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Summer brings berry season

You know that delicious berry jam you just can’t get enough of? The kind you lovingly slather on your favourite toasted bread? Well, picture yourself as a bear being prodded by Mother Nature to eat up, bulk up and prepare for the coming winter months

You know that delicious berry jam you just can’t get enough of? The kind you lovingly slather on your favourite toasted bread?

Well, picture yourself as a bear being prodded by Mother Nature to eat up, bulk up and prepare for the coming winter months (we know, it’s only August). What easier way to put on some winter weight poundage than plunk your butt down in a patch of Sherpherdia (buffaloberry) and pig out to your heart’s content?

For that reason, front and backcountry users alike must be aware that with berry bushes ripening nicely at lower elevations in the valley, bears, black and grizzly alike, will be taking advantage of them. Bears will eat hundreds, if not thousands, of the ripening berries at a crack.

The thing is, while bears’ heads are buried in the shrubs, they’ll be concentrating on eating, less so on listening, and hikers, riders, equestrians in the backcountry could easily stumble across them and surprise them in their dining endeavours – with no good end to the story.

And, while many Shepherdia shrubs have been removed in town, on trails, in campgrounds and in the backcountry in order to reduce human/wildlife interactions, not all have been cut down. Also, many that have been cut down in the past, have been rejuvenated in certain areas.

Just like it’s important for backcountry users to carry bear spray as a precaution, it would be wise for those same users to familiarize themselves with, and be able to identify, the Shepherdia bushes and, later this summer, dogwood berry bushes, another bear delicacy.

Keep in mind that, although bears are top predators in these mountains, the main part of their diet is vegetation, not meat, and berries make up much of that diet. No bear will pass up a patch of ripening berries and it’s up to those who share their wild spaces to be aware of the fact.

So, along with bear spray, checking ahead for trail closures, making noise, travelling in groups, etc. add berry bush identification to your bear safety checklist.

Flood funds increasing

Kudos this week to both the Canmore Rotary Club and the newly-minted Wim and Nancy Pauw Foundation in Banff for making available funds for flood relief in the valley.

As usual, citizens in our communities continue to step up to try and ease the load after the June flooding event.

During and after the flooding, valley residents responded big time with sweat and muscle. Now that things have settled down some, citizens are chipping in with funds to keep the work on track.

While complete flood recovery may take years, it is the ongoing efforts of volunteers and fundraisers that will continue to smooth the way.

In the case of the Pauw Foundation, $10,000 will be put toward trail rehabilitation, in keeping with the founders’ belief in community and active lifestyles.

With Canmore Rotary, the raising of $370,000 can likely best be described as an epic effort, one the club should be proud of. With provincial funding guidelines and details still up in the air, providing solid funds could provide well in advance of whatever provincial or federal funds eventually come through.

Because there are still Canmore and Exshaw homeowners still muddling through the process, some with no end in site, the fact that locals are making a difference is encouraging and again displays the kind of community spirit that everyone embraces.


Rocky Mountain Outlook

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