The Bears of Summer

I was on my 6th or 7th solid mallet whack on the post when the hornets struck.

The Codger, perched on a nearby rock, watched casually and quizzically as I danced around slapping my head. He apparently thought I had hit myself with the mallet.

"Yellow jacket nest!," I exclaimed.

"Oh," he said. "Put your hat back on."

Always a fountain of wisdom, that Codger.

I skittishly finished securing and setting the cam trap, hoping my swelling pains from accidentally anchoring it to a hornet-inhabited stump would be worth it. And that the cam might survive the local black bear assault for more than 6 days this go round.

But the pool, the hornets, and the cam proved too "unbearable" to do without.

However, this time the camera did last 35 days. Kind of...



Ah, yes - a serene creekside scene.



The first bear "adjustment" came just 5 days later.







Goodness, that's a big bear.

But 4 days after that, another bear shifted it back a bit.



A position the cam held for 2 weeks, through even more bear encounters.



















These are two different mid-size browns, btw, bringing the bear total to 5 individuals at this set.



Then, at 23 days, everything goes sideways. Literally.





But, unbelievably, the camera lasted 2 weeks more.

Day 27:





What do you think? Is that the roof of the bear's mouth?

Day 33:



Finally, the cam trap's last photo on day 35:



And here's how I found it:





That's a 1/2" galvanized steel post they snapped.

Needless to say, this cam needs a little repair work.

I can see you -
Your camouflage shinin' in the sun
Animals walking real slow, and you're capturing every one
I can tell you my use of you will still be strong
After the bears of summer have gone…

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References:

• Wikipedia - The Boys of Summer (song)
• Don Henley - Building the Perfect Beast with The Boys of Summer
• Nature of a Man (this blog) - Stephen Colbert's Nightmare
• Nature of a Man (this blog) - An Upright Character
• Nature of a Man (this blog) - Black Bear Buds
• Nature of a Man (this blog) - Marauders at the Mini Mine
• Nature of a Man (this blog) - The Attraction of Roadsides

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