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puca bearsHi everyone....haven't posted in a while. I don't seem to have STOPPED, but never get round to everything.........
anyway - we are back from the trip of a life time........went to Ely last week, to joins a black bear field study, and had the most amazing time ever!
we stayed out at the WRI field station (eight of us) and under the superb supervision of Lynn and Sue, got to see an awful lot of bears close up. They have feeders all round the cabin - means they can keep any eye on a lot of the bears, plus right now, if the bears get food there they are less likely to visit the hunters bait (hunting season starts on wednesday).
Apart from being able to observe any number of bears around the field station, we went out every day with either Lynn or Sue, and visited some of the collared bears........Juliet and her delightful three cubs, June, who is an absolute sweetie, and best of all........well - imagine........we were walking along a narrow forest track, looking for June. Lynn was calling "it's ME bear", and "come June" - a rustle from a tree right by us, and out pops......HOPE!
She is utterly enchanting, and absolutely exquisite.........but then she comes from a line of beautiful girls, doesn't she?
We learned such a lot, just watching the bears interact.......their body language and vocalisations so much more meaningful in context.
We watched cubs playing, slightly nervous yearlings who are trying to find their "feet" in a world without Mum, adults of all ages and sizes, right up to the BIG males.........and they are HUGE! One of my favourites had to be One-eyed Jack - blinded in one eye by a hunters bullet and bearing several other scars, he exuded an air of calm benevolence - a real gentle giant (of 600 pounds plus!)
Watching them feed was amazing - they don't chomp their food like dogs would, but delicately use their tongues.........seeing Big Harry sifting thru a mixture of seeds and nuts and deliberately selecting his favourite almonds - for hours on end - WOW!
It was all utterly magical - relaxing and thrilling at the same time, lots of fun, and totally unforgettable!
Jeremy is sorting thru and awful lot of piccies - I'll try to post some soon.
Meanwhile, it's back to reality here.......cold, wet and thoroughly miserable......lots of emails to catch up on, tons of washing drying VERY slowly........sigh..........and eventually , a pile of ironing - ain't life great?
desertmountainbearI have been thinking about you Maria, and wondering if you took your trip. What a wonderful opportunity. I am so happy that you got to see Hope, and to hear first hand from you about these animals we have all gotten to know.
Joanne
'Bear' Bottoms OriginalsHow exciting! It sounds like your trip was divine! Lucky you to get to experience all of it firsthand. 
The Littlest ThistleOh wow, sounds like it was an amazing trip, looking forward to seeing the piccies! Oh, and of course the new bears you'll have been inspired to make 
Maria , it sounds like your trip was all you hoped for and more. What a wonderful experience it must have been, almost surreal I can imagine. How fantastic that you got to meet so many bears, especially Hope. You've done so much to help raise money for these bears that you must have been on cloud 9 to finally meet them and the researchers in person 
I can't wait to see some photos.
puca bearsHiya
yes.....I was SO lucky to be able to experience it all........and to see bears with Lynn and Sue is a huge privilege - they are both such lovely people.
But now comes the really tough time - hunting season starts in a couple of days. I can't bear the thought of any of those beautiful creatures getting shot at.
And Katy - I managed to cadge a bit of Honey bear's fur........I'm going to try a cinnamon bear and use her fur to needle-felt the muzzle - even if it might just be a top layer (haven't got very much!). Incidentally, I let our dog sniff it....NOPE - totally unimpressed!
Hi Maria,
Nice to hear from you again. I should think your recent visit to Ely was the trip of a lifetime! What a great privilege to see first hand the wonderful bears that we are constantly reading about and trying to keep up with. Meeting Lynn must have been wonderful, such a gentle gorgeous chap, and also Sue who is also such a lovely lady. I loved reading your account of when you were walking along and out pops Hope!! Oh, magical! 
I do wish I had been there to observe all the magnificent bears that I can only read about, so I can't wait to see all your photos.
I bet you still have a grin from ear to ear - despite the ironing pile!!!
Hugs,
Marilyn x
Thank you, thank you, thank you, Maria, for this wonderful description of things you saw and did. :hug: :hug: :hug:
I loved reading all the details - just like I do when there's an update about what the bears have been eating, etc. I learned at least six new things from your post today!
I'm happy that it was such a good experience, and I really appreciate your sharing it with us.
Becky
Boechout, AntwerpOh wow, Maria, that must have been one fabulous trip !! :dance:
I can imagine how excited you must have been, especially since you have done so much to support the organisation. :clap:
And then to "bump into" little Hope (well, not so little anymore, I gather) must have been the cherry on the proverbial cake.
Never mind the foul weather, the washing, the ironing, you have got the most wonderful memories to treasure (and probably a few hundred photos as well 
).
Looking forward to seeing those pics !!
Hugs, :hug:
Peter & the bears
puca bearsSorry, guys.....the photos aren't ready yet......Jeremy back at work, so it's FINDING time - hopefully we'll get some up over the weekend.
huggies
Maria
:dance: Oh lucky, lucky you Maria! Sounds like you had a really wonderful time and I bet you wouldn't have said no to spending more time there Looking forward to seeing all the photo's that you have taken.
Hugs Lyn :hug:
DENBY BEARS :clap: Boy Maria how lucky are you. I bet you really enjoyed every minute. Is Hope as cute as she appears on Lynns memo's that they post? How close were you to the bears? how many did you get to see? how many days were you there? What a trip of a lifetime for a bear person and one that knows so much about them and trys to help them as much as you can. so glad the trip was good and can't wait to see the pics, but I know you have a lot of catching up on chores since your return, so take your time and then let us see the pics. LOL
Hugs Pat 
puca bearsHi Pat
yes - I was LUCKY! We booked last October, immediately after seeing "The Bearwalker" on TV..........and I really LOVED every minute!
We ere there from Sunday afternoon, till we parted company, lunchtime(ish) on the Wednesday, back at the NABC
I have to say that Hope is a beautiful little bear........and she struck me as a very determined little girl! But then , what else could you expect after all she's been thru? that first sight of the cheeky little face was pure magic!
Being with Lynn &/or Sue meant that we could get up close to the bears.....I'm sure that alone, we wouldn't have seen a single one!
Made a list last night of all the ones I could remember having "met" - got to 25, plus a few extras - quite overwhelming really. And with so many it was difficult to remember who was who - OK, some are easy - one-eyed Jack, Shylow with the big nick out of one ear, Bow, RC and Braveheart with their distinctive white markings on their chests , and young Sarah, with light patches on the backs of her ears.
I really felt we learned such a lot, just watching them interact - you'd get the occasional threatening grumble from the big bears when they felt a bit too close to each other - and then maybe a short "charge" to clear a bit of space(!)........and you could see sometimes that the yearlings were a bit jumpy - after all , not long ago they'd be straight up a tree at the sight of another adult, and now they are finding their feet as bears, having been booted out by their mum's during the mating season. But most of all, i learned that they won't bother you if you don't bother them.........on the last morning, I walked round the back of the lodge to tell others that breakfast was ready, and then walked back, parallel to a bear........she glanced at me, I , at her, and then we just carried on walking.......no problems, and no nervousness (but my mind was shouting "I'M WALKING WITH A BEAR!)
It really was the most incredible experience, EVER.
and hopefully we'll have some photos sorted this w/end for you all to see
huggies
Maria
puca bearsMe again....jeremy has loaded some pics on my website....go to www.puca-bears.de/ely_pictures.html. There are 3 pages...first, Ted . Lucky and Honey at the NABC, second, various bears around the field station........check out my favourite - BIG One-eyed Jack! (piccie no.14) and the third - in the woods - no surprise - Hope and Lily - and one (the second) of June who wandered in and got promptly chased off by Lily! There are lots more, but it's going to be a mammoth task to sort them out - sigh - just need TIME
Newcastle, OntarioWow, you pictures are wonderful, Maria! Love, love, love the ones of Lily and Hope and how exciting it must have been to see them, after following them all year. Lucky girl!
The Littlest ThistleWow, those are great, LOVE the first one 'in the woods'.
Past Time Bears:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: Excellent photos, Maria . . . thanks so much for sharing your exciting adventure with us in writing and images! The loons were a nice finale - don't they make the weirdest sound?
Beautiful pictures Maria - made me smile all the way through looking at them so thanks for sharing them with us
puca bearshi all - glad you like the photos! And yes, Sue Ann - the Loons are something else.......never seen on before, as they are rare over this side of the pond!. And the noise they make is really unforgettable.
I'm getting scared to read the daily updates on the Lily page.........the news that someone has put a trail cam on the WRI boundary line is just horrific............
Boechout, AntwerpWow, what wonderful photos, Maria ! :clap:
You can almost touch the bears; it must have been an incredible experience being able to see them up so close (and not in a zoo 
).
I loved them all, but my favourite has to be the one in the water where one of them is playing with a log (pict 15).
Lily and Hope are so beautiful together (I love the fist two photos of Hope, looking a bit bashful 
).
Aren't these bears just the most gorgeous creatures ???
Thanks for sharing them with us, Maria, hopefully some more will follow ... 
Hugs, :hug:
Peter & the bears
Past Time Bearshi all - glad you like the photos! And yes, Sue Ann - the Loons are something else.......never seen on before, as they are rare over this side of the pond!. And the noise they make is really unforgettable.
I'm getting scared to read the daily updates on the Lily page.........the news that someone has put a trail cam on the WRI boundary line is just horrific............
I'm with you, Maria . . . I can't express my deep hatred for hunting on Lily's FB page and discussions, so TT becomes my outlet. How can one be respectful to hunters who behave in such an unethical manner? What he is doing tells me that he is stalking/hunting only research bears - SHAME on him!! I'm not sure I can stand this anxiety for 6 weeks. 
what a wonderful trip and pics, Maria!
Bear hunting makes me sick. They're talking about it in Florida now. There has been so much development and now there are more bear sightings. But that's what happens when they overdevelop and move into the bear's territory.
If anyone is interested, you can comment on the draft bear management plan:
Those pictures are breath taking! How I would love to be able to go there and see the bears in person. I have been very close to black bears and they are amazing. Where we used to camp there were a lot of them. One time a mother brought her twins to where we were camping...what a treat that was.
Oh what a MARVELOUS trip that must have been!!! I am green with envy! Thanks for sharing the photos -they are fabulous! I really LOVE the picture of the bear that is sitting in a perfect teddy bear pose!
Beth
puca bearsHi peeps - glad you like the piccies!
Peter - the one playing in water is Lucky, at the Bear Center, and Beth......the big guy on the perfect teddy pose is One-eyed Jack..........after all the bears "settled down " in my mind, he's the one who came to the fore . He's the epitome of the "gentle giant" - despite carrying scars from hunter's bullets (including his destroyed eye) he is so placid and calm - he reminded us of the wolfhounds we once had......big, gentle and just THERE, with nothing to prove. Plus, of course, the way he sat just cracked me up - you wouldn't think that his back legs could spread out to that angle.
Day 5 of the hunting season over.........and the news that some are using bows and arrows. It's all so barbaric.........
huggies
Maria
