Alberta photographer shares video of rare white grizzly bear

An Alberta photographer has captured video of a rare white grizzly bear in the Rockies.

Noel Rogers says he spotted the bear, known as Nakoda, while at Lake O'Hara in Yoho National Park in eastern British Columbia.

The video, which he shared to Facebook on June 5, shows Nakoda walking through a forested area beneath a mountain.

In  a phone interview, Rogers said he was sitting on a picnic table outside his Alpine Club of Canada hut around 2 p.m. on May 28, when he saw something.

"I didn't know it was a bear at first," Rogers said. "I thought it was a mountain goat."

"She was staring right at me. She looked healthy. We stared at each other for a good 10-15 seconds. I started talking to her a little," he said.

"We spent about five minutes together and I was in complete awe of her," Rogers said in an email to CTV News. "She is so beautiful and was so peaceful.

"Very sad to say, but Nakoda’s sibling was just killed on the highway a few days ago.”

Parks Canada says a grizzly this light in colour is rare, but it is not a form of albinism, since grizzlies can range in colour from black to this type of very light blond.

The large amount of snow still in the Lake O'Hara area, as is evident in the video, had prompted officials to cancel camping and hiking reservations until June 23.

"(It's) crazy how much snow is still left," Rogers said.

For more information on Roger's photography, you can visit his website.