. >> southwest barter island. the village of kaktovik, alaska, population, 239. a stark and striking landscape but not quite the snow blanketed mountains you might expect in the arctic. a change that has reached into all corners of life here. it's not long before we see what we came for. we left the shore three minutes ago. and already, there are four polar bears, right there, swimming in the water. that's incredible. what are we? 50 feet from them? we're pretty darn close. bears. a mother with her triplets. these bears, a drab shade of brown. wearing the signs of spending so much time on muddy land. >> wow! >> so they're playing with each other. >> our captain says these bears are here because they are waiting for the sea ice to return. the frozen surface of the arctic ocean where they spend most of the year feeding on seals. >> they know they have a long wait. >> until the freeze up, they scavenge on the remains of the whales the people must hunt to survive here. >> how long will the bears linger? >> they will hang out here until mid-november. and then when the

islands below. a white bear. >> southwest barter island.illage of kaktovik alaska population 239. a stark a striking landscape but not quite thenow blaeted mountains you might expect in the a change that haseached into all corners of life here. it's not long before we see w we came for. we left the shore three minutes ago. andalready, polarwater. incredible. what are we? 50 feet fromthem? we're pretty darn close. one, two, four polar bears. a mother with hertriplets. thesebears, a drab shade of br the signspending so much time on muddy land. >> wow! >> so with each other. >> our captain says these here because they are waiting for the s ice to return.rozen surface of the arctic ocear feeding on seals. >> they know they have a long wait. >> until the freeze up they scavenge on theremainse whales the must hunt to survive here. how long will the bears li out here until mid-november. an when the forming out in the ocean, when that starts happening, the seals go on the ice. soolar bears get their se on the ice. if that ice is not there, they get nothing. >> the bears used to spend just