ChrisJackson
05-31-2016, 08:43
Was camped at Wolf Laurel Top Saturday (~1/2-way between Neel & Hogpen). Lazy Sunday morning, saw a half-dozen hikers- spoke to two. Just taking it easy and trying to finish a book so I was getting a pretty late start.
So, finally got my pack on at 9:45 and I'm doing a 360 to make sure I have everything and I think, "Let's check out the view one more time before heading out..."
I turn around and 15 yards from me, 5 feet from the rock most people stand on to take a picture is a bear. He's propped up on his back legs, behind a bush, staring at me. I'm dumbstruck.
He must have cast some kind of ancient ursine spell on me because I was frozen. I wasn't scared because I didn't have time to get scared. I was just good old-fashioned dumbstruck.
We just stand there for about 5 seconds looking at each other, he blinks once (we were that close!), then he very slowly twists to his left and goes down on all fours, and starts moseying away.
You could have knocked me over with a feather. So, now my brain starts to process messages again and I think, "...Okay, this is where you start to backpedal and motor down the trail".
But I backpedal at a 45 degree angle because I want to intersect with the little trail he's on because I just have to see him one more time. When I get there sure enough- there's his big-bear-butt slowly heading off...but, lo and behold- another bear ahead of him that I never saw pops her head up (and stands on her back legs) and looks at me for about 5 seconds. He's kind of waiting on her to get an eyeful- then she goes back down on her front legs and they both head off.
It then occurs to me that someone should be taking pictures. Then I realize that person must be me. So I grab the iphone from my ribz pack and unlock it successfully on the first attempt which was amazing in and of itself because I was a bit excited.
The picture's no good, but the first bear is in there just northeast of the center. His ears and nose can be made out...he's kinda looking to his left.
I was completely amazed at how close he got to me. Literally 15 yards, no embellishment there. If this same thing would have happened at say...40 or 50 yards, I'd (probably) not bother to mention it.
I'm pretty quiet by nature- but I don't think he was unaware of my presence, which would seem to defy what we think we know about their olfactory sense. After thinking about it, I've resolved he was just a slightly bold, curious bear?
Hiked back to Woody Gap in a euphoric state.
(I regard Wolf Laurel Top as a rarely used campsite. No water and thick, long grass everywhere anyone would put a tent. Also, my gender specific pronouns above are purely guesses, to me they seemed like brother and sister...of course I have no idea. They seemed to be healthy to my untrained eye- they weren't the least bit scrawny. I'd reckon they were 30 pounds or so above "slender".)
Interesting tidbit: the book I finished that morning was written by Ursula K. Le Guin. What a coincidence!
35025
So, finally got my pack on at 9:45 and I'm doing a 360 to make sure I have everything and I think, "Let's check out the view one more time before heading out..."
I turn around and 15 yards from me, 5 feet from the rock most people stand on to take a picture is a bear. He's propped up on his back legs, behind a bush, staring at me. I'm dumbstruck.
He must have cast some kind of ancient ursine spell on me because I was frozen. I wasn't scared because I didn't have time to get scared. I was just good old-fashioned dumbstruck.
We just stand there for about 5 seconds looking at each other, he blinks once (we were that close!), then he very slowly twists to his left and goes down on all fours, and starts moseying away.
You could have knocked me over with a feather. So, now my brain starts to process messages again and I think, "...Okay, this is where you start to backpedal and motor down the trail".
But I backpedal at a 45 degree angle because I want to intersect with the little trail he's on because I just have to see him one more time. When I get there sure enough- there's his big-bear-butt slowly heading off...but, lo and behold- another bear ahead of him that I never saw pops her head up (and stands on her back legs) and looks at me for about 5 seconds. He's kind of waiting on her to get an eyeful- then she goes back down on her front legs and they both head off.
It then occurs to me that someone should be taking pictures. Then I realize that person must be me. So I grab the iphone from my ribz pack and unlock it successfully on the first attempt which was amazing in and of itself because I was a bit excited.
The picture's no good, but the first bear is in there just northeast of the center. His ears and nose can be made out...he's kinda looking to his left.
I was completely amazed at how close he got to me. Literally 15 yards, no embellishment there. If this same thing would have happened at say...40 or 50 yards, I'd (probably) not bother to mention it.
I'm pretty quiet by nature- but I don't think he was unaware of my presence, which would seem to defy what we think we know about their olfactory sense. After thinking about it, I've resolved he was just a slightly bold, curious bear?
Hiked back to Woody Gap in a euphoric state.
(I regard Wolf Laurel Top as a rarely used campsite. No water and thick, long grass everywhere anyone would put a tent. Also, my gender specific pronouns above are purely guesses, to me they seemed like brother and sister...of course I have no idea. They seemed to be healthy to my untrained eye- they weren't the least bit scrawny. I'd reckon they were 30 pounds or so above "slender".)
Interesting tidbit: the book I finished that morning was written by Ursula K. Le Guin. What a coincidence!
35025