'So, instead, I'd like to test
the Ice Cube on another bear.'

'I drop it off by a seal's
breathing hole.

'It doesn't take long
before we spot a polar bear.'

OK, we've got a huge bear
coming round behind the boat.

Yes, there it is.

I'm just going to try and get into
the Ice Cube before it gets here.

'This could be the first time
anyone has had the chance to film

'a polar bear hunting
at close range.'

This bear is coming right up to me.

'Unfortunately,
it ignores the seal's breathing hole

'and heads straight for me.'

She's coming closer and closer.
Oh, my God!

She is enormous.

Jeez.

Gee-whizz.

Really it's why I've come here.

To see these animals.

To get to understand them.

See them up close.

Hey, bear.

Oh, my God.

She's right here. Hey, bear.

'The bear's nose is thousands
of times more powerful than mine.

'It's gathering
information before it approaches,

'like it would when stalking a seal.

'My scent is strongest
at the weakest point. The door.'

OK, just checking the lock.

'It's systematically
trying from all angles.'

Being this close,

you get an appreciation for what
this animal is.

It is one of the most powerful
animals on the planet.

One of the most intimidating
animals on the planet

and one of the few animals
that actually see us as food.

'The bear's nose has led it
to a gap.'

You can sniff me. Gosh, I could have
actually touched its nose.

It's giving a little.

She's feeling the pressure,

and she can actually feel
that Perspex is flexing.

She's trying to see
if she can crawl through it.

She's trying to see
if she can bite through it.

It's getting a little bit
hairy in here.

I can feel that he's just pushing
all his weight

against this side of the cube.

Oh, not sure if I like that.

Not sure if that's good.

Her best bet would be to get
her full weight on top of it,

just like she does when she's
breaking into seal lairs, and push.

OK, don't go on top.
On top's dangerous.

Look, it's just towering above me.

If I was to be standing
side-by-side with this animal,

it would be about seven feet tall.

Oh, you're gonna do it,
you're gonna do it.

Ooh-hoo-hoo! Hey, bear.

Every time she pushes,

every time she exerts a little bit
of force, she's using up calories.

Is there anything worth eating here?

Is there anything worth
using up her energy for?

Inside there is, definitely.

Little old me.

'Once it realises
it's too difficult to get in,

'the polar bear moves off.'

Definitely at this point, my fear
far outweighs my fascination.

This is closer to a polar bear than
I ever, ever imagined I'd ever get.

That's not something that I'm going
to want to do again in a hurry.

Definitely not.

If I can summon the courage again,
I'd like to see Lyra that close.

I was crapping myself throughout.

We were actually laughing a few
times, but at the same time...

It looked hilarious!

Well done!

Oh, we're so envious! So envious!

Pretty intense!

'I return to Lyra's den.

'I want to see
how the cubs are developing.

'My family seem incredibly
relaxed with me.'

Oh, look!

It is funny to think that
I'm as common a sight to this cub

as a mountain or a rock.

It is all that cub's known
for three and a half months

is the inside of this den.

And it is quite nice to think
that this cub thinks I belong here,

when I really don't.

The mother, on the other hand,

she may never even have seen
a human being.

She's constantly looking down at me

but she doesn't seem
to be overly concerned.

Polar bears are like people -

every one of them
has got a different personality.

She's not bothered by us.

'Miki's doing really well,
he's looking strong.

'Lyra tries leading her cubs
further from the den.

'She calls to Miki and Luca,
encouraging them to follow her.

'Miki leads the charge.

'Luca is less adventurous
and reluctant to go too far.

'Lyra is assessing when they'll
be strong enough to leave.'

Oh, wow!

HE LAUGHS

Just tobogganing down the
slope there!

This is just cubs playing,

but with every young animal,

every little bit of play
is an important lesson.

Over the next year, these
cubs are going to have to walk

hundreds of miles over snow and ice.

And this is the first time, really,

they've had the opportunity
to move around.

'It's great to see the cubs
so active.

'But we need to make a move too.

'The weather changes quickly
on Edge Island,

'so we have to leave our
polar bear family for the night.

'The captain is concerned
that the shifting ice

'could crush the ship,
and so he's leaving us here.

'We've got to take all the supplies
we need for the next few days.'

ENGINES ROAR

'As our boat steams
to the safety of open water,

'Jason's arranged for us to move to
new, "luxury" accommodation.'

How long has this been here for?

It was built in 1917,
the original cabin,

but of course it's been added on
and changed.

So it was built as a cabin
for trapping, for polar bear hunting.

The most important thing
I suppose working in the Arctic

is just having somewhere dry to go.

These polar bears can survive
out there

with nothing other than their coats
on their backs.

But for us, we need a little bit
more comfort.

Comfort is a relative
thing around here.

We can open the latch into there.

Lovely.

Really clean and snug.

There's not going to be
a bear in there, is there?

Nice.

Home sweet home, hey?

It feels fairly substantial
but there's kind of weak points.

The windows are the weak point

but also we'll store all our food
in the entry hall,

which is quite good because
it's like a freezer box

but it gives off a lot of smell

so that's also a danger zone that
a bear just comes through the door

and the doors are quite flimsy
and ends up in the entry hall.

So have you had any scary encounters

when you've actually been
in the cabin, and had polar bears
trying to get in?

Yeah, I've had it when
I've been inside the cabin.

It's strange. When you're alone
it's even more scary, but I've had it

when I've been alone and a bear's
knocked down the door and

all of a sudden standing in the
cabin, and you're inside the cabin.

Most of the time the bear
is as frightened of you

as you are of the bear, so it
pulls out and goes the other way.

So, a general rule to stick by

is that there could be a
polar bear anywhere at any time?

And it's not the bear that you see
that gets you.

'What a charming bedtime story(!)

'I'm not sure I'll get much sleep
tonight.'

'The next morning,
we are back at the den.

'The temperature has dropped,

'so we've built a snow wall
to protect us from the wind.

'We need to be here

'when Lyra leaves or there will
be no way of finding her again.'

This place is spectacularly
beautiful, but it's tough.

I don't feel at home here.

I can enjoy the beauty of it,

but there's no getting away from the
fact that this is a harsh place.

And I think experiencing this place,
and realising how harsh it is,

I have this growing respect
for these animals.

'Miki and Luca are amazing.

'They're so well adapted
to the cold.

'But to survive, they need to stay
with their mother

'for two and a half years.'

I think it's incredible to think
that within the next week

those cubs will be
following their mother.

They'll cover tens, hundreds
of miles.

'Lyra is starving.

'She's lost half her body weight
in the den.

'She must eat soon
or else her milk will run dry.'

You can see what she's doing.

She's taking the cubs
on their first real walk.

So far these cubs have just been
playing about the den entrance.

And now they're 50, 70 metres away.

'At any moment, I expect them
to turn round and head back.

'But Lyra just keeps on going.'

I think this is it.
She's definitely going.

In some ways, for a cub,
this is when life begins.

She's definitely going.

She's miles away from the den now.

She keeps looking back though.

She's thinking,

"Are these cubs ready
for this journey?"

She knows of all the dangers
that lie ahead.

Despite all of her hard work so far,

the most difficult part
of these cubs' lives is now.

They've left the safety
and security of the den.

Miki is keeping up.
But Luca is lagging behind.

The cubs' world has suddenly
expanded. It's not just the den.

It's not just this mountain.

Almost the whole of the Arctic
is their playground now.

And that is a place of...
great danger,

great hardship.

Lyra will have experienced
hard times before,

but this was the warmest
winter on record.

The retreating sea ice means it's
going to be the toughest year ever

for polar bear cubs.

Once the family leave Edge Island,
it will be impossible for me

to follow Lyra by snowmobile.

Even at this early age,

Miki and Luca can
travel 20 miles in a single day.

Her track's coming round
the mountainside,

taking her way across
the ridge there.

Trying to follow those tracks,

ideally I'd follow the tracks
very close to them.

But it's way too steep up there,
so I've come a lot further away.

And just hope I can pick them up
from here. And I can see them...

Hang on, hang on, hang on.

Oh, yeah, look, there we go. Look.

Hey, Papa Whiskey there,
it's Jason calling.

HE SPEAKS NORWEGIAN

'Jason lets the scientists know
that Lyra has left the den.'

OK.

HE SPEAKS NORWEGIAN

'Biologist Jon Aars

'hopes to put one of his
satellite-tracking collars on Lyra.'

This is tremendously exciting,

because, all going well, over
the next hour, this is the moment

that we should be able to follow
our female for the rest of the year.

Jason, Jason, Jason.

Can I get... Do you want me
to drive over? Yeah, please.

'Jon is hoping to shoot
a tranquilising dart

'from the helicopter.'

Plonk her anywhere.

That's cool.

She's wondering what on earth is
going on to get a helicopter

hovering overhead.

'Lyra has sniffed out an empty den.
The cubs are already inside.'

And for Jon to get a clear
shot of her

she's got to be out of that hole.

He's just hovering up there
and seeing what she does.

'Unfortunately, Lyra picks this
moment to disappear.

'There is nothing Jon Aars can do.'

RADIO CHATTER

HE SPEAKS NORWEGIAN

They're giving up. It's not good.

She didn't come out of the hole,

she's got to be out onto
the snow for them to get a clear

view of her, and they've just turned
round and come down.

And I think they'll be giving up.

'If they don't manage to
collar Lyra here,

'we'll probably lose her for good.

'Once she reaches
the remaining sea ice,

'it'll be impossible to land
a helicopter.'

I thought it was a good thing

that she'd gone into that hole and
stayed in this area,

but it would have been much better
maybe if she had kept on walking

and Jon could have picked her up
from the helicopter, and it's much

faster and easier to track from a
helicopter than it is by skidoo.

'This is a huge setback.

'While Jon waits for another chance,
I can check out Lyra's old den.

'The entrance has been covered up
with snow, so Jason checks

'that another bear hasn't taken up
residence in the meantime.'

You're going to have a listen?

Jason's just going to shove his ear
close to the hole to see

if he can hear anyone down there.

'I think I'll just let Jason make
sure that the den IS empty.'

Looks fine. Yeah? Looks good.

I can get a good look in there.
Heavens!

It's very small.

Much smaller than I'd imagined.

Incredible.
HE CHUCKLES

'No matter how cold outside,

'the den will always be at least
three degrees above freezing.'

Wow, look at this. Cosy, cosy.

It's really quite strange
sitting in here.

But you can imagine
when the cubs were born in here.

There could be storms raging
outside, yet inside this den

there's a mother bear with
two tiny cubs.

Completely safe inside.

You can see the whole inside of the
den has been sculpted

by her big claws,
and it's rock solid.

I can't even hardly make
a scratch in it.

These little...lovely little
Christmas-decoration-like jewels.

Each one of those is an individual
polar bear hair that's got

stuck to the ceiling
and become frosted.

'Jason gets a call from Jon that
Lyra is on the move.

'Bums on shovels is
the fastest way down.

'Jon is going to have one more
attempt to collar Lyra,

'while she's in the open.'

OK, we've got her, just up there
on that little escarpment.

This bear is giving us
the run-around.

It is a real rollercoaster ride,
this.

Every time I lose her,

I think that's the last time
I'm ever gonna see her.

'This will be our last chance.'

The helicopter's coming down
and getting closer to the bear.

She's... OK, she's moving
down the bank.

'The pilot coaxes Lyra to a safer
place to dart her.'

This really is our last chance now,

if we don't get her now
we've had it.

She's not making it easy for us.

The helicopter's just waiting
for an opportunity for her to be

in the right place,
somewhere they can land.

Somewhere they can get
a clear shot of her.

'It looks alarming, but
Jon has done this hundreds of times

'without causing any harm.'

She's got the dart in her,
she's got the dart in her.

We're just moving in to
where our bear is

and they've already started
the process.

She's only out for a relatively
short time

and it just allows
the scientists to do their work.

And then they'll be up and off.

'Lyra is one of 20 mother polar
bears being collared this year.

'Tracking them will give Jon
information about how far

'they roam and whether cubs like
Miki and Luca survive.'

I think she's pretty much
asleep now.

But it's good to be as much
as possible on the...back side.

I think she's going to sleep quite
well now, quite a while.

So how long will this process take?

I guess it would be...

It's quite strange being
so close to her.

Can I come in closer, Jon? Yeah.

JON SPEAKS NORWEGIAN

Hey, cubs.

Hello. Do you recognise me
or just recognise my smell?

'Miki and Luca are on a leash

'so they don't get separated from
their mum.'

CUBS GRUNT

GORDON CHUCKLES

They are looking quite relaxed now.

Actually, you look a little bit
different to you.

Are you a boy and you a girl?

Just going to measure your mother
and see how big she is.

Look at the job that she's done,
these cubs are in perfect health.

Incredibly healthy.

So how old is she?

Well, we guess that she might be,
you know, 14, 15, 16 years old.

Really?

'She's an experienced mother.

'So they will hopefully have
a better chance of surviving.'

'Jon is taking blood samples to
check Lyra's health.

'It's a fantastic opportunity for me
to examine a polar bear.'

Just being so close like this,
you can see how she's able to
live in this environment.

Her coat is...incredibly dense.

You've got all these guard hairs

and, underneath, this thick,
thick thatch of wool.

Her coat is actually very,
very cold on the outside and that's

because she's losing very little
heat from her body.

You can actually see how she's able
to grip even on very slippery ice.

Huge feet, and the pads of her feet
are incredibly textured.

Not rough, but velvety, with very,
very strong claws on the end.

Not just necessarily for catching
prey but for gripping

when she's climbing these slopes,
digging dens.

'Now it's Miki and Luca's turn
for a check-up.

'They're given a light sedative
and they'll snore through it all.'

Just lay her down
beside the other one?

Relax a bit.

CUB SNORES

And this will just keep her out
for as long as the mum's out?

Yeah, and also for us to...
take a couple of samples.

They are completely out.

'And while they're out we can check
whether they're girls or boys.'

This is a boy.

This is a boy as well.

OK, we've got two boys.

They've been
both sedated at the moment,

just like the mother, and there's
a little bit of work to do on them.

Take the weight, size,
measurements, and ear tag them.

'While these two snooze,
we measure them.

'In some regions of the Arctic,
cubs have been getting smaller.'

JON SPEAKS NORWEGIAN

'Keeping track of their size is
a good way to judge

'the health of the population.'

SNORING

'As they sleep off their sedative,

'there's time for Jon to fit Lyra's
satellite collar.'

So is the collar already fired
and sending up to the satellite?

Yes, actually it's been sending for
quite a few days, so it's started.

It should send one e-mail every four
hour and tell where the bear is.

'The collar is surprisingly light.'

It's only females that you collar?
You can't collar the males?

You can't. Because the neck is
wider than the head.

So they would just take
the collar off.

'A satellite collar with this range
and accuracy

'has never been available before.

'For the first time we'll be able to
follow a polar bear family.'

And it is a little bit of relief
that I'll be able to find out

what happens to these cubs.

What I'm hoping to do is follow
these three

throughout the rest of this year.

The most difficult year
of these cubs' lives.

And that's something that no-one
has ever done before.

How does that sound?

How does it sound
if I follow you around?

That would be nice, wouldn't it?
That would be very nice.

We could become good friends, until
you get big enough to eat me.

'It's been amazing to get this close
to my bear family.'

Well, thanks. Thank you.
Thank you very much.

Well done.

'Jon's field season is over.

'Once Lyra wakes up, she
and her cubs will join other bears

'out on the remains of the sea ice.

'For the next six weeks it will be
impossible for me

'to follow them there.

'The ice is too dangerous
to travel over.

'But as soon as there's
enough open water

'I'll be able to return
with the boat

'and find them with Jon's collar.

'For now, all I can do is enjoy
my last glimpse as they head off.'

Oh, there she is, there she is!

It is epic to see these tiny animals
just setting out on this journey.

HE CHUCKLES

Look at them go.

They are...an amazing little duo.

'The first phase of my project
has been a success.'

Look at that, ohhh.

Oh, very, very cute.

'I've found a polar bear family and
I've been with Miki and Luca

'from the moment
they first emerged from the den.

'I'm part of these cubs' lives.

'And they are part of mine.

'But it's going to be the most
challenging year ever

'for polar bears.

'This is where the drama
really begins.'

'In the next programme,
we brave the hazards of the sea ice,

'as the cubs get their first taste
of arctic waters.'

Wow, here he goes,
here he goes. Big leap, splash.

That is great.

'As do I.

'Bears descend to the hunting
grounds en masse.'

That's amazing, we've got how many?
Three, six, seven bears.

'And I get to know Lyra...'

She is completely tolerant, really
happy for me to be 100 metres away.

'..a little too well.'

OK, there she is, you see.
She's still coming towards us.

Never let a polar bear
get between you and your boat.

'And in the hardest
season for polar bears...'

About half of all polar bear cubs
don't even make it

past their first year.

'..I'll find out if Miki and Luca
can beat the odds.'

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd