What began as a project documenting the lives of black bears in the remote boreal forests of Northern Alberta evolved into a deeply personal exploration of family, grief, and resilience for Canadian author Trina Moyles. Her new memoir, Black Bear: A Story of Siblinghood and Survival, weaves together natural history and intimate autobiography, revealing unexpected parallels between the wild creatures she watched and her own human experience.
A Remote Tower and Unlikely Neighbours
While stationed at a solitary fire lookout tower in northern Alberta, Trina Moyles found herself sharing the vast wilderness with a significant population of black bears. Her initial encounters were marked by a mix of fascination and fear. From her aerial vantage point, she observed a formidable mother bear and her cubs, who displayed a notable indifference to her presence.
Frustration soon set in, leading Moyles to attempt to scare the bears away. She resorted to banging pots, using air horns, and even firing rubber bullets at the mother bear—an action she admits she did not feel good about afterward. For a time, the bears felt like a nuisance disrupting her isolation.
An Evolving Perspective on Wilderness
Over time, Moyles' attitude underwent a profound shift. The frustration lifted, replaced by a growing obsession. She began naming the bears and found unexpected solace in their consistent presence. Her detailed observations from a safe distance became a central part of her daily life, to the point where friends expressed concern about her deepening fixation while living alone in the woods.
"That was totally legit," Moyles acknowledged with a laugh during an interview with Postmedia from her home in Whitehorse, Yukon. "I felt a lot of love in that concern." This connection to bears was, in part, a family inheritance. Her father, a wildlife biologist nicknamed "the bear guy," had introduced her to them early. When Moyles was just five years old, her father brought an orphaned bear cub to their home near Peace River for the family to care for temporarily.
Cubs, Siblings, and a Story of Survival
The heart of the book crystallized as Moyles watched two sibling bear cubs navigate the forest after being weaned and nudged toward independence by their mother. She was struck by how they faced the world as a team, their bond making them bolder and more resilient. This dynamic echoed powerfully in her own life.
Moyles opens her memoir by recounting her idyllic, adventure-filled childhood with her older brother, Brendan, near Peace River. Their close bond mirrored the supportive relationship she witnessed between the bear siblings. "As I was working on the book, I talked to a bear biologist and bear-viewing guide, and he said you can see the difference between cubs who don’t have a sibling and cubs that do," Moyles explained. "Cubs with siblings embolden one another. They take more risks. They back each other up. That is so true to the human sibling experience, too."
Thus, a study of wildlife transformed into a poignant narrative about human connection, loss, and the enduring strength found in siblinghood. The book, published in early 2024, launched with an event in Calgary at the Memorial Park Library on January 15, 2024, as part of Wordfest. Through her unique perspective from the Alberta lookout, Trina Moyles delivers a story that is as much about surviving the wilderness of the heart as it is about understanding the black bears of the North.
