Bears unseen and
Dear Sarah - Day 140 of our daily drawing exchange
May 20, 2025
Dear Sarah -
What a strange day. I dropped Fabio and Barb off this morning, planning to hike into the crags a bit later in the day after I’d finished some time-sensitive paperwork. When I finally arrived, later than anticipated, I started hiking toward their last known location (of course, waaaaay at the other end of the Bluffs). I hadn’t gone too far when a young woman, wielding a can of bear spray, came trotting down the trail toward me. “Did you see the bears?” she asked. “There’s a mother with two cubs around. Saw them earlier. Be careful!” And, she was off, heading back toward the parking lot.
Hm. I had no bear spray, was on my own with a good 45 minute hike ahead of me through some pretty overgrown terrain and wasn’t sure I was up for a bear encounter. What to do? I went a little farther, stopped, checked for cell signal, sniffed for bears. Not much signal (as I knew from yesterday’s fruitless searching). No bear smell. I went a little farther and then decided it probably wasn’t worth a late-in-the-day hike into the nether regions of the park with bears about.
So, I settled for a short hike loop back to the parking lot, then back to the hotel to retrieve my bike. Had a lovely cycle ride down to Skaha Lake Park and back, exploring side streets and neighbourhoods along the way.
Weirdly, last night Dani and Toryn spotted a black bear in Sidney (by the library!) when they were walking the dog. It seemed I had no choice when it came to subject matter today…
Sadly, my attempt at drawing a black bear didn’t go so well.
The legs are too long and the head (despite a lot of redrawing and erasing) looks more wolf than bear, maybe with a little Sasquatch mixed in… Regardless, wouldn’t want to meet one of these in the woods…
I’m now waiting to be summoned back to the parking lot to pick up the intrepid climbers. Hope they’ve had a good day! The weather held, which is great. Of course, things really clear up tomorrow, our last day here. We leave tomorrow evening to drive as far as Revelstoke. We’ll camp there to avoid the long delays overnight due to construction closures and then continue on to Banff the following morning.
All that to say, I may be late (or absent) tomorrow night when it comes to drawing, but will catch up when able.
Did you buy real paper?
Ciao -
Nikki
Hi Nikki,
I heard about the bears in Sidney (and elsewhere) and there have been some urban cougar sightings too. I'm glad you turned back rather than risk an ursine encounter.
I have no exciting wildlife sightings to report (for which I am grateful) although an eagle flew past as I was lying on the floor during my yoga class this morning. I did make it to Opus today, where I bought two brushes (including one called, charmingly, a Filbert), a piece of sea sponge and a small palette. No paper yet. The paper at Opus was very pricey.
I've attached a painting of a cherry tree with blossoms blowing in a breeze. Very Victoria. Saw the technique on IG. More controlled than the sunsets, and not as wet, so the paper didn't buckle.
Do you want to change our meeting time on Thursday? Or cancel? Won't you be on the road? I'm free Friday, I think.
XO S
Hi Sarah -
I will be on the road on Thursday - Friday is pretty open. 10 am my time?
Cheers,
Nikki
(p.s. LOVE the cherry tree!!)