Bear encounter!
The day began with no real agenda beyond preparing for tomorrow’s departure. After nearly a week in Leavenworth — a week defined mostly by smoke‑filtered skies and limited outdoor options — the plan was simply to tidy up, relax, and get ready to move on. But the air finally shifted into the “moderate” zone, and that small improvement opened the door to one unexpected adventure.
Lynn got up later than usual, around 0730. She debated skipping the walk since she’d slept in, but after almost a week of being stuck indoors, the moderate air quality (AQI 80) was too tempting to pass up. So she headed out, enjoying the novelty of breathing without tasting smoke. Just two minutes into her walk, at the end of the road, a bear cub wandered out from the trees near an empty campsite. The sight stopped her cold. She had to remind herself that this wasn’t a zoo or a drive‑through wildlife park — this was real, unpredictable nature. And if there was a cub, there was a good chance mama bear was nearby.
The cub itself was adorable, casually exploring, and Lynn wished she had her Canon with the zoom lens. Once the shock settled, she snapped a few photos on her phone from a very safe distance. Then she turned around and headed straight back to the RV. Shortest walk ever.
She woke Kirk right away — someone had to hear about this — though realistically, he wasn’t about to go investigate a bear, much less a mother bear. Lynn did grab the Canon and step back outside for a moment, just to see if the cub was still lingering. It wasn’t, which was both reassuring and a clear sign not to go looking for it. Tracking down a bear was definitely not going to happen!
Kirk drifted back to sleep until about 0915, then got up, made breakfast, and we eased into the day with TV before starting chores around 11.
Kirk’s task was tightening the loose bolts on the slide toppers, while Lynn attempted to catch up on blogging — still two weeks behind — and reorganized the closet and bathroom. The RV has reached the stage where everything is packed so tightly that finding anything feels like playing a round of RV Tetris.
Lunch was simple, eaten in the RV. The air quality had turned hazardous again around noon (AQI 471)…Steve & Stacey must’ve taken the good air with them! The rest of the afternoon drifted by with movies, chores, and more organizing.
Around 4pm, we realized we had completely forgotten to fuel up the truck! Diesel was ten miles away and $6.59/gallon — a bit pricier than we’ve seen in the last few states we’ve passed through. Since it was dinner time, we looked for food, but most restaurants were closed. We ended up at the Squirrel Tree next to the gas station we were just at. Charming atmosphere, but the food was firmly in the “meh” category.
Driving back, we came in from a different direction and noticed the Level 2 Evacuation Zone signs directly across the street from the campground — maybe fifteen feet from the north border near the campground’s tiny homes and Clear Creek Lodge. We knew we were in Level 1, but hadn’t realized Level 2 was essentially right outside the fence! Excellent timing on tomorrow’s departure.
We returned around 6pm and headed out for an evening walk at 7:30 to explore the far west side of the campground. No bears this time — depending on one’s appetite for excitement, that was either a relief or a disappointment. The air was humid, and we walked for about half an hour before heading back.
The evening wrapped up with more travel prep and Enola Holmes 3, which was entertaining enough, especially after watching the first two.
Not many photos today — the bear shots are a bit grainy thanks to the heavy zooming on the phone. Still, a fuzzy bear is better than no bear at all, and the sighting easily earned the day’s headline. Tomorrow we head west toward Gig Harbor, hoping the skies continue to clear.
Weather – High 83*, Low 58*. Winds 4-8/16 mph. No rain. A bit humid out in the evening.
Traffic – None.
Food – Nothing to report.
Notable – Bear cub!!!
Screen time – Reacher, Lucky, The Death of Robin Hood (meh), Last Resort, Enola Holmes 3 (decent).
