Craig's Report - June 9, 1999

Snow Check

(Base Area with new location of the Gabriella building at the Y)

I have had some requests for a picture update on the melt status and snow line in Fernie. I was going to wait for a nice sunny day, but those have been in rather short supply recently, so I will offer up a few snaps I took on a walk yesterday.

(Bear from the top of Kodiak)

Generally there is little snow in open areas below the top of the Elk Chair and you could walk most of the way up the Bear run on bare ground.

(Lizard Bowl from the Bear's Den)

There is significantly more snow than there was at this time last year, but probably not more than there was two years ago. While a nasty turn of weather could still spell flood problems, the people who forecast such things sound a lot more comfortable these days.

(Tree Munching on Deer)

I haven't seen the little grizzly that was in my last couple of reports for a while and I had heard a rumour that it had been captured. However my son spotted up by the pond beside the Polar Peak townhouses when he got off the school bus yesterday. It appeared to be learning how to dredge goodies out of the pond. I wondered how long it would be until he got tired of trying to survive on grass. :-)

I was talking with the conservation officer last week and apparently this guy will be transported if he is captured. Apparently if you are a bear it pays to be a griz. The C.O. also said that part of the reason they decided to try and trap it, was that it was frequently hanging out by the highway and people were stopping, getting pretty close to it and even trying to feed it. :-(

It is ten after three on a cool (13 C) and mainly cloudy day.

(Click on any picture for a larger version - for larger yet change the 640 in resulting URL to 1280)