Highlander Picture Day

Installing Highlander's new photographs by Richard Hahn of Estes Park became an all day affair!  At least, it required us to be inside all day.  There were many things we could do there, though, so it was a different kind of fun day.  The photos didn't all fit on one wall as we'd planned, but I think we found a suitable solution.  The pictures are awesome: a bear which was caught in the act of charging the photographer, a majestic elk, the often searched for big horn sheep, and twin owls for our own twin owls - he he.   One thing we might need to do is change the glass for non-glare glass.  The reason is obvious in these photos of the photos!  (Molly reports the holes in the wall have been repaired.)

After being inside all day, we decided going out to dinner was in order.  So, we added another first!  We went to The Rock Inn which had been recommended by a long time Y family.  It is just down the road from the Y and Dunraven and has been there as long as we can remember.  Our first memory of The Rock Inn was as a bar but its use has changed several times over the years.  We went there once  when it was a "cook your own steak" place.  Now, it's a laid back full service steak place with live music every Friday night.  Our food was really good!

July 2009: Jim Saw His First Bear!

In The Cabin! "Our" Bear had already visited other cabins and homes in the surrounding area and she reportedly has four or five friends who frequent various parts of Estes Park. The top photo is her youngest friend, affectionately known by the townspeople as Gingerbread. Gingerbread is a cub, just weaned from its mother. Below is another friend, a three year old.

Both are Black Bears, despite their color. Black Bears are generally not agressive, and, indeed, "our" bear was on her way out of the cabin as soon as she heard our voices downstairs. However, once a bear learns he can get food from humans, he persists in his attempts, rather than go back to search for food in the wild. Unless he can be scared back to the wild, he must be killed for fear his persistent efforts could cause harm to people who, ironically, put him in that position to begin with!
These photos were taken by Richard Hahn of Estes Park. You can click on the photo to see Twitter's larger version. The one on the bottom will grace the walls of Highlander as a reminder that we should not, even unwittingly, feed the bears!

Remember the motto: A Fed Bear is a Dead Bear!