Considering The Question - Does A Bear Make in The Woods

Trip to Glacier National Park: 9.9-9.15.
2012
Part of a Recorded Life Worth Living
Communing with Nature
A Nature Hike through Glacier National Park
Copyright 2012, David M. Sherr
September 2012
Page 1 of 27
Trip to Glacier National Park: 9.9-9.15.2012
Considering the Question: Does a Bear Make in the Woods?

We set out under the aegis of the Road Scholar Program in Glacier National Park in search of the answer.
The intrepid hikers at Jackson Lake (Bob on left and Ray on right in red, slightly hidden) We were ably guided by our two naturalists, Group Leader Lori Curtis and Stephanie Paidas:
As you read on, many pictures click through to a YouTube video indicated by an index finger icon.
September 2012
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The Setting: Glacier National Park, Montana

Glacier National Park, Crown of the Continent is truly a magnificent place. It is indescribable, it needs to be seen AND experienced. Swiftcurrent Nature Trail
Swiftcurrent Creek, Salamander Glacier on the Continental Divide, Mt. Gould and Grinnell Point Fabulous mountains, trees and streams everywhere. And delicate butterflies that avail themselves of copious wildflowers.
The Angle Wing Butterfly and Arnica, source of natural cures
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Ubiquitous falls from melting glaciers and cascading rivers, streams and creek interspersed with lakes abound.
Falls from Grinnell Glacier, the tip visible upper middle between two trees
Lower Red Rock Falls on Swiftcurrent Creek that flows into Red Rock Lake
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The lakes vary from deep aquamarine to sky blue to clear depending on how removed they are from glacial melt, being darker closer to the glacier.
On the Swiftcurrent Creek, Bullhead Lake Leaves one breathless and not only from the hiking at altitude (5-7,000 feet).
But, oh yes, the question! Lets turn to the moments of truth.
The Study: End of a Four Mile Hike

As we hiked up to Bullhead Lake, there was a yellow Bear Sighting on Trail sign at the Traihead. Our collective excitement was piqued with the possibility. Everyone was warned to keep up on the hike and, if encountered, to huddle up, keeping Steph with the Bear Spray between them and the bear. Of course, there were the jokes of only needing to outrun the others and not the bear. Some experienced slight trepidation. It was a wonderful scenic and exhilarating hike, spotting a Moose Cow and Calf (WOW!) and a White Tail Doe (ho-hum). But then as we came to the Trailhead to finish our hike, a family came towards our hiking group extolling a sighting just beyond where we were.
And this is what we saw! Copyright 2012, David M. Sherr September 2012 Page 5 of 27
Scenario: A Mama Bear and Baby Bears (Blackie, Brownie and Blondie) chowing down on huckleberries near the Swiftcurrent Nature Trail Head. And there in a patch just 50 feet off the trail, a rustle and head bobbing as she gulped down huckleberries, leaves and all, a Brown Bear.
A Brown Mama Bear in Hyperphasia (Gluttonous food consumption prior to hibernation) in a huckleberry patch Steph identifies the bear in the video if the picture is clicked. We were told there were three baby bears, but they were only heard rustling and not seen. Steph began talking to the Mama Bear in soothing tones, Hi Mama Bear. We are just moving through your territory. We dont mean you or your babies any harm. Mama Bear looked at us, took a few more bites. She turned, huffed at her cubs and trundled off, the cubs forming a line behind her.
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Brown Mama Black Bear and her three Baby Bears, Blackie (lower right), Brownie (middle) and Blondie (just behind Mama), leaving us Just after this picture was taken, Blackie ran up and playfully pounced on Brownie. They tussled and then continued behind Mama. Steph described how Mama Bears give birth during hibernation and the cub(s) nurse while she sleeps. All the women in the group said Thats the way to do it! These cubs will occupy the den with Mama as she hibernates and nurse if they wake up. She will probably care for them and teach them another year before she just turns one day and chases them away. If only it worked that way for people! A question arose as to the different color cubs. This is bears making bears in the woods. Steph provided some enlightenment on this subject. Turns out a Mama Bear can copulate with up to ten Potentially Papa Bears. If a fertilized Mama Bear doesnt put enough fat on for the hibernation, the Bear Blastulas do not implant (called delayed implantation). And so the partial mystery solved for different color cubs other than gene expression. Each of these three cubs could have a different Papa Bear.
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Data gathered along the way: Bear Scat--Whole Huckleberry infused Now to the question. Here is a YouTube video of a Black Bear pooping in a meadow:
YouTube, Uploaded by spnin43 on Jul 24, 2010
But that begs the question because technically, this Black Bear was not in the woods. So we had incentive to search the woods for Bear Scat. We were not to be denied.
Whole Huckleberry Infused Bear Scat on Swiftcurrent Nature Trail, In the Woods Halfway to Bullhead Lake we encountered this pile of scat on the trail.
Bear Bells from North Shore Tourism, Vancouver Copyright 2012, David M. Sherr September 2012 Page 8 of 27
Steph said we couldnt distinguish Black Bear scat from Grizzly Bear scat. But, some say Grizzly scat has bear bells in it. People walk with sleigh bell like tinkle bells to presumably alert the bears that someone is around. Unfortunately, the bells may alert the bears to metal pots at a camp siteFOOD! One is best advised frequently as one walks. Steph would shout on the hike, Hey Bear!! As one can see, this scat is densely infused with whole huckleberries as evidence of the hyperphasia as they dont chew but swallow whole. Hyperphasia is eating as much as fast as possible. Their digestive tract however does work as evidenced by the deep purple stains of the trail rock and dirt under the scat (entire right of picture). Bears enter hyperphasia to build the fat layer for the winter hibernation. On the subject of bears making bears in the wood, for a potentially pregnant female, this is even more crucial, since it determines delayed implantation as we discovered above. Alas, we did not see a Bear make poop nor make Baby Bears in the woods, but, we have some very good circumstantial evidence.
But wait! Thats not all for Bears.
September 2012
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Speaking of Bears: A Grizzly Breakfast Disturbed

Several times along the road while we were vanning from one place to the next, we would come upon a line of vehicles parked and people out along the road. Steph would announce, Bear Jam! As we left, Many Glacier Hotel to return to the Village on Big Mountain in Whitefish, we had one such Bear Jam. As we stepped from the van, less than 30 yards away, what did we espy?
Grizzly Bear on the road hillside next to Lake Sherburne going out at Many Glacier Entrance In the YouTube video linked to the picture, s/he paces around eating the last few remaining huckleberries, and waddles off completely disinterested in us. Maybe, Huckleberry Finn would have a problem. This was the second bearable experience of the Program. A++ for Steph and Lori!
September 2012
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Hidden Lake Trail at Logan Pass

Our last hike of the Program was to the grandeur of Logan Pass to see Hidden Lake. And this was a peak (pun intended) experience. The terrain is majestic and awe inspiring. One sees 1.6 billion year old rock eroding away. The arte along Clements Mountain provided interesting jagged patterns.
The Bishop Hat, Clements Mountain Check out the 360 view YouTube video from the boardwalk trail over the tundra like ground covered with beautiful wildflowers.
Some nice late wildflowers, Mountain Monkey Flower, Mountain Asters and Groundsel
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In the name of the father, son and holy goat: Conjuring up a Mountain Goat The highlight of Hidden Lake Hike for us was the arrival of a Mountain Goat after we ate lunch at the Hidden Lake Overlook. We saw two from the back porch of the Many Glacier Hotel two days prior. But this was not totally satisfying as we could barely make them out. Even with binoculars, they were small.
A first glimpse of Mountain Goats as two white dots on Hillside North of Many Glacier Hotel on second evening, 9/12/12 This Program being a magical, mystery tour, I decided to try my hand, er, my head at conjuring up a Mountain Goat. First buy a hat with the image. Then, close my eyes and click my boots three times.
Photo of me proudly wearing my new hat by Bonnie at Logan Pass
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Well, it worked somewhat. We first saw two goats in the distance on the meadow Northwest hill side to our right.
Mountain Goat disappearing behind a tree as we ascended to Hidden Lake Overlook For the moment I was satisfied with at least seeing them slightly closer. Then we were distracted by the beautiful falls just to our right above this meadow.
Water flowing, albeit slowly, on the trailvery calming Click the picture for a serene YouTube video. I find this so calming. A true commune with Nature! Copyright 2012, David M. Sherr September 2012 Page 13 of 27
Trip to Glacier National Park: 9.9-9.15.2012 And just off the boardwalk, more wild flowers.
Paint Brush, Goundsel and Mountain Asters And then
Finally reached Hidden Lake Overlook
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We ate our lunch, were preparing to hike back down, and, BINGO!! There s/he was, less than 100 feet away!
After noticing some goat scat, low and behold but who should appear? The poor Mountain Goat was immediately surrounded by our group and other hikers. Only the hill below from when s/he came was clear of people. The Goat remained for several minutes watching us watch her/him before turning and leaving. Notice the panting from the heavy winter coat as you click on the picture to view a YouTube video.
I cant speak for anyone else. My Mountain Goat Lust was fulfilled.
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Nearby, Sneaky Squirrel, Rocky the Flying Squirrels Cousin During lunch, we were visited by three cousins of Rocky the Flying Squirrel. One was particularly bold.
Sneaky appeared next to Rays backpack within 2 two feet of me He was shooed away by Ray after digging into his backpack and dumping Doritos on the ground. That is the tail of Rays red jacket as he wore it.
And he scurried away quickly on the Apoluka (??, Green) Argillite
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But not for long! He returned moments later as we prepared to leave.
Sneaky eats the Doritos with impunity next to me; he dumped them moments before on the ground under Rays backpack Well practiced, these squirrels have no trouble poaching hiker grub and will be fat for winter. Another of Rockys Cousins, The Hoary Marmot, A large bulky ground squirrel Returning to the hike up to the Hidden Lake Overlook, a large ground squirrel like animal jumped onto the boardwalk to check us out. Undaunted, he jumped back into the Southwest hillside meadow on our left, not far from the first Mountain Goat sightings of the day..
Hoary Marmot, just prior to disappearing into his den (the mound of rock and dirt in upper right) Click picture to see the YouTube video of him/her grubbing around for food before diving into his den. Copyright 2012, David M. Sherr September 2012 Page 17 of 27
And speaking of Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Bullwinkles Family, A Moose Cow and her Yearling Calf The same day as the Brown Black Bear and Cubs sighting, another treat was Steph discovering a Moose Cow and Yearling Calf as she was scouting a bush spot for the ladies. Nature call us all! She disappeared up a small hill and then came running back shushing us and instructing to walk up the hill very slowly and quietly. And there they were in all their glory and splendor!!
On a flat area above the Swiftcurrent Nature Trail en route to Bullhead Lake Click on picture to see them descend the hill towards the small lake between Bullhead Lake and Red Rock Lake. I asked Steph the name of the lake. She didnt know, so in Black Feet style, we named it The Lake Between Two Lakes. Black Feet name places based on associated events and position in the environment. Swiftcurrent is a Black Feet name. Grinnell Point was named by them contrary to this scheme. But Grinnell had done so much for them (and he married a Black Feet woman) they wanted to honor him when the US Park Service asked them to name the long peak and arte.
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Desperately seeking lunch, Herman Chipmunk, Alvins Cousin by Avalanche Lake

Not to be outdone, our hike to Avalanche Lake was filled with sublime communing with nature. When we sat to eat our lunch, the wildlife magically appear, especially the rodents, albeit cute ones, but rodents nonetheless.
One of three chipmunks appeared on the rocks as we ate our lunch The chipmunk came onto the top of three large pieces of Grinnell Argillite. The piece in the foreground displays two well identifiable 1.6 billion year old stromatolites. These are fossil remains of the effects of colonies of cyanobacteria that lived in the shallow Belt Sea that covered this part of North America in Precambrian times. Click on pictures to see a 180 view of the glacial cirque (glacially carved semi-circular valley) that is now Avalanche Lake and its surroundings. So finally I see what that crossword puzzle word, tarn really is!
As we left Avalanche Lake, Steph pointed out the lichens that cover the dead lower parts of trees. It is aptly named Old Mans Beard. These growths were thought to be harmful to the trees in the 70s. Only after trees started dying when the Park Service removed it, did we understand their symbiotic role with the trees. This particular one has medicinal relevance to the Back Feet. It is used in a poultice for cuts and wounds and has been discovered to have anti-bacterial qualities. It is also used by the Black Feet to make a ceremonial gin. You got to love Nature!!
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Old Mans Beard, lichen used as medicine and to make a gin by Black Feet Natives
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Lichens are among the most interesting organisms to me. They are very special when living on rocks:
Grey and dark green lichens living in the crevices of argillite under an overhang Very primitive, a cross of fungi and algae: one is flat and scalely (grey) and the other is fuzzy like moss (dark green). Steph related a story of how her cousin teaches 4th graders and us as well: Freddy Fungus was Lichen Alice Algae, so they wed. And now their marriage is on the rocks. Love it!!
Burnt Orange lichen among the dark grey, light feathered grey and dark green lichens
September 2012
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Feathered Grouse, Cousins of the California State Bird

And on the Swiftcurrent Nature Trail hike around Lake Josephine, on the way out we saw a ground bird in the distance up a road. Steph identified it as a Feathered Grouse:
Feathered Grouse on road to the dock house on Lake Josephine On the way back just before the final part of the Trail, we came across this brace of them just a few feet off the trail. They were calmly eating and watching us.
A brace of Feathered Grouse 8 feet off the Swift Current Nature Trail next to Lake Josephine Click on picture above to see a YouTube video close up eating, watching and listen carefully for warning hoots among the camera clicks and foot noise from the hikers.
September 2012
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Mud crack impressions and life, cyanobacteria, stromatolites in the Rocks of Ages: Greater than 0.5 Billion Years Ago, Logan Pass in the Lewis Range, GNP
The dilettante geologist in me goes crazy when I can see many ancient events in one sighting of rocks. The rocks and formations of Logan Pass devolved from the Belt Sea which covered a huge area of North America over half a billion years ago. This USGS link is a great geologic history starting with the Belt Sea description. We saw some larger structures at Logan Pass above. But focusing in right next to the trail, the cluster of Grinnell Argillite below reveals three interesting ancient phenomena. The Belt Sea was shallow and fed with silt from early mountains in Canada. The silt laden with ferrous and silicate compounds gathered on the sea bed. The silicates are evidenced by the lighter stones above the red rocks in the picture below.
Evidence of > 0.5 billion-year Belt Sea waves and mud cracks in Grinnell Argillite The ferrous (iron-based) minerals oxidized (rusted) forming the reddish shale stone eventually. As the Sea dried, the bed was exposed for millions of years, it dried and cracked. This formed the rock in the center of the picture which evidences how later layers formed on top of the older, cracked rock. This one looks to be a mold of prior cracks. The lower rock on the left shows the silt formed in waves by the ebbing and flowing of the Sea shore line. The irregular lighter circle on the rock under the middle one is a Stromatolite (also called stromatolith) formed by a colony of ancient cyanobacteria. Copyright 2012, David M. Sherr September 2012 Page 23 of 27
Below is evidence in the large of stromatolites and the wave effects on Southeast side of the boardwalk Trail. The water visible in the distant mountain base is the tip of the Saint Mary Lake being fed by the Saint Mary River.
On right foreground evidence of cyanobacteria and ancient Belt Sea wave formations I will stop now, but there is so much more to know that is left to the interested reader. Dilettantism Rules!!
Let us finish this travelogue with our arrival in Whitefish Big Mountain Village and the first day hike to the Summit to see the extent of the Flathead Valley that lies to the South Southwest of Glacier National Park.
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The first full day: Big Mountain Hike to Summit 2000 ft., Up and Down
The hike was an example of What dont kill you, only makes you stronger. As my younger frends say these days, it was a Hella Hike, 3.8 miles up to the Summit with extensive switchbacks to reduce the effort in the 2000 foot rise in elevation. Thats about a 10% grade on average. Calves suffered up (effect delayed by a day) and knees suffered down (immediately).
Almost to the top, Fireweed to the left of me, Fireweed to the right, by Bonnie
Bonnie making the last few strides to almost the top by me Nonetheless, it was a confidence builder for the two-thirds of us who went all the way up. The Summit was its own reward with a breathtaking (in both senses) view. Wildfire smoke from Idaho provided the constant haze of the valleys. But, that was incidental to the majestic view and enhance it in a mystical way.
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Southwest View from Big Mountain in the Whitefish Range Click on the picture above and notice the Whitefish Lake in the Flathead Valley 10-20 seconds into the video. The lake is the Organizational charge of Lori Curtis our Group Leader.
Becky Lomax introducing Pearly Everlasting, Stephs favorite wildflower, with Hair Bells Lori and Becky Lomax, a local naturalist, led us up the 3.8 mile hike up and down 2000-foot elevation change from the Village of Whitefish, MT. We were to hike up and take the Lift down. But, alas, this was a week before they closed Glacier National Park, and so it only ran on weekends and the hike was on Monday. We did get to ride it, though, the next Sunday before we went to the Kalispell Airport to return home.
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Close up of Whitefish Lake in the Flathead Valley taken from halfway the hike to the Summit The day was hazy from smoke from wildfires in Idaho which is West of the Flathead Valley and Glacier national Park. This smoke plagued us on long views most of the week. Correcting contrast helps a bit on the pictures, but there is a mythic, other worldly beauty to the befogged vista.
In Closing: How did we get here?? The Joy of Discovery

First let me thank you for your attention to this point. I am extremely grateful for feedback of any sort, but benefit most from correction of my facts for that is learning. I am sometimes wrong but never unsure. This is why I need strong constructive criticism. dmsherr@gmail.com and elsewhere in the social media: facebook, Twitter, YouTube, scribd.com, and very infrequently, google+ In summary, the best thing to say about this Program we were on is it not only has to be seen in all its senses, but experienced. A picture may be a thousand words, but an experience is a million moments.
Since I always have something more to say, please indulge me and listen for two more minutes to a tribute to my teachers. They taught the joy of discovery which has driven me through a life of learning. Travel is a huge part of learning. Like my 65 white-haired Rabbi Raymond Smullyan giggling as he proved a theorem in meta-mathematics, bursting into full laughter at the QED. The joy I feel from this trip as I remember it in this writing has made the Big Mountain and Glacier National Park a truly memorable experience. I indulge myself in it. I hope it helps you preserve your memory.
September 2012
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Considering The Question - Does A Bear Make in The Woods

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Trip to Glacier National Park: 9.9-9.15.

Part of a Recorded Life Worth Living

Communing with Nature

A Nature Hike through Glacier National Park

Copyright 2012, David M. Sherr

Trip to Glacier National Park: 9.9-9.15.2012

Part of a Recorded Life Worth Living