Geoff Duncan

What you probably think is just a slightly darker blob in the middle of these pictures is the bear I call Cubby Wubby, a second-year male black bear living in the state park on the hill behind me. Black bears climb trees! I admit these pictures aren't great: they were taken from maybe 100 feet away in the company of a two year-old, her daddy, and a surprisingly calm Dalmation. In the first photo, the bear is looking directly at the camera; in the second photo he's beginning to go back down the tree.

I ran into Cubby Wubby several times last year feasting on blackberry—he was very friendly and had a bad habit of trying to follow me. He also found me about an hour and a half before these pictures were taken - coming within about 15 feet - but I didn't get the camera ready before he jumped back into the undergrowth. It's probably a good thing he doesn't want to be near people: I've never fed him (or any of the other bears), but others might.