Muir to Love.: The Skunk/Bear Situation

The first couple weeks back to Rexburg is generally the only window of time that we have to enjoy what Idaho has to offer before the frigid temperatures set in. So we decided to head out after class/work Friday evening, with a few of our favorite friends - Tyson and Hanna, Jordan and Kenady, and Dan and Ella - to spend some carefree moments in Ashton, Idaho.

As we pulled in to camp, our friends who had been there for a couple of hours already warned us that the camp host had said that a black bear had been spotted near our site earlier that day. At first we were a little weary, but as the evening progressed the bear was mostly forgotten as our troubles seemed to be forced somewhere else.

We got to our site, set up our little tent and settled in for some tin foil dinners, fireside conversation, and my personal favorite...s'mores. Well that was the plan anyway, and it played out pretty well, except for one stinky hiccup that seemed determined to steal our attention.

As we were finishing up dinner some movement over my right shoulder quickly stole my attention. Luckily, it wasn't our black bear friend, but we almost would have preferred him. A skunk with an attitude was headed straight for us. We all panicked (ok, maybe not all of us) and quickly ditched our seats by the fire for a safer spot a little distance away. We watched as the skunk (who was soon given the name Ruby by Ella) shimmied her way around our chairs by the fire, sniffing out her dinner. She settled on a few Doritos, and a couple of hotdogs. Kirby, who is the best in these situations tried leading her away with a trail of Doritos, but she wasn't having it. Eventually, after what felt like hours, she was full enough to leave us alone for a little while. Just to be safe though, a couple of guys set out a few of her favorite hot dogs a little farther way down the river, in case she got hungry again and came looking for a second meal.

After our pest situation seemed solved, we took our fireside seats, settled back into conversation, and started on roasting the marshmallows. Everyone shared their favorite bear stories, and I made sure to get a few pointers in case Pooh decided to come check out our dinner too.

Ruby had become a thing of the past, nothing but a good story for a later camping trip...or so we thought. A couple of hours later Tyson spotted her hanging out just behind his chair...so like last time, our warm seats by the fire were abandoned for little miss Ruby and her never ending appetite.

This time got a little messier...she ate what she could get her paws on from around the table...then headed for the trash, and the silly thing got herself stuck in the bag. Now we were worried. What if she couldn't find her way out? Would she freak out and spray? How could we help her out without threatening her? All we could do was stand around and wait for her to figure it out, which eventually she did and left us for good.

Now that we were done eating, and even more so done with dealing with Ruby we packed up all the food and trash and hid them in our cars. All was well again. We finished our late night ramblings, then said goodnight as we all set out to settle down in our separate tents.

Remember how I said the bear was mostly forgotten? I meant it was mostly forgotten until it was time to go to sleep. Kirby and I laid there listening to the sounds around us. Every twig that snapped sounded like a bear walking, every throat clearing from our friends in neighboring tents sounded like a bear breathing, and I could barely take it. The worst was when Kirby lifted his head a little to listen to what sounded like something walking in the river...Kirby doesn't get nervous, or at least tries to hide it from me so that I feel safe, so as soon as I could tell he was a little nervous too, I just about lost it.

We eventually fell into a restless sleep. Each and every sound of nature woke me in a fright. But we made it through the night. The morning greeted us with the best breakfast any camper could hope for. We had pancakes, sausage, bacon, hash browns, and orange juice a little ways down from our site in an area set aside for cooking...and when we got back to our little site a new friend was there to welcome us.

As we started cleaning up our area Jordan spotted the thing we had all been waiting for. In the bushes dividing the river from our tents was a black bear. He was pretty occupied with his berries and didn't seem to be too much of a threat at the moment...so after the initial shock, and after I was done insisting that we leave right then, we stuck around. Our little bear friend just sat there, feet away from us, as we finished cleaning up our tents and watched the crazy boys jump in the freezing water. Every time he looked straight at us, or moved at all actually, I was ready to book it to the car. But we all made it out alive...I only wonder if he really was the source of the night time sounds keeping us on edge.

As we were pulling out of the campground the same bear walked across the road right in front of our car as if to say good bye. I am sure that Ruby and him are destined to become friends, they both have a strange love for this group of campers.

After a wonderful camping trip the eight of us headed up to Mesa Falls, and then grabbed some of the best pizza and milkshakes around.

So here is to good friends, sticky situations, and new campfire stories.

The best weekend adventures always seem to follow this trend.