Anodyne
Wednesday, August 11, 2004
 

Attempted Goetz Peak in the Chillwack Valley yesterday, only to be stopped by heat and aggressive wildlife. Drove up Foley FSR as far as Foley Lake. The "deactivated spur road" I was planning to ascend to near timberline was overgrown with twenty years of alder and impassable, so I hiked the last 6km of steadily deteriorating logging road into the drainage due E of Foley, between Foley and Mount Northgraves. There the road ended in a cutblock swept with fireweed. Down into the cut block and through head-high fireweed, devil's club and stinging nettles into the open old growth beyond. About half an hour of cross-country forest travel later I was scrambling up a dry streambed to avoid a particularly nasty avalanche swath, when I heard a loud whuff and Mr. Bear came charging out of the undergrowth at me, about fifteen feet away.

Oh shit. Assertive posture, arms wide. Mr. Bear kept coming, whuffing and moving way too fast for comfort. I backed up, slowly at first, then when Mr. B. showed no sign of slowing down, hotfooted it up into the avalanche swath. Crackle and tearing of branches as Mr. B. trundled after me. Into the open old growth and down valley fast.

In retrospect, Mr. B. wasn't aggressive, just startled and inquisitive. A bit of a surprise for both of us. Still, yesterday afternoon was about as close as I ever want to come to ursus americanus.

- posted by cjb @ 9:44 AM


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