May 7
I live in a remote area near Mt. Rainier, in Washington State. My ten acre property is a certified wildlife sanctuary and I often see deer, elk and rabbits. Once I saw a porcupine. I have used my woods and the area around my home as the setting for several books, including Spy Cat, The Ghost’s Grave, The Hideout, and Trapped.
Today I had a new visitor – a black bear! I didn’t see him or her, but I saw the wet paw prints on my front porch early this morning. I feed Mr. Stray, a feral cat, on the porch and the bear must have smelled the cat food bowl. The bear had also removed one of my bird feeders from its post; the feeder was broken open and lying on the ground.
I compared the paw prints to pictures in a book of animal tracks and there is no doubt that this was a black bear. I researched black bears on the Internet today and learned that they are not aggressive and they eat mostly seeds, nuts and berries. So I hope Mr. Stray is safe!
I love sharing my property with the wild animals.