Blackielocks and the Three Campers: Part 2

Blackielocks and the Three Campers

Part 2 of a story for the whole family

Meanwhile the three campers had enjoyed a full afternoon taking turns floating on the inner tube, waving to people canoeing down the river, and observing the wildlife. They had seen an otter swim across the river and scamper up the bank into the woods. They had noticed turtles sunning themselves on a boulder and then diving into the river whenever canoeists paddled by. They had spotted a bald eagle nest way up in a tall tree on the other side of the river.

The three campers had also watched a crane, standing in the water down along the opposite side of the river, as it slowly stretched out its long, graceful neck. Then in one fell swoop the crane shot its bill into the water and immediately brought it back up with a large fish skewered on the end. With the fish flailing on its sword-like beak, the crane strode toward the shore. There it lowered its bill and shook off the fish which fell with a SLAP! loud enough to be heard all the way across the river. The crane proceeded to stab at the fish until it lay motionless. The three campers watched as the crane tossed up pieces of meat with its bill, caught them in its mouth, and quickly gulped them down.

Finally the three campers decided to leave the river for the day and head back to the campground. They each put on their shoes, hat, and sunglasses. Daddy gathered up the towels, Dad got the inner tube, and the Child picked up the empty sunscreen bottle before they began walking up to their campsite. 

Along the trail the three campers observed that the bear poop had attracted a variety of insects, and the bear tracks were still visible on the ground. When they reached the path to their campsite they saw on the ground two of the cups which they had used at lunch and left to drain on the picnic table—the big one with yellow stripes and the medium one with red circles. The small one with blue stars was laying on its side on the edge of the table. “A strong wind must have knocked over our cups,” said Dad.

Next they looked over at the shady tree area and noticed the mangled frame and torn canvas. “What happened to our chairs?!” Daddy exclaimed. “No amount of wind could have caused this much damage.” “What’s my chair doing way over there?” said the Child, pointing to the empty campsite beside theirs.

Then they spotted the gaping hole in their tent window. “Oh my gosh!” said Daddy. “It looks like a tornado’s come through here!” The three campers peered through the ragged mesh at all their stuff strewn around. Then their stuff started to move. 

“It’s alive!” the Child shouted. Up from the small sleeping bag rose Blackielocks who was not too happy to have its nap disturbed. “It’s a bear!” yelled Dad. “Quick, get in the car!” said Daddy, grabbing the Child and Dad and pulling them away from the tent.

The three campers rushed to their vehicle and got inside. They watched as the black bear, still groggy and now very grumpy, poked out of the hole of the tent. Blackielocks stuck its nose up in the air and sniffed. “I’m hungry again,” Blackielocks growled. “I wonder what there is to eat around here.”

Blackielocks started to mosey out of the tent, but coming out was not as easy as getting in. Blackielocks’ long, curved claws snagged the mesh, and when the 350 pound creature started to move forward, the 35 pound tent and all its contents followed. 

The three campers sat stunned in their car as every one of the tent stakes popped up out of the ground and the aluminum tent poles collapsed. Blackielocks just kept going, dragging the tent and the sleeping bags, air mattresses, and duffel bags with it.

Blackielocks headed toward the woods, but as soon as it entered the thicket the tent and all the gear got stuck. Blackielocks tried to shake off the mesh which only caused the nylon fabric to slip up over Blackielock’s head. The more Blackielocks struggled, the more entangled it became. Soon the black bear was caught underneath multiple layers of tent and could no longer be seen by the three campers.

“We need to go to the ranger station and report this now,” said Daddy. “Right,” said Dad, still in shock. The Child continued peering out the car window at the huge blob moving under the big pile.

At that moment a maintenance truck entered their area. Dad honked the horn, rolled down the window, and waved frantically. The truck pulled into the vacant campsite and the driver leaned out the window. Dad shouted over, “There’s a bear right here caught under our tent. Can you do something?!”

“Stay in your car,” said the maintenance worker. “I’ll radio the ranger immediately.” With that, all the humans sat in their vehicles and waited until two rangers arrived in a big tow truck. They pulled into the campsite beside the three campers and motioned for them to stay put.

The rangers surveyed the situation, saw the mound of tent still moving in the thicket, and then got out of their truck. Each of them carried a big gun with a dart on the end. The two rangers crept toward the covered mass until they were a few yards away from it, with one ranger standing in front and the other just to the right. Then they both raised their guns, and the three campers could hear the one ranger say to the other, “Are you ready?  On the count of three – one . . . two . . . three!”

The three campers jumped in their seats as the two guns exploded. They watched as the two rangers moved carefully toward the pile of tent, still carrying their guns. The rangers slowly began lifting the tent, tossing aside any loose items. Finally they uncovered the black bear which looked like it was taking another nap.

One of the rangers gently prodded the bear with the nose of the gun. There was no response. Then the other ranger went to the truck and returned with a little black box. The three campers continued to sit in utter silence as the rangers proceeded to put a big yellow tag, like an earring, on the black bear. Then they both went back to the truck and put away their guns and the black box. “We’ll need you to move your car for us,” one ranger said to the three campers. “So we can get in here and haul this critter away.”

“Is the bear dead?” asked the Child. “Oh no,” said the ranger, “just put to sleep. Blackielocks has been hanging around here for weeks, and this is our first opportunity to catch it, stun it, and tag it.  We have about six hours now, before Blackielocks begins to wake up, to transport it to a wilderness area way up north. Hopefully Blackielocks will never encounter people again. If it does, this tag will help identify it.”

“We’re sorry this happened,” said Daddy, still shaking from the experience. “You folks did the right thing,” said the other ranger. “You protected yourselves first and then sought help. Once a bear is in your stuff, there’s nothing you can do about it but seek safety. We’re just glad you folks are okay.”

“Yeah, so are we,” said Daddy. “And to think,” said Dad, “we came camping to relax and enjoy the wildlife.” “I’m just glad the wildlife didn’t enjoy us for lunch!” said the Child, and everyone laughed with relief.

The End