Yesterday I was sitting in my living room minding my own business and out of the corner of my eye saw something move on the edge of the ice pond. I expected to see a bird or squirrel or perhaps a jack rabbit. Turns out what I saw was none of these.
I bolted from the chair and ran to the other room to fetch my phone and started taking pictures like a sports photographer. I knew every photo was rubbish as I was at a terrible angle, shooting through the window glass and the light was less than optimal.
Then the moving target headed to the east side of the house. What made this event even more surprising was the time of day. It was high noon.
I slipped out the front door as quietly as I could and peeked around the corner. This is what I saw:
He didn't run immediately when he saw me. Which is not a good sign. Instead, he did a slow turn around and headed back in the direction he had come from. But not before I had time to get a closer shot.
Bears who learn to hang out around people and houses usually end up getting into trouble, which at the least ends up getting them relocated and at worst getting them killed. I didn't want to make him feel welcome at all. When he ambled back around the house, he hesitated for quite a few minutes, not wanting to leave the yard. I think he wanted to get a drink from the little fountain by the front porch. I'm glad I stopped him from doing that. I have no desire to have bears put my house on their rounds. Here's the last good photo of him before he dove over the edge into the ice pond area:
I went out the back door to see which direction he was headed and there was his sibling down by the blackberry patch. They worked their way around Mr. P's house and headed up the gully. The mother was nowhere to be seen. There is some speculation about them being orphaned as other people have seen them roaming alone. But this is not confirmed. However, seeing them in broad daylight alone, gives weight to that theory in my opinion. The drought conditions are making things difficult for all the wildlife around here. And seeing bear cubs right in my yard is proof of it. Ordinarily they would never be so bold.... or foolish.
Another reason to hope and pray for a wet winter this year.
