Saturday Stories. #29

Please Note: There may be dragonfly photos in today’s post, in case you do not like such insect pictures.

Good morning everyone! Saturday is here once again, the sun is shining and it is warm already. The temperature could climb up to 93F (34C) today, and tomorrow could see us going as high as 103F (39C). Maybe. Forecasts are not always correct. One summer day a couple years ago it was also hot, but at that time I was living in a different place, as most of you know.

Walking down the path to the river.

So, I was close to the river back then, about a two km walk round trip. It was a great path for photography purposes, though the last couple of years did see an increase in bear activity in the area. There always were bears around, I saw various signs of bear activity right from the first summer I started walking to the river. But, bears generally stay away from people, at least that is what we are constantly being taught.

A large, old log ripped apart by a bear. It was fine the day before.

It doesn’t always work that way however. Bears living close to a community like ours quickly lose their fear of people because they learn that if there are people around, then there must be food around too. I never carried food with me when walking to the river. Well, except for peanuts which I brought for Scramble, my little squirrel friend.

I imagine he isn’t alive anymore, they have a rather short life span of maybe 4 or 5 years at most. There are always exceptions to that rule though. Anyway, it could be argued that peanuts are food, and they do have a strong smell to them, so that even after I give them to Scramble, the smell of peanuts remains in my pockets.

Scramble at his home along the path.

Anyway, I went walking to the river on that hot summer day and managed to spot a few things along the way. The water was high that year due to an overabundance of rain. Down at the river it was hard to hear anything due to the roaring of the water. Actually, it was impossible to hear anything. That part I didn’t like so much.

Hairy Beardtongue. These wildflowers thrived in a couple of locations along the river path.

I like to hear things, like large animals (think bears) walking through the underbrush. Like one day I am sitting there watching the pelicans on the other side of the river. Suddenly I felt the nose of a large animal poking at my back. I think my heart began beating about 10 times faster than normal at that point.

I wasn’t sure if I should just faint (not a good idea if it’s a black bear), or perhaps just take a big leap across the river (I might make it about 4 feet, so also not a good idea), or maybe climb the nearest pine tree with the speed of a squirrel (I wouldn’t make it to the lowest branch with the speed of a snail, so also not a good idea). It turned out to be Junior, one of my deer friends which I have known since he was a fawn.

Springtime Darner dragonfly. These dragonflies are common from mid May to early July.

Only took about half an hour for my heart to settle down again. Sigh. I decided to leave and return another day. Actually, it was the next day. I liked it down there, always lots to see and photograph. I will share a few pictures from that summer. Walking along the sidewalks here is just not the same, in many ways.

Oh well. We still have bears here though, so that part is the same. I hope you all have a great weekend and God bless!

Steve and Muffin.

©2024 Steve McLeod.