August 6, 2011: Echo, Shasta and I headed to the mountains to survey the damages done to our little cabin by a black bear. According to witnesses, the bear came twice; the first time he entered through a window and the second time he just took the double French door down like it was made of paper. He emptied the refrigerator and most of the pantry, leaving a mess on the floor and walls. There were even paw prints on my bed. He ate everything except the dog food, so maybe I should change brands. His third visit happened when my son, Emile, was cleaning up. Emile was in the kitchen picking up empty containers when he heard a noise coming from the living room. The bear and Emile both looked at each other in shock. Emile had the presence of mind to grab pans to bang together, and the bear turned around and took off. This was the last time the bear was seen in the area. Great job, Emile!
Fish and Game came to investigate and decided to install a trap between our cabin and a neighbor’s cabin that the bear had also visited. The trap is a huge metal tube on wheels. The next morning we heard a metallic noise coming from the trap, so we all rushed to see if we’d caught a bear. The noise was very loud and the tube was shaking. We were moving carefully, in case the door of the trap wasn’t properly closed. About 20 feet from the trap, I saw a ball of fur inside the trap and I noticed that the door was open. Uh oh! I think I’m in big trouble, but then I see Echo’s big head emerging from the trap, licking his lips and wagging his tail. The trap was baited with marshmallows and Echo must have eaten the equivalent of two bags of large marshmallows. Fortunately, he was unable to trigger the door, so he just came out like nothing happened. With all that sugar, Echo had diarrhea for 3 days and 3 nights; I know, because I did the cleaning!
