Bears a plenty

Shortly after we moved to NY, our new neighbor told us that there was a neighborhood bear. For five years, I hoped to see it. On my very last morning as a New Yorker, I had to slow down for a bear running across the road. Funny how these things often happen when you’ve stopped waiting for your wish to be granted.

So, we’re driving to Mount Rushmore and are nearing the entrance when I see a big sign up ahead. Bear Country, U.S.A. next right. Bears? That we can see up close and personal from the comfort of our air-conditioned car? What could be better?

This was not one of the things on our to-do list for the day. I ask if he wants to go, he asks if I want to go, we go back and forth for a minute. The turnoff is right there and I make the decision and turn in. It’s early morning so there aren’t a lot of cars ahead of us in line. As we pay our money, they give us directions about leaving the windows rolled up at all times. They also tell us what to do in case of car problems. Do not leave the car for any reason! Thanks people, that seems pretty obvious to me, even without instructions. But, I’ll consider myself warned.

We pass by some elk, reindeer, pronghorn antelope, and others before we reach the main event, the bears. There are black bears. There are grizzly bears. There are bears everywhere! At least 25-30 of them and they are right there for us to enjoy. Even Mr. C is snapping photos with his little camera that has seen the light of day only one other time on this trip. One big black bear walks right past his window. Good thing we follow directions and keep it rolled up because after two weeks of practically living in the car, it smells an awful lot like food. If that bear could smell the popcorn littering the floor around Mr. C’s feet, he would want to come in for a snack.

We drive through slowly and enjoy the antics of the bears. Most are sleeping, but towards the end we see something very strange. At first, we don’t discuss it. We each watch and wait for confirmation. We are approaching a large bear from behind. He’s sitting up and looking a lot like he’s, erm… meditating. He doesn’t move a single inch in the entire time we approach; I am convinced he’s not real. About the time I come to this conclusion, Mr. C actually says it out loud. Have they put a giant stuffed bear into the enclosure? Why would they do that? Then, we round a corner and see him head on. He’s real! He’s just sitting in the sun relaxing in the most charming position of all. We agree, this is our favorite bear.

After we finish our driving tour, we get out to see the other animals in enclosures. There are lynx, bobcats, otters (we love otters!), a badger, raccoons, and more. But, all the way at the end of the walkway, we find more bears. Baby bears. Ohhh! They are so cute! They are very small and they are working the huge crowd that has formed to admire them.

Mr. C starts bugging me for an ice cream from the nearby stand. Don’t judge me, we’re on vacation. Does it really matter if I buy him an ice cream at 10:00 in the morning? I’m reading the menu board and see that they sell cups of food to feed the baby bears. I can feed them!

Once the babies realize you are throwing them carrots, blackberries and small food pellets, they begin their show. They tumble around trying to get to you first. They stand on their hind legs and reach up with their little paws to entice you to feed them, and only them. It’s pretty hard to resist.

If I’m being completely honest with myself, I’m not sure how I feel about places like this. I’m not sure that it’s really ok to keep animals in these types of enclosures just so we can drive past them and take a zillion photos. But, we do have fun. And, we get to see a lot of animals up close that we’ve never seen before. Perhaps if it encourages more people to see animals as a valuable part of our world and helps us to think more about how to protect that world, it’s a good thing. At least that’s what I’ll tell myself again the next time we come across a place like this.