Wow! What a Vacation

Last week my family and I went on our annual autumn pilgrimage to Grand Teton National Park. We love fall in the Tetons and have visited the park dozens of times during September and October. This year however, we had a unique and unexpected experience that will surely become a family-vacation legend.

On our third day there – my wife’s birthday – we were driving through the park looking for wildlife. After an enjoyable but animal-free jaunt up the Moose-Wilson road we decided to visit the beaver ponds on Pacific Creek. It was a gorgeous autumn afternoon and the light was just beginning to transition from the plain blue of midday to the attractive, warm light of late afternoon. I parked the Expedition and asked my family if they wanted to walk to the ponds with me. At first only Junie, our four-year-old, wanted to go, so the two of us started out. But before we even crossed the road, the rest of the family had reconsidered and joined us. We followed a trail that crossed a small sage flat that lay between our car and the beaver ponds.

Over the years we’ve visited these ponds countless times to watch the beaver work. As we’ve sat quietly on the banks, we’ve even seen the occasional moose, elk, or coyote. At times the beaver have approached within five or six feet of us, too close to photograph with my telephoto lens. It’s a tranquil location and typically doesn’t attract many people. The ponds are about 150 yards from the car, which is an easy little walk for our young family.

When we got to the pond the water was calm and there was no sign of movement. I set my camera on the tripod and for the next few minutes we watched quietly for any activity. There was a new pond this year directly above the old one, so I quietly walked up to see if there was any activity there. I saw a young beaver swimming around, so I returned to move the group to the upper pond. As I made my way back, I could see a car in the distance where the road climbs to an overlook. It was evident that the occupants were watching something in the river bottom to the south of us. But due to the thick willows between us and the river we couldn’t see what they were looking at.

As I approached my family I could hear something heavy moving through the willows. I watched expecting to see a moose or elk in the heavy thicket. I asked Linda if they had seen anything in the lower pond, and she indicated that they had seen a small beaver too. As we whispered I heard the movement again, but this time much closer. I could see the willows parting, but whatever was causing it was too short for me to see. That ruled out a moose or elk, which would have stood tall enough to identify. For a second I thought it was odd that a coyote would walk so noisily through the tangle instead of finding a path to sneak through. I watched intently as the willow branches parted, then all of a sudden I registered the backlit outline of a bear.

My mind raced. I knew well the safety measures to take when confronted by a bear. I knew it was unwise to run. I knew not to confront it. But the presence of my daughters, the youngest of whom was only four, was a variable that I had never considered before. I didn’t know what would happen when they saw it coming. The bear hadn’t seen us yet. I was afraid they would scream or do something to agitate it. It had emerged only twenty five yards from our position, but the pond was still between it and us. All of this went through my head in the blink of an eye. Then I made a decision, turned to my daughters and said, “Get up and run to the car, NOW! It’s a bear!”

I assumed that everyone had been watching the willows with me, but they had not been. So my sudden outburst took everyone by surprise. Rebecca was holding my Leatherman pocket knife and dropped it on the ground. She looked down. I told her to forget it and go, and she dashed off with Linda right behind carrying Junie.

Between us and the car was an old riverbank about eight or ten feet high. At the top was the sage flat and a straight shot to the car. Now that everyone was moving, I looked back at the bear. Since we had been sitting quietly on the pond, the bear didn’t know that we were there. It was still down in the willows when we started our dash for the car. So when the commotion started it stood up to see what was going on. It was at that moment I looked back; just in time to see it rear up. And it was a big grizzly! A rush of adrenaline shot through me and I urged everyone to run faster.

At the top of the bluff we still had about a hundred yards to the car. The girls were already half way there, and Linda and Junie had a straight shot and were running hard. I looked back and the bear was back on all fours. It had only moved about twenty feet from the point that I had first realized what it was. I swung my camera around to try for a quick shot, but as soon as I framed it in the viewfinder the bear looked at me and began to run in my direction. I fired the shutter as I turned around and continued my dash.

The vehicle that had been on the overlook arrived near our car and the occupants began yelling for me to hurry to my vehicle. When I got to the near edge of the road I looked behind me. The bear was now on the flat. It hesitated, looked around and then ran directly at me. My family was now safely in the Expedition. I ran around the far side of the vehicle and turned to see if I could get off another photo from the cover of the car. But when I looked the bear was at the road. I turned and hurried to the other side of the car. The bear ran right behind the it and straight up the adjacent hill, only looking back once.

Much relieved I got in the Expedition to see how everyone was doing. Rebecca was in tears, Linda was calm but shaken. Junie and Angela were fine. I soon learned that no one but me and Junie even saw the bear. At the pond I assumed everyone was watching with me as it came through the willows. But they weren’t and as soon as I told them all to run, they took off never looked back. By the time the bear got to the vehicle they were all looking forward and didn’t see it run behind the car. Junie described the bear pretty accurately but then explained that she just thought it was a “big beaver in a bad mood.”

The relief in the car was tangible. After I was sure the bear was gone, I got out of the vehicle and walked around to Rebecca’s door so I could give her a hug. At first she wouldn’t get out of the car, but ultimately she stepped out. Rebecca showed us that her hands were shaking. Both Linda and I held up our hands next to hers, and all three of us were shaking noticeably. That gave us all a good laugh and calmed Rebecca a little.

I opened the back window and put away my camera. When I got back in the driver’s seat everyone was talking. It was as if the relief all came gushing out. We decided to call my brother in New York and each daughter took a turn giving her version of the encounter. It obviously eased the tension everyone was feeling to talk about it.

By the time we returned to camp, things had calmed down. Sleeping in a tent trailer was a little less secure than it had been before that day. But we finally got everyone to sleep and dozed off thankful for a safe outcome to a very close encounter with the wild.

The photos of the bear aren’t the best. Perhaps I should work on taking better pictures under pressure, but they give you a look.

GPS Position: 43°52’19.89″N 110°29’37.81″W

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