Grizzly Gourmets 75 



below our camp, where there was quite a wide bottom, 

 through which the creek ran. There were several chan- 

 nels in the stream that had been formed by log-jam ob- 

 structions during high water, and among these channels 

 were several islands. It was an ideal fishing ground, but, 

 as the bears worked all the channels, it was an even guess 

 as to just where we would catch them. For a couple of 

 days we watched one place without success, and on the 

 second evening were returning to camp, after watching 

 until dark, and were crossing one of these islands on a 

 foot log. Just as we passed around the large root at the 

 butt of a log there was a snort and a splash that, expect- 

 ing nothing of the sort, startled us and nearly threw us off 

 our feet. The commotion was not over ten feet from us 

 on the other side of the creek, where the bank was three 

 feet high and the water ran two or three feet deep. Dark 

 as it was, we could see the water splashing and hear 

 something trying to get up the bank, but could not 

 make out distinctly what it was, although from the snort 

 we had heard we knew that it must be a bear. 



My companion was packing three or four salmon that 

 we had caught and were going to put out for bait, while I 

 had an eight by ten camera on my back. There was 

 a sudden dropping of fish and an attempt to shed the 

 camera, but by the time this was done the bear had 

 climbed the bank. For an instant, however, he appeared 

 silhouetted against the western light, and I saw his gray 

 coat and took a quick shot at him. This brought out an- 

 other snort, with much breaking of branches, and we could 

 hear him for quite a while as he charged through the brush 

 in the bottom. 



