HollyWritten By: Fran Cross
Home is where your heart is. When I moved from a big city to the country, it was a great impression. The right choice for my husband and me. We were ready for a change. It brought back great memories of my childhood living on a farm.
I’ll admit, when I first moved to the farm, there were a few re-adjustments that I had to make. Like, after 6:00 pm, everything closes. Can’t order that pizza you want after 6:00 pm. Or where did the internet go? Just had it not very good internet service in some spots up here. Or my fav one was septic what? Are you kidding me!!! But after the first year, I adjusted. I loved the fact that there was no complaining neighbors, could plant a garden and have fresh vegetables. Plus, the fantastic views I got to watch each day like sunrises and sunsets.
Another one that I got use to was seeing bears in my back yard and surrounding areas. I learnt how to deal with that too. The first year I saw a bear in my yard, it was, oh, my gosh! The mamma bear and cubs went by our trailer and cut across the yard and right to the barn. That was a rush. I was so excited to see one up close.
The next thing I knew our neighbors were calling my husband. They couldn’t leave their house. The mamma bear was there with her cubs. The cubs were up in the tree and wouldn’t come down. Karl went to the neighbors to see. The mamma bear was out of sight. But the cubs were still up in the tree. Karl told them, if you leave them alone they would eventually come down and leave. Which they did when they felt safe enough.
What should you do if you see a bear? If you see a bear before it notices you, stand still don’t approach and enjoy the moment. Then move away quietly in the opposite direction.
If you see a bear that’s aware of you. Don’t run. Back away slowly in the opposite direction. Running may trigger a chase response. Back away slowly in the opposite direction. Wait for the bear to leave. In all the years that I lived here. I never had that situation happen to me. I’m still cautious but probably more relaxed around bears then any average person because of my husband and my Outfitting business.
We deal with the bears in bear season year after year. We watch them and become familiar with their behavior and habit. Yes, I have a passion for bears and want to study them. I find them fascinating. One of my goals is to educate people on bears and to get them to understand them better. Bear with me..
