The Silverleaf Bear has returned

Last year at about this time, I was startled to see a bear running across a neighbors field. This year the bear was closer and I was able to capture a few images from our back deck.

It looks like the same bear, only larger than last year.

I would have liked to gotten a clearer shot but he was a hundred feet away and my visibility was limited. I did not even consider running out the driveway to get a closer look. I was happy to be up on a nine foot high deck with no access from ground level.

We are in Floyd County, VA, about a third of a mile from the Blue Ridge Parkway and the area in between has plenty of forest cover. Deer and wild turkeys are plentiful. Bears not so much, but that's fine as one bear leaves a lasting impression.

The bear crossed Silverleaf Lane and went down into Ann and Rodger Bower's field just minutes before JC Thompson and his wife came down the lane on their nightly stroll.

Never a dull moment up here on the ridge…