Saturday, September 24, 2011

Sitting on the dock of the bay.......makes me smile

Valdez is a bay town and I've sat on the dock of the bay a couple of times.   Once having an Alaska size daiquiri and then yesterday.   My daughter works at a fish hatchery.   It attracts more than just people.


I sat for most of the afternoon in the gazebo at the hatchery.   After the first two hours I got up to take a walk and sat at a bench by the bay down the road.   When I headed back to the hatchery I was met at the door by a guy who asked me if I had seen the bear.   No!!   In fact, I had not.   Apparently, when I walked down the road to the bench, the bear had been somewhat behind me.   I had no idea a bear could be so quiet.   My descriptive word for a bear would veer more towards lumbersome.   Certainly not lithesome and silent.   Around 5 in the afternoon, I folded up  my camp chair and headed back to my daughter's car when another guy yells, "Did you see the bear?"   NO!!   NO, I DIDN'T!!!   What does it take to see a bear in Alaska when they seem to be silently following me around?   He motioned for me to follow him around the corner so I can see it.   Gleefully, I followed him until I saw the bear on the water's edge. Directly below where I had just been watching the sea lions.


The guy goes close in while the bear disappears beyond the bend of the bay and then motions for me to follow.   I've been a rebel all my life but when it comes to bears, I follow orders.   By the time I got to the other side, there he was contentedly chowing down on a medium size salmon he had managed to steal from one of the hatchery lanes.   After several people showed up and took pictures and disappeared, along comes my daughter asking where I had been since she wanted me to see the bear.   Bear was moving along the shore and I was no longer able to see him so I pointed to him so Robbin could take a look.   Since she wasn't able to see, she turned around to go look from the other side of the bend.   After she momentarily disappeared, she was right back walking stiff leggedly towards me telling me to turn around and walk away but don't panic.   The bear was right behind her.   Okay.   Bear following us.   Right behind us.   Don't panic.  Um-hum.   Yes.   Right.

I love Alaska!!

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