When Nature Found Me

This post was written by Lora Barrett, a northern California mother of two who loves to learn through exploration. She visited one of my favorite spots recently, Yosemite National Park, and was nice enough to share a very special story from that trip. You can find more of her adventures and family travel ideas on her blog, Tripping with Kids. 

“What kind of animals do you think we’ll see?” I asked my kids as we began preparing for our Yosemite trip. Getting them excited about a trip is one of my favorite parts of vacation planning.

“A cow!”

“Sheep!” 

You could almost see them going through their mental rolodex of farm animals. At ages 3 and 5, I suppose these constitute “wild” animals for them.

“Maybe a deer?” I tried to lead them toward forest animals. “Maybe a bear?”

“I DON’T WANT TO SEE A BEAR!” My youngest, Josh, became immediately concerned. Time to backtrack.

“Well I have never seen a bear at Yosemite. They are very shy animals. We will probably see lots of chipmunks. Small chipmunks. Very cute chipmunks.” Josh seemed relieved.

It was a safe bet that we would not see any bears in Yosemite. Although black bears are an integral part of the Sierra Nevada ecosystem, they are not much into crowds. That said, they are quite intelligent and, like most animals, food motivated. Once they learn that human food is readily available and tasty, they begin seeking out campsites to supplement their diet. Yosemite tries to protect against this by providing numerous bear-proof metal boxes in which to store your food. Also, signs posted everywhere warn campers against leaving food unattended. There have been occasional stories from fellow campers who have heard a bear roaming through their campsite during the night, but a close-up bear encounter is not very common.

Fast forward to our trip. We hit some of the usual hot spots: Yosemite Falls, Happy Isles and Mariposa Grove. We attempted to swing by Glacier Point, a spot well-known for its grand vista.

The parking lot was too crowded for us to find a spot, so we found another turn-out nearby and tried to get a not-quite-as-grand view. A short walk from our parking spot brought us to a rock large enough for all of us to enjoy the view.  Just as I was posing with Josh for a picture, my oldest, Ryan, yelled “BEAR!”

Sure enough, about 50 feet beyond our rock was a cinnamon colored bear, moseying along a thin trail that led through the bushes below us. If that sight wasn’t stunning enough, when she reached a clearing we could see two small, fuzzy cubs following behind her. Trying to use the most casual voice I could muster, I said out loud, “Nobody move.”

The mama bear acknowledged our presence with a whiff in our direction, but quickly became more interested in taking her kids to dinner at a half fallen tree off to our left. They scratched a bit at the trunk and roots, then moved on behind us and out of sight.

Though there wasn’t any moment the bear gave us reason to worry, the hair on my neck still stood up to see such a powerful animal up close. We were in her territory, and in truth, at the mercy of her good mood. I think my perception of our trip changed a bit following that moment.

In my view Yosemite became not as much a vacation destination which holds beautiful landscapes, but more a habitat to many incredible creatures. I may not see them frequently, but I am still a guest in their home. I think my next trip will focus less on taking pictures of the dramatic scenery and instead I will pay closer attention to finding evidence of the many creatures lucky enough to call Yosemite home.