Whistler Memories / Bear Sighting

Heading north on the 99 from Vancouver, you enter the jaw-dropping Canadian Rockies, and after an hour and a half or so, you've wound your way to the mecca: Whistler. The last time I was here was with Aunt Jean and G4. Jean took George and I on a four day blast of a ski-trip that included some big laughs, some of the best powder of the decade, and an alleged fire-alarm pulling incident. Jean was convinced the cousins had perpetrated the act. There was no proof of any foul-play, but the memories brought back a smile.

So in the midst of reminiscing, two cars ahead of me hit the breaks and there ahead is what looks like a black monkey on the side of the road. I've never seen a bear outside of a zoo or movies, but this wasn't what I expected. I guess it was either a small adult or a cub. He quickly ambled off into the brush and disappeared.

Bears had to be a part of this trip (there are at least 120,000 of them in British Columbia alone, and then there's Alaska...), but I guess I didn't expect to see one so soon. Expect the unexpected, right? Reality check number one: Expect bears, anytime. And apply appropriate respect.

I spent that night worrying some little bear was going to go for my teriyaki jerky (double bagged in the cab of my truck).

PS: I think I got some bits of video of the bear... I was taping at the time. I'll try to upload some video soon.

Pics:

Whistler/Blackcomb turns into a mountain biker's paradise in the Summer:








Camping at Nairn Falls near Pemberton (few miles from Whistler):