Troutbirder II

Troutbirder II
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Friday, November 4, 2016

Fierce Animals She Has Known (Part III)

Mrs. T And The Bears:
Some years ago a thousand miles from home in Minnesota and fifty miles south of Big Timber, Montana, on a rutted gravel road we’d been headed south toward a beautiful Forest Service campground. It was the last one before the road ended in the Beartooth /Absaroka range north of Yellowstone National Park. The Boulder River is a prime trout-fishing destination. That was my goal. Then we spotted a red sign. "There are grizzly bears here?", Mrs. T queried. "Yes dear, but I will protect you," I replied. "I wanna go back home," she asserted firmly.

Near Darby, Montana, in the beautiful Bitterroot Range, at the Sam Billings Campground, we were just about ready to hike up a trail to the falls. "Are you sure there are no grizzly bears in these mountains?" "Yes, dear. There is a big controversy about bringing them back here, but it hasn’t happened yet, "  I informed her. "Well, Lucille (my sister in law) and I are going to wear bells just in case. To warn them off !" My brother smiled, and then I couldn’t help myself. "Err... I read there are a lot of mountain lions here though and tinkle bells really tick them off." "Whatever you jerk!"
A couple of years later we were about to launch our canoes from the landing, at Sawbill Campground, into the Boundary Waters Canoe Wilderness, for a week long trip along with our two teenage sons. It was at the landing where we encountered a returning couple. with a terrorized woman who informed Mrs T. that a black bear had eaten all their food. Then "we" decided to spend the week at the public campground instead of in the wilderness among the marauding bears….
Clearly this woman is deathly afraid of bears. Right? Wrong! It all depends on the circumstances. Camera in hand a magical transformation takes place... she suddenly becomes the wild bear paparazzi woman.

We are on a back road in Grand Teton National Park with my brother and sister-in-law. My brother is driving. As we come around a bend in the road he stops suddenly. There is an abandoned car blocking the road with the front door left open. I have seen this act before. Looking out into the woods I see  some guy stalking a grizzly bear.  Almost immediately I hear our rear door slam and my timid spouse, camera in hand, begins  following the idiot who abandoned his car in the road. "Come back," I yell from the road. "This could be dangerous" My brother later asked for copies of her shots of the apparently oblivious grizzly.
Ten years ago in Alaska, she rolled down the car window and leaned out, camera in hand. I suggested somewhat facetiously, "why don't you reach out and pet him dear. He certainly looks friendly enough." Fortunately, Mr. Bear ignored her....
 


Some, with flyrod in hand, are willing to take risks in search of Montana trout. I've seen more than a few paw marks along some streams.

Others, camera at the ready, look for the perfect shot. This is how it was among the Troutbirders.
 

19 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness. Trout, I couldn't help but laugh when I read, "Why don't you reach out and pet him, dear." :) Great photos.

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  2. I'm with you. we are aware but we don't let things completely interfere with our life. I HIKED IN THE ROCKIES FOR 30 YEARS AND NEVER SAW A BEAR. We saw some evidence of grizzlies.

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  3. I'm amongst the "terrified of bears" group. I am never at ease hiking in mountain areas. That said, I did chase a black bear off my porch when we lived in the U.P. Just instinct, I guess. But yep--afraid of them when walking in their home...........

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  4. It's all foreign to me.... where I live bears are animals seen in zoos. Some look so cuddly I could be forgiven for wanting to stroke. However, if I ever visit your part of the world I shall proceed with extreme caution. I enjoyed reading this post.

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  5. I am glad you survived all these terrible critters.I have had a few close encounters with cougars, but they seemed more afraid of me. Not sure what I would do with a bear, they do like to eat everything.

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  6. Well, this is kind of a delightful post.

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  7. Love the paw print, and the wonderful last picture of two fine people. :-)

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  8. I don't like bears, especially in our yard! Mrs T is braver than I am! I hope you are both well and enjoying the beautiful Minnesota November weather! I suppose when winter comes it will be with a storm every week:)

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  9. That's an entertaining post there, thank you.

    I never thought bears would be that dangerous until I came across some youtube videos of bear attacks. There's quite a few of them on there and some are dramatized to make bears seem really really scary. Whenever I'm in the woods however I find it difficult to get anywhere near wildlife of any kind. It always runs the other way as fast as it can. There are however, come to think of it, occasional bear maulings here in New Mexico, even the rare death, but in the mountains so they seem remote and far away, none so far in my back yard in Albuquerque.

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  10. What a great post! I've seen bears in Pennsylvania and they've been spotted locally. Yep, having a camera in hand makes one brave(or is it stupid?)

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  11. Wow, can't believe she actually stalked that bear. Bears fall in the same category as sharks to me. I stay out of their territory.

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  12. I remember the first time I went hiking in a park where there were warnings of bears - I kind of wanted to turn around - and those were black bears, not grizzlies! I love your spunk!

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  13. Mrs T, I think you are swell. I understand why you jumped out to get the pictures. You felt like you were watching a movie. Way to go!

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  14. No Troutbirders were harmed in the making of this post. Whew!

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  15. I'm loving all of these 'nature encounter' stories! Funny how a camera seems to give her a bit of 'strength'!

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  16. I am thankful that Mrs. T did not invite the bear into the car when she photographed that guy. Too close for comfort. Yikes!

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  17. Love your adventures.
    I shared your Mountain Lion lore with my boys. ;-)

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  18. You've had some great adventures in the wild. I guess we all have some combination of fear and fascination toward fierce wild creatures. In photo taking mode, the fascination sometimes overtakes the caution.

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