Okay....so we live in bear country.... Jon and I hiked up and past the Anthracite Pass trail. Once we dropped down into the next valley, we were in the Ragged Wilderness area. We were still on the trail but it was not a heavily hiked trail. But again the scenery was, of course breathtaking.

Anyway as many of you may have guessed by now I have gotten into wildflower identification. So the trail was full of Mountain Lupin blooming everywhere. After we had our sandwich, I told Jon I was going just a little further up the trail but not too far. The path (a single person path) suddenly had this beautiful collection of Mountain Lupin on one side with the white bark Aspen on the other side. So I just had to get a couple of photos! Not that I even come close to being a photographer.

As I was getting a few photos I heard a huge thrashing of the undergrowth below the trail. I thought to myself, "Wow that is one large animal!" Then I got a little concerned when it seemed to be getting closer. Mind you the creature was moving quite fast. Then I heard the huffing and snorting of the animal and it did not sound too friendly; not that I am fluent in animal talk. So I am pretty sure a bear was headed toward me.

I responded......I backed a little further up the hill (to look bigger, I read somewhere that might help). I called out to Jon in a calm, that I did not feel, sort of loud voice. "Jon, I need a little help. Jon a bear is after me! A little help please and could you hurry?" He responded, "really? Do you see him?" I then yelled out my usual mountain wild life I am here call, WOOOOHOOOO! The large creature finally stopped whatever it was doing and I heard no further sound.

Jon arrived on the scene and again wanted to know if I saw him. Now I am still standing up the hill a little and looked at him wondering if he truly knew what just happened. He goes on to tell me that he had heard the creature as well and would like to see it and yes he did think that the creature was upset and perhaps letting me know that. I responded that I certainly DID NOT WANT TO SEE HIM! I led back in the direction that we had come from, telling him to stay close and in military terms to watch our 6s!! His next response was," good thing we don't have grizzlies here!" What can I say, he was right about that!

Once I got home I looked up Black Bear encounters and am pretty sure that he was doing what is called a "bluff attack" which means that he was warning me to get out of his territory. And to my dismay, in my shock I did what the internet said I should do. Do you think the internet has really ever encountered a creature in the wild?

Well anyway God took real good care of us and for that I am truly grateful!!!